The Heart of A Disabled Billionaire

3

Isabella Monroe

The wedding night.

It should have felt alluring, exciting, thrilling—like head diving into a new life, knowing that I’d be starting afresh, not only as someone important but as someone’s wife.

His wife.

The thought sent a warm sensation in the lower region of my abdomen, causing my cheeks to slightly flush as I remembered what tonight meant and what duties awaited me in the mansion.

It should have been exciting…forbidden, an offer almost too irresistible to miss…but as I stepped into the Harts’ mansion—Nathaniel’s mansion—I couldn’t help shake a nagging feeling that suddenly overwhelmed me. It had me pause in my tracks as I stood before huge doors to the entrance of the mansion, my widened gaze moving from the gothic labyrinth of stone and glass to the immensely bountiful gardens that surrounded more than half of the compound, each acre stretching farther than my eyes could see.

The estate stood out more as a fortress than a home, intimidating and powerful with a sense of beauty and nature but it felt cold, lonely, and empty. It was beautiful, but in the way fire was beautiful—too pretty to look away from but should you get any closer, it snakes itself around you, fast and unrelenting, ending you within seconds before you realize what had just happened.

I bit on my lips as this only increased the pull in my gut, and wrapped my arms around my chest, mentally convincing myself that I just had cold feet. This was a normal feeling, especially for a bride on her wedding night.

I got lost in thoughts afterward that I didn’t realize when I’d sauntered into the mansion until the sound of the doors shutting with a click filled my hearing. I blinked and turned around immediately, meeting Nathaniel’s eyes briefly as he appeared at the doorway.

He’d been more quiet and distant during the ride to his estate, avoiding small talk and any form of help from me—especially with his wheelchair.

I blinked in surprise as a staff of women and men in uniforms lined up along the edges of the hallway where he was seated, each one hanging their heads low in respect as they greeted him formally. He nodded at one in particular, flicking his head and whispering something to her before glancing towards my direction and back at the woman. If I knew any better, I knew he was talking about me. But what was stopping him from talking to me? Did he hate me that much?

I was about to give up until he rolled his wheelchair towards my direction, his pace faster than the times I’d seen him. Did he need help with something? Was he finally going to talk to me now?

A smile appeared on my face, and I stretched a hand, offering to help again.

“Nathaniel, is there anything—”

But he barely let me finish my statement as he wheeled his chair past me, the cold feeling of rejection and humiliation washing over me instantly as I stood there, turning my face away from the prying eyes of the staff.

What exactly was his deal? Did he think he was any better than me? Why can’t he see that I was trying to make our marriage less painful than it already was?

“Welcome home, Lady Hart.” A voice greeted me, making me slightly flinch in surprise and snap out of my bitter thoughts. I moved my attention to the woman by the front. It was the same woman Nathaniel was talking to moments ago.

She stood tall and elegant, her silver hair was neatly packed into a bun, and the lines of wrinkles deepened on her face as she pulled up a short, firm smile at my confused expression. Given her sense of confidence, I couldn’t tell whether she was a maid or someone important in his family.

And as if she read my mind, she introduced herself, “I’m Mrs. Alden. Mr. Hart’s temporary housekeeper.”

Ah, I wasn’t exactly wrong after all.

“Nice to meet you, Mrs. Alden.” I forced a smile and looked behind me momentarily. “Is there…a problem?”

“No, my lady.” She said through a smile, her voice firm and assuring as she flicked her hand for a butler to help with the few luggage beside me. “Just a few…orders I’d been given for tonight.”

I frowned, “Orders? What does that have to do with me?”

Mrs. Alden didn’t answer, but just gave me a small smile as a response, my eyes narrowing as the worst-case scenarios played out in my mind. What on earth was she about to do to me?

“I CAN’T with this man! AGH. Who does he think he is to order me around like this?” I gritted out with frustration, my face still stuffed into the fluffy pillows as I lay in a four-poster bed wearing white silk nightwear picked out by Mrs. Alden.

What kind of bizarre rules were these?

Was he trying to call me a thief now? Telling me I was forbidden from moving around the mansion without permission!

What was next, that I was forbidden from leaving the house at all?!

Barely two days and he was already getting on my nerves!

A sudden tick around the corner of my room slowly pulled my attention towards it, my gaze lingering on the large digit displayed on the white walls of my room.

Midnight.

It was midnight already.

I should have slept already—gone straight to bed and let the exhaustion of the day take over me completely against tomorrow. But I didn’t.

Not after being pushed around by my husband like I was his maid.

And not when I had to let him have a piece of my mind and put an end to this ridiculous malice between us. Whatever this was, it needed to stop.

So, there I was, stuffing my bed with pillows underneath the blanket and slowly tiptoeing around the ridiculously enormous hallways while dodging getting caught by the patrolling guards and maids on duty.

And when I’d finally made it somewhere, I stood in the middle of the dimly lit hall, shuddering at the strong feeling of being watched from the walls. I rubbed my arms in an attempt to comfort myself and quickly walked forward, ignoring the feeling once again. The silence itself was a chilling one—reminding me of how trapped and vulnerable I was in this world.

My eyes narrowed at an odd sighting: a huge, thick door with a DO NOT DISTURB TAG hidden by the corner. But what pulled my interest was that the door was slightly open, as if someone had just walked in there recently.

Weird.

But that didn’t stop me from doing the unthinkable.

I held my breath and walked up to the door, pushing it gently to scan the room properly. It was dark, almost impossible to see anything inside. The lights were off, but the floor-to-ceiling windows provided little moonlight to some corners of the room, most particularly the mirrors on the wall, reflecting just enough light for me to navigate around.

The feeling of being watched from the walls returned, only this time it came with the hairs on my skin standing on alert. It didn’t feel like Nathaniel had been here, and if Mrs. Alden was, I don’t think she fancies anything that’d give off eerie vibes—especially not at this time of this hour.

A small clicking sound pierced through the atmosphere and made me freeze instantly in my movements, my heart pounding faster in my ribcage as adrenaline coursed my veins, my body moving swiftly into flight or fight mode.

“Nathaniel? Is that you? I think you should stop now. It’s not funny anymore.” I whispered-yelled into the air, darting my eyes around for any sign of an intruder.

“No, princess,” A masculine voice chuckled in amusement behind me, my eyes widening in dread as they slowly peered at the gleaming blade reflecting in the mirror facing me. “But I’d like you to do the honor of calling in your husband for me.”