The Billionaire Who Saved Me - Chapter 37: Chapter 37

"Thanks, boss." I took the card with both hands, flashing him a smile.
I secretly felt smug. I was absolutely right—he definitely wouldn't let me wear bargain-bin clothes.
"This is a supplementary card; you can spend money, but you can't donate money in it," he said as he headed upstairs.
I stuck out my tongue at his back. I grabbed the card tightly while thinking about my shopping spree tomorrow. Tomorrow would be the weekend—I could go shopping with Elena together.
We'd buy clothes and swipe his card. Just thinking about it made me happy.
Early the next morning, I dressed up and had breakfast. After that, I set off. Elena was already waiting when I arrived at the mall.
"Kate, I'm here." Elena greeted me happily but then frowned with curiosity. "Aren't you hot wearing so many layers?"
"I had a cold. I'm avoiding the wind," I gave a vague explanation.
She didn't ask further, and we walked hand in hand into the mall.
By noon, both of us were carrying armfuls of shopping bags, and we returned home fully loaded.
We had planned to have lunch together, but I received a call from Mason right after shopping. He told me to rush to Grandwell Medical Center immediately, saying there was something urgent he needed to discuss.
He sounded anxious, so I said goodbye to Elena and drove to the hospital as fast as I could.
Not far from the entrance, I saw Mason standing anxiously by the gate, looking towards me.
Before the car even fully stopped, he pulled me out and said seriously, "My grandmother wants to see you. Behave yourself. And remember, if there's anything you don't know or can't answer well, just say you don't remember."
I had never seen him like this before. Though I didn't understand what was going on, I dared not ask. I simply nodded and followed Mason to a private ward.
At the door, still wondering why we were here, I saw Richard—the same man I'd seen last time outside my parents's villa.
"Hey, Kate." He greeted me.
His voice made everyone inside turn to look at me, most with looks of shock.
"Is it really Kate? Come in. Let me have a good look," Mason's grandmother, Delilah, said and waved to me.
Mason had already told me on the way over that his family knew Katherine was back and that she'd even worked a month at the company. After hearing this, Delilah insisted on seeing me. But since she was very busy, the meeting was delayed.
Today, Delilah had some heart discomfort and came for a checkup. To show they took it seriously, the whole family came along with her.
While waiting for the results, the conversation turned to me. Delilah asked Mason to call me over so we could all meet properly.
Walking inside, I saw an elderly woman with grey hair sitting on the hospital bed. Though advanced in age, she looked quite robust. I knew this was Mason's grandmother.
"Grandma, it's me," I said as I sat beside her. Mason held my hand gently.
Delilah kept repeating, "I'm so glad you're back. I'm really glad."
"Humph, what's to be glad about that?" A harsh voice interrupted—it was a young girl about eighteen years old.
"Shut up. Can you speak properly?" came a middle-aged woman's voice.
The young girl didn't back down and retorted, "Honestly, it's just a minor illness. She could have taken medicine at home, but she insisted on visiting the hospital, and now everyone has to follow..."
"Get out!" shouted the middle-aged woman. She gave a sharp slap on the girl's face.
Though the years had left marks on the middle-aged woman's face, she took good care of herself and still looked dignified and elegant.
"Mom, why did you slap me? I'm never going to talk to you again," complained the young girl.
The young girl's cheek was bright red from the slap. Stomping her foot in anger, she ran off crying.
"Told you not to spoil her. Look at her," a man said, glaring angrily at the middle-aged woman.
I was stunned inwardly. Who was that girl? She was way too rude. She looked like Delilah's granddaughter. Joking around with me was one thing, but she even dared to speak like that to her own grandmother. I thought a family like them would value etiquette.
Delilah spoke up, "Enough, don't scold her anymore. The apple doesn't fall far from the tree. If you don't want to be here, you can leave. I never asked anyone to wait on me."
Just a moment ago, Delilah seemed gentle, but now that she showed authority, there was a chilling command in her tone that could make anyone fear.
The middle-aged woman tried to explain, "Delilah, Joey didn't mean it that way."
"Forget it. Just leave me alone. I'm afraid I'd be sick from all this drama," Delilah said impatiently.
Then turning back to me, her expression softened. "Kate, you should head back too. I will stay here for a month. Come visit me when you're free, alright?"
"I will. I'll definitely come to see you again," I promised with a smile.
As Mason and I left the ward and stepped into the hallway, the middle-aged woman seemed like she wanted to say something to me. But before she could, Mason gently took my hand and said, "Mom, Kate and I will leave now."
"Goodbye, Mrs. Knight," I said politely.
"Oh, what's the rush? I just want to chat with Kate. It's not like I'm going to steal her from you," she complained.
Mason acted like he didn't hear that, and with that, I followed him without replying.
Once we turned a corner and were out of sight, I pulled my hand out of his grip. I asked, "Why are you so cold? That was really rude, you know."
"There's no need to be polite with them," he replied flatly. "You did great today already."
I was stunned. "I did great? But I didn't do anything."
He said, "We'll talk at home."
He reminded me—this wasn't a good place to talk. Hospitals weren't meant for conversation like this.
Back at home, we came to the study, and I asked what had been on my mind, "Seems like your grandmother doesn't like your stepmother very much?"
He didn't answer directly, instead steering the conversation elsewhere. "Listen, here's what we'll say: I found you out of town. Back then, you were swept far away by the river and rescued by a rural couple.
"You lost your memory, so you couldn't recall anything from before. Then I finally found you, courted you all over again, and eventually, you were moved by my persistence and agreed to be my girlfriend again."
"Are you sure that'll work?" I was skeptical. "Isn't that a little too simple?"
He asked, "Do you have a better idea?"
"Nope," I admitted without hesitation.
"Then go with what I said."
"Well."
I had been preparing for this meeting with Mason's family for days. I even practiced what to say, how to answer questions they might ask—I had mentally rehearsed everything more than once.
I imagined all kinds of scenarios for my first time meeting his family, but I never expected it would happen at the hospital.
"Who is the girl your stepmother slapped?" I asked, curious. She was so brash and out of place, and I couldn't forget her even if I wanted to.
"She's my half-sister. Just ignore her," Mason replied.
I nodded. "Got it."
He went on to introduce that the middle-aged man was his father. The middle-aged woman was his stepmother. And the quiet one who hadn't said much at all was his older half-sister.
There were too many names and faces, and I couldn't remember them all.
Seeing how confused I looked, Mason told me not to stress about it. If I forgot anything, I could always blame it on memory loss. Only then did I realize how cleverly Mason had planned everything.
"Sir, Madam, dinner is ready," came Nadia's voice after some knocks. Only then did I realize I was starving.
Walking into the dining room, I saw the table was full of delicious food, and it made my hunger even worse.
I grabbed two pieces of bread to line my stomach, then added a bowl of soup, and helped myself to nearly half the dishes on the table before finally putting down my fork, fully satisfied.