Chapter 2

Anne's temper flared at once. "There are so many hospitals in Windleton! Why do you have to come here? And why me?"

But sure enough, Sophia showed up the next morning.

As soon as she stepped out of the car, she was surrounded by paparazzi. Thankfully, the hospital had arranged security in advance. And with Zachery's help, they managed to get her into the building.

Anne had already passed the case to another OB-GYN. But when Sophia claimed they were friends, the hospital's director, Donald Greggs, called Anne and told her to take over.

The checkup went quickly. After reviewing the results, Anne confirmed everything looked fine.

"Your estimated gestational age is ten weeks and three days. Since this is your first prenatal checkup, you'll need to register for a pregnancy booklet." She shifted her gaze from the computer screen to Zachery.

"The instructions are posted on the wall behind you. Just follow the steps outlined there."

Zachery glanced at the wall and found it troublesome. "You do it. I'll stay here with Sophia."

Anne lowered her gaze. "Sorry, but the registration process needs to be handled by the expecting mother or her family. I'm a doctor. I'm not obligated to do that."

"Can't you be a little more understanding, Anne? Sophia needs me right now."

"If every family member needed me to be 'understanding,' I'd be running errands for everyone," she shot back.

Zachery frowned. "You—"

"Next!" Anne interrupted.

Before Zachery could say anything else, Sophia stopped him.

"Anne, I won't trouble Zachery. Please don't be upset," she said.

Anne looked at Sophia. For 15 years, Sophia had kept Zachery at a distance as a friend, rejecting his closeness, only to pull him back when he started to drift away.

She knew that Zachery had Anne, yet she still shamelessly accepted his love and efforts, all while turning around and telling everyone that she was Anne's friend.

Anne asked coolly, "He's your fiancé. Isn't it normal for him to handle these things? Why would I be upset?"

"Did you two fight because of me?" Sophia asked.

"We didn't fight. We broke up," Anne said.

"Anne, you've really misunderstood Zachery. He's just trying to help me."

Anne raised her hand to stop her. "You're not that important. We didn't break up because of you."

"Anne Stafford! How can you talk to Sophia like that? Apologize!" Zachery snapped.

Anne had been holding it in, but she couldn't anymore. "Get lost!"

Her rude response led to a complaint. Zachery made the complaint call right in front of her.

As soon as they left, Anne was called to the director's office.

"You know this hospital is part of Judd Corporation, right?" Donald asked.

Anne didn't respond. Of course, she knew.

"The two people you just attended to are the popular actress, Sophia Weaver, and the second son of the Judd family." Donald looked at her as he spoke, hoping she'd realize the gravity of her mistake.

"So?" Anne asked, her hands in her pockets.

Donald slammed his hand on the desk. "I'm just going to ask you one thing, Anne. Do you still want to work here?"

"If I'm being fired simply because Mr. Judd is upset over my refusal of an unreasonable request, then I believe I need to file for labor arbitration," Anne shot back.

"Y-You're too young! That's the second son of the Judd family! Do you think an insignificant doctor like you can afford to upset him?"

"I have patients to attend to. Unless there's something else, I'll get back to work."

"Y-You're so stubborn!" Seeing her about to leave, Donald hurried to stop her. "One more thing. Ms. Weaver trusts you. Since it's hard for her to come to the hospital, you'll be her primary doctor and visit her at home when needed."

"I refuse."

"You have no choice!"

…

Back in her office, Anne's emotions were a whirlwind. She couldn't understand why Zachery had done this to her.

For eight years, she had loved him with all her heart. Was it because she loved him that she deserved to be treated like this?

"Here's the booklet."

Anne hadn't expected Zachery and Sophia to show up, and there wasn't even a hint of guilt from him.

She let out a helpless laugh, silently doing her job as she took the booklet and entered the information into the computer.

"The booklet covers what you need to watch for during pregnancy. Be sure to check it. I'll also mark the date for your next checkup. Remember to come by," she said, writing the date down.

"Sophia and I are busy, so you'll need to remind me. I'll bring her in," Zachery said.

Anne paused, her pen hovering over the paper. "Sorry, but I'm probably busier than both of you, and I don't like keeping track of other people's matters."

"Sophia's business is mine, and mine is yours. Just remind me. Why so many excuses?"

"Zachery." Anne lifted her head to look at him. Her whirlwind of emotions all seemed to fade away at that moment.

"I'll say it again. We broke up. I don't want to talk further anymore. You can keep complaining about me, but I'm just doing my job and treating all my patients the same."

Zachery bit his lip. At that moment, he seemed to sense her resolve.

"I'll remember the date." Sophia tugged at Zachery's hand, then put on a look of grace and forgiveness. "We'll be counting on you, Anne."

"I'll just do my job," Anne replied flatly.

"We'll take our leave, then," Sophia said.

"Bye."

As they stood up, a few fanatic fans and paparazzi suddenly barged in, all with cameras in hand, pointing at Sophia and Zachery.

"Ms. Weaver, are you really just friends with Mr. Sean Lewis? How do you explain the reports of you both entering a hotel together late at night?"

"Mr. Judd, did you really propose to Ms. Weaver? Or is this just a publicity stunt?"

"Are you two really a couple? Didn't Ms. Weaver state before that you two were nothing more than friends?"

The fans barged in, pushing and shoving.

Zachery pulled Sophia close to protect her but still got jostled a few times.

The security outside couldn't get in, so Anne stepped out from behind her desk to help Zachery shield Sophia, ensuring nothing went wrong.

Seeing her approach, Zachery leaned Sophia toward her for support.

"Keep her safe!" he shouted.

With that, he turned to face the fans and paparazzi and shouted, "Out! All of you!"

These people, eager to dig for news, didn't listen to him and continued pushing their way inside. One of them got too close to Sophia but was quickly shoved aside by others from behind.

The crowd jostled and pressed. In the chaos, they ended up colliding with Sophia.

Anne stepped in front to block, but the force of the push sent her crashing into the desk corner.

It was already painful, but just as Zachery pulled Sophia toward him, Annie bumped the corner of the desk again. Tears instantly welled up in her eyes as the pain spread.

At that moment, Zachery wrapped his arms around Sophia and leaned down to kiss her.