The Playboy King's Bride

Chapter 6

Stella couldn’t even understand her own feelings as she was brought back to the hospital. She hadn’t wanted to come back to the hospital for a long time…but she had wanted to make sure the man was OK after he had been in the accident…but he was obviously an important person (who could hire a driver and have someone else text a person for them without being important?), and she had never met anyone important before.

If it was only a matter of him thanking her in person, she wished she hadn’t left her information at the hospital. She had only done what anyone would do, and she had never been good at those kinds of conversations.

Her nerves were already so on edge from the thought of the awkward conversation she assumed was about to happen she didn’t notice the driver kept glancing at her from the front seat. He narrowed his eyes as her fingers distractedly played with her seatbelt and she stared out the window with wide eyes, as though seeing her city for the first time.

He decided to take pity on her.

“My name’s Adam,” he offered. She jumped slightly at the sudden noise but gave him a small smile through the rear-view mirror.

“Hi Adam. Stella…but I guess you knew that…” She tucked a non-existent strand of hair behind her ear and frowned at her feet.

“Yes…You don’t have to be nervous. Mr. King just wants to meet the woman who saved him.”

“That’s nice, but I wish he wouldn’t trouble himself. I’m sure he’s still recovering and shouldn’t exert himself.” She met his eye and this time he offered a genuine smile.

He had been a family servant to the Kings for years, and had seen countless women, and men, throw themselves at the family shamelessly. He could tell Stella had nothing in common with those people. Many of them had a classic type of beauty, but they used it to their advantage in a way that marred their features in an ugly way.

“He’s very well taken care of, and once his wife arrives, she’ll make sure he doesn’t overexert himself.” His smile only grew at her obvious joy that he had been reunited with his family.

As they pulled up to the hospital, he rushed to open the door for her, and even offered his hand to help her out of the car. He grinned at her embarrassment and waved her to the front door. She turned to say goodbye, but noted that outside of the car, he had dropped back into a completely neutral face, as though they hadn’t exchanged any words at all.

As she walked through the front doors, she realized she didn’t know which room Mr. King had ended up in, but before she could move to the reception area a tall, thin man intercepted her. He reminded her very much of a thin-butler version of Dumbledore from Harry Potter, with a long gray ponytail trailing his back, but dressed in a perfectly fitted butler's suit.

“Ms. Knight, I am Marvin. Please follow me to Mr. King’s suites.” He motioned for her to follow without waiting for a reply, while she reeled at the thought Mr. King had multiple suites. In a hospital? Who even needed suites in a hospital?

That thought kept her occupied the entire elevator ride to the top floor, and she almost expected to step out into a hotel hallway. Alas, everything seemed exactly as it had downstairs, except there were fewer rooms, more art on the walls, and the nurses had the same fake smiles plastered on their faces she had come to see in retail situations.

Stella stayed as close to Marvin as she could so as not to lose him in the twists and turns, but he moved so quickly with his much taller legs she quickly lost her breath and had to fall a couple steps behind. Just when she thought she would have to ask him to take a break, since she felt like she had run a marathon, he stopped before a sliding door and motioned for her to wait.

He stepped inside for a moment while she stood aside and did her best not to make eye contact with anyone, feeling completely out of place, and kind of like a kid being called to the principals' office.

“Two minutes. He’ll say “thank you”, you say “no problem, bro”, and then you can leave and grab a beer on the way home. Or a whiskey…bottle.” She kept upping herself for how much alcohol she would need at the end of today, until Marvin came out and told her Mr. King was ready to see her.

She stepped through the door to a spacious room, full of fake plants and comforting colors decorating the walls. On one side was a giant TV screen, while the entire other side of the room was made of glass with a breathtaking view of the skyline that completely entranced her for a moment before a gentle cough to her right caught her attention.

In a large hospital bed, attached to several machines by wires and an oxygen mask, lay her rescue man. Those bright eyes were now completely aware of their surroundings, and regarded her as though he already knew everything about her. Considering that he had this suite, and a personal driver, maybe he had the means to know everything about her too.

Stella smiled shyly and moved closer to him. “Mr. King. I’m glad to hear you are better.”

He smiled softly at her, and motioned for her to sit in a chair that had been placed near him. Trying to hide that her feet felt like lead, she moved closer.

“I’m glad you came. I trust the ride was not uncomfortable?” He spoke slowly and softly, as though it was hard for him to find the breath to speak, and she realized she should find a way to keep him from saying too much.

“Of course, Adam was very professional, but you really didn’t have to call me back. I’m glad to know you’re OK, but I’m sure your family will be here soon to check on you.” He regarded her silently for a moment before lifting a piece of paper he had on the other side of him.

“I wanted to give you this, as a thank you.” He breathed, but Stella immediately shook her head and refused to take what was obviously a check.

“I did what anyone would do, nothing more or less, so there’s no need. Just focus on getting better, and that’s all I need.” She said, and met his eyes to make sure he knew she meant it. His eyes widened slightly and she heard his heart rate spike, making her look at his monitors worriedly.

A nurse came in and, looking over his vitals, suggested that he needed to rest. He frowned at her, seemingly about to argue, but Stella was quick to agree.

“Ms. Knight, I would like to see you again, before I leave for New York.” He said, as quickly as he could, but it still took him several breaths. Stella quickly agreed, afraid that the more he spoke the worse he would get. The nurse asked her to leave again, and Stella was quick to make an exit, though she could see Mr. King trying to keep his eyes on her the entire time.

Marvin eyed her up and down as she stepped outside, and she met his gaze nervously.

“So…I guess I’ll be going now. Nice to meet you Mr. Marvin.” Something about his stiff and disapproving gaze made her very nervous.

“Just Marvin, ma’am.” He motioned for her to follow him to the elevators again, but this time let her get on alone. “Adam is waiting for you downstairs, and will drop you off wherever you wish to go. I do recommend going first to a bank, as it is unsafe to walk around with a check for that much, though.”

As the doors closed, Stella looked at him, shocked. “I didn’t accept the check,” She said, feeling slightly insulted that he thought she would accept money for doing something she should have done. Just before the door closed completely she noted the shocked look on his face almost matched her own.