Chapter Nine
The hospital had a strange way of blurring time.
Kingston knew this better than most. Hours melted into each other under fluorescent lights, the line between day and night erased by the rhythm of beeping monitors, the steady press of responsibility but tonight felt different.
Tonight, the minutes dragged. Every chart, every consult, every set of stitches felt like filler between the thoughts he didn’t want to have.
Rebecca.
“You’re still here,” she said softly.
“So are you,” he answered.
She stepped inside, shutting the door behind her. The room shrank with her presence.
“Long day?” she asked.
He rubbed the back of his neck. “The longest.”
Her eyes softened. “Then maybe you need a break.”
The word break lingered between them, charged. Kingston swallowed hard. He should’ve told her to leave. Should’ve walked away but instead, when she moved closer, when her hand brushed his arm, he leaned into it. One touch. One kiss. That was all it took. The second fall was easier than the first.
They didn’t make it to her apartment this time.
The call room was closer, quieter, its door locked behind them.
Kingston tried to tell himself it was just stress, just release.
That he still loved Ashley. That this didn’t mean anything but the moment Rebecca’s lips found his, his logic drowned.
Their mouths crashed together, desperate, hungry.
Years of restraint had shattered days ago, and now there was no stopping the pull.
He lifted her onto the narrow bed, her legs wrapping around him, her hands sliding under his shirt as if she’d been waiting for this exact moment.
“This is insane,” he muttered against her skin.
She smiled, breathless. “So stop.”
But neither of them did. The kiss deepened, their bodies pressed tight, the sterile scent of the hospital mixing with something wilder, forbidden.
He heard the sound of her gasp, felt her fingers dig into his back, and any thought of turning away dissolved.
When they finally gave in fully, it wasn’t careful but it was reckless, frantic, fueled by a desperation that made him forget the world outside.
Afterward, she lay curled against him, her breath steady, her hand tracing circles across his chest.
“You don’t regret it,” she whispered.
Kingston closed his eyes, fighting the answer. He should’ve said yes. He should’ve gotten up, walked out, gone home to Ashley and the children who adored him but his silence was enough and Rebecca smiled.
Ashley noticed the change the very next morning. Kingston was quieter at breakfast, his gaze lingering too long on his coffee cup. When Olivia asked him to help with her math homework later that evening, he agreed, but there was a distracted edge to his voice, as though his mind was elsewhere.
Ashley watched him closely, cataloging every twitch, every pause and then came the first undeniable clue.
She was folding laundry in their bedroom when his phone buzzed on the nightstand.
Normally he kept it on him like an extra limb, but he’d left it charging while he wrangled the kids in the living room.
Ashley told herself not to look. That she wasn’t that kind of wife.
That snooping would only confirm the worst fears but her hands moved before her heart could stop them.
She flipped the phone over, the screen lighting up with a new message.
Last night was perfect. I can still feel you. Dinner again soon?
Her chest hollowed. Her ears rang. She didn’t need to see the name at the top of the message to know who it was.
Rebecca.
Ashley’s breath came short, shaky. She pressed the phone back down, face-first, as though burying the words could undo them. When Kingston walked in a moment later, carrying a basket of unfolded towels, she pasted on a smile so fragile it hurt her cheeks.
“You okay?” he asked, brow furrowing.
Ashley forced a nod. “Yeah. Just tired.”
But inside, her world had shifted.
That night, while Kingston slept soundly beside her, Ashley lay awake staring at the ceiling. Her mind replayed every moment of the past few weeks, the anniversary dinner, his sharp tone when she asked about Rebecca, the nights he hadn’t come home until dawn.
It all made sense now. The betrayal wasn’t just in the words on his phone.
It was in the way he turned away from her touch.
In the way he kissed her goodnight without looking into her eyes.
In the way his smile felt borrowed, not real.
Ashley pressed a hand against her mouth, muffling the sob that threatened to escape.
She thought about Olivia’s laugh, about Ethan’s small hand gripping hers when they crossed the street.
She thought about the family dinners, the bedtime stories, the little moments that had made their life feel whole and she wondered how long she could protect her children from the truth.
The next day, Ashley’s suspicions only deepened.
She was making her way down the corridor of the hospital where Kingston work.
She thought of having lunch with him, when two nurses near the supply room caught her attention.
Their voices were low, hushed, but the tone carried enough intrigue to draw her ear.
“Did you hear about Dr. Kingston?” one nurse murmured.
Ashley froze, her grip tightening around the charts.
The other nurse chuckled knowingly. “Oh, I’ve heard plenty. People say he’s been spending a lot of time with Dr. Rebecca. Late nights, closed-door consults, and God knows what else. They’re practically glued at the hip.”
The first nurse gasped. “Seriously? He’s married, isn’t he?”
“Exactly,” the second said, lowering her voice even more. “But when has that ever stopped anyone in this place? Everyone’s talking about it. Some say it’s professional. Others…” She trailed off with a shrug.
Ashley’s throat went dry, her heart slamming against her ribs. For a moment, she couldn’t move, couldn’t breathe as she struggled to steady herself.
Kingston and Rebecca.
It felt like the ground was slipping beneath her feet. She forced herself to walk away before they noticed her standing there, but the echo of their whispers clung to her skin like a shadow she couldn’t shake.
That evening, Kingston came home later than usual. Ashley watched him set down his keys, his shoulders sagging with practiced exhaustion. He leaned in to kiss her cheek, and she caught the faintest trace of perfume, warm, floral, unfamiliar.
Rebecca.
The name thundered in her skull. She didn’t flinch, didn’t confront him. Not yet. Instead, she smiled softly, masking the storm beneath her ribs.
“Long day?” she asked.
“The longest,” he replied, eyes weary.
Ashley nodded, her chest tight. She wanted to scream. She wanted to demand the truth but the words caught, tangled in her throat because once she asked, once he admitted it, their world would shatter and tonight, she wasn’t ready for the pieces.