The procedure Cece needed was a pulmonary artery banding.
While it was a minor surgery with low risk for adults, the risk was comparatively higher for a child as young as Cece.
However, for a top cardiac surgeon like Rory Linden, it posed little difficulty.
The surgery went very smoothly.
Soon, once the anesthesia wore off, Cece was wheeled back to her room.
Rory Linden changed out of her scrubs and walked to Cece’s room, carrying the cake she had ordered.
Cece was sleeping peacefully in her small crib.
"Dr. Linden!" Cece’s mother stood up. Seeing the cake in Rory’s hand, she trailed off, "Is that...?"
"Happy birthday."
Rory Linden held the cake in one hand and the envelope from earlier in the other.
Cece’s mother understood imdiately, and her eyes instantly welled up with tears.
Rory Linden placed the cake and the envelope on a nearby cabinet and explained,
"The hospital has a strict policy against doctors accepting cash gifts. I only took it to put your minds at ease before the operation. Now that the surgery was a success, I’m here to return it."
Cece’s father imdiately insisted, "Dr. Linden, please keep it. I promise I won’t say anything to the hospital."
Rory Linden’s expression turned serious. "If you ntion this gift again, I will no longer be involved in Cece’s care."
Only then did the couple relent.
Rory Linden was on the night shift today.
She checked on Cece twice more, once in the afternoon and again in the evening.
As she was leaving Cece’s room, she was paged for a consult in the ergency departnt.
After the consult, she stopped by the ER office and overheard a patient describing her symptoms. "Sotis my heart just feels... off. It gets a little better if I rest, but this has happened a few tis now."
Hearing the classic signs of arrhythmia, Rory Linden subconsciously drifted closer.
She stood behind the ER doctor on duty, glancing at the EKG the patient handed over. She already knew what the problem was.
The doctor on duty noticed her and asked, "Dr. Linden, what are your thoughts?"
"Arrhythmia. You have two options: conservative treatnt for now, or a radiofrequency ablation procedure. However, there’s a chance of recurrence even after the procedure. Left untreated, it can be fatal."
Seeing that the patient was only twenty-eight, Rory Linden didn’t beat around the bush.
"She’s so young. How could she have sothing like this?"
The man beside the patient couldn’t help but ask.
Rory Linden glanced up and was surprised to see that the person who had accompanied the patient was none other than Miles Harrison.
She was wearing a surgical mask, so Miles Harrison didn’t recognize her at first.
Hearing that it could be fatal, the patient’s eyes reddened in fear. "How can it be that serious? I could die..."
Miles Harrison placed his hands on the woman’s shoulders, comforting her. "Don’t be scared. We’ll do the surgery if we have to. I’ll cover the cost, no matter what it is."
Leaning against him, the patient managed a shaky nod.
Miles Harrison said to the ER doctor, "We’ll do the surgery."
Surgery requires admission to the hospital.
The ER doctor turned to Rory Linden. "Dr. Linden, does Cardiac Surgery have any available beds?"
"We do, but..."
Rory Linden glanced at Miles Harrison, then at the woman leaning against him.
The woman wore a Van Cleef & Arpels bracelet, and her handbag, set to the side, was a Chanel.
’Clearly a woman of ans.’
She explained to the patient, "Right now, we only have beds available in our four-person rooms. The double and single rooms are all full. Also, this is an older hospital, so the facilities are just average. We have air conditioning, but it might not get as cool as you’d like."
"Oh, is that so..."
The patient frowned.
She clearly wasn’t keen on roughing it.
Hearing Rory Linden speak at length, it finally dawned on Miles Harrison.
He looked up, studying the doctor before him more carefully, and finally recognized her. "Rory? Is that you? What a coincidence!"
Rory Linden had no interest in exchanging pleasantries. "Yes. Let’s focus on the patient."
The mont he realized it was Rory Linden, Miles Harrison imdiately withdrew the hand he had on the other woman’s shoulder.
The patient glanced first at Miles Harrison, then at Rory Linden, a flicker of understanding in her eyes.
"Those are the conditions," Rory said. "If you decide to stay, you can go to the Cardiac Surgery departnt to handle the admission paperwork. I have other matters to attend to, so I’ll be going now."
After these brief instructions, Rory Linden turned to leave.
"We’ll take the room! We’ll take it!"
Miles Harrison said, then imdiately rushed out after her.
He caught up to Rory Linden at the ER exit and explained, "Rory, she’s just a new employee at my company. We just finished a work dinner nearby when she suddenly felt sick, so I brought her in to get checked out."
"I see." Rory Linden stopped and, in a strictly professional tone, explained, "As I said, our hospital’s accommodations are fairly basic. This procedure can be done at any hospital. I’d recomnd you find one with better facilities."
"No, no, this is fine," Miles Harrison insisted, his tone firm. "You’re here. I’d feel better if you were the one doing the surgery."
Rory Linden instantly regretted her unnecessary display of concern.
She checked again, "Can you make that decision for her? Are you sure she won’t complain about the conditions?"
She had only been at this hospital for a few months, but she’d already seen her fair share of delicate, high-maintenance patients.
’She had to set expectations upfront.’
"I can!" Miles Harrison declared, then seed to realize sothing. "Rory, she really is just a new hire. She’s been accompanying to a lot of work events recently, and I..."
"Miles Harrison, I’m not interested in any of that. Go get her, and I’ll take you both upstairs to start the admission paperwork."
Rory Linden really didn’t want to waste her breath on Miles Harrison.
’She’d thought that after everything he’d been through, he might have changed.’
’But now she realized that no matter how much soone changes, their fundantal nature never does.’
’It seed Miles Harrison would never learn the aning of personal boundaries.’
’In her view, if he and the patient weren’t a couple, he shouldn’t have been so physically close with her.’
’And if they were in that ambiguous, pre-dating stage, he had no business running over to explain himself to her.’
Seeing Rory Linden’s stern expression, Miles Harrison sighed in resignation. "Rory, did I... sohow manage to make you angry again?"
"I’m not angry." To prevent any further misunderstanding, Rory Linden said flatly, "I feel I should make it clear that I have absolutely no interest in your personal life. My son is four years old."
"You, you’re married?"
Miles Harrison’s expression froze, his first instinct to glance at Rory Linden’s left hand, searching for a wedding ring.
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