Chapter 397

Chapter 397

Sterling walked the group out.

When he returned, Willow was propped against the headboard, smiling quietly at him.

It had been so long. For a while, neither of them spoke—they just looked at each other in silence.

Finally, Sterling lifted his hand to caress her cheek. "How are you feeling? Still uncomfortable?"

Willow leaned into his palm affectionately. "Much better. I think I was just scared."

Sterling studied her face. Her color had indeed improved. He relaxed.

"My grandma..." Willow hesitated, unsure how to begin.

Sterling's voice was low. "I know. She meant well—she just misjudged the situation. I'm not blaming her."

Willow gave him a grateful smile, then lowered her eyes. "She must feel terrible right now."

Sterling said, "Henry took her back to the Brown Villa. Mrs. Brown will have a good talk with her."

Willow nodded and fell quiet.

Sterling helped her lie down. "You've had a long day. Get some rest. I'll stay with you."

Willow grabbed his wrist, her voice soft. "Lie down with me for a bit."

She looked up at his face.

No one had to tell her—Sterling's condition was written all over his features.

During her absence, he definitely hadn't been sleeping properly.

Sterling hesitated for a few seconds, worried about accidentally pressing on her wound, but Willow insisted. He lay down beside her.

He meant to keep some distance, but the moment he settled, Willow turned on her side and wrapped her arms around his waist.

Sterling paused, then carefully circled his arms around her.

Within moments, steady breathing drifted from the top of her head.

Willow lifted her gaze. Sterling had already fallen asleep.

Only after seeing him sleep soundly did Willow close her own eyes with relief.

A nurse came to check on them twice during the night. Sterling never woke, and the nurse cooperatively made no noise before quickly leaving.

The two slept straight through until morning.

When Sterling woke, Willow was setting out breakfast.

"Why didn't you wake me?" Sterling frowned and started to get up to help.

The moment he sat up, a wave of lightheadedness hit him. He sank back down onto the edge of the bed.

Willow hurried over to help him lie back down, pressing her hand to his forehead to check his temperature. The fever still hadn't broken.

"You had a fever last night. It hasn't gone down yet." She said firmly, "Lie back down."

Sterling frowned with reluctance. "Then I'll switch to another room."

Willow was still recovering from her injury—her body was already weak. If she caught whatever he had, that would be bad.

He struggled to stand, but running a fever had left him without much strength.

Willow easily pressed him back onto the bed. "When I was sick, you were so worried. That's exactly how I feel right now."

Sterling frowned but stopped resisting, watching Willow bustle around.

Willow brought him a bowl of congee. "Have you been skipping sleep again these past few days?"

Sterling said, "I couldn't sleep. I wasn't tired."

Willow could roughly imagine how he'd gotten through this time, and her heart filled with guilt.

After breakfast, Sterling rested in bed while Kaitlyn and Maria, still worried about Willow, came to visit.

Seeing Sterling lying in bed with Willow bustling around taking care of him, both women's expressions turned rather complicated.

Learning that Sterling was sick improved their mood somewhat, though they still weren't entirely satisfied. Kaitlyn even suggested having the household staff come care for Sterling so Willow could rest at home—a suggestion Willow firmly declined.

Sterling spent two days in bed before he finally had enough strength to get up.

Henry finished dealing with the mess and came to visit, bringing Adeline along to give Willow another examination.

When the two walked in, Willow had just been coaxed into resting by Sterling.

During his illness, Willow had been constantly at his side, caring for him, forgetting that she was still a patient herself.

"What's going on here..." Henry's expression grew strange at the scene.

In broad daylight, Willow was asleep in bed, looking exhausted, and Sterling had the drained appearance of someone completely spent.

Add to that the fact that the two of them had been alone in this hospital room for days...

The more Henry thought about it, the more wrong it seemed. He ground his teeth. "You animal."

Sterling immediately saw where his mind had gone. Too weak to argue, he simply said, "She just fell asleep."

Henry glared daggers at him before walking to the bedside to inspect his sister.

Behind him, Adeline's voice rang out. "You had a fever?"

Henry thought she was talking about Willow and whipped around nervously. "What? My sister has a fever, too? Sterling, you—"

The word 'bastard' died on his lips when he saw Adeline standing in front of Sterling.

Clearly, that question about fever had been directed at him.

Henry's brow furrowed as he walked over to join them.

"I had a fever for two days. Just managed to get out of bed today." Sterling said, "Willow's been taking care of me the whole time. Could you check if I passed anything to her?"

Adeline replied, "Fevers aren't contagious. Did you take medicine?"

Sterling relaxed and nodded. Willow had been making sure he took his medication these past two days.

On the side, Henry listened to their exchange and learned Sterling had been feverish these past days with no opportunity for anything else. He felt relieved.

But seeing his fiancée show such concern for Sterling left a sour taste in his mouth.

He coughed loudly several times, asserting his presence.

When Adeline's gaze turned toward him, Henry put on a displeased expression. "Has Ms. Wilson forgotten who your fiancé actually is?"

Adeline frowned in confusion. "Ours is just a contractual arrangement."

Henry bristled. "Does that contract only apply to me? Why can you fuss over Ster while I have to keep my distance from other women?"

Adeline had no idea what he was thinking and couldn't follow his logic. "You're the one who asked me to come."

Henry countered, "I only asked you to come examine my sister. And you? The moment you walk in, you're interrogating your future brother-in-law. Adeline, you haven't given up on Sterling, have you?"

Adeline gave him an exasperated glance and didn't bother responding.

Sterling couldn't be bothered to acknowledge him at all.

Their silence left Henry deeply dissatisfied.

Henry was about to say more when Willow, roused by their voices, groggily woke up.

"Sterling," she opened her eyes, and not seeing Sterling by the bed, instinctively called out.

The hospital room fell instantly silent.

Sterling stood and walked to her bedside. "I'm right here."

Henry followed close behind. "Willow, I'm here too. How have you been feeling these past couple of days? Anything bothering you?"

He looked at Willow with obvious anxiety.

Willow only said, "Why didn't you wake me?"

Henry secretly breathed a sigh of relief, his tone indulgent. "Sterling said you'd just fallen asleep. He wanted to let you rest a bit longer."