Chapter 15

Ruben thought, "So Shermaine's actually Danielle's junior? That's insane. With someone as young and brilliant as Danielle, Yaleview Hospital already made a name for itself. Now with an even younger, more gifted one joining the picture, we’ll leave every other hospital in the dust!"

His gaze shifted to Shermaine, and he stepped forward. "Dr. Shue, you’re seriously impressive for someone so young. Mind if I ask which hospital you’re currently working at?"

Shermaine replied, "I’m not working at a hospital."

Ruben’s eyes lit up. "Then how about joining ours? You and Dr. Shelly could make a great team."

Shermaine turned him down with a smile. "Sorry to disappoint you, but that’s not the path I’m looking for."

If she worked at a hospital full-time, she’d be swamped with patients and nonstop surgeries. She preferred working independently–when someone came to her for help, she’d step in.

She offered, "If your hospital ever runs into a case no one can handle, whether it’s surgical or something that involves traditional medicine, feel free to reach out."

"Understood." Ruben didn’t press further. Clearly, Shermaine wasn’t aiming for a career at a hospital. But thankfully, that didn’t mean she wasn’t practicing. It just meant being a doctor might only be her side gig.

If she was willing to take on cases under their hospital’s name–the tough ones they couldn’t solve themselves–the hospital would still get to share the credit. It wouldn’t be without its perks.

Ruben thought about it and found it hard to believe that being a doctor was just a side gig for Shermaine. To become a doctor was no easy feat. It took so much effort and dedication, yet Shermaine treated it like a side job.

After the conversation, Shermaine asked, "What time is it now?"

Cora took out her phone and checked the time. "It’s almost twelve o’clock."

Shermaine thought, "Almost twelve, huh? Surgery always takes forever. If Mr. Owen York tried to check in, Joshua must’ve handled it on his own."

Just as Shermaine had guessed, Owen really did call Joshua around 9:30 to check in. The moment Owen got on the line, he asked to speak with Shermaine. He had Shermaine’s number, but he still called Joshua instead.

Joshua had no choice but to tell the truth, saying, "She went out."

"Out for what?" Owen asked.

"I didn’t ask," Joshua replied.

Owen snapped as soon as he heard that, "You don’t even know what your fiancée went out to do? Why didn’t you ask?"

Joshua went silent for a second. "I forgot."

Owen was fuming. "Listen up, Joshua. I like Shermaine. I’m really happy with her as my future granddaughter-in-law. If you lose her, I swear I’ll teach you a lesson."

Joshua rubbed his temple. "Grandpa, you’ve gotta give me a little time to adjust. Didn’t do well enough during the day?"

"Barely. Now call Shermaine and ask when she’s coming back."

"Got it."

After hanging up, Joshua did call Shermaine but she was still in the OR and couldn’t possibly answer, in the end, out of options, he looked up her location.

When he found out she was at the hospital, and not off somewhere sketchy, Joshua let it go. Then he gave Owen a simple report and left it at that.

It was already late at night when Shermaine said, "It’s getting late. I’m heading out." Then she turned to Danielle. "Let’s meet again when you’ve got time."

Danielle nodded. "I’ll treat you to dinner and a movie sometime."

Shermaine remarked, "Everyone, if you’ll excuse me."

With that, she left–just as quickly as she had arrived. But at Yaleview Hospital, Shermaine’s name had already made waves.

There wasn’t a single doctor or nurse who didn’t know that Danielle had a junior who was even more skilled than her–and rumor had it, she was stunning, too.

By the time Shermaine got back to Riverswood Villa–Joshua’s place–it was already half past midnight.

The lights on the second floor were still on, which meant Joshua hadn’t gone to bed yet.

She had already registered her fingerprint with the system, so all it took was a scan, and she was in.

Still, she couldn’t help feeling a little out of place. She hadn’t gotten used to living at the Jean residence even after three months, and now she was staying in the home of a man she’d only met a handful of times.

Shermaine thought, "Life really is strange." She let the thought pass, then went straight upstairs and into her room.

Then, a message came in on her phone. It was a payment notification from Cora–three hundred thousand dollars, transferred in full. With the two bank cards Jameson had given her earlier today, which together held two million, that brought her total to 2.3 million dollars.

To build a high-tech farm, 2.3 million dollars wasn’t even enough to make a dent.