Chapter 91
Spending half my time at the company handling things and the rest at the hospital has become my new normal lately. I even moved my laptop to the hospital room so I don't have to run back and forth when something urgent comes up.
Oscar always tries to act casual about it: "You've already hired a caregiver for me, but you still do everything yourself. Isn't that a waste of money? If you're busy, you don't need to come to the hospital every day. I don't want you wearing yourself out running around. You should go home and rest properly at night. I'm fine here by myself."
I walked over to replace the water on his bedside table that had gone cold, sat down next to him, and casually flipped through a book: "I just feel more at ease when I'm with you. Your surgery is in a few days. It's getting late, you need to sleep soon. No staying up late - you need to get your body in the best condition possible."
Oscar couldn't help but sigh, looking at me with somewhat resentful eyes.
I gave him an annoyed look: "Are you trying to get rid of me so you can sneak out of bed again? The doctor said you should move as little as possible right now, but you try to get out of bed every chance you get."
Seeing that I'd caught on, Oscar stopped pretending: "I've been lying like this for almost a week now. I feel like my whole body is getting stiff. If you won't let me move, I'm uncomfortable all over. Can't we do the surgery earlier? Good thing I'm not a woman, or my chest would be completely flattened by now."
I couldn't help but laugh, reaching out to pat his head lightly: "What are you talking about? The main thing is that every time you get out of bed, you're grimacing in pain, and right now you..."
Because of the expander, he couldn't wear anything, and kept wanting to go outside. Even though his figure looked odd, that face and those abs peeking through were still too attractive. Even wrapped in a bedsheet, people kept glancing at him. I don't care about people's strange looks, but I do care about their lustful stares.
At least right now, I'm officially his fiancée, which means he's mine. And what's mine shouldn't be freely ogled by others.
"Just rest well. If you move around and the wound opens up, that's bad. After the surgery is done and you've recovered, you can do whatever you want." Seeing his pitiful expression, I still comforted him.
Just as we were talking, someone knocked on the door. There shouldn't be any rounds at this hour. I quickly covered him with the bedsheet and looked toward the door to see Gregory walking in with a fruit basket.
After not seeing him for a few days, he looked much more haggard, his eye sockets noticeably sunken. His smile toward us was very forced: "Uncle Oscar, how are you doing? I heard from Grandpa that you're about to have surgery. I've been dealing with some things at the company lately and haven't had a chance to visit. You're not mad at me, are you?"
Oscar turned to face him: "You're coming this late - is there something you need?"
I also looked at him suspiciously. It was already well past visiting hours. Because this hospital belonged to the Lopez family, Gregory could come in at this time.
Gregory put the fruit basket he'd bought on a nearby table, rubbing his hands together somewhat awkwardly. His gaze turned to me, his voice guilty: "I... could I talk to you alone?"
Before Gregory could say more, I asked directly with a mocking smile: "You're not here to plead for Sophia again, are you? Gregory, seems like you really love Sophia. If you like her that much, you can wait until she's released, right?"
Gregory's face flushed with embarrassment: "No, I... I just want to talk to you alone."
He didn't call me 'Ms. Wilson,' and the way he looked at me carried undisguised aggression, which made me quite uncomfortable.
What made it even more uncomfortable was probably Oscar.
He frowned at Gregory impatiently: "What is it that I, as your uncle, can't hear, but you need to discuss with my fiancée?"
His words made our relationship very clear.
When Gregory looked at Oscar, he barely dared to make eye contact: "I... have some personal matters... Uncle Oscar, don't misunderstand, I'm just doing someone a favor."
Doing someone a favor - so he was still here about the Brown Family.
I suspected someone in the Brown Family had saved his life. Was he still trying to plead for them? How could Robert trust someone like this with the entire family fortune?
Oscar probably thought the same thing. With disappointment mixed into his mockery, he shook his head at Gregory: "If it's about the Brown Family, I'd advise you not to say anything. Strictly speaking, you should thank God that you can still stand here."
Oscar was right. The reason Gregory could still stand here worrying about others was that I hadn't gotten around to settling accounts with him yet. After all, the first person to hurt me, besides Sophia's cold knife, was his even colder indifference.
Gregory lowered his head, smiling awkwardly: "I really don't mean anything by it, and I'm not just here for personal matters this time. There's also some work stuff. Uncle Oscar, you're still sick and need to rest. She's been at the hospital taking care of you, and there are many things at the company - we're having problems with coordination."
Since he put it that way - though it was about company business - I helped Oscar place the hot water and cut fruit where he could easily reach them, saying softly: "I'll be right back. Be good and don't move around. If you really want to get out of bed, wait until I come back, and I'll help you slowly."
Oscar smiled and nodded: "Then hurry back."
Leaving the hospital room, I followed Gregory to the hospital garden. Seeing him about to walk further, I stopped impatiently: "Just say what you need to say. I don't want to take a walk with you."
Gregory stopped and turned to look at me: "Emily, I know you're very angry about Uncle Oscar getting hurt, but Sophia didn't mean to..."
I took a deep breath and said helplessly, "Gregory, if that's what you want to talk about, I think I should go back now."
"Wait." Gregory quickly called out to me as I was about to turn and leave, stepping in front of me, looking somewhat embarrassed. "I'm not here to talk about that. I just want to say I'm very sorry about Uncle Oscar. Sophia is still at the police station, and the case is still under review. I heard from Mr. Brown that you're now the largest shareholder of the Brown Group."
"Just say what you mean." I looked at him with a slight smile. "Isn't it already the best outcome that I'm willing to take on that mess of the Brown Group?"
Seeing that I could still joke, Gregory's expression relaxed a bit: "That's true, but this company is Mr. Brown's life's work. I heard from Jasper that you found some accounting issues, and they're in some trouble now. What I want to say is that if this comes to light, the Brown Group's reputation will collapse. As the largest shareholder now, you'd suffer the biggest loss. And as a business partner, of course, I don't want to see that happen. So they asked me to ask you if we could handle this privately among ourselves and give them a way out."
I looked at him with some amusement: "I've never blocked anyone's way out. As a company decision-maker, the job is to thoroughly clean up problems, not just cover them up."
I smiled at him casually again: "Gregory, I don't let emotions cloud my judgment. I hope you're the same way. The people I value shouldn't forget their principles just because of what others say."