My Therapist Boyfriend Hypnotized Me to Hide His Affairs

The security guard outside my boyfriend Julian Hart's therapy clinic mistook me for a lunatic. The guard stopped me. "Miss Bennett, you've wandered off again. Are you having another episode?" But I was only there to see my boyfriend. I froze for a moment. Studying his expression, I realized he did not seem to be lying. "Why are you stopping me? That woman is wearing my boyfriend's lab coat and his name badge. I have to ask her what's going on." The guard looked at me with pity. "She's Dr. Hart's girlfriend." Everything had been turned upside down. Trembling with anger, I pulled out my phone to complain to Julian Hart. But the guard called him first. "Dr. Hart, Miss Bennett is having another episode." In a panic, I ran into the clinic's hallway and saw the staff photos displayed on the wall. Holly Morgan's picture was among them. She wore a nurse's uniform, a gentle smile playing at the corners of her lips. I stood there, stunned, for a long time. Could the woman in Julian's lab coat have been Holly? Holly was a scholarship student the Hart family had supported for eight years. I had never expected to find her here. I clearly remembered that when she graduated, she sent Julian a thank-you letter. In it, she wrote that she wanted to pass on that warmth by teaching for two years in a remote area. Why was someone who was supposed to be teaching far away now working at my boyfriend's clinic? What was even stranger was that everyone at the clinic seemed to know her. As if I were the only one who did not know the truth. ***** After slipping past the security guard, I stopped an aide. "Ma'am." I pointed to Holly's photo. "Does Holly work here?" "She's Dr. Hart's girlfriend." The aide gave me a once-over. "I've seen you before. You have an appointment with Dr. Hart every Wednesday." To her, I was simply a longtime patient. Julian was clearly my boyfriend, so how could he be my psychiatrist? My hand fell to my side as I stood there in a daze. Then a message suddenly popped up on my phone. Julian had sent me the location of a five-star hotel. Julian: Are you awake? Room 1207. Let's celebrate your birthday here, okay? The room number was my birthday. My thoughtful boyfriend had arranged it that way every year. Anxiety gnawed at me as I bit my finger. Who was lying? I wrote an anonymous thank-you letter. An hour later, it was delivered to Holly. Julian praised her warmly. "An anonymous patient sent this for you. You've been doing an excellent job as head nurse!" Holly smiled faintly. "Not at all. It's all thanks to my Dr. Hart." Their arms brushed as they looked at the letter together, perfectly in sync. Across the envelope, several gilded words gleamed: Healing Hearts, Saving Lives. Boundless Compassion. The aide who had spoken to me earlier raised her camera. Click. It captured their two hypocritical smiles. I went to the hotel reception desk and picked up the key card. Every year on my birthday, Julian booked this Executive Suite. The room was filled with memories of our past. The whirlpool tub was covered in thick foam. Damp handprints marked the floor-to-ceiling windows. A used condom lay in the trash can. Seven years into our relationship, things had seemed to be getting better and better between us. Even the hotel staff thought Julian was about to propose. The entire bed was covered in rose petals, and happiness seemed to overflow from every corner of the room. I had almost believed this would be the happiest day of my life. At 7 that evening, I sat alone in the restaurant. A minute earlier, Julian had sent me an apologetic message. Julian: I can't get out of a dinner my boss arranged. You understand, right? Be good and eat something. I opened my phone and saw that Holly had posted an update. Beside an elegant dinner spread, part of a suit sleeve had accidentally made its way into the photo. The gemstone cufflink at the wrist was one I had designed myself. I laughed bitterly. So Holly was the "boss" he had been talking about.