Treating Mr. Billionaire

~ 38 ~

On the verge of resuming his tracks, the crinkling set of Maria's blue eyes noticed his figure, and her laughter slowly faded as she turned her attention to him.

Their eyes locked for the briefest moment, neither of them saying a word until he finally broke the silence as he directed a question to the nurse. "Is she alright now?"

The female nurse nodded, putting a strand of hair at bay, and tried not to blush at the realization of the person she was talking to. "Yes, she is."

"Is she going to be admitted?"

"No," the nurse chuckled and took a quick glimpse at the blonde lady who was silently listening to the two of them discuss her. "She can go home anytime she wants."

"Good to hear." Jayden gave out a nod. He moved further, walking past her toward the other lady sitting on the bed, and the nurse immediately excused herself.

Maria cleared her throat softly when Jayden stopped in front of her, and then smiled faintly at him. "You are back..." She greeted quietly, her eyes scanning his face in search of the answer that she already knew.

"Yeah," he replied, glancing down briefly at the bundle of blankets covering her body before fixing his eyes back on hers.

Silence fell between them as she waited for him to continue, hoping that was not all he had to say. After a momentary pause of him just staring at her, Maria decided to break the ice, "So, did you find out the cause of the blackout? I think it only happened inside the building."

"You are right. The case is still being investigated." He confirmed, nodding his head before turning his gaze to the entrance. "Who is that guy I met in front of the door?" He asked, his tone tinged with curiosity.

"Guy...?" Maria repeated without the slightest clue, following his line of sight before her best friend came to mind. "Oh, are you talking about Ted?" She questioned, taking her eyes back to his face.

"Ted?" Jayden echoed, his eyebrows lifting up.

"Yes." She nodded quickly. "Was he tall with black hair? He also looks like he works out--"

"Yes," Jayden grunted out a confirmation, making sure to interrupt her unneeded descriptions. He suspected she must have a close relationship with the mentioned man judging by how the other one had reacted earlier. "How does he know you?" He added, his eyes narrowing slightly.

"We are childhood friends," she answered with another smile, unaware of the intensity in his stare.

Her response made him chuckle mockingly. "You sure have weird taste in choosing friends." He shook his head.

His comment froze her stare for a couple of seconds before she sounded with a soft chuckle, feigning humor, and then making a witty comeback, "Well, at least I have friends."

He paused for a split second, grasping the meaning of her words. "If that was supposed to hurt me, sorry, it didn't. Having friends doesn't seem anything special to me, nothing but a simple pathway to creating betrayals and enmities." His eyes narrowed again as he stared at her, his voice sounding dangerously low. "I don't have any, and I never will."

Her laugh died at his sharp statement, her blue eyes widening a little at the unexpected attitude in his tone. "You don't have to be so serious..." She voiced slowly, darting her gaze away from his face. "That's no way to treat a patient," she added in her lowest tone.

They remained in another batch of silence for a few moments. Maria maintained her eyes on her fingers, tapping on the blanket as she tried to ignore the heavy atmosphere around her. He always knew how to ruin a friendly mood, easily turning jokes into serious topics, and that, she hated about him the most.

"Then I shall treat you like a patient." Jayden's voice sounded after what seemed like an eternity, breaking the silent spell between them.

His words pulled down her brows, her eyes snapping up to his face slowly as she wondered what he meant by that. "Like a patient?" She repeated, her voice almost a whisper.

"Yes, Miss Patterson." He nodded. "Take a week's day off and resume your normal work schedule after seven days."

Maria stared at his face for a long moment, trying to decipher whether he was joking or not. The seriousness in his gaze told her otherwise and then she allowed herself to react heavily, "A whole week??"

Jayden's stare was unwavering as he nodded, "Yes. A. whole. week." He pronounced each syllable clearly as though they were separate words.

"But...that's a lot, especially for my profession." She protested weakly, the sudden thought of him telling her to take that much break from work was unsettling.

He maintained his silence, with his mind drifting away with a thought that overlapped with their situation. His offer had been intentional. If there was someone who needed that much time between them, it was him.

He needed enough time to think and a week without seeing her would surely put his mind back on track. A disturbing feeling had been growing inside him lately and only happened when he was with his doctor. He couldn't quite pinpoint the reason behind it, but some space from her might help.

He had been too distracted lately and if the woman before him was the cause of it, he was ready to stop seeing her, and a different doctor was the best possible solution.

Jayden returned a look at Maria who was still gazing at him with uncertainty and then spoke, "I will take my medications regularly and follow my diet plan. You have nothing to worry about, doctor." He stated confidently, looking straight into her eyes.

Her gaze softened then, and she sighed, knowing he was the most challenging person to argue with. "Well, if that is what you want..." She muttered, her voice indicating that she agreed with his decision.

"Good." Jayden nodded in satisfaction. "Then I shall take my leave now," he added and didn't miss the flash reaction that passed her face at the mention of his sudden departure.

Maria returned with her own nod, masking her surprise with a faint smile. "Alright, thanks for visiting." She said, the movement of her head repeating. "I will give you a call occasionally though, to track your..."

Her words faded away when the man she was talking to already turned around and started walking away without another warning. She sighed mentally, her eyes following his figure until he disappeared out of the room.

What was wrong with him? He was acting unusual and he wasn't bothering to hide his bitter mood. It made her ask herself if she had offended him without knowing and if he was holding a grudge against her. "Or was it Ted?" Her thought slipped out when the realization hit home.

Whatever it was that he was unpleased about, Maria was sure it had something to do with the absurd vacation he offered because that much time to rest was not really reasonable to her.

***