Chapter 1

"This person's bone marrow isn't a match for your daughter's. Your only option now is to bear another child with your husband. You should still be able to make it in time if you get pregnant soon." In the dim room, Melanie York was recalling the doctor's chilly words. Gritting her teeth, she leaned down and pressed herself against her employer. As the man blearily opened his eyes, she quickly blindfolded him with a tie, her hands shaking. Half a year ago, Derrick Quinton had been chasing after his first love, who was flying out of the country on impulse. Unfortunately, he got into a highway accident and injured his spine. Although he received emergency treatment in time, he was left partially paralyzed. Even now, he still hadn't recovered. Just like that, he went from being the golden boy to a cripple, which led to a significant change in his personality. His violent and moody demeanor subsequently chased away ten caretakers in a row, as they couldn't handle him. In her bid to save her daughter, who had leukemia, Melanie had no choice but to use her qualifications as a nutritionist and apply to become his 11th caretaker. That day was only her second day here. She leaned forward to whisper into his ear breathily, "Mr. Quinton, you owe me this…" Five years ago, Derrick had been drugged, and he ended up using Melanie as his antidote. Now, it was time for him to pay his dues. In a month's time, once she had confirmed she was pregnant, she would immediately resign and disappear from his life. … "Melanie! Get your ass over here!" Derrick's furious voice rang out, causing Melanie to jolt. She hurriedly put on her black, wide-rimmed glasses before rushing into his bedroom. Under the dim lighting, Derrick was glaring at her from the bed. A blanket covered his lower body, while the buttons of his white silk pajamas were undone, revealing his muscular chest in all its glory. There were faint scratches littered across his skin. Melanie flushed red and pointedly refused to allow her eyes to wander. After all, those scratches were her handiwork from the night before. Derrick's expression was beyond dark. His entire body felt inexplicably heavy and sore, as though he had been doing some vigorous exercise. He coldly asked, "Who came into my room last night?" Melanie's heart skipped a beat. She lowered her gaze and shook her head timidly. "No one did. Mr. Quinton, are you feeling unwell?" Last night was Derrick's birthday party, and many of his close friends and business partners attended. Hence, many people had been in the villa. Before having her way with him, Melanie had used a simple hypnosis method on him, so he would likely only think that he had had an incredibly vivid and sexual dream. "You don't even know the answer to that? Is this what you call being a professional?" Derrick's eyes bored into her, a layer of frost covering them. "I'm sorry, Mr. Quinton. It won't happen again," Melanie apologized softly. There was no way she would dare say that she had slept with her employer when she was just supposed to be taking care of him. If word of it got out, she would be doomed. Her timid behavior only angered Derrick more. Pursing his lips, he demanded, "Get me Renard. I want to use the bathroom." Melanie answered gently, "Renard wasn't feeling well yesterday, so he's not here right now." "How do you know he's feeling unwell? Are you very close with him?" A wave of exasperation washed over Melanie. "Mr. Quinton, I can help you to the bathroom, too." Before Derrick could ask how she was supposed to do that, Melanie had already tugged the blanket off him before scooping him up into her arms. Then, she placed him in the wheelchair, even thoughtfully placing a pillow behind his back. Derrick stiffened slightly. Although he was bedridden, his height wasn't affected, and his muscles hadn't deteriorated too much yet. Yet, he had just been easily lifted into a princess carry by a woman! This was the first time he had experienced such a thing in his 28 years of life! Both embarrassment and fury flushed his face crimson, even reddening the tips of his ears. He eyed Melanie suspiciously. She was approximately five feet seven inches tall and had a slender build. Despite the loose pajamas she was wearing, Derrick could still tell that she wasn't particularly well-endowed. The black-rimmed glasses perched on her nose made her look rather frumpy, and the wrinkles in the corners of her eyes betrayed her age as over 30. "Who told you to carry me? Are you even a woman? You had better not be a man disguising himself as a woman!" Melanie was genuinely speechless. Was he blind or simply had a few screws