Chapter 772

Evelyn stared at the document Alexander handed her, her fingertips lightly tracing the edge of the paper.

"I need an explanation about the acquisition case."

Alexander was prepared. He nudged a coffee cup toward her.

"They cut off our raw material supply first. I just returned the favor."

His gaze swept over the box of surgical stapler samples on the table, his brow furrowing slightly. "That medical rep didn't seem very professional."

Every man who approached Evelyn received his X-ray-like scrutiny three times over.

She flipped through the product manual, pausing at the key specifications. "Credentials check out, but his demeanor wasn't industry-standard."

With efficient movements, she packed the materials into her bag. As she stood, her coat fluttered slightly.

"I'm heading to the hospital."

Alexander immediately reached for the baby in the stroller, but she stopped him.

"Too many germs at the hospital." She pointed at the willow catkins drifting outside the window. "Wait with her in the car."

The nurses at the station brightened when they saw Evelyn.

"Dr. Carter, your boyfriend was just here looking for you!"

Evelyn froze mid-step. Now she understood how Alexander had pinpointed her location at the teahouse. She pinched the bridge of her nose—this problem was more vexing than any complicated medical case.

Inside the patient room, the pregnant woman's face was as pale as paper, her fingers gripping the sheets.

"Dr. Carter, my baby..."

Evelyn opened the test report. The shadow on the CT scan of the heart was alarming.

"Cardiac failure symptoms at four months. The risks will multiply exponentially by the third trimester." Her voice was as calm as if discussing the weather. "Mortality rate during delivery is as high as 30%."

The woman's husband suddenly dropped to his knees, pressing his forehead against the bed rail.

"Our last child... it was a car accident..."

Evelyn's pen made an abrupt line across the chart. She snapped it shut, her fingers trembling slightly in her white coat pocket.

The hospital doors opened to a gust of wind carrying the sharp scent of disinfectant.

Alexander's coat billowed behind him as he caught her cold hand.

"Where's your scarf?"

"Left it in the locker room." She instinctively tried to pull away, but he held on tighter.

His palm was like warm jade, heat spreading from her fingertips to her wrist. Evelyn suddenly remembered her professor saying during residency that human body heat transfers at 0.5 meters per second.

That abstract fact now had tangible meaning.

"Angelica chicken soup?" He glanced at her flushed earlobes. "Or red dates with goji berries?"

The car's AC hummed softly. Evelyn paused while fastening her seatbelt. In the rearview mirror, the baby blew bubbles at her.

"She actually believes you when you say that?"

Alexander turned the steering wheel, his lips curving slightly. "I told her Mommy went to buy candy, so she's counting to one hundred obediently."

Shadows of plane trees flowed across the windshield. Evelyn studied the unfamiliar streets, her reflection in the window showing widened eyes.

"This isn't the way home."

"Taking you somewhere." He undid two shirt buttons with one hand, his Adam's apple moving in the shadows. "About that pregnant patient... I found out some things."

The tires rolled over a speed bump, eliciting giggles from the stroller. Evelyn realized then—somewhere along the way, he'd become attuned to every shift in her emotions.

Just like now, the warmth of his right hand still lingered on her fingertips.