Secret Marriage: The CEO's Pampered Wife

He hadn’t given up, having waited at the hospital for days until he finally saw her come out of the room today.

He had told Selena Sheridan that he wouldn’t let Georgia Thorne see him—that it would be enough to just watch her from afar.

But when he saw her crying, he couldn’t help but step forward to comfort her.

"Jean!" Georgia Thorne threw her arms around Justin Sullivan, hugging him tightly just like she used to.

While this worried Justin Sullivan, it also left him feeling utterly bewildered.

It made him feel that something was very off about Georgia Thorne. His hand felt unnatural as he stiffly patted her on the shoulder. "I’m here!"

Ever since he’d returned, Georgia Thorne had done everything she could to avoid him. This sudden shift was something he was completely unaccustomed to.

Georgia Thorne buried her face in his shoulder and began to sob.

Meanwhile, in William’s office, Elliot, who was facing Catherine Chase and her son, suddenly lost all his patience.

The moment Georgia had walked in, his patience had evaporated along with her when she left.

’She knows I lied. Seeing me with Catherine Chase, will she start getting the wrong ideas?’

’And what on earth did William tell her?!’

If this had happened before Georgia lost her memory, Elliot wouldn’t have been worried, but things were different now.

Georgia was in a state of amnesia, and after the past few days together, he wasn’t sure how deep her feelings for him actually were.

’It seemed that most of their intimacy had only happened because he forced it.’

"Are you sure this child is mine?"

A wave of frustration washed over him, adding a sharp edge to his voice as he questioned Catherine Chase.

"Elliot, how can you question me like that? You’re the only man I’ve ever been with." Catherine Chase’s eyes reddened and filled with tears, her voice raspy and strained.

The implication was clear: If Miles wasn’t his, whose could he be?

She lowered her head and hugged the child in her arms. "I know you’re married, and I never intended to ruin your marriage..."

Anyone would get homesick after being away for so long.

The reason she’d brought her child back was because her home was here.

Her family was in this city, as was the man she loved.

"Elliot, believe it or not, I truly didn’t want to ruin your marriage." Catherine Chase put the child down and stood up. "I had thought about getting back together with you, but that was before you were married."

"Mommy, are we leaving?" Miles, who had been clinging tightly to his mother the entire time, tugged on Catherine Chase’s sleeve, his gaze reluctantly shifting away from Elliot Sheridan.

Catherine Chase wiped away her tears and knelt. "How about Mommy takes you to see your uncle?"

"But I want to see Daddy!" Miles glanced back at Elliot, clearly not wanting to leave so soon.

Miles was a very bright boy, far more clever than the average child.

He wanted his mommy and daddy to be together, which was why he had called Elliot "Daddy" just before that mean lady left.

"Be a good boy. Your daddy needs a little time. Let’s go see your uncle first."

"Oh."

Miles lowered his head in disappointment, allowing Catherine Chase to reluctantly pull him toward the door.

Elliot watched the mother and son, his gaze fixed on Miles’s face.

He had always hoped for a child of his own, preferably a daughter who looked just like Georgia.

But the scene unfolding before him was the very antithesis of that wish.

A son, whose mother was Catherine Chase. Everything was a mess.

Just as Catherine Chase was about to push the door open and leave, Elliot called out to her. "Catherine."

Catherine Chase wiped the tears from her face and turned back to him. "Is there something else?"

"I got married a long time ago," he said slowly. "The woman who came in just now is my wife. Her name is Georgia Thorne. I love her—more than I ever imagined I could. I’ll introduce you two when I get the chance."

It felt deeply unfair to hear the man she loved describe his feelings for his wife right to her face.

A flicker of jealousy flashed through Catherine Chase’s eyes. ’The woman who has Elliot’s devotion must be so happy.’

Once, she had known that same happiness.

Catherine Chase forced an awkward smile. "Is that so? Congratulations."

After Catherine Chase left, Elliot immediately called Georgia.

There was no answer. He shot to his feet and hurried toward her room.

But the room was empty. Georgia was gone!

’Where did she go?!’

’With her amnesia, she has nowhere to go. Where could she possibly be?!’

He tried calling again, only to hear her phone ring from the bed.

’Damn it. She didn’t take her phone.’

Elliot was about to go out and search for Georgia himself when she returned on her own.

But she wasn’t alone. Someone else had returned with her.

"Thank you for bringing my wife back."

His icy gaze fell on Justin Sullivan as he forcefully pulled Georgia into his embrace.

With both his words and actions, he was declaring his exclusive claim on Georgia.

