Chapter 2

After sending it, I walked straight back to my dad's side.

Seeing me return, he hurriedly tried to sit up straight.

"What took you so long, sweetheart?"

I handed him the warm cup. "Dad, as soon as the sun is fully up, I'm transferring you to another hospital."

My dad paused, his face falling into worry. "Don't cause a fuss, Avery. Lucian works here. If people see you moving me, it'll make things awkward for him."

A sharp lump formed in my throat.

Even now, sitting in agony on a metal chair, his only concern was protecting my relationship.

I reached out and took his hand.

It was calloused, weathered, and lined with decades of hard physical labor.

I shook my head gently. "It doesn't matter, Dad. We don't need to care about him."

The smile on my dad’s face faltered. He opened his mouth, but only a quiet sigh escaped.

"Avery... did I cause trouble for you?"

Something deep inside me shattered completely. Hot tears threatened to spill over my lashes.

My dad had never owed a single person anything in his entire life.

He had raised me on his own, working as a carpenter in our small hometown to put me through college in New York. He turned rough timber into beams and traded sleepless nights for my tuition fees.

Yet in front of Lucian Vance, he was reducing himself to asking timidly if he was a burden.

I wiped the corner of my eyes with the back of my hand.

"No, Dad."

"I'm the one who let you be treated like this."

That afternoon, with the help of a colleague, I finally secured an inpatient bed at another hospital across town.

They had regular ward availability and could schedule his cardiac catheterization and imaging immediately.

While I was processing my dad’s transfer paperwork, Lucian’s name flashed across my phone screen.

I answered.

"Avery, do you seriously have to make things this ugly?" he demanded coldly.

I countered, "Transferring my father to a facility that actually has a bed for him is ugly?"

Lucian lowered his voice, frustrated. "Transferring him out of my hospital—what do you think my colleagues are going to say?"

I let out a cold smirk. "They'll say Dr. Vance is a paragon of integrity. A man who follows the rules so strictly he wouldn't even lift a finger for his girlfriend’s dying father."

"Isn't that the saintly reputation you always wanted?"

My dad, sitting in his wheelchair nearby, panicked and tried to struggle to his feet. "Avery, please, don't say that. Lucian is just busy with work..."

The more my dad made excuses for him, the more my heart bled.

My dad had spent his whole life taking the high road.

He endured poverty, endured hardships, and endured being looked down upon by others.

Now that I was an adult, I was supposed to protect him.

Why should he have to swallow his pride in front of my own boyfriend?

Looking at my dad, I said firmly, "Dad, stop defending him."

"From now on, we won't ever bother him again."

With that, I hung up the phone.

After the transfer, my dad was settled into a clean, comfortable room.

I took time off from work to stay by his bedside around the clock.

Lucian sent a few more SnapChat messages:

【I'm coming over for dinner tonight.】

【If your dad needs imaging reviewed, you can send me the files. I'll look at them when I have a free minute.】

I didn't reply with a single word.

Late the next afternoon, Lucian finally showed up.

He wore his tailored charcoal overcoat, carrying the chill of the outside air, but his hands were completely empty. Not even a cheap grocery-store bouquet of flowers.

Yet when my dad saw him walk through the door, his tired eyes lit up with relief.

"Lucian! You made it."

Lucian gave a polite nod and walked in, keeping his tone measured. "How are you feeling, Mr. Hayes?"

"Much better, so much better," my dad lied with a broad smile, visibly relieved. "You're so busy saving lives, you really didn't need to go out of your way to visit an old man."

Lucian pulled up a chair and sat down. "It's what I should do."

The moment the words left his mouth, his phone buzzed in his pocket.

He pulled it out and glanced down.

Standing right beside him, I clearly saw Chloe’s name lighting up the screen.

【Avery seems really mad at me lately...】

Lucian typed back smoothly:

【Ignore her. She's emotionally volatile right now because of her dad's situation.】