He Loved Her, Not His Wife

Aniya POV:

The recovery was a long, lonely ordeal. Days blurred into a haze of pain medication and physical therapy. I learned to change my own dressings, to navigate the hallways on crutches, to force down the tasteless hospital food. No one came to visit. My family was in Europe, and Donnie… well, Donnie was a black hole where a husband should have been.

The nurses looked at me with pity. They whispered in the hallways, not knowing I could hear them.

"Can you believe it? Mr. Winters has been in that other suite 24/7. Hired a private chef for her, flies in designers to keep her entertained."

"And his actual wife is in here, all alone. He hasn' t even come to check on her once."

The words used to sting. Now, they were just noise. My heart had been cauterized. There was nothing left to feel.

The day I was discharged, the sky was a blanket of gray, threatening rain. As I limped out of the hospital entrance, a familiar car pulled up. My childhood friends, Chloe and Liam, rushed out.

"Aniya!" Chloe enveloped me in a hug, careful of my injuries. "We came as soon as we heard. You idiot, why didn' t you call us?"

Liam took my bag, his warm, steady hand on my back. "We' ve got you."

For the first time in weeks, a genuine warmth spread through my chest. I had forgotten what it felt like to be cared for.

They took me to a private, sun-drenched cafe they had booked out just for us. A banner hung across the room: 'CONGRATULATIONS ON YOUR FREEDOM!'

They poured champagne, clinking their glasses against my water.

"To Aniya," Liam said, his smile kind. "Free from the asshole."

"You deserve so much better," Chloe added, squeezing my hand. "He was never worthy of you."

A small, watery smile touched my lips. I looked at my friends, at their genuine, loving faces, and something inside me shifted. They were right. I had spent five years prostrating myself before a man who wouldn' t spare me a single glance. I had made myself small, silent, and accommodating, all for a love that was a mirage.

No more.

I excused myself to go to the restroom. When I came back, the cafe was empty. Chloe and Liam were gone. A knot of unease tightened in my stomach.

I found a waiter clearing the tables. "Excuse me, did you see where my friends went?"

He looked nervous. "A man came for them, ma' am. A big man in a suit. He said he was taking them to see Mr. Winters' guest."

A cold dread trickled down my spine. Bella.

I ran, my leg screaming in protest, toward the private rooms upstairs. My heart hammered against my broken ribs. What was she doing?

I burst into the room and stopped dead. Bella, looking drunk and belligerent, had Liam backed into a corner.

"Come on, handsome," she slurred, trying to grab his tie. "Donnie' s boring. You look like fun. Have a drink with me."

Liam looked disgusted, trying to push her away gently. "Ms. Adkins, I' m not interested. Please let go."

"What' s the matter? Am I not pretty enough for you?" she shrieked.

"Bella!"

The voice was mine, sharp and furious. She spun around, her eyes widening in surprise, then narrowing in petulant anger.

Before she could say anything, the door flew open again, and Donnie stormed in, his face a thundercloud.

"Bella! What the hell are you doing?" he roared. He wasn' t looking at me, only at her.

She stumbled away from Liam, her drunken bravado collapsing. "Donnie! You were gone for so long! Your assistant said you were in a meeting with… with a woman!" She pointed a shaky finger at me.

"He' s my friend!" I snapped.

"Donnie, she tried to get her friend to seduce me!" Bella wailed, bursting into tears.

Donnie' s assistant, trailing behind him, tried to intervene. "Mr. Winters, it was a scheduled quarterly review with the female head of the European division. It was on your calendar."

But Bella wasn't listening. She lunged for Liam again. "I want him to stay with me! You' re never here!"

"Bella, stop it," Donnie commanded, grabbing her arm.

She rounded on him, her face contorted with drunken rage and jealousy. "You don' t love me anymore! You' re tired of me! You were with her, weren' t you?" She gestured wildly towards me. "Your wife!"

I had to protect my friends. They had done nothing wrong. I stepped forward, putting myself between Bella and Liam. "This has nothing to do with them. Let them go."