I walked toward Evan's ward, my face blank and emotionless.
Pushing open the door, I noticed that Violet was gone, but the lingering trace of their intimacy still hung in the air.
Evan lay on the bed with his cheeks still flushed.
When he saw me, he quickly sat up and adjusted his hospital gown. His eyes lit up with what seemed like genuine joy, as though nothing had happened just moments ago.
"Isla, why are you here?"
His voice was soft and warm, entirely different from how he had sounded with Violet.
"Isla, do you miss me?"
I kept my tone steady. "I came to check on your wound."
At my words, Evan reached out and grabbed my wrist. "Isla still so cares about me."
His hand, the same hand that had just touched another woman, now sought to hold me.
A wave of disgust churned in my stomach, but I forced it down. I opened his hospital gown to see if blood had seeped through the dressing.
"Why is this happening? Were you doing extra exercise?"
At my words, an awkward flush crept onto Evan's face. He looked down, like a guilty child caught in a lie.
"I just… wanted to start training again so I could recover faster and rejoin the team sooner."
"I'll ask the nurse to replace the bandage later. Please take better care of yourself."
Without waiting for a response, I turned and began walking toward the door.
Behind me, his voice followed, full of promise. "It won’t happen again, Isla. I won’t make you worry anymore."
I just said yes and quickly left the ward.
I could feel Evan's genuine feelings for me.
However, it felt tainted and dirty.
I did not want this kind of love anymore.
"Isla, I’m home early from the hospital," Evan said as he stepped through the door, carrying a large bag of fruit like a child eager for praise.
He saw me preparing breakfast in the kitchen and wrapped his arms around me from behind. His familiar scent enveloped me.
His warm breath tickled my ear, but it only froze me in place.
This posture triggered the image of him holding Violet in the surveillance footage to flash in my mind, over and over.
I turned stiffly, slipping out of his embrace. "Why did you leave the hospital early? Your wound... "
"I missed you. "
Evan took my hand and said, "That little injury is nothing. If I wasn’t worried about you, I wouldn’t have left so soon."
His gaze seemed so loving, but I could not forget what he had told Violet in the ward."You tempt me so much, I don’t feel any pain."
I gently pushed him away. "But I didn’t know you’d be back so soon. I didn’t prepare anything for you."
His expression darkened. "I can have you first."
He leaned closer, but before he could close the distance, there was a knock at the door.
It was Violet.
She stood there in a tight-fitting dress with a slit that ran scandalously high, almost to her waist.
The silk fabric clung to her curves.
Evan’s brow furrowed slightly. "Why are you here?"
I could sense unconcealable displeasure in his tone.
Violet’s charming smile did not falter. "I brought food for you this morning, Captain Aldridge. The nurse told me you’d been discharged, so I came to deliver it personally."
She turned to me and asked, "Do you mind, Doctor Montclair?"
"If you don’t mind, come in. It just so happens that I didn’t make your captain’s breakfast." I kept my expression calm.
At the dining table, Violet sat directly across from Evan. Her delicate toes teased his calves under the table from time to time.
Evan’s face tightened, yet he did not move away.
I pretended not to notice her antics, focusing on my meal. Yet, the images of them together kept flashing through my mind.
"Try this, Captain Aldridge. This one is so good."
Violet picked up some bread and brought it to Evan's mouth. The bread indeed was so delicious that it was blatantly irresistible.
Evan turned his head slightly to avoid it and refused, "No need."
Though his words were firm, his gaze flickered briefly to her low-cut collar.
"Why so shy? You weren’t like this in the hospital." Violet chuckled, her red lips parted slightly. "Are you worried that Doctor Montclair will get upset?"
