Chapter 2

2.

Caleb sneered. "Do whatever you want. You won't be a part of the Vance family for much longer anyway."

He turned and walked out of the delivery room, leaving Nora lying in a pool of her own blood, the sound of nurses’ frantic footsteps and screeching monitors filling the air.

The surgery took four hours.

When Nora opened her eyes again, it was three in the morning. The only sounds in the private room were the steady beep of the monitor and the distant wail of an ambulance outside.

She instinctively reached for her abdomen. It was covered in thick gauze, a dull ache radiating from beneath it.

Her uterus was gone.

Her marriage was gone.

The door creaked open, and a nurse peeked in. "Dr. Shaw, you're awake. There’s a gentleman who’s been waiting for you. He says he's a… friend?"

"A friend?" Nora repeated, confused.

She had almost no friends in Boston. For Caleb, she had cut off her social life, pouring all her energy into her home and her work.

"Let him in." It wasn't like she could sleep anyway.

The door opened again. A tall man walked in, wearing a charcoal cashmere coat. His dark brown hair was a little messy, and his amber eyes were filled with worry.

Gabriel Ashford.

Boston's most renowned cardiothoracic surgeon, the heir to the Ashford Medical Group, and… Nora's old classmate from medical school.

"Gabriel?" Nora’s eyes widened in surprise. "What are you doing here?"

"I was on call in the ER. I heard what happened." Gabriel walked to her bedside, his expression complicated as he looked at her pale face. "Nora, I heard about… about Caleb."

Nora gave a bitter smile. "Word travels fast."

"He's a bastard," Gabriel said, his anger unconcealed. "You were dying on that table, and he actually..."

"Don't," Nora interrupted, her voice heavy with exhaustion. "It's over."

"Over?" Gabriel suddenly leaned in, his hands braced on either side of her bed, his amber eyes locking onto hers. "Nora, do you have any idea how much danger you were in? You lost over 2000 ccs of blood. Your heart stopped. Dr. Martinez fought like hell to bring you back! And that son of a bitch wouldn't even sign the consent form!"

Nora turned her face away, not wanting him to see the tears welling in her eyes.

"But I'm okay now, right?"

Gabriel was silent for a long moment. He finally sighed, gently taking her cold hand in his. "You need to rest. I'll have the nurses monitor you closely. If you feel even slightly unwell, you call me immediately."

"Gabriel," Nora said as he turned to leave. "Thank you."

Gabriel looked back, a flicker of something complex in his eyes. "Don't thank me, Nora. Taking care of you… it's my privilege."

After the door closed, Nora finally let the tears fall.

She didn't know that just down the hall, Gabriel was leaning against the wall, his eyes closed, his hands clenched into tight fists.

He had waited seven years for her.

He had loved her since medical school, this quiet girl who was always buried in a book in the library, whose eyes crinkled into crescent moons when she smiled.

But he had missed his chance to tell her.

By the time he had worked up the courage to confess his feelings, Caleb Vance had already swept into her life, seducing her with sweet words and empty promises.

Now, Caleb had destroyed it all with his own hands.

Gabriel opened his eyes, a cold fire igniting in their depths.

This time, he wouldn't let anyone hurt her again.