Too Much to Bear, My Love Chapter 187
James tumbled forward. Olivia helped him up and chided, “Oscar, what is that for?”
Oscar slapped himself on the forehead in exasperation and cried, “Mom! Why are you wasting time with this joker? He is a playboy with countless women around him. If you introduce Tiffany to him, Amelia will give you an earful.”
James was aggrieved. “Oz, that is not fair. I do sincerely want to settle down with a Chanaean wife. If you sully my name again, I will cut you off.”
Olivia was amused by the two. “Okay, okay. I was also joking,” she clarified.
“Mrs. Clinton, you can’t joke about such matters. I am serious. Tiffany is not bad. Although she cannot measure up to Amelia, she is also a beauty. She is my kind of girl. You have to introduce her to me.” James hopped over to Olivia and protested.
Olivia was shocked. “You are serious about this?”
James put on a solemn face to reassure her.
Olivia kept quiet instead as she actually made that suggestion just to tease him.
When Tiffany walked in, she immediately sensed awkwardness in the air. She got goosebumps when James kept stealing glances at her.
As the elders were present, she just gave him a dirty look, then ignored him. She went forward to greet the rest. “Hello, Mr. and Mrs. Clinton. How are you doing?”
Olivia pulled her close and quipped, “Stop calling us Mr. and Mrs. Clinton. We agreed you will be my goddaughter, won’t you? You should be calling me godma instead. You and Amelia are close friends, so we are family from now on.”
Tiffany felt a little uneasy. She was wondering why the huge change in atmosphere and attitudes overnight. She redirected the conversation by asking, “Mrs. Clinton, how is Amelia? Has she woken?”
Olivia beamed, “Don’t worry, my dear. Oscar said she briefly woke up once this morning. She fell asleep again, as she is still weak.”
Tiffany was comforted by that news. She went to Amelia’s bedside to check on her. She was still pale and had lost much weight.
“Amelia has lost weight,” she moaned.
“Unfortunately, yes. After she is discharged, we will prepare nutritious food for her to build up her health again. You have lost weight too. I will get Molly to prepare some chicken soup for you. You haven’t had any proper rest after the blood transfusion to Amelia. You don’t look too good yourself. Why don’t I get James to go with you to somewhere nice for a proper meal?” Olivia offered.
Tiffany felt weird. She could sense Olivia was trying to pair her up with James.
“It’s okay, Mrs. Clinton. I ate before I came over,” she excused herself.
James jumped at the opportunity and offered, “Let’s go, pretty lady. Give me a chance to be a gentleman and escort you.”
Just as Tiffany was contemplating an appropriate response to rebuke James, a weak voice murmured, “Mom, Tiff, you are all here.”
Tiffany immediately turned her attention back to Amelia and marveled, “Amelia, you are awake?”
She walked over and squatted down by her bed. It was only upon seeing a lively Amelia that her mind could finally settle.
With the burden off her chest, Tiffany started sobbing, “Babe, you gave me a big fright. I was so terrified you would not make it through all those operations. Babe, you really scared me silly.”
Amelia raised her arm with difficulty and gently patted Tiffany’s head. “I’m okay now. Don’t cry, my dear.”
Tiffany dried her tears. “Do I look a mess, babe?” she asked, she was aware that she looked a little hideous as she had been laughing and crying at the same time.
“No. You are beautiful, even with messed-up make-up. You are the most gorgeous girl to me,” Amelia teased, causing Tiffany to break into a laugh.
Olivia walked over to join them. “Amelia.” She held Amelia’s hand and called her lovingly.
Amelia gave her a smile and apologized, “Mom, I am sorry I made you worry for me.”
Olivia shook her head and said, “It doesn’t matter, so long as you are okay. I was worried sick when you had to go through so many surgeries. Please don’t scare me like that anymore. I have a weak heart. I cannot take that much shock.”
“I’m really sorry, mom.” Amelia was feeling more apologetic.
“Silly girl, stop apologizing. So long as you can get well, everything will be fine.” Olivia consoled her dotingly.
Then, she beamed, “Your baby is very adorable. His tiny feet and hands are strong. He has your nose and eyes and Oscar’s lips. He inherited all the best qualities from both of you and is a handsome little fella. He may be only three days old, but he has grown much bigger compared to other babies,”
“Mom, can I see him now?” Amelia asked longingly.
Olivia patted her hand to pacify her. “I know you are anxious to see him, but you have not fully recovered, and baby has weak immunity. I promise I will get the staff to bring him over in a few days’ time.”
Amelia could only suppress her anxiousness.
Olivia added, “Baby is doing very well. He is very healthy. The doctors were impressed that he managed to escape unscathed from that accident. It was a miracle.”
Amelia was heartened. On that fateful day, when the car came crashing into them, she instinctively protected her stomach. The only thought on her mind was to shield the baby and ensure no harm came his way. The rest was a blur to her.
“Everyone is full of praise for you. What a great mommy you are. It was because of your protection that he could escape unharmed,” Olivia shared.
Amelia smiled blissfully. As long as her baby is fine, everything else does not matter.
Olivia smoothed her hair and proposed, “You rest well and don’t worry about a thing. When you are well enough to be discharged, we go home to the Clinton residence. I will take good care of you and your baby.
Amelia just gave her a smile and said nothing. side-stepping the issue about moving to the Clinton residence.
“Amelia, do you remember me?” James tried to make his presence known.
Amelia looked at him and smiled. “James.”
“Amelia, you have such a good memory. We have not met for many months and yet you could remember my name. That is an absolute honor to me,” James declared with exaggeration and successfully made Amelia laugh.
