His Wife (A Contract Marriage Story) by Heer Mangtani

Chapter 75

GABRIEL (continued…)

The next morning:

I seemed to have been in a comatose. The nights of not sleeping in Sophia’s hometown because she couldn’t sleep, and then coming back and working away my nights had finally caught up to me.

I don’t know for how long I slept, but it was definitely the most intense sleep I had had in a very long time.

I woke up to my phone buzzing next to me,

For the first time, how much time it was and how quick I needed to get to work weren’t the first things on my mind.

“Hello?” I press the phone to my ears without looking at the caller ID.

“Gabriel,” There was a breathy whisper on the other end. “It’s me. Lily”

“Lily.” I repeated after her, a little dumbstruck and foggy. “Hi”

“Hey,”

My mind cleared, and suddenly, all the sleep disappeared. I rolled over to the other side of the bed, Sophia’s room and her paintings coming into my view.

“Lily,” I greeted again, clearing my throat. “What’s up?”

“Nothing. Um. There was another question in my mind that I couldn’t get myself to ask last evening.”

I shut my eyes, putting my hand through my hair. I would be frustrated if I wasn’t in a situation of my own making. Scratch that. I was still frustrated. “Hm?”

“Did you ever love me?”

“In my own ways. I did, Lily.”

“And if it wasn’t for Sophia, do you think we would have a chance?”

“I don’t know.” I tell her, truthfully. I don’t mention how I had bought a ring and if I would’ve proposed, I would’ve loyal to her till she left me herself. But to be trapped in a marriage like that, so loveless and dry, it scared me after all with Sophia. “Look, I don’t think we should be talking. It isn’t fair to my wife.”

I could hear a sniff from the other end.

you deserved, Lily. You

she breathes. “Goodbye,

“Goodbye.”

I decided the former. I took a quick run to one of my manufacturing work places to check on the process of my upcoming London deal, and then

the news of his cancer. If it weighed down on me, I was sure it did on him too. There

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Chapter 75

me with a smile when I found him sitting

he was sipping, which didn’t look anything like his regular black

was so wide, it was nauseating. “I have

I ask, taking the chair opposite to him. “Let me know if you are

today. Now that it’s in your hands, I can finally enjoy

We need to revisit your definition of enjoying

He rolls

it from

called you last night to invite you to my pool day. Your

remove my phone. “No, no missed calls.” I unlock it, and notice that there is no password to the phone. Weird. I always had the default lock and home screen so that remained the same, but everything inside was different. There were

okay?” Alister

isn’t mine. I reply in an unsure voice, “Did it format itself

The phone looked new just like every other new phone did, but it

then again, Lily did call,

grandfather says, and unlocks his phone to dial

the

“How the hell did

frowns. “Did you have anything important on it? Something that would be a nightmare to

my eyes. “Besides, it’s linked to my Mac. I can track it any where and if someone somehow disables the tracking, I can

looks away, his voice dripping with sarcasm. “Since your phone is switched off, I don’t

isn’t my phone, how did

“What?”

wince. “I exchanged my

me. “You

II give him a stony glare. “I ran into

Chapter 75

the morning and didn’t mention that you’ve

she had called from. The phone goes through, but she

“I’m going to have to