My Husband's Affair My Anniversary Gift (Lily and David) novel Chapter 31

The ride back to the hotel was quiet, but not in the peaceful sense. It was the kind of silence that hummed with unspoken words.

Lily sat with her arms folded, her lips curved into the faintest of smiles. She didn’t even try to hide it. Watching David fume all evening face set in that stone-like mask, shoulders just a little too rigid had been oddly satisfying.

He wasn’t angry at her, not exactly. She knew his irritation tonight had been entirely because of Marina. Marina with her endless parade of men, her strategic laughter, and that final stunt of kissing a stranger right in the middle of the gala.

David hated public embarrassment more than anything else. And Marina had handed him exactly that on a silver platter.

By the time they stepped out of the car and crossed the glossy marble lobby toward the elevators, Lily’s mood had only lifted further. she had played her part perfectly tonight.

It wasn’t her fault if the other woman couldn’t control herself.

They reached their floor, walking in the same direction but not side by side. Lily had her keycard ready, her fingers resting lightly on the doorknob to her room when a sharp ringtone broke the quiet.

David paused in front of his own door right next to hers pulling out his phone.

Lily glanced sideways, her eyes narrowing slightly, though her hand stayed on the doorknob.

“Hello,” he answered.

She caught the change in his face almost instantly. The flat irritation he’d been carrying melted into sudden tension. His brows drew together, his shoulders straightening.

“What? What happened, Marina?” His voice had dropped, tight and urgent.

Someone on the other end was speaking quickly, their words too faint for Lily to hear. But she didn’t need to. The way David’s expression shifted was enough. Concern, worry, an instinctive pull toward the woman on the other side of that call.

And then, without even looking at Lily, he turned away and started down the hall.

No pause. No explanation.

He pressed the elevator button, stepping inside the moment the doors slid open.

Lily stood frozen, her hand still on her doorknob, watching him disappear. She blinked once, twice, as the soft chime of the elevator echoed down the hall.

For a heartbeat, she told herself she didn’t care.

Then a bitter laugh slipped out, low and sharp.

Her throat felt tight. She didn’t know why. It wasn’t as if she still loved him, she’d told herself that truth a thousand times. She had wiped him from her heart long ago, or so she believed.

So why did watching him run to Marina make her chest ache like this?

Lily shook her head and stepped into her room, tossing her clutch onto the nearest chair. She hated herself a little for even thinking about it.

David arrived at the hospital in less than twenty minutes.

The fluorescent lights were harsh, the sterile smell sharp in his nose. He walked with long, purposeful strides, ignoring the way a few nurses looked at him with recognition.

When he reached Marina’s room, she was sitting up in bed, her hair slightly mussed but her makeup still carefully done. The heart monitor beeped steadily beside her.

“Marina,” he said flatly.

Her eyes flickered up to him, a flash of satisfaction hidden beneath a thin layer of weariness. “You came.”

“Of course I came. What happened?”

She pouted slightly, leaning back against the pillows. “I felt faint. Probably all the stress tonight. You left me standing there, David.”

Her expression hardened. “So I’m supposed to wait around until it’s convenient for you?”

“Exactly,” he said bluntly.

That single word was enough to shatter whatever thin layer of patience she’d been holding on to.

With a sharp movement, Marina threw the glass of water from her bedside table. It shattered against the wall, the sound loud in the small room. “I’m not worthless, David!” she shouted.

“Then stop acting like it,” he snapped back.

Her chest rose and fell rapidly. And then, in one swift, reckless motion, she climbed onto the windowsill.

“Marina...”

“Don’t come closer,” she warned, her bare feet gripping the narrow ledge. “If you won’t take me seriously, then maybe....”

He was on her in an instant, grabbing her arm and yanking her back into the room.

Her breath came in quick, shallow bursts, but she didn’t pull away from him immediately. Instead, she stared up at him with wide eyes. “Do you regret me, David? Tell me honestly.”

“No,” he said without hesitation. “But I’m not going to let you destroy everything I’ve built. Not now.”

Her lips trembled, but not with fear. “Then tell me how long I have to wait.”

He closed his eyes, his hand still gripping her arm. “Three months.”

The words hung in the air like a sentence neither of them could escape.