Buying My Forever Wife novel Chapter 138

She scoured the footage for two grueling hours.

But the video of that specific incident was nowhere to be found.

It had clearly been deleted ahead of time.

Ivy knew that to frame her and get her kicked out of the hospital, Summer was willing to stoop to any level.

Naturally, she would ensure her plan was flawless.

Unable to contact her colleague and with the footage gone, Ivy had zero evidence to prove her innocence.

Left with no other options, she dejectedly left the hospital and went to pick up Stella from St. Jude’s Preschool.

The moment she saw Ivy, the little girl immediately noticed the angry red swelling on her cheek, her face crumpling with worry.

"Mommy, what happened to your face? Why is it all puffy? Does it hurt?"

Ivy instinctually reached up to touch her cheek.

She had been so frantic trying to find evidence to clear her name that she had completely forgotten to apply an ice pack to reduce the swelling.

Forcing a strained smile, Ivy pulled Stella into a hug and lied.

"It doesn't hurt. It's just a mosquito bite."

"How could a mosquito bite make it that swollen? Mommy, did somebody hit you?"

The little girl wasn't buying it, her brows pulling together as she looked on the verge of tears.

Ivy quickly denied it. "It really doesn't hurt. It was just one of those huge mosquitoes. Next time I see one, I'll point it out to you."

Stella still didn't believe her.

She was young, not stupid.

If her mommy wasn't going to tell her the truth, she would just have to tell her daddy.

As soon as they got back home, Stella announced she needed to use the bathroom, locked herself in, and used her smartwatch to call Alaric.

The moment he answered, Stella spoke in a soft, worried voice.

"Daddy, you need to come home right now. Somebody hit Mommy and her face is all swollen. She looks so sad."

Alaric's brow furrowed sharply as he asked, "Who hit her?"

"I don't know! I asked her, but she said it was a mosquito bite."

"Ivy, I heard you got hurt again?"

Elena acted overly warm and friendly, walking over to sit beside her and staring at the red swelling with a look of deep, exaggerated sympathy.

"Did someone hit you? Why is it so bad?"

So, Alaric really did care about Ivy, didn't he?

Why else would he summon her all the way over here just for a bruised cheek?

Elena felt a bitter spike of jealousy burning in her chest.

Ivy kept her answer vague. "It's nothing. I just had an accident."

A flicker of mockery danced in Elena's eyes as she began prepping the ointment.

"I'm not blind, you know. I can tell when someone's been slapped. Don't act like a stranger with me; after all, I've had to ask for your help before."

Ivy fell silent.

Elena gently applied the medicine to her cheek, casually asking:

"Has Alaric been coming home on time these last few days?"