The One Who Waited

Before long, more people gathered around to watch. Everyone was starting to point their fingers at Irina and whispering among themselves.

Without a second thought, Mia stepped forward and slapped Uriah across the face.

She growled, "Uriah, have you lost your mind?"

Uriah had never been hit by anyone in his entire life. He glared at Irina with fury and hissed, "Impressive. You even dragged a pregnant woman here to make a scene with me. Irina, you're supposed to be a big-shot designer. Where are your manners?"

Mia was ready to hit Uriah again, but Irina stopped her. "Let's go, my ride is here."

Irina did not even glance at Uriah or the drama queen kneeling on the floor, pulling Mia toward the exit.

Uriah had never been ignored by Irina like this before, so he furiously grabbed her wrist and barked at her. "Stop right there and apologize to Sophie!"

When Irina did not respond, Uriah tightened his grip. "I told you to apologize to Sophie!"

The pain in her wrist was nothing compared to the pain in her heart. Irina took a deep breath and turned to look at Uriah.

She argued, "Why should I apologize? Did I say anything? Did I do anything? Also, is this your hospital? Are you the only one who's allowed to be here? Prof. Parker, what happened to your basic decency?"

Irina's eyes were ice-cold, as if she were looking at a complete stranger.

As Uriah stared at her, something inexplicably chilling crept into his heart, and his grip loosened.

Not wanting to waste any more time on Uriah, Irina pulled Mia along and headed for the hospital doors.

Noticing Uriah's uneasy expression, Sophie timidly tugged at his hand. "Uriah, did I cause trouble again?"

Uriah snapped back to reality and patted Sophie's hand reassuringly. "It's not your fault. I've just been neglecting her lately."

Yes, that was it. He had simply been too busy recently, and that was why Irina felt upset and made such a big deal out of things. Once he went home and coaxed her properly, everything would be fine. After all, she had always been the most understanding and easiest to talk to.

After giving himself this pep talk, Uriah pushed aside the fleeting unease in his heart and led Sophie into the elevator. That evening, he headed home, stopping on the way to buy Irina's favorite pink tulips.

When he opened the door, Irina was on the phone.

"Okay, once you have the agreement ready, just send it to me. Yeah, as soon as possible."

With that, Irina hung up.

"What agreement?" Uriah asked, trying to act like everything was normal, as if the argument at the hospital had never happened.

"It's just work stuff," Irina replied, not even looking at Uriah before turning to leave.

Uriah hurried forward and wrapped his arms around her from behind. "Honey, I'm home."

In the past, Irina would have turned around, gently touched his face, and given him a kiss with a smile. At this point, though, he did not even want to speak to him.

She forcefully pushed away the arms wrapped around her and walked straight into the bedroom, then shut the door.

Uriah stood there in a daze, completely at a loss. He could not understand why Irina was still giving him the cold shoulder when he had already come home.

Over the past three days in the hospital, Irina had barely slept. Every time she closed her eyes, she saw scenes of Uriah defending Sophie and Beth.

Before long, Uriah, fresh from the shower, entered the bedroom. He lifted the covers and lay down beside her. His long arm wrapped around Irina's waist from behind, and his face nestled against the hollow of her neck.

"Irina, I know I've neglected you these past few months. You missed me, didn't you?"

As he spoke, Uriah moved to kiss her, and his hand under the covers started wandering.

Irina felt nothing but disgust, so she dodged the kiss and pushed his hand away with revulsion. "Don't touch me."