Love Beyond the Mask by Adelaide Sinclair

Chapter 248
Whitney snorted inwardly with contempt.
So he did remember–they had not finalized their divorce three years
ago.
Yet here he was, eager to get engaged to his mistress, having had her committed to a sanatorium and ultimately playing a part in
driving her child and her to the brink!
She suppressed her emotions and gave a casual shrug. “Well, that’s going to be a problem. After all, I’ve already treated
countless men who are utterly inept like you.
You either cooperate with me and drop your pants, or we can keep this up, and the longer it takes, the more I charge for the
consultation.”
Speechless, Ludwik pressed his lips.
She smirked and began writing in the medical record.
Suddenly, the man leaned in close, his breathing heavy as he unbuckled his belt. His elegant fingers slowly pulled out his shirt,
eyeing her while he slid down his trousers, revealing a set of sculpted abs!
This time, it was Whitney’s turn to be taken aback. She had intended to provoke him into leaving.
What was he doing?
== Fès I ŭ S I is us
His face was expressionless, but his movements were undeniably
seductive as his belt hit the floor.
Whitney’s breath hitched, and she bit her lip.
He sneered. His voice, cool and somber, dropped a few octaves. He stood rigidly before her, approaching the edge of the desk.
“Aren’t you supposed to treat me? What are you hiding from? Come here!”

Whitney stared at the encroaching figure by the desk.
Feeling as if the desk was being sullied, she pointed to a chair, “Sir, please, don’t get excited and sit over there!”
“I’m not excited.”
Ludwik’s smile held a profound meaning.
Whitney wished she could bite off her own tongue.
Maintaining her composure, she had no choice but to face the
challenge head–on, picking up the electrode pads and moving towards
him.
She attached eight pads to his forehead, chest, and abdomen.
Unaware, her breath brushed close to him, and her hair grazed his chest
several times.
Ludwik remained expressionless, his breathing slightly heavier.
Looking up at her delicate cheeks, flushed with a faint red–perhaps from the air conditioning or her own discomfort–he locked
eyes with her gaze, and he faltered for a moment.
This morning, he had seen a similar pair of aggrieved eyes in miniature

at home.
His son was his spitting image, perfect in every way except for those eyes, so much like this woman’s–often wide with innocence
and brimming with hurt.
Sometimes, he would wake from dreams he should not have, haunted by those tender eyes.
Infuriating! His blood seemed to rush and churn.
Ludwik’s expression darkened, and he frowned.
As Whitney finished with the electrode pads and turned to adjust the settings, her peripheral vision caught something
unexpected.
Erectile dysfunction? Where?
She had not even started the examination, but he was already...
Suppressing her embarrassment, she asked him professionally, “Are you sure you’re sick?”
“Aren’t you the doctor? Can’t you diagnose?”
Ludwik stared at her defiantly, his surprise mingling with his awkwardness.
For three years, he had not been intimate with Elaine, finding it unbearable, even nauseating, to kiss her, let alone more. He had
begun to think he was just that way with women.
But it was different with Whitney just being near him.

He glared at her, feeling both humiliated and resentful, then glanced at the monitor, “Quack, what trickery have you used?”
“Don’t panic. This is just a diagnostic device. How was I supposed to know there’s nothing wrong with you?”
Whitney opened the medical record with an air of importance, raising an eyebrow at him. “And yet Elaine’s record claims you’ve
been unable to consummate your marriage for three years. Seems like having too big an appetite isn’t always a good thing. Go
tell her to take it easy, will you?”
Ludwik, a man of stature, could easily sense the ridicule aimed at both
him and Elaine.
“Foul–mouthed woman, you’re asking for trouble.” He felt as if his dignity had been trampled.
He glared at her with disdain.
Whitney tossed his shirt and trousers back at him, looking up. “This is medical advice. Have you been prescribed any
medication, Mr. Lippert? Because, my words, they are your medicine, understand?”
Ludwik hastily dressed, struggling with his belt.
Impatiently, Whitney finished the medical record and turned around. “Why haven’t you left yet?”
“Can’t you see for yourself? Your handiwork!” he retorted gloomily, “How am I supposed to leave like this?”
She suppressed a smirk, feigning discovery of the problem. “Why blame me? Could it be you have a thing for your doctor?”
“Don’t flatter yourself. I’m perfectly healthy; I have no illness.”
“No illness? Yet here you are seeking treatment?” Whitney’s lips curled sarcastically, her eyes narrowing as she glanced at the
data. He was excessively healthy. She pondered for a moment, considering a possibility. “Or is it that you’re exclusively
disinterested in your fiancée? Now, that’s interesting.”
Elaine, for all her calculations, had stumbled.
Ludwik’s face darkened as he cornered Whitney against the wall. “Who gave you the right to gossip about a patient and his
family? Elaine and I are just fine. I love her.

As for you, you’ll be out of a job tomorrow, quack!”
I love her, he said.
Whitney’s gaze flickered, the irony fleeting. She remained indifferent, stepping back, her voice cold and teasing. “I’m not your
beloved. The restroom is to your left, Mr. Lippert. Better hurry. And with that, I’ll see you at the next consultation.”
Ludwik’s face turned stormy as he pocketed his hands and walked out. “Another consultation? In your dreams!”
He had to contain the situation, his frustration evident as he called out,
“Felix.”
But as soon as he reached the restroom, his body and emotions
calmed instantly. He took a deep breath, frowning, and could not help but wonder if it was because that damned woman was not
around him
anymore.
Was her impact on him so significant because she was the only one he had been with? Damn it.
Leaning against the wall, he closed his eyes, exhaling smoke, his thoughts lingering on her transformation, his eyes dark and
cold.
Moments later, he descended the stairs, with Felix following closely, curious but afraid to ask.
Finally, Ludwik turned, his voice frosty. “Find out where she’s been hiding these past three years, why she’s come back to
Banyan City, and how she got a job at Orion’s Hospital.”
Felix silently acknowledged, inwardly relieved that Ms. Valentine was back, though he hardly had time to enjoy the thought
before Mr. Lippert issued a virtual death sentence.
“She’s no doctor. Find a way to revoke her license!”
Felix wiped the sweat from his brow.
Mr. Lippert’s animosity towards Ms. Valentine was palpable.

Up in the office, Whitney watched the man leave, her emotions
unreadable.
A chill seemed to envelop her, causing the assistant who was packing up the equipment to shiver.
“Dr. Valentine?” The assistant called out to her, noticing she had been lost in thought for too long.
Whitney snapped back to reality, her grip tightening on the pen in her hand. Weariness edged her voice as she said, “No more
patients left. You can go take a break.”
As the door closed behind the assistant, Whitney’s pale face was a mask of cool detachment, but her mind was alight with
various scenarios she had imagined for the day she would see him again. Never in her wildest dreams had she expected it to be
like this.
The moment she laid eyes on Ludwik, she knew – Orion had played a dangerous game.
She pressed her lips, irritation sparking as she grabbed her phone and fired off a text message.
[Orion, what the hell are you playing at?]