The Husband Who Woke Up

Lily’s POV

For a second, neither of us moved.

His eyes were dark gray, like his grandmother’s, and they were not soft or confused the way I thought a man’s eyes would be after weeks in a coma. They were sharp. They were studying me.

His lips moved. His voice came out rough and broken, like it hadn’t been used in a long time.

“Who...” He swallowed hard. “Who are you?”

My whole body went cold. Did he hear me? How much did he hear?

“I’ll get the doctor,” I said, and I pulled my hand out of his and ran for the door.

“Help!” I shouted into the hallway. “He’s awake! Ethan is awake!”

After that, everything happened fast. A nurse ran in, then a doctor, then what felt like the whole Blackwood family. Grandmother Eleanor came last, leaning on her cane, and when she saw her grandson’s open eyes, her hand flew to her chest.

“Ethan,” she whispered. “Oh, my boy.”

The doctor checked his eyes with a little light and asked him questions. Did he know his name? Did he know where he was? Ethan answered each one slowly, in that rough voice. The doctor kept shaking his head like he couldn’t believe it.

“This is very rare,” he told Eleanor. “His brain activity was low this morning. I have no medical explanation for this.”

Eleanor turned and looked at me. For the first time, there was something warm in her sharp eyes.

“I have an explanation,” she said. “His wife came.”

Everyone in the room turned to stare at me. I wanted the floor to open up and swallow me.

A tall man in a gray suit stood near the window. He had the same strong jaw as Ethan, but his face was thinner and older. He was smiling, but his smile looked stiff, like it had been glued on.

“What wonderful news,” he said. “A true miracle.”

“Uncle Richard,” Ethan said quietly from the bed.

“Welcome back, nephew. You gave us all quite a scare.” Richard patted the bed rail. “Don’t worry about the company. I’ve been taking care of everything while you were sleeping.”

Ethan didn’t answer. He just watched his uncle with those cold gray eyes until Richard looked away first.

The doctor finally sent everyone out so Ethan could rest. I followed the crowd toward the door, but Ethan’s voice stopped me.

“Not you.”

I turned around slowly. The others were already gone. Eleanor gave me a small nod and closed the door behind her, leaving me alone with him again.

“Come here,” he said.

I walked back to the bed and stood beside it with my hands folded, the way Mrs. Sinclair had taught me. I tried to look calm. I’m not sure I did.

Ethan looked me up and down. “Vanessa Sinclair,” he said slowly. “My wife.”

“Yes,” I said.

“The last time I saw you,” he said, “you told me my company was boring and my family was too old fashioned. You said you’d marry me because your father needed the deal, but you’d never love me. Do you remember that?”

I didn’t. I had never heard any of it. Vanessa hadn’t told her mother, or her mother hadn’t told me. My mind raced.

“I remember,” I lied.

“And now you’re here, holding my hand, crying over me.” His eyes narrowed. “That doesn’t sound like you.”

“People change,” I said. “When I heard about the accident, I was scared. I realized I didn’t want to lose you.”

He was quiet for a long moment. Then he said, “Before I woke up, I heard a voice. A woman’s voice. She said she wasn’t who I thought she was.”

My heart nearly stopped.

“She said she needed to save someone,” he went on, watching my face. “Her brother.”

I made myself breathe. Vanessa didn’t have a brother. If he believed what he heard, it was over. Noah’s bills, my deal with the Sinclairs, everything.

“You were dreaming,” I said softly. “The doctor said people in comas sometimes hear things that aren’t real.”

“Maybe,” he said, and he didn’t look away. “But I also heard you say you’d take care of me.”

“I did say that,” I told him, because that part, at least, was true. “And I meant it. You can believe that or not, but I’m not going anywhere.”

Something changed in his face. It was small, just a tiny line between his eyebrows, like he was trying to solve a puzzle. Then he closed his eyes.

“I’m tired,” he said. “Go.”

I didn’t wait for him to change his mind. I almost ran out of the room, and I didn’t stop until I reached the bedroom the maids had given me down the hall. I locked the door, sat on the edge of the bed, and pressed my shaking hands against my face.

Mrs. Sinclair had promised me he would never wake up. She had promised me this would be easy.

My phone buzzed. It was a text from her.

I heard the news. Stay calm. Do not make mistakes.

I almost laughed. It was a little late for that.

I lay in bed for an hour, but I couldn’t sleep. What if he needed water? What if something was wrong and no one was there? I was supposed to be his wife. Finally, I got up, pulled a sweater over my nightgown, and walked back down the dark hallway.

His door was open just a little. I lifted my hand to knock, then stopped when I heard his voice. It was still rough, but it was cold and clear.

“Find out everything about my wife.”

I froze outside the door.

“Where she’s been for the last month,” Ethan went on. “Who she talks to. And whether the Sinclairs have any children I don’t know about.”

Another man answered him, quiet and careful. Through the gap, I could see him standing by the bed, a thin man in a dark suit holding a phone. “Sir, you think she’s lying?”

There was a long silence. I pressed my back against the wall and held my breath.

“I think,” Ethan said, “the woman who married me today is not the same woman I proposed to.”

I covered my mouth with my hand and backed away from the door, one slow step at a time, until I was sure he couldn’t hear me. Then I turned and ran.