NOT BAD

Doctor Hardy had just come out of his house and was about to drive to work when his girlfriend Annabelle drove into the compound with her best friend by her side.

Doc was surprised and came out of his car, "this is a pleasant surprise, darling. I thought you wouldn't be back for another two weeks."

Anna hugged Doc and kissed him before saying, "I missed you so much baby, so I had to cut short my trip. Also, I heard that prince Daniel is back, and guess who I brought to meet with him?"

Daniel stared at the young girl that stood behind Anna. She was very beautiful and Anna had always spoken about her.

However, in their six months of dating, he had never gotten the chance to meet her. The girl came forward and Anna said, "baby, this is my best friend, Ella.

Ella, this is the love of my life, Hardy."

Ella smiled and shook hands with doctor Hardy who said to Anna, "I am so happy to have you here but this is really bad timing as I have so much to do at the hospital and Daniel is coming over as well so I don't want to keep him waiting."

Ella's eyes lit up when she heard Doc mention Daniel's name. She pinched Anna on her left thigh.

Anna instantly understood and said, "we will come with you to the hospital, baby. Afterall, I have heard so much about the prince but never got to meet him.

Before we move though, I will like to have a word with you, in private."

Ella excused both Anna and doc the moment she heard Anna's words. Doc listened attentively while Anna said, "my friend Ella, so badly wants to get married to the prince.

She is beautiful, highly educated, well-mannered, and comes from a good family. She was among the damsels who showed up last week for the prince to choose his bride but he ended up running away for reasons best known to him."

Doc thought back to that hilarious scene and smiled.

Meanwhile, Anna continued, "Ella didn't know back then that you are friends with the prince otherwise I would have told you sooner.

I've known of her admiration for the prince for so many years. She had seen him several times in London but was afraid to approach him as she did not know how he would react.

The moment she told me about everything, I had to hurry down. I know that prince Daniel is your best friend and I also know that he has to choose a bride very soon.

Since he has not chosen anyone yet, please, introduce my friend to him because I don't think he saw her the last time she was at his place since she stood at the back.

She is a rich heiress and is very beautiful so I'm sure that the prince would like her. All she needs is a chance for him to see her.

Also, think of how amazing it would be if your best friend got married to my best friend."

Doc smiled. He thought about how Daniel had earlier asked him to introduce a girl to him so he could present her to his parents.

He stared at Ella for a few minutes and said, "well, she is indeed beautiful and may have a chance with Daniel but ultimately the decision is his. Daniel is sort of different and I'm not sure he wants something permanent for now.

However, I will let him know and make arrangements for them to meet later in the day. If your friend successfully charms him, good for her but if he turns her down, then she would have to move on."

"He won't turn her down," Anna said confidently. "Let's just get him to see her for now and drink in her exquisite beauty."

Doc laughed before getting into his car while Anna and Ella got into theirs and drove behind him as he made his way to the hospital.

When Daniel got to the hospital, he carefully observed Ivy and realized that she was a very beautiful girl.

Previously, her face was covered with bruises so he couldn't really tell how she looked but now he could clearly see that she had alluring blue eyes, and her cheekbones perfectly accentuated her oval face as well as the bridge of her nose.

Her thin lips curved beautifully when she smiled and her long legs were a sign that she wasn't short. Although her hair was tangled, Daniel was convinced that with a little work, its luster could be revived. "Not bad," he thought to himself.

As Ivy got up from the bed, she noticed Daniel at the door which was half closed, staring at her, she was taken aback by his actions. She greeted him and said, "I'm sorry, I didn't see you there."

Daniel smiled in embarrassment at being caught red-handed by Ivy while scrutinizing her features.

He walked up to her and said, "you look a lot better."

Smiling, she said, "doctor Hardy took great care of me, making sure I ate properly and rested well enough and he said he did so under your orders. I really don't know how to begin thanking both of you."

Daniel smiled again and said, "I'm sure you will find a way but for now, I want to take you to Doc’s house so we can talk about your job."

Ivy stared at him warily, wondering why they had to go to Doc’s house. She began feeling apprehensive and started moving back slowly.

