PART 3 The Truth Behind Sophie Wells
The next morning, I woke up to the sound of my phone vibrating.
Again.
I didn’t need to look.
I already knew.
Nathan.
For the first time in five years, I let it ring.
I made coffee.
Took a shower.
Put on my hospital uniform.
And went to work.
Because life didn’t stop just because someone broke my heart.
The emergency room was already chaotic when I arrived.
Patients waiting.
Doctors rushing.
Nurses calling names.
The familiar noise somehow made me feel better.
Here, everything was honest.
Pain was pain.
Blood was blood.
No pretending.
No games.
No hidden intentions.
I was checking charts when Claire rushed over.
“Emily.”
I looked up.
“What happened?”
She hesitated.
Then handed me her phone.
My heart sank.
Another photo.
This time from the hospital’s internal newsletter.
Nathan Reed Donates New Equipment to Pediatric Department
Under the photo was a quote:
“Nathan Reed continues to support healthcare workers and the community.”
I stared at it.
Claire watched me.
“He came here?”
I nodded.
“He knows I work here.”
“No.”
Claire shook her head.
“Look at the date.”
My eyes moved.
Yesterday.
The same day he ignored me.
The same day he picked Sophie up.
The same day he told me he was too busy.
My jaw tightened.
“He had time.”
Claire nodded.
“He just didn’t use it for you.”
Those words hurt.
Because they were true.
Around noon, I received an email.
From the wedding planner.
Subject:
Cancellation Request
I opened it.
My breath stopped.
The email was from Nathan.
Not to cancel.
To change.
He had requested that the wedding continue.
Without me.
I read the message twice.
Then a third time.
Please proceed with preparations. Emily is emotional right now and may change her mind.
My hands started shaking.
He wasn’t canceling.
He was waiting.
Waiting for me to calm down.
Waiting for me to return.
Like always.
Like every other argument.
He believed this was another fight.
Not the end.
I called the wedding planner.
“Hi, Emily.”
Her voice was careful.
“Is everything okay?”
“No.”
A pause.
“I want to officially cancel the wedding.”
Silence.
“Are you sure?”
“Yes.”
“But Nathan told us—”
“I know what Nathan told you.”
I looked at the wedding invitation sitting on my desk.
My name beside his.
A future that no longer existed.
“Please remove my name.”
The planner hesitated.
Then:
“I’m sorry.”
“For what?”
“For what happened.”
I closed my eyes.
“Thank you.”
After hanging up, I felt something strange.
Not happiness.
Not relief.
Something quieter.
Like I had finally stopped carrying something heavy.
That afternoon, Nathan came to the hospital.
I knew before I saw him.
People changed when he entered a room.
He was that kind of person.
Confident.
Polished.
Always in control.
He walked toward me wearing a dark suit.
Holding flowers.
Of course.
Roses.
My favorite.
Five years ago, I would have smiled.
Today, I felt nothing.
“Emily.”
I continued reading the chart in my hand.
“Nathan.”
His expression changed.
He wasn’t used to me being cold.
“I brought these for you.”
“I don’t want them.”
He lowered his hand.
“Can we talk?”
“No.”
His face tightened.
“Emily.”
I looked at him.
“What exactly do you want to say?”
He took a breath.
“I want to explain.”
“Okay.”
I crossed my arms.
“Explain.”
He looked uncomfortable.
Then he said:
“Sophie was only my assistant.”
“I know.”
“She had a medical appointment.”
“I know.”
“She needed help.”
“I know.”
His eyebrows pulled together.
“Then why are you acting like I betrayed you?”
I stared at him.
Because even now…
He still didn’t understand.
“You want to know why?”
“Yes.”
“Because you’re explaining her.”
He blinked.
“What?”
“You spent all this time explaining why she needed things.”
I stepped closer.
“But you never explained why I didn’t matter.”
His mouth opened.
Nothing came out.
Then someone called his name.
“Mr. Reed?”
We both turned.
Sophie stood near the elevator.
Holding a coffee.
She looked surprised to see me.
“Oh.”
Her expression changed instantly.
“I didn’t know you were here.”
I looked at her.
Neither of us spoke.
Then Nathan moved.
“Emily, this isn’t—”
I raised my hand.
“Don’t.”
I looked at Sophie.
“Do you know what bothers me?”
She looked nervous.
“No.”
“It’s not that you sat in my seat.”
Her face changed.
“It’s that you knew.”
Silence.
“You knew that was my place.”
Sophie’s lips parted.
“I—”
“You knew the scarf was mine.”
She looked down.
“You knew the bottle was from me.”
Nathan looked uncomfortable.
“Sophie didn’t mean anything.”
I ignored him.
Because I wasn’t talking to him.
“I’m asking her.”
Sophie looked at me.
Then quietly said:
“I’m sorry.”
That apology told me everything.
Because innocent people usually say:
“I didn’t know.”
They don’t say:
“I’m sorry.”
Nathan stepped between us.
“That’s enough.”
I looked at him.
“No.”
My voice was calm.
“Actually, I think this is the first honest conversation we’ve had in months.”
His face darkened.
“Emily, don’t do this here.”
I laughed softly.
“Why?”
“Because people are watching?”
I looked around.
Doctors.
Nurses.
Patients.
People who knew me.
People who knew him.
“Is that what bothers you?”
“No.”
“Then what?”
I lowered my voice.
“That they might see the real you?”
His jaw tightened.
That night, I discovered something.
Something that changed everything.
Claire came to my apartment.
She looked serious.
“Emily.”
“What happened?”
She placed her phone on the table.
“I found something.”
I looked at the screen.
An old company record.
Nathan Reed.
Sophie Wells.
A private investment account.
My eyebrows pulled together.
“What is this?”
Claire looked at me.
“Something that doesn’t make sense.”
I kept reading.
Then I saw it.
The date.
The account was opened…
Two years ago.
Before Sophie became his assistant.
Before he said he met her.
My stomach turned.
“Emily…”
Claire whispered.
“I think Sophie was never just his assistant.”
I stared at the document.
A cold feeling moved through me.
Because suddenly…
I remembered every time Nathan defended her.
Every time he disappeared.
Every time he said:
“You’re imagining things.”
Maybe I wasn’t.
Maybe I was finally seeing the truth.
My phone rang.
Unknown number.
I answered.
A woman’s voice.
“Emily?”
“Who is this?”
A pause.
Then:
“You don’t know me.”
“But I know Nathan.”
My hand tightened around the phone.
“What do you want?”
The woman whispered:
“Save yourself.”
My heart stopped.
“From what?”
Her answer froze my blood.
“From marrying a man who already planned your divorce.”
The call ended.
May you like
And for the first time…
I wondered if canceling the wedding had saved my life.
