"I'll have two orders of pasta. One without tomato sauce, sub black pepper sauce. A mango juice, plain water, and a blueberry mousse—light on the cream."Nate placed the order with such ease, and it was clearly meant for two.One of those dishes? Tailored exactly to Lena's tastes. She was all about black pepper sauce, but hated tomatoes. A detail only someone close to her would know. Lena never made a fuss about food in public, but she'd never touch anything with tomatoes.Nate hadn't seen her in years, and they'd only recently made things official. Yet here he was, already tuned into her preferences. It was sweet how much attention he was putting into this relationship.I used to joke that watching them was like watching two clueless people stumble into love, but clearly, they were way more serious than I gave them credit for."We should order," Hayden squeezed my hand gently, bringing me back to reality.I nodded, realizing now wasn't the time to interrupt Lena and Nate. They w
I opened my social media and noticed a new friend request. Normally, I don't accept random adds unless they got my number, but I clicked on it out of habit. The name? Cedric Sawyer. Apparently, he's a cop.I racked my brain, trying to place him. Then it clicked—he was the officer from yesterday, the one who handled my parents' case. I didn't catch his name at the time, but yeah, that had to be him. Plus, he'd asked for my number, so it made sense.I shrugged and hit accept. A notification popped up, saying we were now connected. I didn't message him, though. If he had something to say, he'd reach out first.I flipped over to Lena's profile and shot her a message: [Girl, you need to tone down the superhero vibe. Be playful, maybe even a little flirty. Let him feel like he's gotta protect you or something. Right now, you're making him feel like he's the sidekick.]After sending it, I glanced across the café at Lena, but she was totally absorbed in her drink. Classic Lena—always obliv
Hayden, quick as ever, caught my juice before it could spill all over the table. Before I could even turn around, I heard a voice I knew way too well."Kiki, you're something else. Maybe I should start taking notes," Lena teased, sliding up beside me with that mischievous grin.I lightly swatted her arm. "You know, scaring people isn't cool.""If you're scared, I definitely can't afford the compensation. Right, Hayden?" Lena shot him a playful look.This girl—around Nate, she was all sweet and innocent, but with anyone else, it was like she got a license for sass. How she managed to flip the switch in front of Nate, I'd never know."Where's Nate?" I asked, glancing at the empty seat he'd been in earlier."He left," Lena shrugged, plopping down next to me. Her eyes flicked to Hayden. "Hayden, seriously? Two plates, and Kiki's got none? Not exactly boyfriend of the year material."She said it on purpose, totally knowing Hayden had eaten my leftovers.I nudged her under the table,
Lena's face went stone cold. "I've already told you—keep this up, and it's harassment. I'll call the cops.""Dr. Lane, it's not harassment! I just... I like you. I wanna be with you..."I cringed so hard I could barely stand it. It reminded me of the guy who sent her flowers signed "Sancho." Was this him? I didn't care—he was Sancho now."Dr. Lane, I swear, it was love at first sight..." Sancho even raised his hand like he was making some grand, heartfelt vow."But she hated you at first sight," I shot back, sliding next to Lena.Hayden stood up too, looking like he'd be ready to step in if things got any worse.Sancho glanced at me. "Who are you? I'm talking to Dr. Lane. Could you, like, not?"If I'd eaten more earlier, I probably would've puked just from his voice."And who are you to think just 'cause you say you like her, she has to care?" No way was I letting this go."Yeah, I like her! It's a pure, sacred kind of love. My feelings are noble!" He actually sounded serious,
Lena didn't answer me right away. Her gaze was locked on Hayden outside the window. "How long do you think he'll take?"I glanced outside. Sancho was practically groveling, completely at Hayden's mercy, while Hayden just stood there with one hand casually tucked in his pocket. The morning sunlight hit him just right, making him look like he was glowing or something.And I couldn't take my eyes off him.This quiet sense of pride bubbled up inside me, a voice in the back of my mind whispering, 'Keira, that's your guy.'Getting involved with Hayden had been kind of an accident—something that happened when I was still reeling from my breakup with Jace, just looking for a distraction. But now? I realized I'd hit the jackpot. He wasn't just good-looking; he could handle things."Uh, hello? I asked you a question," Lena nudged me when I didn't respond.I blinked, snapping out of my thoughts. "Oh, right. Shouldn't take much longer."If I had to guess, Sancho was probably begging Hayden
Out of nowhere, Lena blurted, "If you'd been this smooth earlier, Jace wouldn't have run off." It felt like she'd lost her mind for a second, because bringing up an ex in front of your current boyfriend? Major no-no.I stiffened for a second, but I knew Lena wasn't trying to hurt me. She wasn't clueless either. One glance at her and I caught the mischievous wink she sent my way.I got it—she was testing Hayden. She wanted to see how he'd react to hearing about Jace. Classic Lena, always pushing boundaries.Most guys would flinch at the mention of an ex, especially in front of their girlfriend. But I wondered, How far is she gonna take this? What if she pushed too hard, and Hayden just decided to peace out?I risked a glance at him. His expression didn't change. No flicker of annoyance, no comment, nothing.Lena wasn't about to let it go. "Right, Hayden? Don't you think?"I wanted to melt into the floor.But Hayden just replied, "Kiki only gets clingy with me."A wave of sweet
