RENT A HEART

CHRISTOPHER'S POV

I was drifting in a light nap when I heard the door to my room creak open. Being a light sleeper, my eyes fluttered open almost immediately, and the sight before me caused a warm, fuzzy feeling to blossom in my chest.

"Mrs. Mickelson," I called out calmly, trying to sit up in bed.

"What are you doing, Christopher? Lie back down," she chided gently, her brow furrowed with concern. She placed the things she had brought with her on the small table and rushed to my side.

"I'm fine, really. You don't need to worry," I said, already seated up and smiling, hoping to ease the frown on her face.

"How can you be fine when your head is wrapped in bandages?" she retorted, her voice filled with genuine concern and sadness.

I felt my heart clench a little at the look of worry etched on her face. She reminded me so much of my own mother, which was why I'd had a soft spot for her since the first day I met her.

"I'm fine, I promise," I repeated, trying to reassure her.

"What did you bring for me?" I asked, deliberately diverting her attention away from me and my bandages.

"Oh, I hope you haven't eaten lunch yet, as I brought you a really nice dish. Eve told me your injury was a head injury, so I researched online for the best meals a patient who underwent head surgery could eat. I came up with this wonderful meal. It's really tasty, I promise," she rambled on, her voice enthusiastic, as she busied herself setting up the table for me.

I was deeply touched by her thoughtful actions. I reached out, took her hands in mine, and stared at her, my expression sincere.

"I really don't know how to thank you for your thoughtfulness. I really don't deserve it," I said solemnly, my voice thick with emotion.

She looked at me lovingly before opening her arms, gesturing for me to come in for a hug. I gratefully obliged, embracing her warmly.

She held me for a few moments, gently patting my back in a comforting gesture. "Thank God you're okay," she said, her voice cracking slightly with emotion.

After a while, she released me from the embrace, but I still held onto her hands, needing to ask for her forgiveness.

"I'm so sorry I lied to you about my relationship with Eve," I said, my voice laced with remorse. "But, sincerely, from the depths of my heart, I love her so much. I don't think I can live without her. Please forgive me for deceiving you."

I was anxious to hear what she had to say, but she simply stared at me for a moment, her expression unreadable. Then, a beautiful smile broke through her face, radiating warmth and understanding. She reached up and gently patted my cheek before turning back to setting the table, dismissing my apology with a loving gesture.

"I'm just glad you love my daughter as much as she loves you. Everything else doesn't matter," she said, her voice gentle but firm. "Now, eat up!" she added, handing me the spoon with a warm, encouraging smile.

True to her word, the meal was incredibly delicious, and I ate every last morsel she served me, savoring the flavors and the love with which it had been prepared. She cleared the plates afterward and then sat on the bed beside me, her demeanor shifting, her face now serious.

"Now tell me you've found who was behind the accident," she asked, her eyes sharp and probing, her usual warmth replaced with a steely determination.

"Oh, well, the police are still investigating," I said evasively, deliberately omitting the fact that I already knew who was responsible. I wasn't ready to share that information, not yet.

"You need to be extra careful during this period. You overhauled your board of directors, sacked all your stakeholders, and already got so many of them arrested for embezzlement. You've made a lot of enemies and hardly an ally at Atlantis for someone who just took over the biggest conglomerate in the country. You need to be very careful," she said, her voice firm, laced with concern.

I was stunned by how much she knew. Granted, some of it had made its way into the news cycle, but how she knew I'd overhauled the board of directors and sacked all the stakeholders was surprising. That information was not publicly available.

"I heard you'll be putting up 30% of Atlantis' shares for private citizens to purchase. I'd like to make an offer beforehand. You just have to name your price," she said simply, her gaze unwavering.

"Wow. I, uhmm...honestly, I'm speechless about how you know these things," I stammered, taken aback by her bluntness. She merely smiled, a knowing glint in her eyes. "But anyway, I'll let you know once everything is ready," I said, skillfully deflecting the conversation.

We talked for a while longer, covering various topics, before she finally bid me goodbye, promising to visit again before my discharge from the hospital.

As soon as she left, I logged into my company's website for the scheduled meeting I was supposed to have with my new board of directors.

