Stuck in The Marriage Pact
Chapter 25: He’s a good husband

Chapter 25: He’s a good husband

"Why did you say that?" Hunter asked.

Isabella remained silent.

"What if I want you as my wife forever? Can you give me certainty?" Hunter asked again, shaking his head. "I guess not... I know you can’t answer while you’re still hoping for him too..."

Isabella was stunned, now feeling shameless for asking about Hunter’s interest in her when she had been with Joe last night. He was rich, handsome, and kind; of course, he would choose a girl who wasn’t in love with someone else, that’s what was on her mind now.

"I know your situation, I know how the facts about me have lessened your trust in me, or maybe even changed your mind about our previous plans..." Hunter sighed. "I won’t tell you about my feelings, and I don’t want to know how you feel about me... Stop talking about this... I don’t want us to keep arguing... Besides, you can’t give certainty right now," he continued with a determined look.

Isabella bit her lower lip, glanced at Hunter, then slowly nodded.

"Okay... I don’t have the right to know," she said.

"Well... Now you rest, I’ll think about where we should go," Hunter replied.

"Why don’t you go to the office?"

"No, I can’t... My wife is sick, I can’t work... I don’t want to be a husband who just chases money without caring for his wife."

Isabella gave a faint smile. "If you want to look like a good husband, then give me a massage. There’s no need to think about going on a vacation... Keeping me here without working already feels like a holiday," she said casually.

"Alright!" Hunter immediately got onto the middle of the bed, grabbed Isabella’s arm, and placed it on his lap. "I’ll massage you while we chat."

Isabella only smiled, looking at Hunter’s handsome face and feeling the comfort of his warm, firm hands massaging her. She remembered how angry she had been with him, but that anger suddenly faded away.

"Tell me about your past, not about love," Hunter requested while continuing to massage Isabella’s arm.

"My childhood or teenage?" Isabella asked.

"Anything..."

"Well... Nothing really exciting. Since I was a child, I always saw my parents argue over financial problems... My mom demanded too much of my dad, expecting him to earn more even though she knew he only worked as a container truck driver," Isabella explained calmly, her gaze distant, her mind drifting back to her past, while Hunter listened attentively. "At that time, I was 10 years old, and Loraine was 6. We slept in the same room upstairs, while Mom chose to sleep downstairs. I thought it was normal, but it turns out she was planning something sneaky... It was shameful," she continued with a faint smile.

"It turned out she often brought other men into her room while Dad was out of town delivering goods. I accidentally caught her when Loraine had a fever in the middle of the night. I left him in the room and rushed to Mom’s room to tell her, but I chose to stay silent because I overheard a man’s voice in there... I ran to the living room, peeking through the window, hoping to see Dad’s truck... But it wasn’t there... I went back to Mom’s room, and just then, the door opened... I saw a man with a fat belly come out of the room shirtless, while mom looked shocked to see me..." Isabella took a deep breath and closed her eyes for a moment.

"Don’t continue," Hunter whispered, looking sympathetically at Isabella. "I don’t want to drag you into suffering by asking you to tell the story..."

Isabella gave a faint smile. "You don’t even want to hear the whole thing because it’s so embarrassing."

"Honey..." Hunter looked intensely at Isabella and stopped massaging her arm. "Sometimes bad things aren’t always bad. I know your mom made a mistake, but it happened because there was a chance... And she couldn’t control herself..."

"She’s really bad," Isabella whispered, not letting Hunter finish his sentence. "No matter the reason, it’s hard to accept what she did to Dad... He worked hard, for her, for us... He was out there driving his truck in the middle of the night, while others could rest... All for us, but what did he get in return? Betrayal... It was so unfair... How could I not hate her?" she asked angrily, her eyes already red.

"Okay... I know this is hard for you, maybe even a lifelong wound... But you have to learn to let go, to forgive... Then you’ll find peace," Hunter whispered, wiping away Isabella’s tears. "Don’t cry... it’s all in the past."

"It’s all in the past, but I’ve made a new beginning..." Isabella sat up, looking at Hunter, remembering her meetings with Joe behind his back several times. "Without realizing it, I’ve started acting like my mom, meeting another man without my husband’s knowledge... I’m really bad, I feel like..."

"No!" Hunter shook his head. "It’s different. You’re good, you’re loyal... You do everything for your family... You’re a good sister... Okay, don’t hate yourself, don’t hold yourself responsible for what you’ve done behind my back. It’s not your fault..."

Isabella stared blankly, captivated by Hunter’s comforting words.

’But in truth, it’s Joe’s fault... He’s like a shameless man who keeps chasing you when he’s never done anything meaningful for you... He can’t even help you to pay off those quiet debts!’ Hunter thought angrily.

"You’re kind," Isabella said softly.

Hunter immediately smiled. "No, I’m not... I’m a liar."

"But it’s for your good, right?" Isabella raised her eyebrows, then moved closer to Hunter, even wrapping her arms around his thigh. "Everyone has their reasons for lying... As long as it doesn’t harm anyone, maybe it’s not entirely wrong."

"Yes... But I feel like it’s wrong because Grandpa gave me assets. I feel like a fraud now... I can’t imagine if he knew everything, he’d be so angry, maybe even disown me from the will," Hunter replied anxiously. "I don’t care about not getting the inheritance... What worries me most is if it shocks him and affects his health... He has a history of heart disease," he continued.

"Then don’t let him find out, but if you’re tired of pretending to be paralyzed, then from now on you should start pretending you can walk with a cane, not just stay in a wheelchair," Isabella said, glancing at Hunter’s bulging short pants, reminding her of his prowess.

"If I do that, you’ll be the one with the problem," Hunter replied.

Isabella looked up at him.

"Why?"

"Maybe your boyfriend will think I’m going to steal you away... He’ll be scared, thinking I can satisfy you in bed... It’ll be bad... Maybe he’ll get angry at you and won’t want to take you back," Hunter explained with a resigned look.

Isabella was taken aback, unable to deny that what Hunter said made sense, especially since Joe had already seen the kiss mark on her neck last night.