Chapter 12

Chapter 12 Shameless Later on, their clothes lay sca* tered on the ground, a testament to the passionate night they had shared. Cora wasn’t sure if she desired to relax her body or if she simply yearned for Byron’s embrace. What she did know was that Byron was more gentle tonight than in the previous nights. He had allowed her to truly experience the happiness of being a woman.

The next day, at dawn, Cora was abruptly awakened by Byron.

Her mind was still foggy as she gazed at him, neatly dressed and seemingly unaffected by their sleepless night.

They had spent the entire night tangled together, finally succumbing to slumber just before dawn. Cora didn’t know why he woke her up so early.

“Unlock your phone,” Byron instructed, showing no signs of fatigue.

“Oh,” Cora mumbled, her mind in disarray. She followed his command and handed him her phone. After Byron returned it to her, she noticed a new contact named ‘By’ on WhatsApp, with a profile picture that was completely black.

Cora tossed her phone aside before falling back to sleep.

When the alarm clock rang, she found Byron was no longer in bed.

Cora hurriedly got up and headed to the hospital.

Instead of going straight to the emergency room, she made a detour to the sterile ward to catch a glimpse of her mother, Flora Bates, through the window.

It had been over a month since the fire, and while Flora had survived, her body remained wrapped in bandages, and her me tal state was unstable.

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Due to Cora’s financial constraints, Flora was sharing a sterile ward with three other patients.

As soon as Flora spotted Cora in her scrubs, her tone was filled with dissatisfaction and rejection. “You’re wearing that again? How much do you want others to know that you’re a doctor? How many times have I told you? I don’t want to see you wearing that!”

“Mom, I’m an intern here. This is my uniform,” Cora explained.

Flora had always been dissatisfied with Cora’s choice to become a doctor, but Cora had grown accustomed to it. It was a vast improvement compared to the first time she proudly showed Flora her uniform, only to have it torn to pieces.

“Why didn’t you discuss such a big decision with me? Do you even care about me?” Flora continued with her unpleasant remarks. “So unlucky to have you. I should have suffocated you when you were born!”

Cora tried to restrain her emotions, knowing that several traumas must have caused her mother’s volatile behavior and harsh words.

Otherwise, no matter how much Flora resented Cora’s choice to become a doctor, she wouldn’t have caused a scene in front of so many people.

Just then, Flora seemed to have noticed something. Pointing at Cora’s neck, she exclaimed, “Wait, what are those...”

Startled, Cora quickly covered her neck with both hands, trying to hide the marks Byron had left on her the previous night.

Cora had arrived at the hospital early in the morning and hadn’t expected Flora to notice them.

“Why are you so cheap? You haven’t even married Eason yet, and you’ve already slept with him?” Flora’s face twisted with disgust.

Flora’s opposition to sex before marriage was just as strong as her opposition to Cora’s choice of becoming a doctor. The aversion probably stemmed from being deceived by a doctor named Yoris before her own marriage, which led her to marry a divorced man who already had a child.

Flora’s outburst attracted the attention of those nearby, who now looked at Cora as if she were a s t who would sleep with anyone.

“Mom, please calm down,” Cora pleaded, feeling utterly overwhelmed. She was at a loss as to how to handle the situation.

After all, Flora was her mother, her only remaining family.

No matter how miserable and heartbroken Cora felt, she had no choice but to endure it.

The one consolation she had was that Flora hadn’t discovered her relationship with Byron. Given Flora’s current state, no one would know what she might do if that secret were revealed.

Finally, a nurse arrived and administered a sedative to Flora.

Flora lay on the hospital bed, muttering in a daze, “This is karma. My retribution...