The Unwanted Wife's Return (Ex-Husband Wants Me Back) novel Chapter 2

HANNAH'S POV:

THE NEXT MORNING:

I woke up the next morning to the sound of movement and immediately wanted to disappear.

The memories of last night came flooding back, making my chest tighten and my eyes burn with unshed tears. I lay completely still, afraid that if I moved even slightly, I'd shatter into pieces.

My body ached in ways I'd never experienced before. But that pain was nothing compared to the hollow feeling in my chest.

I slowly pulled my hair up into a high ponytail, my hands shaking slightly. Elijah was already awake, standing near the window, shirtless. The morning light outlined his sculpted back, making him look like something from a magazine. His phone was in his hand, and from the way his shoulders were tense, he was clearly reading something that bothered him.

He hadn't really seen me last night. Not through the haze of alcohol and his expectations. He'd thought I was Janet the entire time. Even while he touched me, even during the most intimate moments, he'd whispered her name over and over.

I pulled my knees to my chest, wrapping my arms around them, trying to make myself as small as possible.

Suddenly, his voice cut through the silence. "What the hell?"

The words were loud, sharp, making me jump. My heart started racing all over again.

He turned sharply, his eyes landing on me for the first time and really looking at me. I watched his expression shift from confusion to recognition, then to complete shock, and finally to something that looked like disgust mixed with anger.

"You..." he said slowly, walking toward the bed like I'd just committed some unforgivable crime. "Who are you? What are you doing in my bed?"

I forced myself to sit up straighter, even though my body protested. I clutched the blanket to my chest, suddenly hyper-aware that he'd already seen everything. That he'd already taken everything.

"I'm Hannah," I said quietly, my voice barely above a whisper. "Janet's older sister."

I reached for the document on the side table, my fingers trembling so badly I almost dropped it. I held out the marriage certificate toward him.

"And your wife."

He snatched the paper from my hand like it might burn him. His eyes scanned it once, twice, three times, as if he couldn't believe what he was seeing. I watched his jaw clench and unclench, the muscle twitching with barely contained rage.

"You've got to be kidding me."

"I'm not," I said, my voice cracking slightly. I wanted to explain everything. The trap, my parents' manipulation, how I was dragged into this against my will. But would it even matter? No one ever listened when it came to me.

"Where is Janet?" he demanded, his voice hard and cold. "What the hell did you do?"

Before I could answer, before I could even process the accusation in his tone, there was a knock at the bedroom door.

"Elijah!" a woman's voice called out, bright and excited. His mother. Mrs. Martinez.

Elijah looked at me one more time, his eyes full of something I couldn't quite name, then turned and yanked the door open.

Mr. and Mrs. Martinez stood there, dressed impeccably as if they'd stepped out of a photoshoot. Their faces were lit up with excitement, probably expecting to meet Janet, to welcome their new daughter-in-law.

That excitement died the instant they saw me sitting on the bed, sheets wrinkled around me, tears barely dried on my cheeks, looking like exactly what I was—a girl who'd been used and discarded.

Mrs. Martinez's smile froze, then melted into a frown. "Oh. That's not... who is she?"

"She's Hannah," Elijah said, and the disgust in his voice was unmistakable. He didn't even try to hide it. "The wrong bride."

The words felt like a slap. The wrong bride. Like I was a package that had been delivered to the wrong address. An inconvenience. A mistake.

Mr. Martinez pushed past his son into the room, his eyes sharp and assessing. "Where is Janet? What's going on here?"

I stood up on shaky legs, wrapping the blanket around myself tightly. My throat felt like it was closing up, but I forced the words out. "I'm her sister. There was a... a change in plans. The wedding went ahead with me instead."

Mrs. Martinez's expression shifted from confused to suspicious. Her lips pressed into a thin, hard line. "A change? Without informing us? Without even a phone call?"

"I didn't want this either," I said desperately, feeling tears prick at my eyes again. "I was forced. I tried to tell them, but no one would listen. I..."

"Of course you were," she snapped, cutting me off with a wave of her perfectly manicured hand. "Forced to marry one of the richest bachelors in the country? Forced into a life of luxury? Do you think we're idiots?"

"I didn't even know who he was until yesterday," I tried again, but my voice was too weak. Too broken.

"You're manipulative," Mr. Martinez said coldly, his eyes raking over me with open contempt. "That's what you are. A gold digger who saw an opportunity and took it." He turned to his son. "Elijah, did you know about this switch?"

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