CHAPTER 29
The moment she slipped into the car, a heavy, suffocating silence filled the space.
Nina felt Jasper’s eyes on her. He looked at her as if trying to figure out why she was even there. She’d asked him to stay away—yet here she was, invading his space.
They stared at each other, and suddenly the clean, masculine scent of his cologne sharpened in her nose. She took him in: the tailored suit, the open collar, no tie.
The silence was a physical weight. Only the low hum of the engine and her quickened breath filled the car.
Then the driver, sensing the tension, finally broke the silence:
“Sir… should I drive?”
Her voice came out quickly—sharp, cold, but steady.
“Go ahead.”
Jasper gave a small nod, and the car eased forward. Nina knew this was madness. But as long as the driver was there, she’d be fine.
He kept his eyes on her. She saw how tight his shoulders were, how his fists flexed on his knees. His jaw ticked before he finally turned his head and broke their stare. He leaned back, exhaled, and seemed to relax—though barely.
“I thought we agreed not to see each other again,” he said a few minutes later. His voice was level, but something wary in his tone.
Nina ran her fingers along the edge of her white blazer, trying to anchor herself. Then she forced herself to turn toward him, meet his eyes. She held his gaze. Let him see she wasn't afraid.
Silence dropped on them again—heavier this time.
Jasper shot a quick, tense glance at the driver. His jaw tightened, his eyes darkened.
He turned back to her.
“Not here,” he said quietly. The tone was pure warning: not in front of anyone else.
Nina arched a brow.
“Then maybe we can stop by a restaurant?” she suggested calmly. “To talk.”
He clearly hated that idea.
“I don’t have time. I’ve got an emergency surgery in an hour. I need to start prepping.”
He probably expected her to back off. To take the hint.
But not tonight.
Nina folded her arms, took a breath—then noticed her top button had come undone, exposing more of her neckline than she liked. She fumbled to button it, cheeks warming.
“No problem. I’ve got plenty of free time. I’ll wait,” she said, her voice uneven with nerves.
Jasper went still. Something flickered in his eyes—annoyance, frustration… or fear of the conversation itself?
Was he avoiding his past too? Afraid for the reputation of the country’s top cardiothoracic surgeon? What would people say if they learned the kinds of things he’d done?
“It’s going to take hours. Let’s pick another day.”
Why was he so desperate to get rid of her? Nina studied him, suspicion prickling. Was he afraid someone might see them together?
“I’ll wait,” she repeated, an odd mix of anger and stubbornness rising in her chest. Maybe she truly was losing her mind—but she wasn’t stopping now.
She followed Jasper Garth into the clinic. He walked ahead, greeting staff as he passed. Nina tried to match his pace, her heels tapping sharply against the freshly polished hospital floors.
He was tense. She noticed immediately. As if her being near him was the splinter under his skin.
Shouldn’t she be the tense one? Shouldn’t she be the one afraid? But it almost felt like he was.
She didn’t say anything—just followed him, feeling the weight of the stares on her back. Whether it was surprise or curiosity, she couldn’t tell.
He stopped in front of a door, opened it, and gestured for her to step inside.
“Wait here. If you want, you can lock it from the inside. If you get tired of waiting—just leave.”
Nina nodded. A tight, uneasy feeling twisted inside her, but she forced herself to walk in. The room was simple—standard furniture, nothing extra.
Jasper slipped off his suit jacket and hung it neatly over the back of a chair. Then he grabbed a white lab coat, pulled it on, and buttoned it up. He adjusted his badge, opened a small locker, and took out a pair of scrub shoes.
Nina noticed his gaze flick toward her—just for a moment.
Something passed in his expression… doubt?
Or caution?
He didn’t say anything. He just nodded and stepped out, closing the door behind him.
She was alone.
Silence settled over the room—thick, tense. Nina stood in the middle of his office, unsure where to put herself. The space felt too perfect, too sterile. Too foreign.
She slowly approached his desk, letting her fingertips glide across the smooth surface. Polished oak—cold, like Jasper himself. Everything was arranged with precision. Folders, neatly stacked papers, pens in a holder—every item exactly in its place.
Nina noticed the awards next. Several certificates hung on the wall, each framed in heavy wood. Cardiothoracic Surgery. Transplant Medicine. Physician of the Year. National Excellence Award. Everything was the best. Just like the man himself—at least at first glance.
A little farther away were photos. Small, minimalist frames. Jasper at medical conferences, with colleagues, with influential people.
She didn’t know who he’d been twenty-two years ago, but now—Jasper Garth, the perfect surgeon, the pride of the country.
Who would believe that this man was her personal nightmare?
That the hands saving lives today had once been the instruments of her pain?
Nina lowered herself into his chair. It smelled like him. She had no right to sit there, no right to be in his space at all—yet she stayed. She intruded into his world.
The feeling was strange. As if she’d stepped into a private corner of his life—one he’d never reveal willingly. But for some reason she remained. Studying. Absorbing. Trying to understand what drove the man who had once been her executioner.
Her fingers rested on the edge of the desk, sliding across it as if searching for something wrong. A crack. A flaw in this perfectly constructed life.
But when she looked up again—at the awards, the photos, the orderly rows of his world—she realized there were no cracks. He’d built a flawless life.
And she…?
The thought hit her with a sharp, aching twist inside her chest.
Time crawled. She leaned back in the chair and pulled out her phone. Scrolled through her feed until boredom settled like sand. She opened a book instead—a romance novel she’d downloaded months ago and never started.
She had always loved stories like that. Simple.
Genuine. Painless. Where love was perfect, men were strong and devoted, and women were cherished and wanted.
She used to disappear into those fictional worlds for days, hiding from reality.
Sometimes those books felt like her only chance to remember what happiness might feel like.
Now they were just a way to kill time.
She drifted into the pages, losing track of everything else. The battery drained slowly; a warning blinked on the screen.
Damn. Almost dead.
She lowered the phone and glanced at the closed door. Jasper still hadn’t returned. Two hours had passed. Her gaze swept across the office. Maybe he kept a charger somewhere?
She carefully opened the top drawer of his desk. Papers, office supplies, a few notepads. And there was a charger. Relief washed through her.
She was just reaching for it when the door burst open.
Nina flinched, her hand frozen midair. A young woman rushed in—wearing the clinic uniform, holding a takeout bag from a restaurant. She stopped short when she saw Nina.
It was Lynn. Nina recognized her instantly.