Chapter 5 Trying to Make This Fake Romance Real?
Ryan read the prescription carefully.
“Almost exactly what I had in mind,” he said. “I’d add mountain pepper. Just over half an ounce—point five three, to be precise.”
“Mountain pepper?”
Whitmore fell silent, considering the addition.
No one interrupted. Walter’s recovery depended on that sheet of paper, and the family waited as though afraid to disturb the doctor’s thoughts.
Still, they couldn’t help staring.
Arthur Whitmore was asking Ryan to check his prescription. Did that mean Ryan was the better physician?
Chloe looked at him with renewed interest.
Who the hell had she brought to meet her family?
Whitmore’s expression changed. His eyes lit up, and he slapped a hand against his thigh.
“Of course! The way it works with the other ingredients—the formula should be at least thirty percent more effective. Brilliant!”
He turned to Ryan with undisguised respect.
“Your knowledge far exceeds mine, Mr. Carter. Would you be willing to exchange numbers? I’d like to thank you properly another day. And perhaps ask your advice on a few other matters.”
Ryan raised his eyebrows.
“A physician with your reputation wants advice from me?”
Whitmore showed no sign of embarrassment.
“There’s always more to learn. If someone knows something I don’t, I’d be a fool not to listen.”
His sincerity was hard to miss. Ryan took out his phone, and they exchanged numbers.
“I’ll leave you to it,” Whitmore said. “I’ll be in touch.”
“Sounds good.”
Hayes followed him to the door, looking distinctly uncomfortable.
“This is beyond my ability to treat,” he told the family before leaving. “Follow Mr. Carter’s instructions.”
Silence settled over the room.
Chloe was the first to break it.
“Ryan, you said you could cure my grandfather?”
Ryan added the mountain pepper to Whitmore’s prescription and handed it to her.
“Simmer the herbs in three cups of water until there’s one cup left. Make a fresh batch each day and divide it into three doses. Keep that up for a month, along with acupuncture…”
He trailed off.
Wait a minute. He was a fake boyfriend. In another couple of hours, this family was supposed to be out of his life.
Why was he committing himself to a month of treatment?
Too late now.
“The results will be better with acupuncture,” he continued. “But even without it, taking the medicine regularly should make a considerable difference. He shouldn’t have another attack like today’s.”
Relief spread across their faces.
Only minutes earlier, Hayes had told them there was little he could do. Now they had a treatment that might work.
If the attacks stopped, that alone would be a blessing.
Ryan might not have a medical license, but Whitmore had deferred to him. Surely his judgment counted for something.
Chloe, however, was stuck on one detail.
A month of acupuncture.
Whitmore hadn’t known the technique. They could hardly ask some other doctor to take over.
Which meant Ryan would have to keep coming back. And if he kept coming back, they would have to keep pretending to date.
Was this ever going to end?
Exhausted by the ordeal, Walter sank into his pillows. Diane stayed to look after him while the others stepped into the hallway.
Richard turned to Ryan.
“Can he make a full recovery?”
“With the medicine and acupuncture, yes.”
Chloe shot Ryan a pointed look.
Was he doing this on purpose? Using her grandfather’s treatment as an excuse to stay close to her? Trying to turn their fake relationship into something real?
He could keep dreaming.
Ryan caught her expression and smiled.
“The medicine alone can still help. He’d need to take it for another month, but I wouldn’t expect the attacks to return. And once I start working, fitting in the acupuncture appointments could be difficult.”
Chloe relaxed a little.
At least he’d taken the hint. Whatever he might be imagining, they weren’t going to become a real couple.
Richard considered that, then took a prepaid debit card from his pocket.
“You saved my father today. We’re grateful, and we don’t want him going through that again. I’d like you to oversee his treatment, including the acupuncture. We want him fully recovered, without any lingering problems.”
He held out the card.
“There’s seventy-five thousand dollars on this. Please accept it as payment for your time.”
Seventy-five thousand.
This family really did have money to spare.
Ryan glanced at Chloe instead of taking the card.
She looked stunned. Clearly, this hadn’t been part of her plan.
The amount didn’t bother her. Hiring Ryan did. How were they supposed to end their little performance if her father kept bringing him back?
“Dad!”
Richard misunderstood. He assumed she resented seeing her boyfriend treated like an outsider—as though his help were something the family had to purchase.
His frown deepened, and he pressed the card into Ryan’s hand.
“The PIN is six eights.” He turned to Chloe. “Your relationship is one thing. Your grandfather’s treatment is another. I want to keep them separate. Whatever happens between the two of you, this shouldn’t complicate it.”
A trace of amusement touched Ryan’s eyes.
So that was it.
Richard had disliked him from the beginning: no money, no connections, nothing to offer his daughter. Saving Walter had complicated matters, and now Richard wanted to settle the debt.
If Ryan accepted payment, Richard could break them up later without feeling indebted to him.
No unpaid favors. No accusations of ingratitude.
“Since you insist, Mr. Bennett, thank you.”
Ryan pocketed the card, then glanced at Chloe’s scowl.
“We’ll need a place of our own someday. I can put this toward our house.”