“James, you are a handsome and skillful doctor. Most importantly, you saved Tiff’s life. How can I possibly forget you? I am really grateful you took time off your busy schedule to rush over to help Tiff.” Amelia was sincerely filled with gratitude.
James was thrilled and he shamelessly boasted, “Amelia, I worked hard to save you this time around too. After you have fully recovered, you will have to buy me a good meal!”
Tiffany glared at him. She had never meet such a thick-skinned man.
Amelia chuckled, “Thank you very much, James. I will definitely invite you to a good meal after I recover.”
“Saving a life is no small matter, Amelia. I know you can’t repay me by marrying me, but you can introduce your best friend to me. What do you say?” James joked.
Amelia was stupefied.
Tiffany would have none of that. She thumped on his feet and growled, “What nonsense is that? Do you think I won’t dare to tear you apart?”
James cowered in exaggeration. “Amelia, your friend is fierce as a tigress. Aren’t you going to tell her off?”
His act made Amelia laughed out loud. That pulled the muscle on her injury, causing her to grimace in pain.
“All your fault for spouting nonsense,” Tiffany yelled at and hit James.
Amelia was amused by the two of them. “Tiff, stop it. James is a guest from overseas, after all. You can’t treat a guest with such violence.” Tiffany obediently obliged.
Oscar gently held her in his arms and whispered, “Are you okay? Is it hurting?”
“I am fine,” Amelia assured him.
Oscar looked up and glared at James, signaling him to stop his mischief. James stopped his antics and apologized, “I am sorry, Amelia. I was just kidding. Please don’t mind me.”
“Relax. I am fine.” Amelia smiling reassured him. She turned to Oscar and asked for the time.
“It is coming to eleven.”
“Dad, Mom, James rarely gets to travel to Chanaea. Could you play host and invite him to a good meal? You don’t have to worry about me. I will be fine here. There are two nurses caring for me,” Amelia requested.
Olivia looked to Owen for consent and he nodded.
“Of course. James and his mentor joined in to perform the life-saving surgeries on you. You may not have woken up so soon if not for their help. We definitely owe them a thank you and a treat.” Olivia said. “Oscar, you stay here with Amelia.”
James was ruffled by that. “I was just kidding, Mrs. Clinton. It is not necessary. We can have a meal together another time.”
“No, we owe you, your mentor, and all the medical staff here a treat. Unfortunately, with their busy schedules, we may not be able to successfully invite everyone. If that happens, we will present them with a thank you gift instead,” Olivia insisted.
James could not refuse Olivia’s invitation. He made Tiffany go along as well.
After they left, Oscar and Amelia found themselves alone in the ward.
Amelia pondered for a while and asked, “Is James interested in Tiff?”
“He is just kidding. Don’t mind him.” Oscar waved his hand to brush things off.
Amelia looked at him and stated, “Mr. Clinton, let me state my stand in advance. I have no prejudice against foreigners. I just felt James and Tiff ain’t a good match. He is wild and outstanding, always surrounded by hordes of beautiful women. Tiff is also outstanding but in her own way. They are worlds apart.”
Oscar caressed her face. It was cold. He frowned and fretted, “Why is your face so cold?”
“Are you listening to me, Mr. Clinton?” Amelia was perturbed.
Oscar pinched her cheeks lightly and grumbled, “Woman, you are sick in bed. The doctors even predicted you could die. Currently, the only thing you should focus on is to get well. Cast your other worries aside.” He kissed her on the lips and lovingly implored, “Stop worrying about others, okay?”
“Mr. Clinton, Tiff is not other people. She is my best friend.”
Oscar saw the concerned look in her eye, so he relented and promised, “Okay, I promise I will not let James harass Tiffany. However, if they fall for each other, then that would be something that is beyond my control.”
Amelia nodded in acceptance.
Oscar was planning on spending some quiet, intimate moments with Amelia. At that moment, the door was pushed open, and Oscar scowled when he saw the person entering through the door. Amelia’s smile faded too.
“Oz, I heard Ms. Winters was also hospitalized, so I asked my mom to pushed me over to visit.” Cassie was seated in a wheelchair. She looked pale and sounded feeble.
Amelia wanted to sit up, but winced in pain once she moved.
Oscar immediately supported her. “Stop moving around,” he chided tenderly. Amelia returned him a smile.
Cassie was troubled by this loving scene, her fingers clenched tightly on the wheelchair’s armrest.
“Oz, do you know that I also fainted after you left me yesterday? Don’t you have any concern for me?” Cassie whined.
Oscar frowned slightly but kept his cool to cajole her.
“Cassie, I will visit you when I am free. Amelia is not feeling well and she needs her rest. Could you please leave us for now?”
Cassie was hurt and she groused, “Oz, you would not have done this to me in the past. You used to be in distress even on a small cut I get on my finger. How could you feel no empathy now, when I had a miscarriage, attempted suicide, and nearly fell to death because of you?”
Oscar was getting flustered. Amelia patted him on his hand and gave in. “Mr. Clinton, I think Ms. Yard is not feeling too well. Why don’t you accompany her back to her ward?”
Oscar stared at her.
She avoided meeting his eyes and uttered softly, “Mr. Clinton, please send Ms. Yard back. After all, you owe her an explanation.”
Oscar understood what she was getting at. This messy relationship arose because of him, and so he should be the one to resolve it. One wrong decision by him would hurt both the women.
He was confident when managing projects worth billions, but this love tangle put him in a bind. He had no full confidence he could handle it perfectly.
