Woke Up Naked Next to a Stranger - Chapter 18: Chapter 18
You are reading Woke Up Naked Next to a Stranger, Chapter 18: Chapter 18. Read more chapters of Woke Up Naked Next to a Stranger.
The hospital room was crowded when I walked in—my best friend, Vanessa Evans; Ethan's boss from the company; my colleague Ryan Lowell; even Peter Harrison, my fitness trainer. They were all there.
And then it hit me.
This had been Ethan's doing.
"Mom… Dad… Olivia…" My voice cracked. "Why didn't any of you tell me?"
"Why did you all lie to me?"
Tears blurred my vision as I stumbled to Ethan's bedside. His eyelids trembled open, his face wet with tears.
"I'm sorry, Sophia…" His voice was barely a whisper.
"I'm sorry… my… wife…"
"I… love…"
His grip on my hand went slack.
A shrill, relentless alarm screamed from the monitor. The doctors said he was gone.
I crumpled over him, my sobs drowning out everything until the world went black.
When I woke up, I was in a hospital bed myself—grief had knocked me out cold.
Later, with Olivia and Vanessa holding me up, I dragged myself to the morgue.
One look at Ethan's still, pale face, and my knees gave out. My chest burned like I'd forgotten how to breathe.
That was when I finally understood.
My husband had loved me. More than anyone ever had.
But six months ago, he'd been diagnosed—terminal lung cancer.
Terrified the truth would break me, he'd enlisted Vanessa, Ryan, Peter—everyone—to stage this cruel charade.
That woman I'd seen him with? Olivia's best friend, playing her part in his final act.
Because I wouldn't stop searching for him, Ethan had orchestrated that brutal scene to force me to let go.
What I didn't know was how much it had cost him. His body had been failing for weeks.
He did it all so I wouldn't drown in grief after he was gone.
But Ethan had underestimated my love.
Even when he disappeared, I never stopped looking.
Even when he left me the divorce papers, the house, the car—everything—I still needed to see him one last time. To demand answers.
Because my heart had always been his.
How had I missed it? The way he'd loved me these past six months?
Only recently, when he invited me to Thailand, had I sensed his agony.
Later, Vanessa confessed—that trip had been part of the plan too.
The "fool" in the hotel? Just another actor. She'd been hiding in the closet the whole time, watching my every move.
And then it hit me.
This had been Ethan's doing.
"Mom… Dad… Olivia…" My voice cracked. "Why didn't any of you tell me?"
"Why did you all lie to me?"
Tears blurred my vision as I stumbled to Ethan's bedside. His eyelids trembled open, his face wet with tears.
"I'm sorry, Sophia…" His voice was barely a whisper.
"I'm sorry… my… wife…"
"I… love…"
His grip on my hand went slack.
A shrill, relentless alarm screamed from the monitor. The doctors said he was gone.
I crumpled over him, my sobs drowning out everything until the world went black.
When I woke up, I was in a hospital bed myself—grief had knocked me out cold.
Later, with Olivia and Vanessa holding me up, I dragged myself to the morgue.
One look at Ethan's still, pale face, and my knees gave out. My chest burned like I'd forgotten how to breathe.
That was when I finally understood.
My husband had loved me. More than anyone ever had.
But six months ago, he'd been diagnosed—terminal lung cancer.
Terrified the truth would break me, he'd enlisted Vanessa, Ryan, Peter—everyone—to stage this cruel charade.
That woman I'd seen him with? Olivia's best friend, playing her part in his final act.
Because I wouldn't stop searching for him, Ethan had orchestrated that brutal scene to force me to let go.
What I didn't know was how much it had cost him. His body had been failing for weeks.
He did it all so I wouldn't drown in grief after he was gone.
But Ethan had underestimated my love.
Even when he disappeared, I never stopped looking.
Even when he left me the divorce papers, the house, the car—everything—I still needed to see him one last time. To demand answers.
Because my heart had always been his.
How had I missed it? The way he'd loved me these past six months?
Only recently, when he invited me to Thailand, had I sensed his agony.
Later, Vanessa confessed—that trip had been part of the plan too.
The "fool" in the hotel? Just another actor. She'd been hiding in the closet the whole time, watching my every move.
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