The meeting stretched on for two hours, and would have easily gone on for three or four as I had a lot of catching up to do. However, I began to feel a slight, persistent headache thrumming at the back of my head, a dull ache that intensified with each passing minute, so I reluctantly rescheduled the meeting for another day.

Just as I was about to lean back and finally take a rest, the door to my room swung open, and Franklin strode in, his expression grim.

"How are you doing?" he asked as soon as he walked in, his eyes scanning me for any signs of discomfort.

"Good. Have you made any headway?" I asked, sitting up in bed, the throbbing in my head intensifying slightly with the movement.

"Well, yes. We captured him before the police could get their hands on him.

After some 'physical persuasion,' he divulged every relevant piece of information he had on the matter. We traced the money wired into his account to an offshore account that was recently opened a few days ago. We're still working on identifying the real owner of the account, so expect news any time now," he said, his voice low and serious.

"Alright then, keep me posted. Anything else? Because I really do want to get some rest," I asked, suppressing a groan as the throbbing in my head worsened.

He nodded and handed me the iPad he had brought with him. Therein were the documents from both Stratos and Atlantis that required my signature. It seemed even from my hospital bed, the business world did not rest.

I sighed, resigned, before resuming work. It took me roughly an hour to carefully go through each document, initialing and signing where required before handing the device back to Frank.

"Oh, it's not important news, but we found out that Frederick ran a thorough background check on you. That was how your private information was leaked to the media," he added casually, almost as an afterthought.

"So, essentially, he was the one behind it, then," I said, my voice dangerously soft, a wave of icy fury washing over me.

"I want you to do a thorough background check on him for me, starting immediately. I need information on every single thing that has to do with him, down to the type of food he eats and the woman he sleeps with, understood?" I instructed, my tone leaving no room for argument as I continued to scroll through the remaining documents.

"Understood," Frank replied, his expression unreadable.

"I have to go then. I have some important things to work on regarding the merger at the company. I might be back later tonight. If not, then it will be tomorrow," he said, offering a curt nod before leaving the room a few minutes later, the door clicking shut behind him.

I laid back on the bed, exhaustion settling heavily on my limbs. For some minutes, I thought about everything that had happened since Frederick came back into the picture. No matter how I looked at it, I couldn't shake the feeling that something was terribly wrong with him. As a matter of fact, I had the distinct impression that he had a mental disorder.

A few minutes later, I finally succumbed to the heavy pull of exhaustion, drifting off to sleep, the lingering unease settling like a stone in my stomach.

---------

I had been asleep for several hours, stirring awake only when I sensed a presence watching me in the room. My eyes fluttered open, and I was surprised to see Cole seated across from the bed on one of the plush sofas, his legs crossed, his gaze fixed on me through his glasses.

"Took you long enough," he said, a hint of amusement in his voice as he stood to his feet.

"Cole Mickelson, what are you doing here?" I asked, my brow furrowed with confusion. He merely chuckled, a dry, humorless sound.

"Well, I came to see if the news were true," he said simply, his gaze unwavering. I couldn't help but smile wryly at his words. He couldn't be more different from his sister, Eve, with his cold and aloof demeanor.

"As you can see, I'm alive and well," I replied, pushing myself up into a sitting position.

"Good. Because if Frederick had succeeded in killing you, it would have been a pity. You're the only man who isn't family that I trust to protect my sister," he said, his voice measured and serious, all traces of amusement gone.

To say that I was surprised by his statement would be a gross understatement. I was utterly speechless, my mind reeling.

'How did he know?' 'Just how much does he know?' I wondered.

"How I know is irrelevant. All you need to know is that Frederick is a narcissistic psychopath who hardly stops until he gets what he wants, and right now, he wants my sister," he continued, his eyes locking with mine, his gaze intense and unwavering.

"I wouldn't want to be the one to kill him, since my parents consider him as family. So do me the favor of taking care of yourself and protecting my sister from him," he said, his voice devoid of warmth or emotion.

"He wouldn't go so far as to hurt Eve. I mean, he was her best friend at some point," I protested, trying to make sense of the whole situation, clinging to the hope that Cole was exaggerating.

"Oh, you don't want to know the evil Frederick is capable of," he said, his face devoid of any emotion, his words laced with a chilling certainty.

"Do not let him kill you like he did others."