Chapter 72

Vincent Wilson awkwardly rubbed his nose and took a large gulp of his drink. "Annabelle always said she and Alexander were just friends."

"Friends?" Nathan York scoffed. "Even a blind man could see how Alexander feels about her."

Vincent chuckled nervously but didn’t respond.

Nathan swirled his glass, the ice clinking softly. "The real tragedy is Evelyn Carter. Used as a stand-in without even knowing it. Every kindness Alexander showed her was meant for Annabelle. Now that the real one is back, she’s been tossed aside."

Vincent shrugged. "Was marrying into the Hamilton family such a hardship? The divorce settlement alone would set her up for life."

"True," Nathan agreed.

"What’s her background like?"

"Rumor has it she couldn’t even afford a place in Hudson City. After the divorce, she had to crash at a friend’s place."

Vincent smirked. "Then she should be thanking Annabelle. If it weren’t for sharing her name, would someone like her ever have gotten so lucky?"

The next day, Evelyn finally had a day off.

She limped to the hospital to change her bandages, then stayed in her office to review patient files.

At noon, Olivia Lightfoot walked in with takeout from the cafeteria and shut the medical chart in front of Evelyn.

"Working on your day off?"

Evelyn looked up with a faint smile. "I had nothing better to do."

"You could’ve slept or played games."

Her smile faded. "Olivia."

"Yeah?"

"Am I that boring?"

Olivia handed her a pair of disposable chopsticks. "Of course not. The interns all say your lectures are engaging."

"I mean in life," Evelyn said quietly. "I don’t watch short videos, don’t follow celebrities, can’t even name half the makeup brands."

Olivia chewed on her chopsticks thoughtfully. "Isn’t that normal for doctors? Especially in OB-GYN—we can’t afford to slack off. Lives are at stake."

Evelyn stared out the window. "Dating a doctor must be really dull."

"That’s why most of us end up dating within the profession," Olivia joked. "No one can complain about the other."

The phone rang abruptly.

It was the hospital director.

"Dr. Carter, are you at the hospital?"

"Yes."

"Come to my office."

Evelyn glanced at her bandaged leg. "Can we discuss it over the phone?"

"Better in person." The director paused as someone spoke to him, then corrected himself. "Wait in your office. I’ll come down."

After hanging up, Olivia paled. "Do you think… they found out about the abortion pills?"