Chapter 1

“Lysander, Lysander…” In her ear was his slightly deep and hoarse voice, gentle and a hint of clinging. After getting married for three years, Lysander Thorne was still of the opinion that Josiah Guerra was an entirely different being when in bed. On ordinary days, Josiah was considerate and gentle, a true gentleman. But when it came to their intimate moments at night, Lysander always felt like she couldn’t keep up with his stamina. By the time it was all over, she was so sore that she couldn’t even lift her arms. And then, he grasped her arm again. Lysander couldn’t even open her eyes. She pleaded and acted coyly, “Don’t you think we should stop? We both have to work tomorrow.” She was currently preparing for a job evaluation, busy to the point of exhaustion. After finishing her report in the early hours of the morning, she was dragged into a “workout” by him. At this moment, she felt like a fish out of water, so tired that she could only pant. Josiah chuckled softly. “What are you thinking about?” She blushed slightly. “What do you…” His large, knuckled hands gripped her shoulder blades, his fingers gently pressing on her sore spots. With his strong grip and great precision, a comforting sensation spread through her limbs, causing her to involuntarily let out a soft moan. “Feels good, doesn’t it?” His voice sounded in her ear, deep and hoarse, as gentle as ever. Lysander couldn’t help but blush. As an OBGYN, she actually knew more about this kind of thing than the average person. Unfortunately, she was only big on the theory side of things. When it came to handling the real thing, she considered herself a novice. Fortunately, Josiah was a gentleman, and they wouldn’t spend all their time clinging to each other like some other newlyweds, but they still treated each other with respect. In fact, Lysander was very open-minded. After all, they only met through a blind date and did not go through the process of dating before entering into marriage. It was actually quite fortunate that they got along the way they did now. “Now try moving. Do you feel better?” Lysander tried to move her shoulder, and after his massage, it did feel much better. “Thank you. I feel much better.” She turned around. “When did you learn to give massages?” “I learned it from an old traditional medicine practitioner before. It’s been so many years, but luckily I haven’t forgotten.” He gently tucked her hand under the blanket and instructed, “Go to sleep.” What is a happy marriage like? There’s no definite answer to that question. Sometimes, Lysander felt a little regretful that she didn’t get to experience a passionate love relationship in her youth because she was so focused on her studies and work. But she was content. Whether in terms of family background, appearance, character, or knowledge, Josiah was almost a perfect marriage partner. He was not a smoker, not an alcoholic, and didn’t have to socialize much. Every time he finished work, he would come home to spend time with her. Even her bestie, Daphne Everhart, who always had a bad impression of men, said Josiah was the epitome of a perfect man. Thus, Lysander felt very content with this husband of hers. Especially now that she was pregnant. Lysander gently stroked her belly and whispered, “Josiah, it’s your birthday next weekend, and I have a birthday gift for you.” Suddenly, Josiah’s phone vibrated. He picked it up, and his face suddenly changed. Lysander asked, “What’s wrong?” Josiah stood up. “I have something urgent to attend to. I need to go out for a bit.” “Is it something related to the company?” “Um… yeah.” His voice was weak but soon was filled with urgency. “I have to go now.” “Okay, drive—” Bam! The door slammed shut. “Drive safely,” she muttered the rest of her words. After getting married for three years, she had never seen him so anxious before. Maybe something serious happened at the company. She remembered seeing news about the recent equity mergers and acquisitions by the Guerra Group on the finance news channel a few days ago. She was a medical student and didn’t understand much about business matters, but if it was on the finance news channel, it was probably not a trivial matter. Lysander clasped her hands together and silently prayed. I hope everything goes well with Josiah and his company. But just as she was about to rest, her phone rang persistently. “Dr. Thorne, please come to the hospital immediately. There is a pregnant woman in critical condition!” After years of studying medicine, Lysander found such situations to be not uncommon. She hung up the phone and immediately changed clothes to head out. When she arrived at the hospital, her assistant, Lynn Vale, was already standing at the hospital entrance, eagerly waiting. Seeing Lysander, Lynn immediately approached her and handed her the white coat and gloves. “Dr. Thorne, I’ve been waiting for you!” Lysander was a professional when it came to work. As she quickly walked inside, she put on the white coat and gloves, asking, “What’s the situation with the patient?” “It was a car accident. I heard the scene was very gruesome. The patient is six months pregnant, losing a lot of blood, unconscious, and showing signs of shock.” Six months is a long time. Whether we choose to perform cervical cerclage or abortion, surgery will be necessary. “Have you contacted the family?” “Yes, they have been contacted.” “Have the family sign the consent form. The patient needs immediate surgery.” “Right away.” Lysander went straight to the operating room. The patient’s condition was indeed not good. After reviewing the on-duty doctor’s records, she decided to perform a cervical cerclage immediately. What followed was the regular work procedure that was all too familiar to Lysander. She changed into clean clothes and headed straight into the operating room. From emergency treatment to surgery, Lysander worked tirelessly for nearly six hours. When she walked out of the operating room, her legs almost gave up on her. Lynn quickly held her up. “Are you okay, Dr. Thorne?” Lysander shook her head. “Help me over to the chair, will you?” Lynn helped her sit on a chair, then went to get her a cup of hot water, looking at her with concern. “Dr. Thorne, you’re also pregnant. Technically, you shouldn’t be working so hard. But the patient’s condition was really tricky, and you were the only one in the hospital capable of saving her.” When Lysander heard her say the word “pregnant,” her hand trembled slightly. “How did you know?” Lynn smiled and blinked at her. “Getting pregnant is great news. Why did you hide it from me? I saw the test report on your desk yesterday.” Lysander smiled embarrassedly. “Yeah, it is great news.” “Have you told your husband?” “Not yet. His birthday is in a couple of days. I’ll tell him then…” Bam! Bam! Bam! Someone was slamming on the door outside the operating room. Lynn said, “It must be the patient’s husband. He’s anxious to know about his wife and child. Dr. Thorne, you can rest here. I’ll go talk to him.” “No, let me,” Lysander said. “I am her surgeon. According to hospital regulations, I should personally explain the situation to the patient’s family.” She stood up with the help of the wall, and Lynn immediately opened the door to the operating room. The man outside nearly charged in. “Doctor! How is she?!” “Don’t worry, both the mother and child are safe. But we need to keep her under observation for a while…” Before she could finish her sentence, both of them froze. “Lysander?” Lysander looked at the man in front of her in disbelief. “Josiah?”