Crushed Affections

Bella looked into his callous eyes, feeling a little embarrassed. Standing so close to Dominic made her heart race uncontrollably. "—"

"You should know your place," Dominic said derisively, cutting her off. "To me, you're just like any other woman I've met in the club. The only difference is that I've allowed you to stay here." Her face turned pale as she watched him leave. She tried to suppress the heart-wrenching feeling that was taking over. It wasn't the first time; she should've known better than to get upset.

Dominic was referring to the breakfast Bella had prepared. To him, it was merely an attempt to win his favor.

She picked herself up and left for the hospital. Once she arrived, she took the elevator to the cardiac department located on the third floor as usual.

"When can I get my lab results?" A crisp woman's voice caught Bella's attention as she passed by the laboratory department.

Bella remembered hearing this voice from yesterday. The memory of this woman crying to Dominic about the abortion was still fresh in her mind.

She stopped and looked in the direction of the voice. The woman was dressed in a black, tight-fitting slip dress and high heels, revealing her slender and fair legs. With her tall figure and charming features, she could easily attract any man. She tried a little too hard with her makeup, though. It turned out that Dominic was into this type of woman.

Seeing this woman, Bella couldn't help but picture Dominic and her getting intimate in bed. It evoked a deep sense of discomfort in her, but it subsided rather quickly.

The laboratory departments were usually located on the third floor of a hospital. It seemed like the woman came back for a check-up after the abortion procedure yesterday.

Bella didn't stay for too long and went to her office to put on her white coat. Yet, the thought of the woman kept popping up in her head.

She ended up in the gynecology department somehow.

"Dr. Clarkson, the woman in the black slip dress just now had an abortion yesterday, right? How is she?"

Amelie Clarkson thought it over for a few seconds before answering, "Oh, her... I think her name is Mandy Lloyd. Yeah, she had an abortion yesterday.

"Dressing so lightly in early spring, she should be careful not to catch a cold. But I suppose it wouldn't be a big deal since she's young and strong. Do you know her, Dr. Jones?" Bella shook her head awkwardly. "No, I don't. She's... She's my friend's girlfriend, but we've never met."

All these years, she could never seem to put a finger on her relationship with Dominic. It was somewhat absurd and humiliating; she found it hard to even introduce him as a friend. Suddenly, Mandy rushed into the clinic with her lab results in hand. "Dr. Clarkson, my lab results are out. Help me take a look."

The earlier conversation ended abruptly, as if they'd agreed on it beforehand. Feeling awkward, Bella stuffed her hands into the pockets of her white coat. She wasn't used to prying into other people's business, so she felt a little guilty about it. She even felt like she would get crazy about Dominic sometimes.

Why did she want to know about Mandy's condition? Was it to confirm that she had aborted the baby? If Mandy had kept it, it was highly possible that Dominic would be getting married.

She had no idea what her actual thoughts were, and she didn't want to think about it.

"I think I've seen you somewhere," Mandy said as she sized Bella up after noticing her standing on the side.

Bella looked at Mandy calmly and did a quick run-through of her memories. She was certain that they had never met before. Even if they had, it would've been in a doctor-patient setting. After a while, Mandy seemed to have recalled something.

"Oh, I think it was at Dom..."