Perfect CEO

Chapter 3

Hector had barely finished his sentence when the patient monitor began to beep.

Patrick replied, “I heard you, Grandpa. I'll marry the eldest daughter of the Ashton family.”

He wanted to reassure his grandfather.

Kevin and some hospital staff had arrived then and began giving him emergency treatment. They eventually wheeled Hector to the ICU.

Meanwhile, Gwendolyn frantically peppered the ICU staff with questions.

“When can my daughter leave the ICU? Can I go in to accompany her?”

Her anxiety was palpable, and her eyes reddened, threatened by a fresh wave of tears.

The nurse answered, “She needs to stay in the hospital overnight for observation. You can come back in twenty-four hours. We'll take good care of her.”

Gwendolyn was hardly going to leave the hospital without her daughter, though she still nodded and said, “Thank you.”

Half an hour later, Patrick arrived at the ICU entrance, where a waiting nurse greeted him.

“How is my grandfather doing?”

The nurse checked the files in her hand and replied, “Old Mr. Lowen is still in a critical condition, Mr.

Lowen. We need to observe him for twenty-four hours. The director has prepared a lounge for you.”

Every hospital staff knew who Patrick Lowen was. He was a close friend of their director, Kevin, and he had visited his grandfather at the hospital almost daily for the past six years. They admired his filial piety.

Patrick acknowledged the nurse's explanation with a nod. “I understand.”

He turned around after that, and he noticed that a woman hunched over in the corner of the room. She hugged herself, with her toes curled and her head buried between her knees. It was a pitiful sight.

Patrick removed his coat and draped it over the woman before heading for the elevator.

Gwendolyn lifted her head, her gaze fixed on his broad back. She called out, “Thank you! How should I return your coat?”

Patrick stepped into the elevator. Right before the doors closed, he said, “Keep it. I don't know who's ill, but you should keep yourself healthy while taking care of another.”

His show of concern for this stranger was out of character for Patrick. He was surprised by his own actions as well.

When the elevator doors closed, Patrick smirked and shook his head.

Gwendolyn pulled his coat tighter around herself, reveling in the residual warmth of his body.

She sniffed and breathed in the faint, pleasant scent lingering on the coat.

Sometime later, the elevator doors opened and out walked two young boys. The boy walking in front wore a black windbreaker, and he carried a long, white down jacket.

A boy wearing a gray and white-striped baseball uniform and cap trailed him, a pair of snow boots in his arms. Còntens bel0ngs to Nô(v)elDr/a/ma.Org

Thanks to their chiseled features, both boys were extremely handsome. They looked so alike that anyone could tell they were twins at first glance.

A man dressed in a gray coat walked behind the boys. Despite his dashing features, Zayden Surrington looked nothing like the boys.

The older of the two boys was Justin Ashton. He walked to Gwendolyn's side, a hint of anguish in his eyes.

“Mommy, you should wear this.”

By then, Justin had noticed the man's coat wrapped around his mother. He guessed that a kind-hearted stranger had given it to Gwendolyn.

Guilt flitted across the expression of Gwendolyn's second son, Julian Ashton.

He asked worriedly, “Mommy, why didn't you bring Justin and me along? We could've helped you.”

Julian bent down and gently pulled Gwendolyn's feet into his lap. He planned to warm them up before coaxing her to wear her shoes.

Meanwhile, Zayden sat beside Gwendolyn, watching as her sons rubbed her feet and tucked her into a coat. Envy swelled in his chest.

He asked, “Gwen, why didn't you tell me Juliette was sick? I promised I would take care of all of you.”