Chapter 4
953 Words
Phoebe stepped off the plane and settled into the back of a car.
She was just about to call her mom when a late-night trending headline popped up on her phone screen.
"Oscar—Heir to Hyswater City's Top Financial Group—Spotted Rushing a Beautiful Woman to the Hospital Late at Night"
Sources confirmed the woman was Nanette, the ex-girlfriend of Martin, the deceased former captain of Hyswater University's football team. Rumors swirled that she and Oscar had been seeing each other for years and were soon to be engaged.
Phoebe tapped open the post. The photos showed a faint, fresh scrape with a thin trail of blood on Nanette's ankle.
In the pictures, Oscar held Nanette tightly in his arms, gazing down at her tenderly as he walked into the hospital building.
Nanette had her arms wrapped snugly around his neck, pressing her chest firmly against his torso.
Their body language was unmistakably intimate. Their eyes locked in a charged, lingering gaze—mutual attraction was clear for anyone to see.
Right as Phoebe prepared to calmly close the page, a text message from Oscar popped up on her phone.
Oscar: Nanette hurt her foot. I'm staying at the hospital with her and will be home late. The trending news is all fake tabloid hype. Don't take it seriously.
Phoebe ignored his message entirely. She blocked and deleted his phone number without hesitation.
She had already ended their relationship clearly. He was the one who'd refused to believe it.
From this moment on, his drama with Nanette had nothing to do with her.
Phoebe arrived at her home in the early hours of the morning.
Her father, Lemuel Thurman, was in the final stage of cancer, his body gaunt and emaciated. Yet he'd clung stubbornly to his last breath. The second he saw Phoebe walk through the door, the dim light in his fading eyes flared bright with relief and joy.
Phoebe's throat burned with sorrow as she watched him fight through his failing body—all just to witness her wedding day.
She rushed over and hugged him tightly, tears spilling down her face in an instant.
It was all her fault.
If she'd realized sooner that Oscar had never planned to marry her, she would have come home long ago.
She never should have wasted years of her life proposing over and over to a man who never cared for her.
Phoebe said, "Dad, I'm so sorry for making you wait so long. I'm getting married the day after tomorrow. You'll finally get to watch me walk down the aisle."
Seeing Phoebe break down in tears, Katrina stepped forward and wrapped her arms around both her daughter and husband. "This is a happy occasion, sweetie. Don't cry so hard—you'll ruin your skin for the big day."
She laughed through her own tears, gently wiping Phoebe's cheeks with nothing but pure, loving tenderness in her eyes.
"Phoebe's... beautiful. She's going to be... the prettiest, happiest bride in the world..." Lemuel could barely finish his sentence, yet he never held back his praise for his daughter.
In their eyes, Phoebe was perfect—the kindest, most beautiful girl alive.
Phoebe stared at her parents' aged faces, her chest tight with gratitude that she'd come home early after all.
*****
Meanwhile, at the hospital, Nanette watched the man who had dropped everything for her for three straight years—granting every unreasonable request she'd ever made without a single complaint.
She slipped out of her dress and wrapped her arms around Oscar from behind.
Ever since he'd rushed her to the emergency room, Oscar had been glued to his phone, texting Phoebe nonstop. He hadn't spared a single thought for her pain or exhaustion.
A woman's intuition told Nanette the truth. No matter what Oscar said about loving her, he had already fallen for Phoebe without even realizing it.
She'd originally planned to wait until Phoebe's tenth failed proposal to officially become Oscar's girlfriend.
But she no longer wanted to wait.
She was afraid that if she kept stringing him along, Oscar would wake up and see the truth one day. "Oscar, you've wanted me for so long, haven't you? Let's end our bet early. I'm ready to be with you now."
Nanette stepped around to face him. She stood on her tiptoes and pressed her lips to his.
She knew exactly her most charming features, and she positioned herself deliberately, putting her best assets on full display for him.
She was certain no man alive could resist this kind of temptation.
Oscar shook his head. "We agreed you'd only be with me after I turned down Phoebe's tenth proposal. Phoebe definitely saw the trending news. She's ignoring my calls and texts on purpose—playing hard to get, trying to force me to finally say yes. Just wait a little longer. We'll be together once I reject her final proposal."
He pushed Nanette away without a moment's hesitation.
Looking at her exposed figure, he felt zero desire stirring inside him.
He found it baffling. Just three years ago, merely thinking about Nanette, the woman he loved, would fill him with longing.
Oscar could not understand what had changed. He figured that being in a confined space alone with Nanette—and having been photographed by someone—would surely make Phoebe ignore him even more.
He walked straight out of the emergency room without a second thought.
Oscar dialed Phoebe's number repeatedly while rushing home.
Panic gnawed at his chest like never before.
He ran through multiple red lights in his reckless hurry.
Oscar finally burst through the front door of his house—only to find Phoebe gone.
- Writer
