Mother

****

"I need to go," Ana declared, her voice tense as she hastily grabbed her staff. The phone call she received seemed to have filled her with a sense of dreadful foreboding, evident in the strained expression on her face.

"Where are you going? I can drive you there," Richard offered urgently, noticing Ana's troubled demeanor. His concern deepened as he realized she was reluctant to share what had gone wrong.

"It's a call from one of my patients, and I'd rather not attract attention by arriving in your car or have people speculate about the CEO showing interest in me," Ana responded smoothly as she slipped on her heels. Her words were delivered with such finesse that it was nearly impossible to discern any falsehood.

Ana was about to walk out of the door without giving a glance to Richard, it was something that pinched Richard's nerves. He dashed to her, shoved the door shut, and grabbed the back of her hand, swirling her with her back against the wall as her lips locked in a kiss.

"