Chapter 288
Evelyn despised the sterile scent of hospitals. Feverish and delirious, childhood memories flooded back. She weakly tugged at Dominic's sleeve. "No doctors...please."
Dominic's patience was already frayed from worry. Seeing Evelyn's dangerously high temperature made his temper flare. Her childish behavior only fueled his anger.
He tightened his grip, voice sharp. "Stop this. You're burning up. Do you want to get worse?"
Evelyn gazed up at him with glassy eyes.
Mistaking her fear for stubbornness, Dominic brushed his lips against hers in a soothing gesture. His touch was gentle, contradicting his stormy expression.
The crowded outpatient clinic buzzed with activity. Patients glared when Dominic tried to bypass the line. One hotheaded man shouted obscenities.
A bespectacled doctor noticed the commotion. Adjusting his glasses, he ordered the nurse to maintain order.
The nurse's eyes widened when she saw Dominic. 'God, he's gorgeous,' she thought. But his thunderous expression made her retreat immediately.
She looked helplessly at the overworked doctor.
The doctor threw down his pen in frustration. "Can't you see the line? Go to the back!"
"Enough. She needs treatment now." Dominic deposited Evelyn onto a chair.
The doctor studied Dominic's designer suit and vaguely familiar face - perhaps from a business magazine cover. Experience told him not to provoke this man.
Dominic had never waited in public hospitals. Private healthcare always catered to his needs instantly.
The other patients fell silent under Dominic's menacing glare.
With a sigh, the doctor instructed, "Nurse Thornton, check her temperature."
As the nurse reached for Evelyn's collar, Dominic snatched the thermometer. "I'll do it."
He couldn't tolerate anyone touching Evelyn - not even medical staff.
Evelyn shivered despite her thick coat. Dominic draped his jacket over her shoulders.
The nurse watched enviously. 'Beautiful men make the best partners,' she mused, recalling an internet article about handsome celebrities being faithful husbands.
Yet this stunning man's girlfriend seemed ungrateful, recoiling from his touch. 'Why do gorgeous men always pick difficult women?' she wondered.
"103.8 degrees!" Dominic's sharp voice startled her. "This is critical. Administer an injection immediately."
The doctor hastily wrote a prescription. The nurse prepared the syringe, swabbing Evelyn's arm with alcohol.
At the sight of the needle, Evelyn began trembling violently.
"It won't hurt much," the nurse reassured.
Evelyn bolted upright as if electrocuted. She shoved the nurse away and stumbled toward the exit.
Her ankle twisted painfully. Strong arms caught her before she fell.
"Enough, Evelyn!" Dominic growled.
"No injections! Let me go!" She thrashed wildly, but his grip was unbreakable.
Tears streamed down her face. "Please, Dominic...no needles..."
Few understood Evelyn's terror. In her youth, her stepmother Victoria and stepsister Sophia had devised cruel punishments - using long needles to inflict invisible pain that left no marks.
Her father never believed her complaints. The trauma only ended when she moved to boarding school, but her fear remained.
Hospital staff exchanged confused glances, whispering behind their hands.
Evelyn's hair was wild, her breathing ragged. She clawed at Dominic's restraining arms. "I beg you..."
Dominic's patience snapped.
He hauled her back to the examination table, shoving her down roughly. The impact against the table's edge knocked the breath from her lungs.
"Stop acting like a child."
Dominic wasn't known for tolerance.
Evelyn's public meltdown was testing his limits...