She Visits Her Friend In Hospital, Not Knowing The CEO Visiting Another Patient Would Fall For Her
Unexpected Encounters in Room 317
Tessa Urin nearly tripped over her untied shoelace as she burst through the hospital’s sliding glass doors, a bouquet of daisies clutched tightly in her hand.
“Room 317,” she muttered, checking the text her friend had sent earlier that morning.
Her cheeks were flushed from the cold and the sprint from the parking lot, her ponytail half falling out. She hadn’t planned on spending her Sunday in a hospital. However, when her best friend Karina called her after a surprise appendecttomy, Tessa didn’t hesitate.
They’d been friends since college; Karina was practically family.
“Visiting hours are until 8,” the nurse at the reception desk called out as Tessa passed by.
She just nodded, barely slowing down. The elevator dinged as it opened on the third floor. As she stepped out, her gaze unintentionally locked on the man standing at the vending machine down the hall.
He was tall, broad-shouldered, and dressed in a long black coat over a tailored gray suit. His back was to her, but something about the way he moved—controlled and efficient—made her look twice. She shook it off; it was not the time, for Karina was waiting.
Tessa pushed open the hospital room door.
“Hey, you look like you fought a raccoon and lost,” Karina laughed weakly from the bed. “You’re late.”
“I stopped to buy you flowers. These things don’t grow in the parking lot.”
“You brought me daisies?”
Tessa shrugged, grinning. They were the only ones that didn’t look like funeral arrangements. She set them on the bedside table and pulled a chair closer. Then she started unpacking the snacks she stuffed into her tote bag.
“I brought chocolate, dry shampoo, and a portable charger. You’re welcome.”
Karina’s smile grew. “You’re a saint.”
Fifteen minutes passed, filled with light teasing and laughter. Tessa was mid-story about her chaotic morning shift at the diner when the door creaked open behind her.
“Sorry to bother. Wrong room.”
Tessa turned and her breath caught. It was the man from the vending machine. Up close, he looked even more unreal: his sharp jawline, dark hair swept back, and stormy gray eyes. His gaze landed on Tessa for a second too long before turning back toward the hallway.
“No worries,” Tessa said quickly, blinking.
“Third room on the left,” Karina offered, pointing.
“Thanks.”
His voice was low and smooth, but there was something distracted in the way he lingered on Tessa before nodding and stepping out. The door clicked shut. Karina raised an eyebrow.
“Whoa. What? You didn’t see the way he looked at you? I felt the electricity from here.”
Tessa rolled her eyes. “He was just confused.”
“Sure he was,” Karina smirked.
Three doors down, Sterling Thorne leaned against the wall outside his godmother’s hospital room, staring at the floor. He hadn’t meant to walk into the wrong room. Then again, he hadn’t expected to see her: that girl with the messy ponytail, jeans, and oversized sweater.
She was laughing like she hadn’t a care in the world. Most people in hospitals looked like shadows, but she looked like sunlight. He ran a hand across his face. He was here for one reason: to visit his godmother, Margaret, who’d raised him after his parents passed.
He didn’t have time for distractions, especially not ones with bright green eyes and sarcastic smiles. Still, he found his thoughts drifting back to her.
The next day, Tessa returned to the hospital with a small journal for Karina. She was just about to knock on the door when she heard loud coughing from the room across the hall. Concern flickered across her face.
The door was ajar. Inside, an older woman with striking white hair was struggling to sit up, her oxygen mask slightly askew. Tessa didn’t think; she pushed the door open wider.
“Hi, sorry, I’m not a nurse, but do you need help?”
The woman looked up, startled. “Oh yes, thank you, dear.”
Tessa walked in, gently adjusting the mask and helping her sit up. “There. Better?”
The woman nodded, smiling weakly. “Much. I’m Margaret.”
“Tessa. Lovely name, Margaret,” she said, patting her hand.
“You’re not visiting me, are you?”
“No, my friend’s across the hall. I just heard you, and I used to help take care of my grandma.”
Margaret’s eyes sparkled. “You’re a kind soul.”
“Not always,” Tessa laughed, “but I try. Would you mind staying for a minute? My godson stepped out.”
“Of course.”
Sterling returned moments later, carrying two coffees, and stopped short when he saw her.
“Tessa?”
She was sitting beside Margaret, making her laugh. He stepped in.
“Making new friends without me, Aunt Mags?”
Margaret grinned. “Sterling, meet Tessa. She saved me from suffocating.”
Tessa stood quickly. “I just helped with her mask.”
Sterling handed his godmother a coffee then turned to Tessa. “Still, thank you.”
Their eyes held for a moment.
“Well,” Tessa said, stepping back, “I should let you two catch up.”
Sterling didn’t want her to leave. “Hey, wait. Can I walk you out? Just for a minute.”
Tessa hesitated. “Okay.”
They stepped into the elevator in silence. At the lobby, Tessa turned to him. “So, you’re Margaret’s godson?”
“She basically raised me. I visit every day.”
“She’s lovely.”
“So are you.”
The words left his mouth before he could stop them. Tessa blinked.
“Sorry?”
“That was—no,” she said, smiling softly. “Thank you.”
He held the door open for her as they stepped outside.
“Can I take you to coffee sometime? As a proper thank you for helping Margaret?”
Tessa looked up at him, unsure. “You don’t even know me.”
“I know you didn’t hesitate to help a stranger. That’s enough for me to want to take you to coffee.”
She hesitated for a beat, then pulled a pen from her bag and wrote her number on his palm.
“Prove you’re not secretly a serial killer and maybe I’ll let you.”
Sterling watched her walk away, a grin tugging at his lips. He hadn’t planned on meeting anyone today. However, the girl who walked into the wrong hospital room just might be the one who walked into his life.
