The Million-Dollar Heart by Rebecca Ryan

Chapter 209

When Ashley arrived at the hospital room, she saw Tristan obediently lying in bed, listening intently as Calista briefed him on his recovery and gave him

instructions to follow

Calista, dressed in a white lab coat and sporting a pair of golden–rimmed glasses, looked elegant and sophisticated.

She held a tablet in one hand and looked at Tristan with a firm yet authoritative gaze as she spoke, displaying a unique commanding charm,

Tristan, on the other hand, was looking at her with unusually soft eyes. There was even a trace of a smile playing on his lips. It was such a stark contrast to his usual brooding and intimidating demeanor

Ashley couldn’t help but shake her head in amazement.

Calista had somehow managed to tame Tristan, who was normally as wild and unpredictable as a rabid dog

“Dr Pendleton.” Ashley greeted her with a warm smile as she entered the room and placed a basket of fresh fruits on the table in front of Calista. “Some fruits for you. They’re all your favorites. Eat them to replenish your vitamins.”

“Thank you” Calista replied, taking the basket with one hand

“How’s Tristan’s recovery? Ashley glanced at Tristan who immediately resumed his brooding expression as he met her gaze, as if his earlier soft demeanor towards Calista was a mere hallucination

“He’ll be able to walk again. He just can’t participate in any strenuous activities.“Calista answered while adjusting her glasses and setting her tablet down. “He needs to stay away from any rough sports or heavy exercises

Ashley couldn’t help but feel a bit of schadenfreude. She wondered if Tristan would still take part in Arabella’s schemes against her now that he was semi–disabled Would he have ended up in this state if Arabella hadn’t persuaded him to provoke Percival?

Tristan, however, seemed to have already accepted this outcome.

“It’s okay. I’m grateful I can still walk, at least I’m not bedridden for life. And it’s all thanks to your excellent skills, Dr. Pendleton. I don’t know how to thank you enough”

“As a doctor, it’s my duty to heal and save lives. You don’t need to thank me” Calista replied indifferently “Besides, the Brooks family has paid a hefty sum for this.”

laughed out loud at Tristan’s flustered

indeed a straightforward woman.

brushed off any potential sense of obligation Tristan might have felt

the fruits and her tablet. Ashley offered to carry the fruits for her “Calista, I can bring these to your office for you.”

Calista nodded, gave some instructions to the nurse, and left the

they reached Calista’s office, Ashley helped unpack the fruits.

chat while snacking on the fruits After a few minutes of idle chatter, Ashley brought up Arabella. “Calista, did you hear about the latest scandal

Calista frowned mildly. She wasn’t

in Riverwood She thought of Arabella as nothing more than a pretty face with no brains, an individual not

up because of Arabella, she had even

she isn’t even married” Ashley took out her phone and showed Calista the news. “And she has the audacity to

in Arabella or the notorious playboy Paul from the Ellington family. She deemed these

worth her attention

be if the once chippled Percival,

scrolled through the news article, she paused when Percival’s picture popped up. She pointed at the image, asking.

Percival would be her knight in shining armor? She’s delusional She’s only managed to ruin her own reputation”

however, didn’t hear a single word Ashley said She was too focused on the

bus arms

is she?” She asked in a tone that was hard to

in Ashley’s eyes That’s Vivienne Percivals fiancee, and Arabella’s

only focused on

educational background?” Calista

quite understanding why Calista was asking about

had just graduated high school at eighteen.

with others was indeed a recipe for disapp

she processed the information she had just received. She then

puzzled by Calista’s