I DRUGGED the Ruthless Billionaire for One Night of Passion Chapter 05

I DRUGGED the Ruthless Billionaire for One Night of Passion Chapter 05

All I heard was another loud door slam.

On the fourth day, I came down with a high fever, along with nausea and vomiting. Ethan saw I had not fixed breakfast and came in to question me, only to find me huddled beneath the blankets.

“Zoe, what’s wrong with you?”

He put a hand on my forehead. “You have a fever.”

I pushed him away. “Leave me alone.”

He lifted me into his arms. “I’m taking you to the hospital.”

I clung to the bedsheets for dear life. “I’m not going.”

“Zoe! Why are you acting like this?”

I was crying now, clinging to the sheets, my head was spinning and I could barely think straight. “If you stepped out this door, you would leave for good.”

I felt him take my hand. “Don’t worry. I’m staying right here with you. I’m not going anywhere.”

“Don’t leave me…”

When I opened my eyes again, I was still home. Ethan sat by my bed, speaking quietly on the phone about work. An IV was running into my arm. I knew he’d called his private doctor. I was relieved. Here at home, no one would find out the truth.

And I knew it was time to let Ethan go. He’d kept his word. I hadn’t been holding him hostage at all. I’d been holding onto his patience with me.

He was swamped with work, taking calls and working on his laptop all day long. The dark circles beneath his eyes grew more prominent.

“You’re up?”

“Yeah. How long had I been asleep?”

“A full day. But your fever broke.”

I nodded and watched the last drop fall from the IV bag. The doctor pulled the needle and left.

“Mr. Blake, I’ll check back tomorrow.”

I pulled my hand out of Ethan’s. The little bandage was still on my skin.

“I’m feeling better now. You can go.”

Ethan raised an eyebrow. “Go where? Are you done with me and sending me back to the guest room?”

I tried to smile. “It’s not that. You’re free to go wherever you please now.”

Ethan left, slamming another door behind him. He was angry.

I’d planned to make it to day seven. But I’d already gotten what I needed. The experience was what mattered. I felt far too selfish, and I feared the afterlife.

Nine days after I got sick, I dragged my feverish body out to buy myself a cemetery plot. The cemetery attendant assumed I was arranging a plot for an elderly family member. I shook my head and smiled. “It’s for me. As for what I want…”

I tilted my head and thought about it. Under her pitying gaze, I said, “I’d like a plot in a lively area.” I was terrified of being alone. I couldn’t escape it in life, but I didn’t want to spend eternity that way.

I’d burned things with Ethan, so Lena would have to handle my funeral. I wrote down her number on the form. Then I got her to come with me for a portrait session.

Lena was confused. “Why the birthday portraits? You finally in a good mood?”

I smiled and didn’t answer. It made sense she’d think that. My 26th birthday was two days away.

I flipped through all the colorful pictures and picked the one where I was smiling the brightest. I leaned in and whispered to the clerk. “Make this one black and white.”

The clerk said it wasn’t appropriate. I laughed. “It’s appropriate. I’m using it for my memorial portrait.”

That night, I got a call from Martha Blake. She spoke in the same soft, gentle tone as always.

“Zoe, our birthday is coming up the day after tomorrow. Why don’t you come over and celebrate with our family? Ethan’s here as well.”

I remembered how angry Ethan had been when he slammed the door on his way out. I said no.

“I’m so sorry, Martha. I already made plans to travel with some friends. I’ll stop by to visit you once I’m back.”

I didn’t want my birthday to turn into a disaster.

I used to not be afraid of dying. I’d spent every breakdown alone. Back then, I used to wonder why I was still alive. Maybe I’d been too sincere, because the universe finally gave me what I asked for. But when the doctor said my days were numbered, I started to panic.

I was adrift on the open ocean, scrambling to find a lifeline. Not because I wanted to live. I just wanted to feel safe when I died.

For my birthday, I planned to get a big cake and drink to our hearts’ content together. But I passed out at the bakery.

I woke up in the hospital. A shop clerk called emergency services to bring me in. I was grateful. But I also thought, if my life had just ended right there, that wouldn’t have been so bad.

The doctor looked at me, very serious. “You’ll need to stay in the hospital for observation.”

I shook my head and smiled. “No, thank you.”

When I walked out of the hospital, I saw Ethan for the first time in two days. There was a pretty girl next to him. I’d never seen her before. He was smiling at her.

I let out a disdainful scoff. What a total jerk.