My Husband Faked Our Marriage to Please My Best Friend Chapter 02

My Husband Faked Our Marriage to Please My Best Friend Chapter 02

I looked down and only then realized there was a cut across the back of my hand.

When I stayed silent, Ethan sighed and pulled me into his arms.

“That’s enough. You should calm down now. I let you hit me, didn’t I? Stop crying.”

“Besides, I never planned to actually stay married to her. It’s just a certificate. Once the waiting period is over, I’ll divorce her.”

“Chloe was spoiled growing up. She’s fun to play around with, but if I really brought her home as a wife, I’d be exhausted just trying to keep her happy.”

He paused, and his voice softened.

“But you’re different, Sophie.”

“You never cause me trouble. Being with you means I don’t have to put in so much effort. You’re perfect wife material.”

“In a month, we’ll get a real certificate again. Your mother always wanted to see you married, right? I’ll give you the grandest wedding then.”

Before he could finish, his phone buzzed again.

Ethan glanced at it, and the corners of his mouth immediately lifted.

“Chloe wants the lemon tart from that French bakery on the west side. They’re about to close, so I have to hurry.”

“If I don’t get it for her, she’ll make my night miserable.”

He looked at me, hesitated for half a second, then picked up his car keys and left.

The moment I heard the word “mother,” it felt like someone had dumped a bucket of ice water over my head.

I understood the threat hidden in his words.

Back then, Ethan had paid my mother’s crushing hospital bills without a second thought.

Her follow-up treatments still cost far more than my monthly salary could cover.

Thinking of that, I couldn’t help laughing bitterly.

Maybe someone as trapped as I was made it easy for Ethan to cheat without fear.

The door closed.

I finally lost the strength to hold myself up and slid to the floor.

My gaze swept across the wreckage in the room, and my memory suddenly dragged me back to a year ago.

At my birthday party that night, Chloe looped her arm through mine, her smile bright and sparkling.

“Sophie, I prepared a huge surprise for you tonight.”

Her sly wink overlapped with the girl I remembered from when we were sixteen, when we had stolen ice cream and got chased across school by the dean.

I looked forward to it all night.

Until the cake collapsed.

Behind it, two tangled figures came into view, and my mind went completely blank.

Chloe calmly pulled Ethan’s jacket over herself and raised an eyebrow at me.

“Happy birthday, Sophie!”

“This is the birthday surprise I prepared for you. What do you think? Do you like it?”

More than ten years of friendship collapsed with that cake, turning into ruins in an instant.

I woke sharply from the nightmare.

When I saw Ethan beside the bed, I was dazed for a moment.

Before I could fully come back to myself, he pushed a bowl of chicken soup into my hands.

“Sophie, I made this. Hurry and try it.”

I stared at him blankly, thinking I had misheard.

“You made it?”

He nodded, then picked up the spoon and brought it to my lips without letting me refuse.

“Yeah. I got Chloe’s dessert late this afternoon, so she punished me by making me cook her a bowl of chicken soup myself.”

His lips curved like he was enjoying it.

“She really does whatever pops into her head. I don’t even know how to make this stuff.”

Even though I had already calmed down, my nose stung without warning.

I never once dreamed that this spoiled heir, a man who had never lifted a finger in the kitchen, would one day cook for someone else.

In my daze, I choked.

Ethan immediately frowned with concern.

“What’s wrong? Is it too salty?”

As he spoke, he lowered his head and tasted a spoonful of soup.

Right then, his phone rang.

“Stay where you are. Don’t move. I’m coming right now!”

I didn’t know what the person on the other end said, but his face changed. He rushed out so fast that he bumped into me and nearly knocked me off balance.

“Chloe twisted her ankle. The private doctor isn’t around. Go buy some medicine for her and bring it to the Westside villa. Hurry.”

I stared blankly at his back.

When I finally snapped out of it, I gave a self-mocking smile, grabbed an umbrella, and followed him out.

I didn’t know how I managed to buy the medicine and reach the Westside villa.

The moment I pushed the door open, I froze.

A pair of sheer stockings lay carelessly over the stair railing, piercing my eyes.

Intimate sounds drifted down from upstairs.

Seeing this scene again shattered every bit of mental preparation I had forced myself to build.

I screamed, broke down, covered my head, and crouched on the floor.

Chloe seemed annoyed by the interruption and muttered, “What a mood killer.”

Irritated footsteps followed.

Ethan came downstairs with his clothes in disarray, a bright lipstick mark still pressed to his face.

“Why are you screaming? You’ve seen this so many times. You’re still not used to it?”

“Give me the medicine. Chloe’s ankle still hurts.”

Halfway through his sentence, his body suddenly froze.

His pupils contracted.

“Sophie! What’s wrong with you?”

Hearing the panic in his voice, I looked down.

Rainwater mixed with dark red streaks dripped beneath me, pooling on the floor in a small, frightening stain.

The world spun.

As everything tilted, I saw Ethan lunging toward me.