Chapter 6

I heard my name slip from his lips, and for a moment, the world felt like it stopped spinning. But only for a moment. I've spent eighteen years rebuilding myself from scratch, and I won't let this man—the man who destroyed me tear down everything I've built with just a whisper of my name.

I took a deep breath, pressed my fingers against my sides, and put on a perfectly professional smile. The smile I've practiced for years in the operating room, in front of important patients, in front of people who tried to intimidate me. The smile that never shows what's really happening inside my heart.

"I'm very pleased to meet you and our potential investor. But I must apologize, I can't join today's tour," I said.

Mr. Alan frowned. "What's wrong, Doctor? Is there a problem?"

"There's no problem, sir. It's just that I have a patient already waiting in my practice room. Mr. Hartono's daughter is scheduled for a rhinoplasty surgery today, and I need to do a final examination before the procedure. I'm sure Mr. Kingsley will understand. A doctor must always prioritize their patients."

I could feel Damian's gaze burning into my skin. But I didn't turn to him. I kept my eyes on Mr. Alan with an expression that left no room for argument.

"Of course, of course, patients are our top priority. Mr. Kingsley, perhaps we can continue the tour without Dr. Alissa? I can show you other parts of the hospital first."

Damian didn't answer. I could feel him still staring at me, waiting for me to look his way. But I didn't give him that satisfaction. I just nodded politely at Mr. Alan, then walked past their group with steady steps.

I walked past Damian. We were only a few centimeters apart. I could smell his cologne, still the same as eighteen years ago—cedarwood and citrus, the scent that once made me fall in love. But now, that scent only reminded me of pain.

I didn't look back. I kept walking down the hallway, my back straight, my head held high. I could feel his blue eyes watching my back until I turned the corner and disappeared from his sight.

Once I was finally out of their range, I quickened my pace. My feet were almost running toward my practice room on the third floor. I opened the door roughly, stepped inside, and slammed it shut behind me.

I leaned against the door, my chest rising and falling rapidly. My hands were trembling as I pressed them against my chest, trying to calm my pounding heart.

"Oh my God, it's really him. Damian Kingsley."

I walked to my chair and collapsed into it. In front of me, the mirror on the wall showed my face, a face that hadn't changed much over eighteen years. I still looked young, thanks to good skincare and maybe good genetics too. But my eyes... my eyes showed everything I'd been through.

Damian Kingsley, my ex-husband. The father of my child. The man who pushed me to the airport floor when I was six months pregnant. The man who said the baby in my belly wasn't his. The man who left with Laura and abandoned me alone in a foreign country.

And now he's here. In my country. At the hospital where I work. He's come as a potential buyer, a wealthy European businessman who's about to acquire my workplace.

I closed my eyes, trying to steady my breathing, but Damian's image kept haunting me. His face now older, more mature, more commanding. The fine lines at the corners of his blue eyes.

And suddenly, I realized something.

He looks so much like Louis.

I opened my eyes wide. Louis, my eighteen-year-old son, has the exact same blue eyes as Damian. His strong jawline, the way he smiles, the way he walks, all of it is inherited from Damian. I'd never noticed it so clearly until I saw the grown Damian standing right in front of me.

Louis is a younger copy of Damian.

I held my head in both hands. Everything I've built over eighteen years, my career, my reputation, the life I created for Louis, all of it feels threatened by Damian's presence. He's come to take over the hospital, and maybe he's come to take over my life too.

But no. I won't let that happen.

I straightened my back and walked to my desk. I opened a patient file and started reading, trying to distract my mind, but my eyes kept drifting to the phone on my desk.

I wanted to call Nicholas, to tell him everything that had happened. But I couldn't. Nicholas would panic, and I didn't want to worry him.

I also wanted to call Louis, to warn him that his father was in this city. But how could I explain all this to Louis? Louis doesn't even know the details about his father. He only knows that his father is an English man named Damian who never wanted him.

I let out a long sigh and decided to focus on my work. Patients come first, and I won't let Damian Kingsley interfere with my job.

But outside my room, I know Damian is still in this hospital. He's probably walking down the same hallways, looking at the same operating rooms, talking to the same people I see every day.

And I know, this isn't a coincidence. Damian didn't come to my country to acquire a hospital by chance. He came for a reason. And I have a bad feeling about that reason.

I stared at Louis's photo on my desk, the one from his high school graduation last week, in his gown and cap, with a wide smile on his face.

"Louis, I'll protect you. No matter what happens, I won't let anyone hurt you, including your father."

I picked up my phone and sent a quick message to Louis.

"Baby, come straight home after class today. I want to talk to you."

Louis's reply came quickly. "What's up, Mom? Why does that sound serious?"

I typed back with slightly trembling fingers.

"It's nothing serious. I just miss you. We need to talk about something."

Louis replied with a smiling emoji sticker.

"Okay, Mom. I'll be home at 5. Don't cook anything, I'll cook for both of us."

I smiled faintly reading his reply. Louis has always been a good kid. He's never made me worry, never rebelled, never caused trouble. He's always tried to protect me, even since he was little.

But now, I'm worried. If Damian really came looking for Louis, how am I going to protect him?

Louis is grown up now, he's eighteen years old. He can make his own decisions. And if he wants to meet his father, I can't stop him.

But I hope he never finds out. I hope Damian leaves this country as quickly as he came, and Louis never knows his father was ever in the same city.