chapter202

Suzanne nodded solemnly, committing every word of the doctor’s instructions to memory. After the medical staff cleared the room, a heavy silence descended.

She stood at the bedside, her eyes scanning the array of fresh bandages covering Nathan’s frame. She hadn't spoken since entering, her expression a mask of profound guilt and suppressed emotion.

Noticing her distress, Nathan offered a weary, reassuring smile. “Don’t look at me like that. I’ve survived far worse than this. These are just surface scratches.”

His attempt to brush it off only deepened her heartache. She remembered the bullet that had nearly claimed him just weeks prior; how could he be so cavalier about his own life? The sheer number of scars on his body told a story of a decade spent in constant peril—a reality she was only beginning to grasp.

“Why the tears, Suzy?” he asked softly, his own heart clenching at her silence. “Are you actually worried about me?”

Suzanne immediately turned away, hastily wiping her eyes.

Nathan watched her back, a bitter, disappointed laugh escaping him. He told himself he was reading too much into her reaction. After all, she was the one who had been so adamant about their divorce. Perhaps she was simply shocked by the sight of his injuries—pity and gratitude, he reasoned, were likely the only things she felt for him now.

Once she regained her composure, Suzanne approached him again, picking up a fresh hospital gown. “Put this on,” she said, her voice still thick with unshed tears. “You’ll catch a cold.”

Nathan obeyed, his intense gaze fixed on her as she carefully helped him with the buttons. Under his scrutiny, a faint blush crept up her neck, and her heart began to race.

“Did you... see Liam?” she asked timidly, trying to break the tension.

“No,” he replied.

“And the missing shipment?”

“Recovered,” he said shortly.

Suzanne paused, her fingers stilling on his buttons as she met his eyes. “That’s a relief. Does this mean the situation is resolved?”

“It’s complicated,” Nathan admitted. “It involves delicate diplomacy between both borders. It’s not a simple tactical fix.”

Suzanne nodded, respecting the boundaries of his professional life. Changing the subject, Nathan asked, “My brother has been estranged from the family for five years. How did you cross paths with him?”

“I didn't know who he was at first,” she explained, finishing the last button and sitting beside him. “He mistook me for someone else. But because of that mistake, he protected me from the traffickers. He was the one who sent you the message.”

Nathan’s expression darkened. He fell silent, realizing that Liam—like their grandmother—had seen the resemblance. Truth be told, he had been no different. Three years ago, when he first saw Suzanne, his first instinct had been to call out a childhood nickname for Sally.

The disappointment he felt when she corrected him was still a vivid memory. Yet, when Sally finally returned to the country a year ago, the expected "butterflies" never came.

He had married Suzanne out of duty to his grandmother, but also because of a deep, confusing attraction to the woman who looked so much like his past, yet felt so different. Now, with everything converging, he began to wonder if the coincidences were too numerous to be accidental.

He took a deep breath, his voice dropping to a serious, private tone. “Suzy... I need to ask you something. There was a mark... a distinct birthmark you had when we were children. Do you still have it? On your right thigh?”