Justin Sullivan, not to be outdone, retorted, "No matter what happened, you shouldn’t have made her cry."

Georgia trusted Justin completely, but when he asked what had happened and why she was crying, she found herself unable to say a single word.

’I shouldn’t tell Justin,’ she thought. She was married to Elliot; this was between them.

Seeing how distraught she was, Justin had offered to take her away from the hospital, but she hadn’t agreed.

The person on her mind was still Elliot.

’Maybe I really, really love him. That must be why I’m so concerned about his feelings.’

After drying her tears, she had returned to the room. She wanted to hear Elliot’s explanation.

Justin, worried about her, had accompanied her.

"This is a matter between my wife and me. It has nothing to do with Mr. Sullivan!"

Elliot’s response was exactly what Georgia had expected. She turned her head to look at him.

When he was truly angry, he’d narrow his eyes, his lips pressed into a tight, thin line, looking like someone owed him a fortune.

Then again, a wave of anger washed over her. ’Why is it okay for him to be with his first love and their child, but I can’t be with mine?!’

Georgia struggled against Elliot’s grip, wanting to return to Justin’s side, but Elliot held her fast, and she couldn’t move an inch.

"Can you stay with me for a little while?" Georgia looked at the man across from her, blinking her red-rimmed eyes.

"Okay!"

The moment Justin readily agreed, Georgia felt the arm around her waist tighten.

Elliot was pissed. He was extremely pissed at how much Georgia relied on Justin Sullivan.

He was burning with rage but couldn’t unleash it in front of Justin Sullivan without losing his composure.

Elliot had never considered Justin a threat, mainly because Georgia had already given up on him. But now, things were different.

With her memory reverted to eight years ago, the person Georgia relied on most was Justin, not him.

Georgia wanted to talk to Justin, but with Elliot sitting right beside her, she swallowed the many questions on her mind.

Justin began talking about the past, mostly about things that had happened before he went abroad. Georgia remembered it all, every last detail.

Elliot, sitting beside her, suddenly found he couldn’t get a word in edgewise.

He had been a part of Georgia’s life only after Justin had left, while Justin possessed memories with Georgia from a time before he had ever entered the picture.

As they reminisced about the past, Georgia’s face lit up with a smile, and she became much more talkative.

Their conversation only came to an end when Justin was pulled away by a phone call.

Before he left, Justin whispered in Georgia’s ear, "The day of the accident... did you get a clear look at the car that hit you?"

Georgia shook her head. "I don’t remember what happened before!"

"How could that be?"

"I don’t remember anything from the last eight years!"

Eight years. It wasn’t an eternity, but it wasn’t a short time, either.

Justin looked at her. "So, you can only remember things from eight years ago?"

Georgia nodded, a troubled look on her face. "So you definitely can’t expect me to remember the crash itself. I heard I was on the phone with you when it happened. Is that true?"

"Yes."

"What were we talking about?"

"Do you remember Teacher Shepherd? He was going to an orphanage to teach kids how to paint and needed one more person."

Georgia wanted to continue chatting with Justin, but a call from Elliot inside the room cut her short. "Well, I’m going to head back in now."

Justin kept thinking that if he could turn back time to before he went abroad, he would have never chosen to leave.

’The heavens must be on my side. With her memory back to eight years ago, do I have another chance?’

"I’ll come see you tomorrow, then."

"You don’t have to."

Georgia refused instinctively, but seeing the disappointed look on Justin’s face, she quickly added, "I’m getting discharged this Saturday. If you have time, could you come then?"

"Of course!"

Georgia reluctantly said goodbye to Justin. When she returned to her room, the thick smell of smoke hit her, and she started coughing uncontrollably.

And the source of that smoke was a certain someone.

The ashtray was overflowing with cigarette butts. Georgia merely furrowed her delicate brows, sat down on the sofa by the window, and picked up her book to continue reading.

Elliot smoked with increasing intensity, and soon the ashtray was piled high. His dark gaze was fixed on Georgia, his heart churning with agitation.

Georgia wasn’t in the mood to read, either. The dense lines of text blurred before her eyes. Her mind was completely occupied with thoughts about him and that mother and son from earlier.

’Is he so agitated right now because he’s trying to figure out how to ask me for a divorce?’

The thought of those two words—divorce—felt like a wad of cotton lodged in her chest, making it impossible to draw a clean breath or exhale the oppressive weight.

Her eyes began to sting again. ’I don’t love Elliot as much as I thought I did, but if we really get a divorce... I know it will hurt. A lot.’

Because the pain had already begun.