CHAPTER 10 — Hello, Wife

~ ISLA ~

There was a short pause on the other end.

Then a voice—low, deep, edged with effortless confidence that made my pulse skip without permission.

“Is your shift done?”

My breath caught. I should’ve known it was my fake husband.

“A-Alistair?” I stammered before my brain caught up.

Trust me, saying his name felt harder than performing any surgery.

“How did you—how do you even have my number?” I blurted.

“I make it my business to know things,” he replied smoothly, dismissing my question as if it were irrelevant. “I’m waiting outside.”

My heart jumped to my throat. “What—”

I didn't finish my words as the line went dead. He had hung up.

I stared at the phone in disbelief, my heart thudding wildly. Why was he here? The old lady had already arranged for my personal driver.

Shaking the thought off, I gathered my things and stepped out of the office. Dr. Ellis was also emerging from the next room. His hair slightly mussed from a long shift, but his expression softened when he saw me.

This was the main reason why Riley often misunderstood Dr. Ellis’s treatment toward me. Usually, he looked serious and cold. But every time we crossed paths, he made an exception. Not that I minded—it was only natural we were more familiar since we often worked together. I respected him deeply as my senior. Still, some coworkers could be malicious with their assumptions.

“Heading home, Dr. Bennett?” His voice was polite, as usual, but carried a quiet warmth.

“Yes,” I answered with a small smile. “Finally.”

His gaze lingered a little longer than it should have, but I was too distracted to notice. My mind was already occupied with another suffocating figure waiting downstairs.

With a polite nod, I hurried past him, my steps quickening.

I saw Alistair's car right away, parked right at the hospital entrance ambiguously.

My stomach dropped. People were coming and going—patients, nurses, interns. A few staff members whispered as they noticed the car.

Before I could gather my composure, the car door swung open. And the most famous CEO—Alistair Montgomery stepped out. Impossibly tall, devastatingly handsome, dressed in a tailored suit that clung to his sharp frame. His presence alone seemed to shift the air, as if gravity itself leaned toward him.

My heart went wild.

Oh no. No, no, no.

A wave of panic hit me as I noticed a couple of nurses already whispering at the entrance.

I hurried down the steps, clutching my bag tightly, practically jogging toward him like I could shield us both from unwanted attention.

“Are you out of your mind?” I hissed the moment I reached him, keeping my voice low. “Do you really want me to be the center of hospital gossip for the rest of the year?”

But he only looked at me with that cold face of his, a faint curve tugging at his lips.

“Hello, wife,” he greeted, completely unfazed.

Heat rushed to my face.

The way he said it—calm, deliberate, as though it were the most natural word in the world—made my insides twist.

I glared up at him, though my pulse betrayed me. “I told you not to show off like this. Do you even know how this looks?”

For a second, I forgot who I was talking to. His expression didn’t waver. Instead, his gaze slid over me, lingering with quiet possession that made my skin prickle.

“You’re a surgeon. Shouldn’t you be used to being observed?”

I blinked, stunned for a beat, before realizing—he was teasing me. In his own infuriating, subtle way.

“This isn’t funny, Mr. Montgomery,” I muttered, crossing my arms to hide my trembling hands.

His lips tilted slightly, the barest trace of amusement breaking through his cold exterior.

“Then stop blushing.”

My breath hitched, and I cursed the heat creeping up my neck.

Of course he noticed. Darn it.

I slipped away from his overwhelming presence before he could say anything and ducked into the backseat of his car. I was still trying to digest what had just happened.

Did Alistair just… tease me again?

It was one thing when he was drunk last night, but now? He was completely sober! I couldn’t wrap my head around it—how could he have this kind of side? The ice-cold king himself being cheeky? Are you kidding me?!

I buried my face in my hands, groaning inwardly. God… could I just disappear right now?

***

I honestly didn’t know how I managed to make it back to the Montgomery mansion without collapsing under the sheer weight of Alistair’s intimidating presence beside me.

By some miracle, I reached our bedroom still in one piece—though every nerve in my body felt like it was wound tight.

Seizing the chance while he wasn’t around, I rushed straight to the bathroom to wash up.

By the time I stepped into the walk-in closet, towel in hand as I dried my hair, I heard the faint rustle of movement in the bedroom. But when I came back out, he was already gone.

I busied myself with the sofa, straightening the blanket I had been using these past nights. It felt safer here, away from the bed that carried his enchanting scent and suffocating presence.

I had just smoothed the last corner when I heard the soft click from the bathroom door.

Alistair then popped out from the corner, wrapped with only a bath towel below his waist. Fresh from the shower, his hair damp, and his gorgeous body still glistened with droplets of water. But I didn’t dare lift my eyes, until his silhouette disappeared into the walk-in closet.

His scent—clean, fragrant, and faintly intoxicating—drifted across the room and wound its way straight into my lungs.

I gripped the blanket tighter. Why does he always smell so unfairly good?

Minutes later, he emerged again—this time dressed in silk gray pajamas that did nothing to dull his sharp presence. If anything, they made him look even more untouchable, effortlessly handsome in a way that had me swallowing hard against the sudden dryness in my throat.

Trying to steady myself, I quickly looked down, pretending to fuss with the blanket again.

But it was too late. Out of the corner of my eye, I caught the shift of his gaze, those mesmerizing gray eyes settling on me with full weight.

My heart skipped.

And then his deep, steady voice broke the silence.

“Come to bed.”