Chapter 27
Nate
Darkness shifts.
It’s not immediate, more like a murky tide pulling away from shore, slow and reluctant. The lights above blur into halos as I blink once, twice—until the fog in my mind starts to thin and shapes around me sharpen.
White walls. The faint hum of machines. A cold stiffness biting at my spine.
I’m awake.
But it doesn’t feel like it.
My throat’s dry as bone, and my limbs—God, they feel like lead. When I try to move, a sharp, stabbing pain rockets through my back. I groan low in my chest, and the sound is enough to stir someone from the shadows of the room.
A man steps in quietly. Tall. Neatly groomed. Composed in a way that makes my instincts bristle. His gaze falls first on the figure curled up beside the bed.
Isabel.
She’s asleep, her cheek pressed against the back of my hand, her lashes still damp like she cried herself there. Something inside me seizes. She looks wrecked. Broken. And I did that.
The man’s lips curve with a small smile. Familiar.
Was he in the photos?
The ones I was sent?
The ones that nearly tore me apart?
“You’ve got to be fucking kidding me,” I whisper under my breath, instantly regretting it as pain lances through my side.
The man steps closer, extending a hand I ignore.
“Mr. Weister, it’s great to see you awake,” he says with a practiced calm. “I’m Christian Heine. I’m your surgeon.”
His eyes flick again to Isabel, then back to me. That glance alone makes my blood burn. Too familiar. Too protective.
“Let’s talk quietly and let her rest,” he adds. “I don’t remember seeing her sleep in days. How are you feeling?”
I scowl. Surgeon? What the hell happened to me?
“My head feels like it’s about to split open,” I mutter.
“That’s normal post-anesthesia. I’ll get you something for the pain.” He pulls a pen from his coat and lifts his clipboard. “Can you move your fingers?”
I force myself to comply, and my hand twitches. He nods, scribbling notes. Every motion he makes sends a chill down my spine—not because of what he says, but because of what he doesn’t.
“Shake my hand as hard as you can,” he says.
I do.
“Good grip. Now… Do you remember what happened?”
“Vaguely,” I lie. I remember every damn second. Every second. Every explosion. Every decision that led me here. But that mission is sealed under layers of silence and duty. He doesn’t get to know.
“You’re in Germany. At LRMC. You were brought here after sustaining multiple fractures. Two surgeries to remove splinters from your spine.” He hesitates. “Can you move your toes?”
My breath catches.
Nothing.
I try again.
Still nothing.
“I… I can’t move my legs.”
Christian doesn’t flinch. “Tell me what you can feel.”
“Tickling,” I grit out. “Why can’t I move my legs?”
He presses lightly against my foot. I barely feel it.
“And now?”
“Bother. Just… faint.” Panic claws at my chest. “Doctor—why can’t I move my legs?!”
“You’ve had a delicate surgery,” he replies, voice calm but unreadable. “We need a few more days to see if it was successful. There’s swelling around the spinal cord. It may be temporary.”
“Will I walk again?”
“I can’t tell you yet,” he says, and that yet sounds too much like a lie. “But I’m confident.”
My heart slams against my ribs. I lurch forward—and the sudden motion wakes her.
She blinks awake, instantly alert, her hand clutching mine. Her eyes—red-rimmed, raw with fear—fill with tears.
“Nate… thank heaven,” she breathes, her voice breaking as her fingers caress my jaw. “How do you feel, love?”
I try to smile, but my mouth can’t find the shape. “Still stoned.”
She lets out a strangled laugh, pressing her forehead to mine.
“Chris, what’s going on?” she asks the surgeon, her voice strained with urgency.
“He’s stable. He’ll be taken for testing later, but you were right—he’s a fighter,” Christian answers. He closes the folder, nods once, and leaves us in silence.
That silence strangles me.
I stare at her, at the way she looks at me like I’m still him. Still her Nate.
But I’m not.
I’m broken. A liability. A future full of limitations. And she deserves more than a man she has to carry.
I can’t—won’t—let her trade her life for mine.
“You can go, Isabel,” I snap, my voice cold and cruel on purpose.
Her face crumples. “Nate…”
“I said GO AWAY!” I bark, my fingers tightening around the sheet. The pain is sharp but welcome. At least it’s something.
She flinches, visibly, but holds her ground. “In sickness and in health, remember? We’ll get through it together, love.”
“That vow was fake,” I hiss. “Just like our marriage. I’m back home now, and I want it annulled.”
Her breath catches. Her entire body recoils as if I struck her.
“Nate… you can’t be serious.” It’s a whisper. A plea.
“I’m damn serious, Isabel. I should never have dragged you into this mess in the first place.”
She lifts her chin, blinking rapidly. “Then look me in the eye and tell me you don’t love me.”
God.
God, don’t make me do this.
I can’t look at her. I turn my face away.
“I’m tired of these games,” I say instead, forcing the words through gritted teeth. “Get out. And don’t come back.”
Because I’d rather lose her now—shatter her cleanly—than keep her shackled to a life where she watches the man she loves waste away.
