Chapter 2
"No way," I cried out.
Alexander's fingers suddenly twitched right before my eyes.
Suddenly, the heart rate monitor started blaring, its alarm piercing as the numbers shot up.
"Alex—" I tried to speak, but my voice cut off abruptly.
At that moment, Alexander's hand suddenly shot up, grabbed my wrist, and pulled me forward. I fell straight into his arms.
His other hand clamped over my mouth.
His voice was hoarse as he let out a mocking laugh. "Evelyn, are you done playing around yet?
"Or do you actually have a thing for guys in a coma?"
I shook my head vigorously.
I stared at Alexander in disbelief. How could this strong man possibly be the same helpless patient in a coma?
Alexander whispered in my ear, "When I let go, stay quiet. No yelling."
Unable to move, I gave a helpless nod.
When he finally let go, I took a deep breath.
"So, were you really faking being sick, or did my touch actually make you wake up?" I murmured.
He moved slightly and raised an eyebrow. "What do you think?"
"Whatever. So I don't have to really marry you after all, and maybe your mother will even give me a big fat check," I said.
I practically skipped to the door, ready to run out and spill the news to Grace.
Unexpectedly, Alexander grabbed my arm and held me back.
He said, "You idiot. Those people are nothing but danger. They only set up the wedding to make you the scapegoat. Step outside now, and neither of us will make it through the night."
My eyes went wide. I couldn't understand his meaning.
I blurted out, "What do you mean?
"You're the heir of the family. This is your home. Are you really saying they would try to hurt you here?"
Alexander said, "You're right; this is my home.
"But I'm not Grace's son. If I die quietly, her son will step in and take over the Grant family. Her ambition knows no limits."
Alexander sat down on the bed and pointed toward a hidden camera tucked in the corner.
"When I woke up, I interfered with their signal, so the feed dropped out. They'll be freaking out any minute," he said.
I was even more confused.
"But if she really wanted you gone, couldn't she just poison you quietly? Why let me marry you?" I asked.
Alexander leaned closer, dropping his voice. "My grandpa's got people all over this place. If Grace tried to kill me outright, you really think he wouldn't notice?
"But with you involved, it's different. They can easily say that you were just doing your part to give me an heir, and then blame my death on exhaustion or sudden organ failure.
"There are plenty of ways to explain my death. But you're just here to take the blame."
Alexander sounded sincere, but I clearly remembered from my previous life that he didn't just drop dead right away. It was only a month after he and Madeline got married that he suddenly passed away.
Madeline didn't suffer any consequences. In fact, she inherited a fortune worth hundreds of millions and skyrocketed to the top of her world.
I suspected that Alexander was just messing with me.
Seeing my suspicious stare, Alexander didn't explain any further. He simply said, "Relax. I'm not messing with you.
"The surveillance feed can't be offline for too long, or they'll get suspicious.
"I'll prove to you soon that I'm not lying. Right now, you just need to help me cover up the fact that I'm not actually in a coma."
Alexander quickly reattached all the medical sensors to himself and then lay back down on the bed.
In an instant, he became the motionless patient once again.
It felt like everything I had just gone through was some kind of hallucination.
No matter how many questions I asked, Alexander remained completely still.