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.

closure you deserved,

she breathes.

“Goodbye.”

between going back to sleep or getting my a*s off and going to work. In the end, I decided the former. I took a quick run to one of my manufacturing work places to check on

to check on Alister, how he was taking the news of his cancer. If it weighed down on me,

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Chapter 75

Son.” He greeted me with a smile when

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

so wide, it was nauseating. “I

chair opposite to him. “Let me

working and building the empire we have today. Now that it’s in your

drinking early in the evening by the pool. We need to revisit

a grump.” He

it from

called you last night to invite you to my pool day. Your phone was switched off.

eyes narrow and my hands reflexively reach my pocket to 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

everything okay?”

reply in an unsure voice, “Did it

me for having an impersonal phone and changing models every few months. The phone looked new just

Lily did call,

on. My grandfather says, and unlocks his phone

wait, but the call never

isn’t my phone.” I groan, “How the hell did

have anything important on it? Something that would be a nightmare

I roll my eyes. “Besides, it’s linked to my Mac. I can track it

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

my phone, how did she call

“What?”

exchanged my

me. “You were

II give him a stony glare. “I ran into her. Maybe we exchanged

Chapter 75

you in the morning and didn’t mention

the number she had called from. The phone

groan. “I’m going to have to go