CHAPTER 034

CHAPTER 034
DOMINIC’S POV

The tires shrieked as the sports car vanished at the bend, but the license plate was already etched into my mind. Bruno’s boys. What the hell do they want from me? Seeing his men out like this only spells one thing— death. My grip on Ivy’s wheelchair handles tightened until my knuckles whitened.

I had introduced Bruno to an oil mogul, Mr. Coaster, not knowing he was a swindler. Bruno had invested millions of dollars into Coaster's refinery and when it was time to get his share of the dividend, Coaster made away with Bruno's cash and till date and has not being heard of. Now, he turns to me, seeking his money of which I know nothing about.

"Dom...?" She whispered, twisting a little to look up at me, the new phone still clutched in her lap. “Dominic…? Is everything okay?” Her voice was laced with curiosity and her face stricken with fear.

“It’s Okay. It's actually nothing,” I responded, in a steady tone not to scare her, even though my heart still tugged in my chest. “I need to get you back inside.”

I didn't wait to explain any further, I wheeled her off the parking lot, my eyes still scanning the area. It was then I noticed another car tucked neatly in the far corner—a white sedan I knew like the back of my hand. Jessica’s car. The tinted windows were rolled up. The engine was off. Not a flicker of movement. My brows furrowed. "What the hell is wrong with this woman," I sighed almost inaudibly.

“What’s going on?” Ivy asked again, the edge of her voice sharper this time.

“Nothing you need to stress about,” I murmured, schooling my face into something neutral. “Fresh air time’s over.” I grinned, moving her back in.

The automatic door at the entrance parted open as I rolled her closer. I kept looking over my shoulder at interval with every of my sense on high alert.

The moment we got into her ward, I helped her get on the bed again, covering her back up, properly.

“I'm sorry for my reaction back there,” I said softly. “I...Uhmmm... I just get overly alert of my environment. It's just a thing with me. I'm sorry if I scared you.”

Her eyes searched mine, not quite convinced. “Are you sure?”

“Yeah!” I responded with a smile that didn't reach my eye. "Could you give me a minute, I need to get on the phone with someone," I pleaded, pulling out my phone before my expression could betray me. "Just a minute," I reemphasized. She nodded, permitted to me to step aside.

I rang Gaius, my personal assistant, and he picked up almost immediately like he was waiting for my call.

"Hello Boss?" He answered.

“Yes Gaius, I need extra men at the hospital,” I said, low and clipped tone, careful not to let Ivy hear me. “Bruno’s boys just tracked me here.”

“What?" Gaius exclaimed. "What the hell is wrong with that man?" he hissed. "No problem sir, I’d send some men down there right away,” he replied quickly, then paused. “Before your call came in, I was about to call to give you an update. The police sent an update on the gala shooting.”

My pulse jumped. “ So, who was it?” I voiced out almost immediately, my blood burning hot already.

“They caught the shooter and it wasn't Alpha Alan like you thought,” a sharp chill coursed through my body.

“Fuck!” The word escaped me before I could catch it. Not after I had launched an attack on Alan. My goodness! I raked through my hair, heaving a deep sigh. I just started an intended war.

“Yes, sir… it was one of Bruno’s boys.”

My stomach tightened. “What? How is that possible,”my pulse spiked.

"The police has the shooter in custody and from the records pulled up, he is linked to countless dirty operations carried out by Bruno."

I was speechless. That not withstanding I still urged him to send down men to the hospital. I couldn't afford them coming for Ivy now I have been spotted with her. I stood for a moment after ending the call, summoning a cheerful expression.

I turned back to Ivy, shoving my phone in my pocket. “Just work stuff,” I lied smoothly, forcing a smile. “Nothing for you to worry about. I don't want to overwhelm you with the whole drama.”

Her brows pinched. “You’re sure?” she narrowed her stare.

“Positive,” I said again, crouching to her level. “Now, let’s set up your new device.”

She blinked at me, holding her gaze to see if I'd falter with my words. When I wasn't breaking, she gave her phone up. I shook my head at her childish look.

"Okay, so this is how it works," I turned on the screen light, putting her through some apps and icons in it.

Amid all of these, I felt like a war was going on in my head. Different thoughts ran through my mind. How my eyes collided with that of the driver in the car and Jessica's car that I spotted. Had she been following me? Or was it coincidence?

