Free Web NovelChapter 340: Chapter 338: The Empress’s Position is in Jeopardy
Yates Donovan stared at him blankly.
As realization dawned, the scene from the bathroom half an hour ago flashed through his mind.
Especially that brief, silent eye contact in the mirror.
He snapped out of it as if waking from a dream. "Tsk."
He was getting annoyed.
That one reaction was all it took for Hayes Hughes to confirm his suspicion.
’So that’s the source of it.’
He didn’t want to pry, but he couldn’t help but ask, "You seem like a very tolerant person. Why are you so resistant to what you’ve discovered?"
Yates understood what he was saying. He tilted his head and smiled. "I’m not sure. Maybe I just look easygoing on the surface. When it comes to tolerance... I don’t think I can compare to you."
After they held each other’s gaze for a moment, Hayes Hughes said, "If that’s the case, then you’re not suited to be by her side."
A scoff came from across him. "I have many reasons for my resistance."
"Yes, jealousy is definitely part of it. But more than that, I don’t want her to have to learn to be a mother before she’s even twenty."
"Before, the word I heard Silas Grant use most often to describe her was ’kid’."
"I used to think Silas Grant was a pervert. But now, I completely agree with him."
"She’s still a kid herself. How could she possibly... have an even smaller kid?"
"And what makes me even angrier is, who the hell was so reckless, knowing full well how young she is."
"We’re all adults, aren’t we? Setting aside those two from the Sinclair family, the rest of us are all older than her. I don’t want anyone to be so stupid they only think with their dick."
"You’re absolutely right." Hayes Hughes listened calmly. Even though Yates seemed to be treating him as the main culprit, he wasn’t angry.
"But please, control your emotions. You can vent in front of me, but don’t let her constantly sense your hostility."
Yates ran a hand over his face, sweeping his stray hair back, then revealed an innocent smile. "Don’t worry, Dr. Hayes. While I can’t be as perfectly composed as you, I can still tolerate a little grit in my eye."
The conversation between the two men began and ended in silence. Mia Grant was completely unaware of it.
Night fell, and an eerie silence descended upon the room.
Yates stood guard at the door without entering. He pointed inside. "If you’re not busy, you should go in and sit with her for a bit."
Hayes Hughes looked over. "Do you have to leave for something?"
"No." Yates rubbed the residual tobacco from his fingers, his tone unreadable.
Hayes’s gaze swept over his face. Even though Yates didn’t let anything show, Hayes easily guessed the truth.
"I have a meeting," he said after a long pause. "You should stay with her. It’s a good time, now that she’s calmed down, for you to properly explain what just happened."
Yates instantly understood his meaning and suddenly let out a laugh.
Hayes’s steps faltered at the sound of his laugh, and he shot him a strange look.
’I don’t get what he’s laughing about.’
Yates shook his head, still smiling. "With you around, my position as the main consort is in jeopardy."
If, earlier, he had thought Mia’s feelings for Hayes were just a product of the "white moonlight" filter...
...then now, he could completely understand her.
From Mia Grant’s perspective, falling for Hayes Hughes was only human.
’He’s just too damn considerate.’
He used to think this kind of "white moonlight" character was likely the type to be nice to every girl he meets.
But now, it seemed that wasn’t the case.
Yates thought he himself was already quite magnanimous, but he never expected there was always someone better.
Hayes was so magnanimous that Yates even started to doubt whether he actually liked Mia at all.
’Otherwise, how could he go this far?’
’This kind of move that would crazily boost his favorability score, and yet he doesn’t want it for himself, willingly helping his love rival score points instead.’
’Truly, the love rival of the year.’
Compared to those other shady old bastards, Hayes Hughes could practically ascend to sainthood.
Pushing the door open, Yates lightened his steps and tiptoed inside.
All the lights in the room were on, the brightness almost blinding.
Mia Grant had already taken off the oxygen mask and was now staring blankly at a shopping channel on the TV.
Yates was sure she didn’t actually like this kind of program.
What she liked was the atmosphere it created.
But in reality, and paradoxically, she didn’t like truly noisy and bustling environments.
She just enjoyed this abrupt bit of noise amidst the loneliness, using it to hide her own emotions.
Mia caught the movement at the door out of the corner of her eye, her calm gaze falling upon him.
Her stare made the man pause unnaturally.
"Are you feeling... better?"
This didn’t sound like his usual line or tone. It sounded cautious.
Mia was silent for a few seconds before asking him, "Where did you just go?"
Startled to hear her steady voice and coherent sentences, Yates paused for a moment, then quickly broke into a smile. He strode forward and sat down by the bed.
"Took a call. The foreigners were being long-winded."
Mia understood. It was a work call.
"If you’re busy, you should go back. I’m fine. I can be discharged tomorrow morning."
Yes, the original plan was for her to be discharged tomorrow.
But in her current state, Yates wanted her to stay in the hospital for another two days of observation.
’But she probably wouldn’t agree to that suggestion.’
So, in the end, he didn’t bring it up.
"I’ll be in the country for the next week. Not only am I not busy, but I can even drive you to and from your classes every day."
He casually took an orange from the fruit bowl beside them, peeled a segment, and held it to her lips. "Want a taste? It was picked from the tree this morning and flown straight here. Landed just two hours after I did. It’s very fresh."
Unlike last time, Mia didn’t hesitate. She lowered her eyes and took it.
The smile on Yates’s lips deepened. Turning to glance at the TV program behind her, he tried to make conversation. "Those things you gave me last time, don’t tell me you bought them from here?"
’A shopping channel for the elderly.’
Mia nodded. "The delivery is pretty fast. It’s convenient."
Yates laughed. "Of course it’s fast. The main customers are old people. If they don’t deliver quickly, they’ll demand a refund."
To this, Mia gave a noncommittal response.
Next, Yates switched between two or three other topics, constantly trying to liven up the atmosphere and lift her spirits.
Mia didn’t let the conversation die, either. She answered every question, though her replies were very short.
Yates wasn’t affected. He remained in high spirits, recounting some of the bizarre things he’d recently encountered abroad.
"Yates."
Suddenly, the person across from him spoke, interrupting him.
Yates squeezed the orange peel in his hand. Juice burst out, and the fruity fragrance wafted through the air, diluting the faint scent of flowers.
Realizing what she was about to say, he felt a flicker of unease.
He rarely felt this way.
Even before, when it came to matters concerning her, he had always been effortlessly in control.
Because he understood her.
But now...
She was like an unpredictable wind.
"I’m sorry." The next second, his juice-stained fingers were grabbed by a hand covered in scars.
She held his hand, and their eyes met.
Her gaze was earnest. "I scared you just now, didn’t I? I’m sorry. It was an accident. I didn’t mean for that to happen."
As far back as he could remember, from the age of five or six, Yates couldn’t recall a single moment where he felt like crying.
But now, gazing at her, his eyes began to sting, as tart as the orange in his hand.
