My Husband's Affair My Anniversary Gift (Lily and David) novel Chapter 169

David took the bag from him and nodded toward the door, silently asking Roy to leave. Roy glanced at Lily for a second her pale face, her eyes that looked anywhere but at David then he quietly stepped out, closing the door behind him.

The room fell into a heavy silence again. Only the faint hum of the hospital machine and Lily’s steady breath could be heard. David unpacked the box carefully, placing each container on the table beside her bed.

“Eat,” he said softly.

Lily didn’t even glance at him. She turned her face to the window, where sunlight slanted through the blinds, painting golden stripes across her cheek.

“Lily,” he said again, his tone patient but firm. “ You need strength to recover.”

“I said I’m not hungry,” she replied flatly, still looking away.

He clenched his jaw, his patience thinning. “You were starving when you woke up.”

“Not anymore,” she muttered, her voice cold as ice. “Maybe seeing you killed my appetite.”

David froze, his hand halfway to opening another container. He breathed in sharply, forcing himself to stay calm. This was her way distant, bitter, always finding words sharp enough to wound.

He closed the lid quietly. “If you want to hurt me, Lily, it won’t change anything.”

“I’m not trying to hurt you, who are you to me that I'll hurt you?" she said without looking at him. “I just want you to leave. You don’t have to act like a husband when you’ve never been one.”

David’s eyes darkened. He had heard many things from her, but somehow, every time she said it, it still cut deep.

“You’re injured,” he said slowly, his voice lower now, a thread of restraint running through it. “I’m not leaving you alone.”

“Your lover might be waiting for you,” she said suddenly, her tone sharp. “Don’t let her wait too long. I don’t want to look like I’m keeping someone else’s man.”

That broke him.

David’s hand stilled, and the air between them shifted. His eyes darkened until they looked almost black. He turned to her fully, his jaw tight, his breathing heavy. “Say that again.”

Lily didn’t back down. Her eyes met his with the same cold defiance. “I said, you’re someone else’s man. Go back to her. She must be missing you.”

In two steps, he was beside her bed. The chair scraped against the floor as he pushed it away. His shadow loomed over her. “Lily,” he said, his voice dangerously low, “don’t ever say that again.”

“Why?” she snapped. “It’s true, isn’t it? You were never mine, and I don’t want what belongs to another woman.....”

Before she could finish, David’s hand shot forward, cupping her face firmly. She gasped in shock, her hands instinctively pushing against his chest.

“Let me go, David!”

He let out a sharp laugh bitter, humorless. “You think everything happens when you decide, Lily? No. Not this time.”

“Then what?” she asked, glaring up at him. “You’ll trap me again? Pretend this marriage still means something?”

He bent closer until his forehead almost touched hers. “You’re my wife,” he said through gritted teeth. “And I’ll never give you a divorce.”

Her eyes glistened. “You can’t force me to stay.”

“Then stay one month,” he said suddenly, his voice low but firm. “Just one month. Stay as my wife. After that, if you still want to leave, I’ll let you go.”

Lily blinked, disbelief flashing across her face. “One month? You think I’ll agree to that?”

“Yes,” he said, his gaze unwavering. “Because deep down, you still care. You can lie to everyone, but not to yourself.”

Her lip trembled, but she masked it quickly with a bitter laugh. “You’re delusional.”

“Maybe,” he said softly, “but I know what I see when you look at me.”

Lily turned her face away, her chest rising and falling rapidly. “I don’t want your pity or your promises. I don’t want to be your wife for a month or a second longer.”