Chapter 166
Ava tensed up for a moment.
"I'll go by myself. You're busy, don't worry about me."
"I'm not busy."
Hearing the couple being so polite to each other in front of him, Howard couldn't help but add fuel to the fire.
"Why shouldn't he go? Let him stand in line—what are those long legs for?"
Ava fell silent for a moment before leaving the hospital room. William followed her out, standing casually behind her with an expression that seemed willing to be at her service.
Ava glanced back at the hospital room door, thinking to herself that she didn't dare order William around. Afraid Howard might hear, she lowered her voice and said,
"I can do it myself, really don't need you. Go do what you need to do."
Right after speaking, she sneezed twice.
William let out an indifferent hum.
"Stop talking nonsense. In the time you've wasted, we could've already registered. If I don't go with you, Grandpa will find out and get upset again."
He headed toward the elevator, and this time it was Ava following him.
"I didn't tell on you to Grandpa."
She explained. William replied coolly,
"I'm not blaming you."
Ava carefully pondered his words. "Not blaming you" meant he still thought she had told on him, just that he was being magnanimous and not holding it against her.
She laughed.
"I really didn't tell Grandpa. I don't even know how he figured out we're getting divorced."
William paused. He'd thought she was talking about not telling Howard he wouldn't accompany her to register at the clinic, but she was actually explaining what happened in the hospital room. That hadn't even crossed his mind.
"Grandpa's not someone easily fooled. It makes sense he could guess."
Howard had built his fortune from scratch, single-handedly founding the Morgan Group, and was a prominent figure in the business world. Though old now, his mind wasn't muddled—fooling him wasn't easy.
William had been mentally prepared for this.
Seeing he didn't care, Ava stopped worrying about how Howard had found out.
By the time they finished talking, they'd reached the outpatient building. Ava stopped at the entrance, unable to think of a good way to send him away. In her frustration, she scratched her hair.
"Um... Achoo!"
Before she could finish her sentence, another sneeze came, and she felt her head getting foggy.
William frowned and quickly went inside, voluntarily joining the line at the registration window.
Ava followed him in, standing outside the line watching his back—he was a full head taller than everyone in front of him. She thought to herself, how wonderful it would be if he were here to accompany her for a prenatal checkup.
If she remembered correctly, this was the first time he'd accompanied her to the hospital in three years of marriage. It wasn't like she'd never been sick before. Once when she had acute appendicitis, she called him, and he hung up on her. In the end, Lily had no choice but to call 911 to get her to the hospital. During the days she was hospitalized after surgery, he never showed up once.
Thinking of this, she tilted her head back, trying hard not to let tears fall.
He finished registering and waved the slip in front of her. Ava snapped back to reality and followed him to the internal medicine clinic.
It was just a common cold. Ava thought getting some medicine would be enough.
She never expected she actually had a fever. Maybe pregnancy had changed her constitution—she rarely got fevers with colds before, and would be fine after taking a few cold pills and sleeping it off.
After taking her temperature, she stared blankly at the number on the thermometer: 102 degrees Fahrenheit, quite a high fever.
In front of William, she didn't dare tell the doctor she was pregnant.
The doctor prescribed a bunch of medications and told her to pay. Ava glanced at the doctor and asked William weakly,
"Can I wait for you here?"
That pitiful, weak appearance made William's heart soften. He thought to himself, she had a perfectly good villa to live in, but insisted on moving out, made herself sick, and now he still had to take care of her.
"Wait here for me."
He left the examination room after speaking.
After Ava watched him leave, she quietly asked the doctor,
"Doctor, can pregnant women take the medicine you just prescribed?"
The doctor's face stiffened.
"Why didn't you say so when I asked about your condition? Can pregnant women just take any medicine? Of course, you can't take what I just prescribed!"
Ava was cautious, afraid the doctor's raised voice would bring William back.
"Doctor, please prescribe something I can take. I'll go pay for it now."
The doctor shook her head helplessly, fingers tapping on the keyboard as she wrote a new prescription, then reminded her,
"Make sure to drink plenty of water and get regular prenatal checkups. I'm prescribing a fever reducer that's safe for pregnant women—combine it with physical cooling methods to bring down the fever first. If you feel unwell anywhere, seek medical attention immediately. Don't tough it out."
Ava nodded vigorously. Just then, William returned carrying a large bag of medicine.
"Doctor, does she need to take all this medicine?"
There was indeed a lot of medicine in his hand, because it was two sets.
Ava's mind went blank, unable to think. She stared at the doctor, almost able to hear her own pounding heartbeat. Just when she thought the secret in her belly was about to be exposed, the doctor glanced at her, hummed in acknowledgment, and said nothing more.
Ava thanked the doctor a thousand times in her heart and left the examination room gratefully.
Looking at the large bag William was carrying, she guessed he must have paid for everything and picked up all the medicine.
William slowed his pace to match hers as they walked at a snail's pace through the corridor outside the examination rooms.
Ava felt her head getting heavier, her steps unsteady, with no energy. She wanted to sit down whenever she saw a bench.
William stood in front of her. From this angle, he could see her round head and flushed face. No wonder her skin color had looked off in Howard's hospital bathroom—she had a fever of 102 degrees Fahrenheit.
Poor thing!
He dropped his aloof attitude.
"Feeling really bad?"
He asked.
Ava had no energy to speak, just leaned against the chair and nodded.
William sighed. The next second, he bent down and scooped her up, striding toward the stairwell.
Ava was startled. The feeling of weightlessness made her momentarily dizzy, even a little nauseous. She had no strength to struggle and obediently nestled against his chest.
William carried her directly to the car. This time, James didn't dare pretend to sleep—his neck was as straight as if he were standing at attention.
"Back to SilkGrove Estates."
He gave the order.
Being carried and jostled all the way, Ava either fell asleep from the motion or was delirious from the fever.