Chapter 513

Especially with eye spasms.

"Ahem."

Rex coughed into his fist. "No, I just haven't been sleeping well."

Then, he looked at Janice Garrett and asked pointedly, "Mrs. Garrett, your ankle must be killing you, right? Is the pain becoming unbearable?"

Mrs. Garrett pretended she didn't hear a word.

These two brats!

Elissa was genuinely worried. "Mrs. Garrett, are you..."

"Don't worry, I'm perfectly fine!"

Mrs. Garrett grasped Elissa's hand, which was freezing from holding the ice pack. "Elissa, it gets so boring living here all by myself, and now that I'm injured, I can't even leave the house."

She looked at Elissa with an apologetic expression. "Could you stay with me for a little while?"

Hearing this, Elissa froze.

It wasn't a huge request, and Rivercross Residence belonged to Rowan anyway. Even the staff were the same familiar faces she had grown up with.

However, she hesitated. "Should we ask Rowan to come back and stay with you?"

"Him?"

Mrs. Garrett immediately scoffed, clearly dissatisfied with her grandson. "He's way too busy. He doesn't have time to keep me company. Even when he does come back, he's always M.I.A!"

Wow.

Rex listened in sheer awe.

He almost wanted to scream in Rowan's defense. It wasn't that Rowan never spent time with the old lady; it was that she found his single, brooding presence to be a total eyesore.

Unaware of the underlying truth, Elissa smiled and asked casually, "Does he not usually come back here?"

Of course he's going to come back, especially once you move in.

Rex was just about to interject when Mrs. Garrett waved her hand dismissively. "No!

He doesn't have the time. Don't worry, it'll just be the two of us."

Rex mentally applauded the masterclass in manipulation.

He wanted to pull out his phone and record the conversation just to clear his own

name.

This had absolutely nothing to do with him!

Rowan had only asked him to get the old lady to fake an illness, and he had delivered.

It wasn't even a fake illness anymore; she was genuinely hurt.

There was zero risk of getting caught in a lie.

Elissa glanced at Mrs. Garrett's swollen ankle and, still worried, finally gave in.

"Alright. I'll stay with you for a few days until you're feeling a bit better."

Mrs. Garrett was elderly, and Elissa was a doctor. If anything happened, she could at least help.

After all, this was Rowan's grandmother.

The great-grandmother of the baby she was carrying.

Just as she agreed, the sound of the front door opening drifted in from the entryway. Elissa turned to see Rowan striding inside. His

expression softened slightly when he saw her. "How's my

grandmother?"

"She's okay. No fractures, and it's not overly serious, but she's going to need to rest

for a while," Elissa replied.

Rowan's gaze drifted down to her fingertips, which were bright red from the freezing ice pack. He frowned imperceptibly, closed the distance in three long strides and pulled her toward the powder room.

Warm water cascaded from the faucet. He leaned over, holding her hands, and

washed them with agonizingly gentle strokes.

They weren't cold anymore; they were incredibly warm.

So warm that Elissa's heart rate spiked. She tilted her head and found herself staring at the striking, razor-sharp lines of his profile.

His long, thick eyelashes were

lowered, casting shadows over his high nose bridge. His lips were

pressed into a tight line as he

meticulously washed het

hands,

treating her like a precious treasure he had just found after years of searching.

Watching him, she couldn't help but softly call out, "Rowan."

She clearly felt his fingers tremble against hers. His jaw tightened.

Then, he let out a low, husky, "Yeah?"

The man who used to demand she say his name properly was now suddenly

nervous.

Amused, she tilted her head and teased over the sound of running water, "Rowan?"