Love at First Sight? Mr. Harrison Has Been Scheming All Along-Chapter 181: Leo Linden
Leaving the parking garage, the car headed home.
Sean Harrison hadn’t moved in all these years. He still lived in the same apartment near Elysian Hospital.
The apartment’s layout was exactly the same as it had been five years ago.
And by "exactly," I mean in every sense of the word.
When Rory Linden had left back then, she had taken her things—some clothes, skincare products, and the pile of medical books from the bookshelf.
He didn’t know when she had left.
It was the part-time cleaning lady who had called him to say, "It seems Miss Linden hasn’t been home recently."
By the time he set foot in the apartment again, it was already March.
All traces of a woman’s presence were long gone—even her usual drinking glass had disappeared.
Sean Harrison had his company arrange for several physicals at Elysian Hospital.
He knew it was impossible to see Rory Linden there, but he went again and again under the guise of accompanying his employees.
Later, he bought replacements for everything she had used, arranging them in their original places based on his memory.
This included the bouquet in the entryway. A flower shop delivered a fresh one every day, tasked with arranging it exactly as it had been before.
As Sean Harrison changed his shoes, a pair of pink and white women’s slippers sat beside his own.
They were just placed there every day, and had been for many years.
What Sean Harrison regretted most was realizing only after Rory Linden left that they had never taken a single photo together.
Over five years, his memory of her had gradually started to blur.
When he tried to recall her face, sometimes all he could conjure was an outline.
Standing before the floor-to-ceiling window and gazing at the Elysian Hospital sign, Sean Harrison, as if possessed, took out his phone and called Ethan Dixon.
"Go find out which hospital Rory Linden is at now..." Sean Harrison began, then changed his mind. "Never mind. It’s nothing. Get some rest."
"President Harrison, actually, regarding Miss Linden, I anticipated you might ask, so I’ve already looked into it."
As Ethan Dixon spoke, Sean Harrison didn’t get angry as he usually would have.
The line went quiet.
Ethan Dixon hesitated for a moment before continuing, "Miss Linden left the country on January 13th, five years ago. She didn’t return for the first two years. I haven’t checked recently. Would you like me to look into it?"
’Yes.’
That was Sean Harrison’s answer.
But in the end, he said, "No, don’t."
He would never forget what she said the day they broke up.
She had said, "I hope we never see each other again."
Putting himself in Rory Linden’s shoes, if someone had been wonderful to him, promised him the world, and then broken up with him so abruptly...
Anyone would find that impossible to accept.
In five years, she might have already gotten married and had children. The only thing he could do was not to disturb her.
-
「Five days later.」
On the way to work, Ethan Dixon reported to Sean Harrison, "President Harrison, the director of Sanctum Hospital just informed me that the foreign expert they hired is arriving this morning. They’ll then examine your mother and propose a treatment plan."
"Understood."
Sean Harrison wasn’t particularly concerned.
After a moment of silence in the car, Sean Harrison spoke again. "Find some time today. I’ll go meet this doctor."
He wasn’t familiar with Sanctum Hospital, and he knew some private hospitals would do anything for money, completely abandoning their conscience.
It wouldn’t matter if the new treatment plan they proposed was useless; what he feared were the side effects.
If the media got ahold of this and reported that he was neglecting his mother, it could also hurt the company’s stock price.
「Meanwhile.」
Gregory Linden, the vice director of Sanctum Hospital, had personally rushed to the international airport to greet the cardiac surgery expert who had traveled from afar.
By the time he reached the arrivals hall, her flight had already landed.
Gregory Linden glanced over the expert’s profile, sent by the hospital administration, one more time.
The specialist was a woman of Celestria descent, just over thirty years old.
The profile only listed her full name: Aurora Lin.
Just as Gregory Linden was reading the profile on his phone...
"Excuse me, are you from Sanctum Hospital?"
A clear, pleasant female voice sounded beside him.
Gregory Linden followed the sound of the voice and froze slightly.
The woman before him was dressed in a simple T-shirt and jeans. Her medium-length hair was tied back in a simple low ponytail, with a few strands loose around her ears.
He had seen a photo of the doctor before, and she looked beautiful enough in the picture.
But seeing her in person now—with her delicate, oval face and a pair of stunning phoenix eyes—she was so beautiful it was hard to look away.
"Are... are you Dr. Aurora?" Gregory Linden asked, pronouncing her English name. He then introduced himself, "Hello, I’m the vice director of Sanctum Hospital. My name is Gregory Linden."
"Hello, Director Linden. My Celestria name is Rory Linden. We share the same surname. You can just call me Dr. Linden."
After speaking, Rory Linden reached out and pulled a little boy to her side. "This is my son, Leo Linden. I mentioned to the hospital before that I’ll likely have him with me for most of my trip."
"Of course, of course. We’ve arranged for a young nurse to help look after the child when needed."
As Gregory Linden finished speaking, his gaze lowered, and only then did he notice the little boy by Rory Linden’s side.
He had intended to just take a quick glance to remember the child’s face.
But that one look made his expression stiffen slightly.
The boy before him was about 1.1 meters tall, with very fair skin. His eyes were dark and bright, like Tahitian pearls.
His small face was exquisitely handsome.
Even at only three or four years old, you could tell he would grow up to be a handsome man!
But that wasn’t the main point.
The main point was...
The little boy’s face... no matter how you looked at it, he was the spitting image of Sean Harrison!
Sean Harrison hadn’t visited the hospital once since Charlotte Rhodes was admitted.
But the man’s face often appeared in financial news.
Most people were familiar with his appearance.
The little boy’s eyes and brows...
If he didn’t know that Sean Harrison had been single and unmarried for all these years, he would have truly suspected this child was his son.
Gregory Linden didn’t dare to stare. Averting his gaze, he said, "Dr. Linden, the car is in the parking garage. I’ll take you."
"Alright."
Rory Linden nodded.
On the way to the parking garage, Gregory Linden made small talk. "Dr. Linden, I’ve seen your résumé. I never expected someone so accomplished to be so young. Truly a remarkable achievement."
"Thank you."
Rory Linden felt her current abilities were worthy of the compliment.
Five years ago, during her most difficult time, she had regretted going abroad.
But now, she was only grateful for the choice she made back then.
Gregory Linden asked again, "Dr. Linden, you’re from Celestria, correct?"
"Yes. I did my Ph.D. at Celestria Medical University. And I’m still a citizen of Celestria; I never naturalized elsewhere."
Rory Linden briefly explained her situation.
"Is that so!" Gregory Linden grew excited and immediately said, "If you have any intention of returning to Celestria to work, please consider Sanctum Hospital. Our doors are always open to you."
The three of them got into the car. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝚠𝕖𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝕖𝚕.𝚌𝗼𝗺
Leo Linden, who had been silent until now, spoke up, "Mommy, are we going to see Godmother now?"
"We have to wait a little while. You be a good boy and play with your puzzle cube. Mommy will take you to see her after I’m done with work."
The godmother Rory Linden mentioned was none other than Sherry Walsh.
Rory Linden turned to Gregory Linden and said, "Could you please send me the patient’s detailed file again?"
Gregory Linden sent it over via email.
Rory Linden opened the email on her tablet and the first thing she noticed was the patient’s name.
Charlotte Rhodes.