I forced myself to focus on Ivy. She was staring at the setup screen, her fingers fumbling with the icons.

“There,” I murmured, brushing her hand gently aside and tapping on some icons and prompts. “Now you can call me, text me, listen to music…”

She looked up at me and smiled faintly. “You think of everything.”

I smiled back, even as my jaw stayed tight. Then, I remembered I was meant to have a word with the doctor.

“I need to have a word with Dr. Chelsea about the hospital bills,” I said finally, pushing away from the bed.

Her smile faltered. “Is it… bad?”

“Don’t worry about it,” I said. “You just get better.”

I stepped out of the room, making my way down the hallway. Every lady nurse I met along the way greeted me. While some stopped for a few seconds chats, others stood by the corner whispering words to them as they stole glances at me. In a few more steps, I was already at the Doctor's office. I tapped a little knock before pushing the door open.

“Mr. Dominic,” Chelsea greeted, rising slightly from her chair.

“Doctor,” I said, closing the door behind me.

"I didn't know you were still around. I just wanted to get done with a couple of reports before coming down to see her," she shook hands with me, before offering me a seat.

“Thank you so much Doctor,” I greeted. After I had settled in, we switched into more serious conversations about Ivy.

“So, doctor, I want to get an honest opinion on how she is doing. You know, will she ever get back her memory?” I clutched my hands on the table, staring into her face.

Chelsea took off her glasses, heaving a deep sigh. "Well, she doing very good. Her response to medication has been very quick and encouraging though dur to her pregnancy, we are restricted to some therapeutic approach. But in all, she's great. In about a week, we should discharge her," she stated.

“And her medications and check ups?”

“I’ve written a regimen,” she said. “We’ll keep adjusting based on her vitals and after she's discharged, she can always drop by for her therapy sessions. That's all.”

"That's perfect," I nodded. “So how about the bill?”

She hesitated, then turned the file toward me. The numbers didn’t surprise me. I’d seen worse.

“I’ll take care of it,” I said quietly.

“Alright then,” she signed a few papers, handing me the bills. “Take this to the account and make your payment.”

“Thank you, Doctor,” we shook hands before I left.

A few minutes later, after signing papers and authorizing transfers at the account department, I was done. I headed back to Ivy's ward.

“You took a while,” she said tossing her phone aside, sitting upright in her bed.

“Had some things to sort,” I said, closing the door behind me. “So, I’ve got good news and bad news. Which one do you want first?”

She hesitated, her eyes narrowing. “Uhhm.. the bad news first,” she said, keeping her gaze on me.

I walked to the foot of her bed, tucking my hands into my pockets. “I’ll be leaving soon. There’s a business meeting I have to prepare for tomorrow. But I promise , I'd be here to check on you, possibly get you some chocolate bar," I didn't know if that would work, so I bit my lower lip, bracing up for her reaction.

Her face fell, but she tried to mask it. “Oh! That's fine then,” she managed to say even though I could see the protest in her eyes.

“The good news,” I said quickly, “is that you’ll be discharged next week.”

Her eyes widened. “Really?”

“Really.”

She glanced down at her hands, then back at me. “What about the hospital bills? I don’t even know how much...”

“You worry yourself too much, Ivy,” I interrupted gently. “All you need to do is get better and by next week you'd be out of here.”

It took a moment for my words to sink in. Then her eyes glossed over and she blinked rapidly, like she was holding back tears.

“You paid…?” she whispered.

I nodded once.

She slid off the pillow and moved toward me, the hospital gown shifting around her. Before I could react, her arms wrapped around me, tight and warm.

“Thank you so much,” she murmured against my chest.

“It’s okay, Ivy,” I said quietly, my hand stroking her back.

We stayed like that for a moment, just breathing. When we finally pulled apart, her gaze lingered on mine. There was something unspoken there, a charge humming between us.

My gaze flicked down to her mouth while I hand fell lower from her waist, grazing her bum.

I didn’t know who moved first but one second there was space between us, and the next, there wasn’t.

Our lips met, tentative at first, then deeper, gliding smoothly across each other. Finally, the tension of the last few weeks found its outlet. It wasn't forced, it came all natural.

I was genuinely in love.