Flash Marriage To The Dangerous Billionaire - Chapter 46: Chapter 46

Peterson crossed his arms and jerked his chin toward the door, his voice dripping with amusement. "Do you really not care at all about Hallie's feelings? Her pursuer actually ran after her, you know."
"Pursuer?" Nelson let out a cold, derisive scoff. "If she actually likes someone like him, it only proves she has bad taste."
Nelson snapped the file shut and fixed Peterson with an icy stare. "Playing the victim won't change my mind. She'd do well to remember that."
"Playing the victim?" Peterson blurted out, his tone full of disbelief.
He added, "Come on, Nelson, when we first got here, her hands were a mess of cuts but she kept working. Do you really think Hallie is the type to play the victim?
"She's just a girl, but she was treating the injured, leading the rescue team into the mountains to search, and spent the whole night out there until everyone was found.
"That kind of dedication deserves respect. Weren't you the one who admired her so much that you went up the mountain with her?"
Peterson's tone was undeniably matter-of-fact.
After more than ten years of friendship, Peterson could still read Nelson.
Nelson didn't respond directly to Peterson. He gave him a once-over, his tone unreadable.
"What's with you defending her so hard? Did she slip you a love potion or something?" Nelson asked, his voice laced with sarcasm.
"Love potion?" Peterson raised an eyebrow with a smirk. "To be honest, I was hoping to try some myself.
"But she only brought one portion—and guess what, Nelson, it all ended up with you."
Following Peterson's gaze, Nelson finally noticed a lunch box on the long table.
Peterson walked over and opened the box.
Instantly, mouthwatering aromas filled the air.
Peterson rubbed his hands together eagerly and turned to Nelson. "Since you can't stand Hallie right now, you don't want her homemade soup either? In that case, mind if I take it off your hands?"
Without waiting for Nelson's response, Peterson grabbed the spoon.
Just as he was about to eagerly take a taste, Nelson slapped his hand down with the file folder.
"Go check the ingredients first," Nelson ordered, his tone leaving no room for refusal.
Peterson opened his mouth to protest, but under Nelson's threatening glare, he reluctantly set the spoon down.
Clutching the file, he left with obvious reluctance, throwing longing glances back every few steps as he went to verify the ingredients.
Dustin followed behind Hallie, having prepared countless words to comfort her.
But contrary to his expectations, Hallie didn't slip away to cry in private or vent her emotions.
Instead, she returned to her tent, changed into her white coat, and immediately resumed treating the wounded with single-minded focus.
Her expression remained perfectly composed, as if nothing had happened at all, leaving Dustin momentarily at a loss for how to approach her.
About an hour after signing the documents, Nelson and Peterson departed Berry Bay by car and caught a flight back to Callopston that same evening.
Hallie didn't get Peterson's message until the next morning—he said that he and Nelson had already returned to Callopston.
She glanced at the text, pocketed her phone, and left it unanswered.
Three more days passed in the blink of an eye. The rescue efforts at Berry Bay were winding down, with reconstruction work now taking priority. The doctors and rescue teams who had traveled from afar could finally begin heading home.
As the people of Berry Bay gathered to see them off, Hallie lined up with the other doctors and nurses, ready to board the bus.
Sergio and Zander hurried over, their faces full of reluctance. "Come back and visit us whenever you can," they urged.
Hallie smiled and promised she would. As they spoke, the two men soon fell into their usual good-natured bickering, just like always.
Just then, Dustin arrived, holding what appeared to be a package.
Hallie took the package from him. "What's this?"
She opened it and found several notebooks inside.
The handwriting and the simple sketches of various medicinal herbs were instantly recognizable.
Her eyes darkened slightly as she looked up and gave Dustin a faint smile.
"Thank you. I never expected you'd keep my mother's research notes," Hallie said softly.
Dustin shook his head lightly, signaling there was no need for thanks.
He said, "These past years, I've followed your mother's notes to find safer foraging routes in the forests, and I've gained quite a lot. I had hoped to stay and help you here, but now that Blair Group has taken over..."
A hint of regret crossed Dustin's face.
Hallie lowered her eyes, her fingers gripping the package so tightly that her knuckles turned white.
After a moment, she asked Dustin, "So, what are your plans now? Are you going back home?"
"No," Dustin said, shaking his head.
He added, "My uncle runs a clinic in Callopston. He's planning to start a class to take on apprentices, and he invited me to help out before.
"But I was busy with field surveys at the time, so I turned him down. I think we'll probably meet again in Callopston soon."
"That's great," Hallie replied with a smile.
"If you need anything when you get to Callopston, just reach out to me," she added.
Dustin nodded. "Will do."
Dustin seemed like he wanted to say more, but just then a nurse called out, "Dr. Levine."
Hallie instinctively turned around and saw a few nurses waving at her.
The bus was about to leave.
"I'd better go," Hallie said.
With that, she turned and hurried onto the bus.
The engine roared to life, and Dustin could only wave goodbye.
Dustin had always wanted to ask about that heir to the powerful family. He couldn't shake the feeling that Hallie's relationship with Nelson was far more complicated than just friendship.
He thought, 'Forget it. Once I get to Callopston, I'll have plenty of time to figure things out.'
Hallie sat by the window in the very last row, the scenery whizzing past outside. The pain, cold, hunger, and exhaustion of the past week seemed to fade away with the passing landscape.
Fragments of the past few days flickered through her mind, and then—suddenly, inexplicably—her memories froze on Nelson's cold, indifferent face.
Those eyes, sometimes mocking, sometimes taunting, sizing her up. Nelson's voice echoed in her mind. "Who do you think you're looking down on?"
Or the firelight casting shadows on the stray hair falling across his forehead, highlighting his sharp, focused profile.
But all of this, she reminded herself, was just another tactic in Nelson's playbook. She was just another pawn in his game.
Hallie unconsciously clenched her fists and took a deep breath.
She lowered her head and reopened the research notes on her lap, her fingers tracing the slightly rough paper.
Upon their return to Callopston, Declan, the hospital director, held a welcome ceremony for the returning medical staff and announced a three-day leave for all those who had participated in the relief efforts.
So, Hallie hailed a cab and gave the driver her address.
Hallie returned to the villa a little after 8 PM, and it was glowing with warm light.
As soon as she stepped inside, she spotted Nelson lounging on the sofa, engrossed in a book.