All Chapters of Hidden Husband Gets Abandoned: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

At the company's annual gala, as soon as the CEO, Maeve Maddock, finished her speech, the audience broke into applause.The next moment, the clapping grew even louder, mixed with cheers and catcalls.I looked closer and saw Maeve's male assistant, Johnny Lavelle, hurrying onto the stage with a giant bouquet of red roses.He dropped to one knee in front of her. At the center of the roses sat a red velvet ring box.Johnny said, with deep feeling, "Maeve, when I joined the company three months ago, I didn't know anything. I couldn't do a thing. But you never looked down on me. You took care of me every step of the way and taught me the ropes."All those days and nights we spent together—I realized I've fallen deeply in love with you. I want to be with you. Will you marry me?"I couldn't help but smirk, thinking Johnny was just deluding himself.A coworker next to me suddenly nudged me with his elbow. When he saw my confused look, his face lit up with excitement, and he whispered, "

Maeve's words left me frozen in place.I looked at her—still the same familiar, beautiful face—yet she felt utterly foreign to me.I couldn't pinpoint exactly when she had started to become a stranger. Even before Johnny showed up, she had already begun to change. Back then, I told myself it was just the stress of work, and that I needed to be understanding.But ever since Johnny came along, the contrast made everything clear.The truth was, Maeve hadn't really changed. She had simply grown tired of me.I'd refused to admit it all this time, but now, watching her fingers intertwined with Johnny's, what excuse did I have left to deceive myself?I should have faced reality a long time ago.I set the divorce papers on the coffee table and turned to leave.But Maeve called out to me.When she did, I couldn't help the faint hope that flickered in my chest. After all, we had been together for fifteen years. Surely she felt some reluctance to let it all go.The very next moment, her

And now, Maeve was the one saying, "At your age, honestly—who else would want you if you leave me?"My face went dark with hurt.Johnny held Maeve's hand, his face full of self-reproach.Watching the two of them so close, my heart died completely. I clenched my jaw and turned to leave—to get out of that suffocating place.But Maeve called out to me. Her eyes darted away, as if she couldn't quite meet my gaze.I stopped, waiting to hear what she had to say.She hesitated for a long moment, then finally spoke. "Ed, could you donate one of your kidneys to Johnny?"At her words, my heart flatlined.I let out a bitter, helpless laugh. I should have known better. Even now, after everything, I was still foolish enough to hope.When she saw that I wasn't agreeing right away—the way I used to, always saying yes to whatever she asked—Maeve grew anxious. "Johnny saved my life once. Now, he's sick. You should help him—for my sake. If it weren't for Johnny, I'd be dead."I blinked in conf

On the way home, a heavy rain began to pour.I had no umbrella and didn't bother calling a ride. I just walked home through the downpour.As I walked, my mind wandered, filled with nothing but memories of Maeve.Then my phone suddenly rang.I fished it out mechanically. It was Maeve calling.I hesitated for a long time, but in the end, I answered.On the other end, Maeve's voice came through, muffled and indistinct.I listened carefully for a while—but she wasn't speaking to me.My heart sank. I'd thought she actually wanted to say something, but it turned out she'd just dialed by mistake.I was about to hang up when, from the other end of the line, I heard a series of unmistakably intimate sounds. They sent a chill straight through my bones.I wasn't naive or inexperienced. I knew exactly what those sounds meant.But I wished, more than anything, that I were a fool—someone too clueless to understand. I didn't want to know what they were doing on the other end of that call.

The engagement between Anna and me had been arranged before either of us was even born.Back then, the Gabehart and the Digby families had agreed that if the children were the same gender, they would become sworn siblings. If they were opposite genders, they would be betrothed.My mother passed away in childbirth. My father was always busy with work and couldn't give me the care I needed. The Gabehart family was in turmoil at the time, with enemies both inside and outside the company, so he didn't dare hire a nanny.And so, I was raised on Anna's mother's breast milk.When I was five, my father passed away, leaving only my old butler behind. Under the Digby family's protection, my butler and I struggled to hold onto what remained of my family's legacy.That lasted until the butler gave his life protecting me.To this day, Anna's parents were the closest thing I had to parents of my own.But back then, I was shattered by the butler's death. I instinctively pushed everyone away, c