Chapter 5
“Stop clinging to things you can’t change,” they’d advised. “Let go.
For your own sake.“”
But she hadn’t understood. Since when was wanting love from
her own family unreasonable?
‘That’s my father. My mother. My brothers. My engagement. My
fiance. Why shouldn’t I fight for them?‘ she wondered.
CRACK.
Lucas’s palm struck her face with brutal force. “Aria, you
fucking monster–how dare you wish death on Tessa?”
The slap sent her reeling. Too weak to dodge, she took the full
impact, her already–pale cheek blooming red.
Owen stepped forward, grabbing Lucas’s arm with a sharp
frown. “Lucas, enough.”
Lucas shook him off with a scoff.
“A viper like you–why didn’t that cut finish you off?” He turned
on his heel and stormed away.
Chapter 5
Alone in the hallway, Aria stood frozen, her hospital gown
swallowing her frail frame. The sting on her face was nothing
compared to the hollowness in her chest.
Owen sighed, his voice softening–as if speaking to a deliberately difficult child. “Aria, stop lying.”
“What?” She pressed a hand to her throbbing cheek, eyes
narrowing.
“Henry told me. You only have minor abrasions.” Owen rubbed
his temples, exhausted. “Tessa’s in stage two. This is critical for
her treatment. Can’t you just behave?”
A cold draft swept through the corridor.
But it was nothing compared to the ice in her veins.
Aria laughed silently, the truth dawning on her.
She almost asked–If it were me with cancer, if I were the one
dying would you panic like this? Would you care?
But she already knew the answer.
In her past life, they’d celebrated her death.
No point humiliating herself further.
Chapter 5
“So, Owen,” she said flatly, “how exactly do you want me to
‘behave‘?”
His frown deepened at her tone. “Since your injuries aren’t
serious, you should be discharged early. Free up the room for actual patients.”
Rage exploded in her chest.
“Go to hell,” she hissed.
Owen’s face darkened, but Aria didn’t care.
Her wrist burned–the wound had reopened, blood seeping
through the bandages.
She was furious.
Tessa got sympathy, concern, and round–the–clock care.
Aria? They wanted her gone–bleeding out alone, just to spare
Tessa’s feelings.
Who’s the real Whitmore here?
Gritting her teeth, she staggered back to her room and collapsed
onto the bed.
Every inch of her hurt.
Chapter 5
She needed a doctor, but lifting her arm to press the call button
felt impossible. Trembling, she clutched the sheets, gasping
through the pain.
Am I really this worthless? To die like this?
Darkness swallowed her vision.
*****
When she woke again, it was midnight.
Something warm gripped her hand.
“Aria! You’re awake!”
Juliet’s tear–filled eyes blinked down at her, relief flooding her
expression.
She’d rushed back the moment Bennett called, terrified by the
sight of Aria’s lifeless body in that hospital bed.
“Why cry? You look ugly,” Aria muttered.
L Juliet pouted. “Doesn’t matter. You’re pretty enough for both of
us.”
Aria was the most beautiful person she knew–even sick, even
pale, she glowed like the moon.
Chapter 5
Aria almost smiled.
Then she glanced around. “Where’s Bennett?”
“Grandfather summoned him–probably about his marriage
plans. Want me to call him?”
“No.” Aria cut her off. Absolutely not.
Juliet seemed unaware of her cancer diagnosis–Bennett hadn’t
told her.
Good.
Then Juliet perked up, fetching a still–warm meal from a thermal bag. “Hungry? Bennett ordered this for you.”
Aria wasn’t.
But since Juliet insisted she’d eat.
Once finished, she shooed Juliet home, then pulled out her
phone.
After a long pause, she dialed a number. “Mr. Vaughn. I want to cancel the engagement. Yes, I’m sure. No regrets.”
The next morning, the hospital room door swung open.
Asher Vaughn stood at the threshold, dressed in a crisp white
Chapter 5
shirt and tailored slacks. His amber eyes–once warm and
adoring–now held a detached calmness that felt foreign.
Aria blinked in surprise.
In her previous life, Asher hadn’t visited her at all during this
hospitalization.
Shouldn’t he be with Tessa right now? Why was he here now?
He set a paper bag on the nightstand, pulling out an apple with a
faint smile. “Want one?”
She shook her head, studying the man she’d once loved so
desperately, familiar, yet a stranger.