Because I love her too much to let her stay.
Isabel walks out the door, sobbing.
The silence that fills the room feels like an oppressive weight, heavy on my chest. I close my eyes for a moment, trying to collect my thoughts.
But when I open them, Alice is standing there, arms crossed tightly across her chest, her lips set in a tight line.
Her eyes are filled with an emotion I can’t quite place—disbelief, anger, maybe even a little bit of pity.
“Nathan Weister, you’re such an idiot,” Alice’s voice cuts through the quiet, harsh and direct.
I glance up at her, my emotions a mess, my head still spinning. “As much as I respect you, Alice, this is none of your business.”
Her arms shift, hands planted firmly on her hips. “It is my business. You and Isabel are like family to me. I’ve seen both of you go through too much, and I won’t stand by while you destroy something good, Nathan. So, don’t try to shut me out.”
I rub a hand over my face. “I just need to be left alone, okay? I don’t know what to do anymore.”
She doesn’t back down, her voice softening but still firm. “You can’t fix this alone. If you really want to get through this, you’re going to have to talk to her, not shut her out.”
I look down at my hands, trying to focus on something—anything—but the aching hole in my chest. “She doesn’t want this. I saw it, Alice.”
Alice’s gaze narrows. “I don’t understand. What have you seen?”
I hesitate, breathing deeply before I finally let the truth spill out. “I saw an email.”
Her brow furrows. “An email?”
“Yeah. It was a picture—of her... laughing with another man.” The memory makes my stomach churn, but I force myself to continue. “I think... I think she’s dating someone else. It looked like she was happy with him, and that’s when I lost it. And that’s for the best. I just want her happiness.”
Alice stands still, her eyes scanning me with a mix of concern and frustration. “You really think Isabel would cheat on? After everything you guys went through?”
“I don’t know, Alice, but I saw the email. She was smiling, and it just... it threw me. I thought we were building something but at this point it’s better that way.” My hands tremble and I clench my fists.
Alice takes a deep breath, her frustration simmering just beneath the surface as she steps closer, arms crossed. “Show me the pictures,” she demands. “Because I know every single appointment she had in the past few months, and I’m damn sure she’s never cheated on you.”
I run a hand down my face, tension pulsing at my temples. “I don’t know where my phone is,” I admit, voice low.
Alice rolls her eyes and marches straight to my dresser like she owns the place. She yanks open the top drawer without hesitation.
“Wallet. Dog tags. Cell phone.” She rattles off each item like an accusation, holding up my phone and thrusting it into my hand.
My fingers close around the device, suddenly heavy like a loaded weapon. Turning it on makes my stomach twist into a hard, cold knot. Still, I punch in the code, watching the screen light up—bright, innocent, unaware of the damage it might carry.
My hands are stiff as I tap into my email. A few new messages flash across the screen.
Then I see them.
I open the folder. The images load slowly, like they’re daring me to look.
Wordlessly, I hand the phone to Alice. My heart is pounding so hard I can barely hear anything else.
“Nathan, you know who's this one? That was Landlon—the real estate guy she was working with. He’s been trying to get close to her for months. She told me she thought he was delaying her contract with misspellings just to see her often. He was always flirting, always overstepping. Morris put him in his place before Isabel since he doesn’t get the message. ”
I stare at her, my mind spinning. “You’re telling me she wasn’t...?”
“She was just trying to get through a tough situation. Landlon’s been pushing her for a while now, and Isabel’s been trying to keep it professional, but he just won’t back off.
That smile? It wasn’t a sign of affection.
It was a signal to Morris when it got too much to handle without making a scene. ”
The knot in my chest loosens, just a fraction, but the guilt still stings. “I never gave her the chance to explain. I just... assumed.”
Alice sighs, a touch of sadness in her voice.
“You jumped to conclusions because you’re afraid, Nathan.
You’re scared of what your injury means, what kind of life you’re going to have now.
And you pushed her away to protect yourself.
But you’re hurting her in the process. You’ve got to fix this.
You have a chance here, but only if you’re brave enough to take it. ”
I clench my jaw, the weight of everything I’ve done sitting heavy on my shoulders. “But what if she doesn’t want me anymore?”
Alice gives me a hard, pointed look. “If you think that’s true, then you’re even more of an idiot than I thought.
Isabel loves you, Nathan. She’s been here every day, sitting by your side.
She’s barely left this room, except to have tea.
She’s stuck by you through all of this, and now you want to let her go because of a misunderstanding? ”
The words hit me like a punch to the gut. “I pushed her away because she deserves to be happy even without me. I may not be able to walk anymore and I think deep down I wanted to believe those pictures were real to give me strength to let her go.”
Alice shakes her head, her expression softening. “You’re a fool if you think that. She’s not happy without you, Nathan. And right now, you need to stop pushing her away. If you love her, you fight for her. But you’ve got to stop hiding behind your pride and insecurities.”
“I can’t,” I admit with a whisper. “Not until I know I can be back on my feet.”
“It’s your call to make.” She rolls her eyes as I said the biggest bullshit ever!