chapter 3

Reese was so done with that stuck-up butler. Seriously, who ever heard of dodging sunlight to cure an illness? What kind of weird disease was that? She knew Aiden had tried everything, from top hospitals to fortune tellers.

Aiden was desperate for Malcolm to get back on his feet.

Lucky for him, he found her. She could give it a shot. She'd been learning medicine since she was a kid, and she was a whiz at acupuncture.

But her grandma always told her to keep it on the down-low, no matter where she was. She'd wait until she saw him before saying anything.

Jason, not wanting to get in the way, bowed out and shut the door behind him.

Reese squinted at Malcolm lying on the bed, the light from the window hitting just right. He was propped up, his black shirt making his face look like it was carved from stone, but it couldn't hide his noble and arrogant vibe.

Even though he was paralyzed from the waist down, his pride was still intact, and she had to respect that.

Malcolm was on the bed, hadn't expected this girl to be so gutsy, just yanking open the curtains without asking. He hadn't seen sunlight in months, and the sudden brightness stung his eyes.

He'd heard from his grandpa that the Brooks family was supposed to marry off Dahlia to him.

But then they found out Dahlia might not be able to have kids. No way his grandpa would let a woman who couldn't have children marry into the family.

So they swapped her out for Reese. Ignoring her old-fashioned and country-style clothes, just from her voice, she was probably a knockout.

"From now on, keep the room airy with fresh air and lots of sunlight. It's good for your recovery," Reese said. "Plus, it makes it easier for me to treat your legs."

"You can treat my legs?" Malcolm's dark eyes flashed with surprise.

Could this girl fix him? His grandpa had brought in so many top-notch doctors and visited countless hospitals, all with no luck. Thinking about it, the hope in his eyes faded again.

"Forget it. If even the top docs couldn't fix my legs, what makes you think you can?" Better to ditch the false hope right from the start.

Reese just shrugged. "Well, we can at least give it a shot."

She wasn't offering to treat Malcolm's legs out of pure kindness. She wanted him to owe her one, so he'd spill the beans about the Flynn family. Maybe he could help dig into her grandma's death. No one in the Flynn family knew more about it than he did. That was her real reason for being here.

Once she got the truth, she'd figure out a way to bounce.

Malcolm sneered, "It's better to close the curtain. I don't want to see you, and you probably don't want to see me either."

His voice was deep and magnetic, like it could echo in your soul.

Reese shot back, "But we're gonna be seeing each other every day from now on. You really wanna keep it like this?"

Avoiding it wasn't gonna solve anything.

Reese got it. Being that good-looking but stuck in bed had to be rough.

She raised an eyebrow confidently.

"Let me try. It won't hurt you. After all, so many doctors have tried and failed. Maybe I can pull it off."

Malcolm looked at her with a cold stare. "You really think you can do it?"

Reese knew Malcolm had a bad temper. At just twenty years old, he was running a company and had a stranglehold on Atlanta's entire economy. He was a big shot in the industry. One word from him, and the whole city's economy could take a hit.

She raised an eyebrow and shot him a sideways glance, challenging him, "Why don't we give it a try?"

Ever since the hospital told Malcolm his legs were done for, he'd locked himself away, trying to numb the pain. He was curious to see what Reese could do. He'd treat it like an experiment.

"So, what's your plan now?"

Hearing him agree to the treatment, Reese didn't waste any time. She pulled out a small bag from her suitcase, opened it up, and revealed a bunch of silver needles of different sizes. She walked over to Malcolm and started examining his legs from top to bottom.

Malcolm squinted and raised an eyebrow. Maybe Reese knew her stuff?

Only now did Malcolm get a good look at her face. The light had made it hard to see before. He rubbed his forehead in frustration. What kind of wife had his grandfather picked for him? This... this was too much.