Ron invited me to dinner, and it hit me—Hayden had mentioned the exact same thing earlier when I was getting my blood drawn.At the time, I thought he was just messing with me, trying to distract me. Turns out, he wasn't kidding."It's Mr. Shane?" Hayden asked, like he already knew."Yeah," I said, eyeing him suspiciously. "Did you tell him to ask me?"Hayden was Ron's boss, so it wouldn't take much for Ron to follow orders.Hayden frowned a little. "No."I shot him a sarcastic smile, totally convinced he was covering his real identity."He told me in advance," Hayden added, trying to clarify.But was that really it? I wasn't in the mood to dig deeper. Free dinner? I wasn't about to pass that up. I smirked. "I said yes. You coming too?""Yeah," he replied, in that classic Hayden way. Seriously, if someone made a list of his most-used words, "yeah" would totally top it.But then he dropped the line that made me roll my eyes: "I don't make a habit of letting my girlfriend have
There was nothing wrong between Hayden and me—just the awkward feeling from his secret. But I couldn't dump that on Yuna. She was too delicate, and with her heart condition, she didn't need the extra stress."No, nothing's wrong," I reassured her with a smile. "You've seen how Hayden and I are. We're fine."Yuna studied me with those wide, innocent eyes, and for a second, I had to look away. Her gaze was too pure, like it would expose the mess in my head.I raised my hand in defense, laughing softly. "Seriously, nothing's wrong. If you don't believe me, you can grill Hayden when he's back.""Keira," Yuna murmured, hugging my arm and resting her head on my shoulder. "If Hayden ever messes up, just hit him or yell at him—but don't leave him, okay?"Her soft, pleading tone tugged at my heart. I rubbed my head against hers, affectionate. "Alright, I'll leave it to you to handle him."Yuna nodded, all serious. "I'll always be on your side."She was so afraid of me leaving Hayden. It
"Got it!" Lena responded cheerfully. She washed her hands before sitting back down, picking up the utensils Aaron had prepared for her, and diving into her dumpling-and-dipping-sauce breakfast combo. "Uncle, why aren’t you eating?" She had already eaten two dumplings before realizing he hadn’t touched any. "I’m not hungry." Three words. Which meant he hadn’t eaten yet. "There’s too much food. I can’t finish it all by myself. Eat some too," Lena said casually as she picked up a dumpling with her chopsticks and held it up to his mouth. She did it so naturally—until she realized what she had just done. Aaron froze for a second, surprised by her gesture. The moment of hesitation made her realize too—wasn’t this kind of inappropriate? She was just about to pull her hand back when— He leaned in and took the dumpling straight into his mouth. Lena’s face flushed red in an instant. She hurriedly withdrew her hand, lowered her head, and focused on eating. Meanwhile, Aar
She was shocked to see him here so early. Especially today—a day when everyone was celebrating the new year, spending time with their loved ones—and yet, he was here. With her. Lena wasn’t made of stone. She felt it. A warmth, an unspoken emotion that settled deep in her chest. "Uncle, why are you here so early?" She walked over, hands casually tucked into her coat pockets. "I didn’t want you to go hungry," Aaron replied simply, lifting the bag of food in his hand. He glanced at her break room. "Open the door." She unlocked the door and stepped inside, with him following close behind. Her break room was small—a single desk and chair, a narrow bed, and a tiny wardrobe. Nothing extra, nothing unnecessary. "Sit down, Uncle," she said naturally, settling onto the bed while motioning for him to take the chair. Aaron placed the food down and asked, "Did you sleep at all?" "I did," Lena replied. But as soon as the words left her mouth, she thought of that dream—and let o
"If it weren’t for my goddaughter, I wouldn’t even bother with you," Lena said, gently rocking the baby in her arms. "Right, little Aurora? Your godmother just adores you." "Come on, Aurora, it’s time to eat," Lena said as she carefully placed the baby in Keira's arms. Although it was her first time, Keira wasn’t embarrassed. She followed Lena’s instructions, trying to breastfeed for the first time. But the process was… painful. And since her posture was incorrect, neither of them got it right—Keira ended up covered in sweat from struggling, and her baby still hadn’t eaten properly. Panic set in. Anxiety crept up her spine. "What do I do?" Keira asked, her voice tight with unease. "It’s okay. This happens at first. Let’s transition with formula for now," Lena reassured Keira before glancing at Hayden, who had been standing there the whole time, watching anxiously—and sweating just as much as Keira was. "Go make your daughter a bottle," she told him. Hayden, the man wh
That conversation… Lena shuddered. Yeah, she had definitely come back too early. It was best to leave now before she ruined the mood for those two inside. Not wanting to hear any more, she quickly turned to leave—only to smack her leg against a nearby chair. The pain was real, but worse was the noise it made, drawing attention to her presence. Inside the room, Hayden—already feeling awkward from Keira's teasing—froze. The sound from outside made him even more uncomfortable. Keira couldn’t hold back her laughter. The moment Keira burst out laughing, however, pain shot through her lower abdomen. "Ah—ow!" Keira gasped. Hayden immediately panicked. "What’s wrong? Where does it hurt?" Hearing her cry, Lena rushed in as well. "What happened?" "I laughed too hard and pulled my stitches," Keira explained, gripping Hayden’s hand tightly. Lena glared at Keira. "You’re a mother now, and yet you’re still acting like a child. Do you have any idea what condition you’re in?"
