Billionaire Lawyer's Secretary - Chapter 122: Chapter 122

Elara scrambled out of bed, slipped on her heels, and rushed straight to the CEO's office. She burst into Chris's office. "Chris, Mr. Hartley seems to have a high fever."
Chris immediately jumped up, grabbed the first aid kit, and hurried to Adrian's lounge. The thermometer showed 102 °F.
Chris gave Adrian's personal doctor a call. The doctor gave some instructions first, then said he'd come over from the hospital.
Elara followed the doctor's instructions and used physical methods to bring Adrian's fever down. She dampened a towel and placed it on his forehead, and then gently wiped his hands and neck.
While she was still tending to him, Adrian woke up, and it seemed he realized he was running a fever. With a hoarse voice, he croaked out, "Elara."
As Elara pressed the fever patch Chris had bought onto his forehead, she asked, "What's wrong?"
"I feel awful," he muttered.
Feeling how hot his skin was, Elara grumbled, "You're twenty-eight, don't you realize you have such a high fever? Still insisted on picking up your female classmate even when you're sick. Honestly, you don't look that miserable to me."
Adrian's eyelids drooped, his voice barely above a whisper. "If you say I'm fine, then I guess I am."
Elara paused as she wiped his neck, glancing at his face. When a handsome guy acted all pitiful, it really made one's heart ache.
She let out a sigh, willingly playing along with his act, and coaxed, "I know you're feeling terrible. Isn't that why I'm here taking care of you?"
Adrian, taking advantage and still acting all innocent, asked, "So, is it Secretary Elara taking care of me right now, or just Elara herself?"
"Does it even matter?" she shot back.
"Of course it does," he insisted.
Not about to argue with a sick man, Elara rolled her eyes and said, "It's Elara, the ultimate sucker."
Adrian couldn't help but smile at her words, then let out a soft cough.
"Do you want some water?" Elara asked.
"Yes," he murmured.
Elara stepped out to pour him a cup of warm water, and then gently helped him sit up against the headboard.
As she handed him the cup, he lifted his hand a little, but it just flopped back down, all weak and helpless. "I'm too weak to even hold the cup," he muttered.
"Adrian, I know a bit about reading microexpressions. If you hadn't looked up like that before you spoke, I might've actually bought it," Elara teased. She set the cup right in his palm. "Drink up."
Busted, Adrian listlessly finished the water, handed the cup back to her, and then lay down and pulled the blanket over himself. Turning his back to Elara, he went quiet, sulking in silence.
Not wanting to disturb his rest, she tiptoed out of the lounge.
About thirty minutes later, Adrian's personal doctor rushed over. The doctor checked Adrian's heartbeat with a stethoscope and asked him about his symptoms.
"Looks like he's caught a chill. The temperature's dropped a lot lately, so make sure to keep him warm. His fever's still pretty high, so I'll set up two IV drips for him. That'll help bring his fever down faster," the doctor said.
In no time, an IV needle was slipped into the back of Adrian's hand, and the IV bags were hanging from a stand.
"Once the IV's done and his fever's down, he'll be fine. No need for any extra meds. Just let him rest and make sure he drinks plenty of warm water," the doctor instructed.
Chris walked the doctor out, while Elara stayed in the lounge to look after Adrian. Adrian was awake, lying there with his eyes closed, trying to rest, but every now and then he'd let out a dry cough, looking extra pitiful.
Not wanting to bother him, Elara sat down on the couch, muted her phone, and scrolled through some videos. At one point, Elara asked if he wanted some water. His eyelids twitched a little, but he just ignored her.
That's when it hit Elara that Adrian was sulking. But she didn't know why. She figured it must be because she'd busted him earlier for faking that he couldn't lift his hand.
Checking the time, she saw it was three in the afternoon. She sat down on the edge of the bed, gently touching his forehead. It was still warm, but not as hot as before. "Are you hungry? Should I have Ruby bring you some porridge?"
Adrian fell silent.
"Do you want anything else besides porridge?" she tried again.
Adrian didn't say anything.
Not wanting to argue, Elara just sent Ruby a quick WhatsApp message. Maple Street was right in the heart of the city, close to Adrian's law firm, so Ruby was there in about twenty minutes.
Seeing Ruby's message, Elara glanced at Adrian, who was still sulking. "Mr. Hartley, Ruby's brought some food. I'll go grab it from the garage and be right back." Elara stood up and walked out.
As soon as the door clicked shut, only then did Adrian's eyes slowly open.
When she got to the garage and spotted the only pink diamond-studded BMW in all of Veritasiton, Elara slid right into the passenger seat. Ruby handed her the food. "Why are you having lunch so late?"
Elara didn't take it, her eyes fixing on Ruby. "Adrian's got a fever and is still on an IV drip."
Ruby just nodded. "Oh." Seeing that Elara wasn't taking the food bag and was just eyeing her up and down with a look that said she'd seen right through her, Ruby blinked her alluring eyes. "Why are you staring at me like that?"
"Did you and Victor get it on last night?" Elara teased.
Ruby's eyes went wide. "How do you know?"
"Hmph. So, you two players just having some fun?" Elara teased.
"Not sure. We're just seeing how things go. He's the heir of the Montgomery family, after all. Thinking too far ahead just makes things more complicated," Ruby replied.
Only then did Elara take the bag. "Alright, just take it easy. Don't let things get out of hand."
"I know," Ruby said.
Elara didn't mention to Ruby that Yvette liked Victor. Maybe when the time was right, Ruby would figure it out herself. Elara got out of the car, grabbed the two bags of food, and stepped into the elevator.
The elevator doors slid open on the first floor. Elara looked up and locked eyes with Alex, who was just about to step in. Alex hesitated for a moment when he saw her, but after a brief pause, he stepped inside anyway.
When Alex stepped in, Elara instinctively retreated a few steps deeper into the elevator, putting as much space between them as she could. The elevator doors slid shut.
It was a little past three in the afternoon, not the rush hour, so they were the only ones in the elevator. Elara kept her gaze down, standing there in silence.
"It's so late and you still haven't eaten?" Alex finally broke the silence.
Elara just acted like they were truly finished and didn't reply.
Alex turned to face her, his intense gaze locked onto her face. "You look a little tired. Didn't sleep well?"
Elara couldn't help but regret not getting her beauty sleep last night. Anyone who didn't know the truth might think she was lovesick and pining over some guy.
"Take care of yourself. Don't push too hard. Eat—" Alex began.
"Mr. Keating, it's not your place to care about a stranger like me," Elara cut in, her voice cold and distant. Her expression was icy and aloof, making Alex's chest feel heavy and tight.
"Elara..." Alex called out softly.
But Elara cut him off again. "Remember who you are. Next time we meet, just pretend you don't know me."
The elevator reached the top floor and the doors slid open. Elara walked right around Alex and strode out with a gust of wind in her wake, leaving him standing there, completely dazed.
Just then, Justin came out of the stairwell after finishing a call and ran right into Alex and Elara stepping out of the elevator. He pulled out his phone, opened WhatsApp, and clicked into Adrian's chat.
[Hey, your secretary's old flame just showed up. The two of them came out of the same elevator together. Who knows what they were talking about in there?]
Adrian shot back a reply right away, [The past? Compared to the future, it's not even worth a damn.]
Justin texted, [You clearly underestimate the power of first love. Not even the present can compete with her, let alone the future.]