Page 84 of The Next Door Billionaire's Deception

Chapter 26

Melissa

It'sthesamedreamas before. Everything and everywhere is pitch black, then there’s a drop of red. Then another. And another. Soon, the drops become a flood, and I’m almost swept away, but this time, a hand reaches out to me. I grab hold of it, and it pulls me out of the blood-red abyss.

I blink, taking in the lights. My eyes adjust, and everything’s blurry at first, before becoming clearer.

A fluorescent bulb in the ceiling. White sheets. Blue overalls. A bag of white liquid hanging over my bed, connected to my body by a thin pipe.

I’m in a hospital.

What happened? The last things I remember before blacking out were loud, crashing noises, the blasting of sirens, and somebody calling out to me.

Who was that? What was the person saying?

“Melissa? Oh, thank God you’re awake!”

Someone is sitting by my bed, holding me. Large, warm hands envelop my left hand, and I squint to see who it is. It’s a man. A familiar comes into view.

“Alex?”

He hugs me, crying. “Thank goodness! I was so worried about you, ‘Lissa. You’re the only family I have!”

I wrap my arms around him, holding him close.

“I see you’re up. You’re a day late. The pie is getting soggy.”

I smile at the figure on the other side of the bed. “Celine. You’re here. Sorry about that.”

“Don’t say sorry, blockhead. I’m just glad you’re back.” Tears stream down her eyes, but she makes no effort to wipe them off.

Taking my fingers to her face, I flick a few drops away, but it has a reverse effect. More tears come out.

Someone standing near the curtain folds speaks out. “It’s good to see you’re safe and sound, Miss Durham.”

“Anna? You came too?”

“Of course I did! What kind of acquaintance would I be if I didn’t?”

“Not an acquaintance. A friend.” My smile turns to a grin.

Richard is very lucky to have someone like Anna as his assistant.

I gasp. Richard!

It all comes back to me. The blurry figure echoing out to me was Richard! What was he saying to me before I blacked out?

“Where’s Richard?”

“Left already. Wasn’t sure you’d want him here after everything,” Alex says just as Anna opens her mouth to answer.

That’s right. On Saturday – yesterday, going by Celine’s words, I hurried home so I could speak with him and clear things between us. He must still think I want to have nothing to do with him.

“When did he leave?”

This time, it’s Anna who answers.

“About thirty minutes ago, when your eyelids started twitching. The doctor informed us you’d be waking up soon.”

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