Chapter 4

7 Years Later

I was playing with the big diamond ring on my finger. Ethan had just proposed to me. I couldn't have asked for a better man and a father for my daughter. Ethan kept to his promise. Two years after I left, Ethan moved to New York too to establish his own company. And he kept to his promise of never abandoning me. He took up the role of a father to my daughter, and within five years of his company going public, he had become the richest man in New York. And gradually, I had fallen deeply in love with him.

“The award for the best heart surgeon goes to Meadow Enrique!” The crowd erupted in loud cheers at the announcement.

My six-year-old daughter had run up to the stage with a bouquet of roses, with Ethan following close behind her as I received my award. I deserved the award.I had performed the most dangerous and difficult surgery in the history of medicine.

The next day, my face was plastered on all newspapers and TV channels. My hard work had finally paid off.

I smiled proudly as I stood in my office, watching the replay of yesterday’s award presentation on my phone.

I wasn’t the same Meadow people once knew, the helpless pregnant teen who was betrayed, the Meadow who ran away from the place she once called home. Now I carried an empire on my shoulders. I was now the best surgeon in the country, and it’s all thanks to Ethan and the hospital’s director who believed in me.

The last I heard of my parents was when Ethan first came to visit me. He said my parents were still working for the Andersons. When he wanted to tell me about Matt, I told him not to. I don’t care about him, nor do I care about what was going on in his life.

I wore a black suit with pants and a pair of high-heeled stilettos Ethan had given me on my birthday. My hair was perfectly tied up in a bun. And my makeup was flawless—my stylist and makeup artist were always on standby. My schedule was always packed with constant meetings and never-ending conferences. I had become a role model in the medical profession.

“Doctor Enrique.” My troublesome personal assistant, who had also become my bestfriend, called my attention.

“Yes, Alison, what is it?” I asked, dropping my phone on my desk.

“You won’t like this,” she said, handing me a file. “You have been invited to the city to perform a Thoracic Aortic Dissection Repair on a patient. They are willing to pay ten times your rate.”

“No,” I answered quickly without going through the file. “I’m never going back to that place, and they should look for another doctor. I’m not available.”

“But you are the only one who can perform the surgery,” my assistant argued.

“No, Alison, I’m not going back there. And why do you have a file already prepared for this? You know I would never consent to it, even if they are paying me a hundred times my rate.”

“Meadow, I’m not saying you are wrong for not wanting to go back to the L.A. I know you have a lot of bad memories there. But what about the innocent patient that’s about to die if you don’t perform his surgery? Have you forgotten the oath you took to save lives? You are not going back for those people that offended you, you are going back to save the life of a patient.”

“And I’m doing exactly that—I'm saving lives here too. And besides, my schedule is filled.”

“Your schedule for the next six months has been cleared.”

“What? What do you mean my schedule for the next six months has been cleared?”

“Yes, Meadow, the hospital director has cleared your schedule for the next six months.”

“Why would he do that?” I asked angrily.

“According to the director, the patient that needed the Thoracic Aortic Dissection Repair is his uncle. You really have to do this for him.”

I sat down on my chair, defeated. No doubt the director had played a big role in my success, and he’s one person I could never refuse.

“At least take a look at the file of the patient.”

My fingers froze on the page as I saw the name of the patient: Adam Anderson? The file almost slipped from my hand. My heartbeat thundered in my ears as memories I had buried for seven years clawed their way back to the surface. Matt’s father. The man whose son almost destroyed my life.

“No, I’m sorry, I can’t perform the operation. I will speak to the director myself,” I said loudly as I threw the file on my desk and walked out of my office angrily, with Alison hot on my heels.

The director was on a call when I walked in. He gestured for me to have a seat. I waited for him to finish his call.

“Miss Enrique, I was about to send for you now. There’s a patient that requires your attention in the L.A.”

“Yes, sir, my assistant already told me about that, and I have also gone through the patient’s file. But I’m sorry, sir, I won’t be able to perform the surgery on that patient.”

“Please, Meadow, you are the only one that can perform this surgery, and you know it. You are the best surgeon in the world, and the patient in question is my uncle.”

Faced with the director’s unending pleading, I had no choice but to accept.

“Fine, but I will need to discuss this with my fiancé, and only after that will I make my final decision.”

“Sure, you can, but you need to be in the city tomorrow. The surgery is already scheduled for the day after tomorrow. A private jet will be sent to pick you up tomorrow. Everything you need will be arranged for you, including your accommodations.”

I made a call to Ethan to meet me at home immediately after I left the director’s office. Aurora rushed to hug me immediately I opened the door, her little hands wrapping around my neck tightly.

“I miss you, Mummy.”

“Mummy missed you too, baby,” I said, giving her a kiss on her chubby cheeks as she giggled.

“And me? You didn’t miss me at all?” Ethan asked, coming out of the kitchen. He was wearing an apron.

I smiled at him. “Come here, sweetheart. I miss you too,” I said, kissing him on his lips while my daughter clapped for us.

After dinner, I explained the situation to Ethan. I was expecting him to object, and that would have been a good reason for me not to go back to the city.

“You are a doctor, and saving lives is your duty. I won’t stop you from doing that. Aurora and I will join you in the L.A once I’m done with my project here,” Ethan said, caressing my cheek.

“Also, you will stay in the Enrique Mansion, not some hotel. You will be very comfortable there. And my parents are there to protect you, so I won’t have to worry much about you.”

I took a sharp breath and nodded. What would I have done without you? I love you so much." I said grabbing his arm.