Revenge: Once His Wife, Now His Regret - Chapter 163: Chapter 163

Sally watched his retreating back, her heart sinking.
'That little brat is smarter than he looks.'
With no other choice, Sally sat down at the consultation desk and placed her hand on its surface.
A slight, irrepressible smile touched Jaxon's lips as he placed his hand on the desk, ready for her.
Sally stared down at his hand, an indescribable feeling churning inside her.
Their hands had touched countless times under all sorts of circumstances, but never had it felt so difficult to make contact.
"What's the matter? Scared to touch me?" Jaxon's teasing voice broke the silence.
Sally shot him a glare before finally reaching out, her cool fingertips landing on the pulse point of his warm wrist.
Her heart gave an unnerving leap.
But then, the image of that other woman kissing his cheek flashed in her mind, and her pulse slowed, her heart turning to ash.
Even now, the memory was a sharp, painful sting.
It felt just like a breakup.
When she remained silent, Jaxon asked, "Aren't you going to ask me anything?"
His voice pulled Sally from her thoughts, and her brow furrowed. "Ask you what?"
"Don't you traditional medicine practitioners always ask a million questions? How's your sleep? How's your mood? Your appetite... "
Sally just glared at him, saying nothing.
Seeing that she wasn't going to speak, Jaxon started on his own. "I haven't been well. Ever since that day, I can't eat, I can't sleep. All I can think about is... "
You.
Before he could say the last word, Sally cut him off. "Mr. Zale, you shouldn't talk while I'm taking your pulse."
Jaxon looked at her with a hint of exasperation but finally closed his mouth.
After a few moments, she quickly pulled out a notepad and scribbled a few lines.
"Your headache is from lack of rest," she said nonchalantly. "I'm prescribing some herbs to help you relax. Make sure you take them on time."
"I don't know how to prepare them. You do it for me."
Hearing his cool command, Sally felt a flash of anger. "The clinic doesn't offer a preparation service. Have your housekeeper make them."
"She doesn't know how, either."
Sally's grip on her pen tightened. She looked up, her eyes meeting his. "Then hire one who does."
Jaxon was taken aback, a short, humorless laugh escaping him. For a moment, he was speechless.
Sally finished writing the prescription, stood, and walked over to the wall of herbal remedies. She began pulling out small drawers, measuring out the contents.
A low voice came from behind her. "Are you still angry?"
Her hands paused for a fraction of a second. After a moment, she replied coolly, "It's in the past. I don't want to talk about it."
With the herbs collected, she returned to the front desk and began to bag them.
But as she reached for the bag, Jaxon's hand shot out and grabbed her wrist.
Sally's head snapped up, her gaze locking with his.
Jaxon stood on the other side of the counter, so close and yet a world away.
"If you were really over it, you wouldn't be acting like this," he said, his voice low.
"And how am I acting?" Sally replied with a sarcastic smile. "Let's be clear about our relationship, Mr. Zale. I was your nephew's wife. That's all. My behavior is perfectly appropriate. You're not my boyfriend, and you're certainly not my husband... "
"Sally!" Jaxon's voice rose, his grip on her wrist tightening instinctively.
Click.
At that exact moment, the restroom door swung open.
Carlos, assuming Jaxon had already left, froze in the doorway when he saw the scene at the counter, caught between advancing and retreating.
The two at the counter turned their heads toward the sound.
Carlos scratched his head awkwardly and quickly backed into the restroom. "Oh, my stomach is killing me again... "
As the door clicked shut again, Sally yanked her hand from Jaxon's grasp.
Without another word, she finished tying the bag and thrust it at him.
Just then, another patient walked in. "Doctor, my leg's been bothering me. Can you take a look?"
Sally quickly moved around the counter and headed toward the consultation desk.
Jaxon glanced down at the bag of herbs in his hand.
'She never told me how much it was... '
He took the bag, pulled out his phone, opened his payment app, and sent her a transfer.
After one last look at her back, he strode out of the clinic.
It wasn't until she got home that night that Sally saw the notification from Jaxon.
3 thousand dollars.
She stared at the number, not knowing whether to laugh or cry.
The herbs she'd given him were worth a few hundred dollars at most. He had paid her an obscene amount.
She glanced at it for another second before closing the app.
Over the next few days, Jaxon didn't show up at the clinic, but he messaged her constantly, asking why she hadn't accepted the money.
Sally never responded to the question. In fact, she ignored everything he sent.
Sunday was the day for Howard Zale's follow-up appointment.
Since it was her day off, Sally decided to go over a bit earlier than usual to give him a thorough check-up, as her previous visits had always been rushed in the late afternoon.
When she arrived at the Zale residence and stepped inside, she was met by the sight of Brad and Nick.
"What are you doing here?" Nick demanded, his voice laced with a fresh layer of resentment from their last encounter at his school.
Sally shot him a cool, sidelong glance, her voice low and steady. "I'm here for your great-grandfather's follow-up checkup."
"It's been this long and you still haven't cured him? You just keep doing check-ups," Nick scoffed. "Are you even any good at this? If you can't fix him, you should just stop trying."
It was clear he was still fuming about what had happened at school.
"Mind your own business," Sally snapped, her patience gone. "This is between adults."
In the next second, Brad strode forward, grabbed her wrist, and started pulling her toward the backyard.
"What do you think you're doing?" Sally cried out.