Daniel guessed what was going through her mind and said, "don't worry, if I wanted to harm you it would have been very easy. I would have just asked Doc to make you unconscious, that way it would be easier to take you wherever I wanted."

Ivy opened her eyes in shock before realizing that he was right. She had practically been at their mercy these past few days so she quickly apologized and attributed her suspicious attitude to her past experience.

They both waited for Doc to arrive and when he did, he was escorted by two beautiful ladies.

When doc led them into Ivy's ward, they stared at her in surprise, wondering why Daniel was so friendly with her.

Daniel saw the two ladies but barely spared them a glance until doc said, "Daniel, I told you about the love of my life Anna. Here she is and this is her best friend Ella."

Daniel had a surprised look on his face. He left Ivy's bedside and walked over to where they stood. He smiled at Anna and shook her hand, "I'm very pleased to meet you. Doc would not stop singing about how amazing you are."

Anna smiled, feeling very pleased. She had never seen Daniel before and was surprised to realize that he was very tall and handsome with a wonderful smile. Now she knew why her friend was crazy about him.

Daniel shook Ella's hand briefly and turned his face away immediately after that. As she watched him walk back to Ivy's bedside, Ella began to feel upset.

Her heart was thumping loudly when Daniel stood close to her and she gave him her most beautiful smile but he barely even looked at her. Who was the girl on the bed and why did the prince seem so interested in her?

She looked so poor, her hair was unkempt and Ella could tell that she hadn't eaten properly for months so how did she capture the princes' attention?

She whispered to Anna, asking her who Ivy was. Anna took Doc outside and asked him to tell her who Ivy was and why the prince was so interested in her.

Doc smiled, "I think both you and Ella should go back home for the time being. I will arrange for the prince to meet with her later in the day and during that time, I will tell you all about Ivy.

For now, the prince is more concerned with getting Ivy discharged and helping her settle in since it is what he promised. Let's not make her uncomfortable in any way.

Anna nodded and went back into Ivy's ward. She whispered a few words to Ella's ears and they said goodbye to Daniel before leaving.

Ivy watched the two ladies closely. She felt that they were so beautiful and their branded clothes reminded her of how Abigail and May used to dress back then.

She saw the way Ella kept staring at Daniel and wondered if she liked him or if they were dating. She soon focused her mind back on her predicament as she was yet to get a job or a roof over her head.

She was quickly discharged and left in Daniel's car while Doc drove behind them.

When they got to Doc’s house, Ivy marveled at how magnificent it was. "This is practically a palace she thought to herself."

"Is doctor Hardy a very wealthy man?" She asked.

"Yes, he is," Daniel replied. "His family is one of the wealthiest in the country and Doc used to be a flamboyant man, hence this palace-like house. His family has hospitals all over the country including the one used by the royal family."

Ivy stared at Daniel in surprise. She never would have pegged Doc as someone from such a prominent family. He didn't brag or show off in front of her as most wealthy people did.

"Doc must be a humble man," she managed to say while feeling more insignificant.

"Of course, he is," Daniel replied. "Why else would he be my best friend?

"So, you guys are on the same level, I guess," she said, more to herself than to Daniel. "What then do you do?"

"Nothing for now," Daniel replied. "As of last year, I was still a graduate student but I'm done now so technically I'm jobless."

Ivy felt a little better, at least Daniel wasn't so high up, she thought to herself.

She noticed the butler as they got to the door. He bowed familiarly at Daniel and ushered them inside. Ivy noticed the maids in the house and wondered if Daniel wanted her to work there as a maid. "I would be very happy if that were the case," she inwardly said to herself.

All the servants in the house were exceptionally respectful towards Daniel and Ivy thought that his relationship with Doc must be very good that was why.

Since it was the middle of the day, they were served lunch and fruit juice. Ivy ate to her heart's content, she had never eaten such delicious food before as opposed to Daniel who barely touched his food and kept staring at her.

She observed him and could not help but ask, "why aren't you eating when the food is so delicious?"

Daniel folded his arms and smiled, "first of all, I'm not really hungry. Secondly, I'm wondering why Doc has not yet arrived, and more importantly, I have something very serious on my mind that I think you can help me with."