"It’s fine. I can do it," Hayden said naturally as he picked up the basin and went to fetch warm water. The moment he stepped out, Lena turned to scold Keira. "You went through so much pain to give birth to his child. Why would you feel bad about letting him do something for you?" "It’s not that I feel bad—I just feel embarrassed," Keira whispered in defense. Lena rolled her eyes. "So dramatic." Keira shot her a glare in return. "Just wait until it’s your turn. When your husband has to handle your private matters, you’ll understand how awkward it is." The moment the words left Keira's mouth, she saw Lena’s face turn red. Lena quickly hugged the baby and turned away. But Keira caught it. Something was off. "Wait… why are you blushing?" Keira asked suspiciously. "I am not blushing," she denied immediately. What Keira didn’t know was that her words had triggered the memory of Lena's ridiculous dream—where she had been lying on the delivery bed, cursing Aaron while gi
The moment she finished cursing, Lena jolted awake. She sat there, dazed. What kind of ridiculous dream was that? She had assisted in delivering countless babies before, but this was the first time she had ever dreamed of giving birth herself. And not only that—she had dreamed of giving birth to Aaron’s child? That was beyond outrageous. Absolutely absurd! What a way to start the new year. That dream was anything but beautiful. Lena ran a hand down her face, shaking off the lingering unease. She quickly got up, poured herself a glass of water to calm down, and then left the break room. Back in the hospital room, Hayden was feeding Keira. Keira was perfectly capable of eating on her own, but he insisted on feeding her, saying that she was in a special period and should be treated like a queen. That this was the time to learn how to be spoiled properly. Fine. If this was how he wanted to make up for the suffering she endured giving birth to their daughter, she’d give
Keira looked at Lena and smiled as she followed up on Hayden’s words. "You’re family. It’s different." Lena shot her a subtle glare before stuffing the red envelope into her pocket and saying, "Give me the rest. I’ll hand them out for you later." Hayden passed her the prepared stack of red envelopes, and as she took them, she asked, "What about the other departments?" Hayden and Aaron exchanged a glance and chuckled. "Of course. Every medical staff member in this hospital gets one." "President Hart, you’re too generous," Lena said, giving him a thumbs-up. With that, she took the envelopes and left. Aaron glanced at the time. "If there’s nothing else, I’ll be heading back now." "Mm. Happy New Year!" Hayden said, offering his holiday wishes. "Happy New Year to your whole family," Aaron replied, adding a few extra words that made both Hayden and me instinctively turn toward the baby in the bassinet. From today onward, we were officially a family of three. Outside the h
When Keira returned to the hospital room, she was greeted by a sight that made her pause. The room was decorated with fresh flowers and balloons, and beside her bed, there was a small cart filled with various gift boxes. The atmosphere was so festive that if someone walked in, they might have thought it was a birthday party rather than a postpartum recovery room. "What’s all this?" Lena asked on Keira's behalf. "A reward for my wife," Hayden answered, his hand still holding Keira's as he gazed at her with deep affection. "She went through so much. This is my way of thanking her." Keira smiled faintly. "I don’t need any of this." "Whether you need it or not is one thing. Giving it to you is my choice," Hayden said, pressing a kiss onto Keira's fingertips. "Even if everything I have already belongs to you, I still want to give you more." "Such a loving husband—honestly, what more could a woman ask for?" Lena teased before patting Keira's hospital bed. "But if President Hart r
Elder Mitchell wasn’t buying it. "That just means you guys didn’t really want to give anything. If you truly wanted to, there’s no such thing as a gift that can’t be delivered." The two old men started bickering again, but Hayden ignored them. Instead, he kept his eyes on the infant bathing room. Before long, the nurse finished bathing the baby and carried her out. Hayden reached out to take her, but the two elders immediately moved to get closer. He blocked them without hesitation. "Don’t you know old people’s eyes are toxic? You shouldn’t be staring at her for too long." Elder Hart: "…" Elder Mitchell: "…" With that, Hayden carried the baby and walked away. The two old men trailed after him, hoping to catch another glimpse, but Hayden wasn’t about to give them the chance. "Congratulations," Aaron, who had been standing nearby, offered his well wishes. "It’s a daughter. Take a look," Hayden said, his pride practically radiating off him. Aaron lowered his gaze to the