loose? At the thought that he was meant to be the father of her children, she couldn't help but feel disdain. "Mr. Quinton, I can assure you that I'm a real woman." She patiently explained, "It's just that caretakers tend to be stronger than the average person, and encountering patients like you isn't uncommon. However, you're quite muscular and heavy. It took me quite a bit of effort to lift you earlier." "Really?" Derrick scoffed. "But it seemed to me like you were doing it without any effort at all." After a moment of silence, Melanie forced herself to smile and awkwardly replied, "Well, to be honest, I was just naturally born stronger." In her bid to earn money for her daughter's treatments, she had done all sorts of heavy labor. Thus, it only made sense that she had grown stronger from all that work. Derrick's expression turned grim. His eyes shone with contempt as he said, "Next time, you don't have to carry me. Just support me as I move over myself." Melanie nodded in response before wheeling him toward the bathroom. Once there, she didn't forget his earlier warning and merely grabbed his arms to help support him. However, with Derrick being partially paralyzed, he wasn't able to exert any strength at all, so he failed to move toward the toilet bowl himself. After some struggling, the accumulated helplessness and frustration that came from his months of paralysis exploded in a burst of fury, and he rammed his shoulder into Melanie. Melanie slammed into the floor with a loud crash, her head cracking against the wall behind her. The sharp agony caused her vision to go black briefly, and her ears were ringing. She almost lost consciousness right then and there. Gingerly touching the back of her head, she felt a bump as the spot started to swell. Fortunately, there was no blood. A bitter smile tugged at her lips as she realized why so many of his previous caretakers had resigned. It seemed that Derrick could be incredibly moody. Nonetheless, the salary he was offering was just too tempting. With a monthly income of 50 thousand dollars, she could afford her daughter's medical bills without too much strain. Hence, she had no choice but to soldier on, at least until she had confirmed that she was pregnant. Derrick turned to glare at her. All his previous caretakers would've burst into tears by now and wailed about how they would resign. Yet, Melanie simply took some time to gather herself before getting to her feet. Then, she ignored his previous warning and lifted him into her arms. Her tone was gentle as she said, "Mr. Quinton, patients who suffer from full-body paralysis lose control of their emotions easily. However, your situation is different—the doctor said your spinal injury is only temporary. With enough treatments, there's a chance you'll recover. "I know you're in a bad mood because you've been holding it in for so long, but please don't torture yourself so. It would be even more embarrassing if something happened and you needed to see a urologist. "Plus, me getting hurt after you shoved me like that isn't even a big deal. However, if you failed to steady yourself and ended up falling, injuring your spine once more, that would only worsen the situation, no?" The whole time she spoke, there was a kind smile on her face, making Derrick feel as though he had thrown a punch at thin air. She hadn't gotten angry, nor had she cried. Derrick took a good look at her for the very first time. She wasn't wearing any makeup, so the wrinkles and freckles dotting her face were pronounced. Her black-rimmed glasses practically spanned across half of her face, yet they added a touch of quietness to her, the kind that came from weathering many storms. Her résumé came to mind, and he recalled it listing her marital status as divorced but with a kid. He ordered coldly, "Fine. Then come over here and take off my pants." Melanie paused in surprise. Staring at that handsome face that would make even goddesses jealous, she felt her heart skip a beat. Her initial assumption was that she simply needed to wheel him into the bathroom, and he would take care of the rest himself. She honestly hadn't thought any further beyond that. Besides, it wouldn't have been as bad if he were actually ugly. Yet, he was incredibly dashing, so much so that her imagination really would run wild! As memories of what happened the night before flashed through her mind, she couldn't stop herself from blushing. "Melanie York, don't you stare at me with that perverted and lustful look in your eyes. You think you'll be able to take advantage of me? Well, think again! You're not worthy enough," Derrick said, his expression arrogant.