All Chapters of Half My Life for Hers: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

Backstage at the charity gala, the lights were dim.I was just a temp on the logistics crew. I did not even have clearance to be anywhere near the main stage, but the supervisor said there was a cable jam back here and sent me into the shadows to sort it out.That was when a familiar spasm shot through my lower back.The pain knocked the breath out of me. My legs gave out, and I dropped to my knees. Cold sweat beaded across my forehead and dripped onto the backs of my hands.I clenched my jaw and tried to ride it out.That was exactly when Nicole Thatcher, the gala's charity ambassador, finished her speech and came offstage. She found me there on the ground, and the eyes that once looked at me with nothing but warmth were frozen solid now.Before I could say a word, she wrenched the cap off her water bottle and splashed it across my face without a shred of mercy."Quinn Delaney, you've got some nerve showing your face in front of me."I wiped my face and braced a hand against t

There was a long, uneven cobblestone path from the truck to the storage building.I did not find out until after I was hired that Julian was running this health fair. He had clearly given the supervisor specific instructions to make my life miserable.All thirty crates had to be moved by me alone. No one was allowed to help."Pick up the pace! You think you can slack off on my watch?"The supervisor stood in the shade with a cup of iced water, barking at me.I kept my mouth shut. I clenched my back teeth and swallowed the warm, metallic taste crawling up my throat.The old injury in my lower back felt like a ball of fire. Every step pulled at raw nerves, and the tearing pain sent my vision dark around the edges.Sweat rolled down my forehead and into my eyes, stinging so badly I could barely keep them open. All I could do was move on instinct, dragging myself forward one mechanical step at a time.I lost count somewhere around the 20th crate. I vaguely realized when I was on th

At 3 PM, a piercing scream tore through the health fair."Doctor! Somebody help! My husband is coughing up blood!"I had barely caught my breath and stepped out of the examination room when I saw the plaza erupt into chaos.Several elderly patients who had just picked up their specialty medication were convulsing on the ground. White foam seeped from the corners of their mouths.The on-site medical staff rushed in to help. "There's something wrong with the medication!"One of the doctors looked at the box in an old man's hand and went pale."These are expired counterfeit generics! Who mixed these in?"The crowd erupted, and Julian was the first to react. He strode over to the stack of crates, tore the seal off one at random, and pulled out a box of pills."They're all expired!"He spun around, his finger aimed straight at me. "Quinn Delaney! You were the only person who touched this shipment from start to finish! Did you steal the real medication and sell it off, then swap in

"Get away from me!"Nicole's head snapped up, and she shoved Julian back with both hands. Her eyes were shot through with red, like a cornered animal with nowhere left to run."These are official hospital records from Ridgemont General! They've got the hospital letterhead and the attending physician's signature. Tell me how you'd fake that!"Julian stumbled backward, completely rattled. He could not get a single word out.Nicole was shaking from head to toe. She held those few thin pages as though they weighed a thousand pounds."Why..." She whipped her head toward me, and the tears broke free all at once."Quinn, you were supposed to have taken a million dollars and run off with another woman! Why did you lie to me?"Dr. Langford heard that and let out a bitter, furious laugh."A million dollars? Ran off?"He pointed straight at Julian, his voice shaking with rage. "Why don't you ask that fine fiancé of yours?"You were in complete kidney failure. You were dying. If Quinn ha

Nicole leaned down and pressed her lips close to my ear, trembling as she whispered a single sentence.The flatline on the monitor flickered with one small, miraculous blip, and then a second.The attending physician's eyes went wide, and he shouted at the top of his lungs, "We've got a heartbeat! Push one milligram of epinephrine! Get ready for round two!"The nurses pulled Nicole out of the room by force.She collapsed onto the cold floor outside, covered her face, and let out a cry so raw and suffocated it barely sounded human.Three hours later, the emergency room doors opened again.I had made it, but the look the doctor gave Nicole held no relief."Ms. Thatcher, we saved him, but his right kidney has completely lost function. He'll need dialysis for the rest of his life. His body will be so weakened that even a common cold could be fatal."The doctor reached into his pocket and pulled out a battered notebook."We found this sewn into the lining of his old coat."Nicole