Married to Chris Eaton

Lily gradually drifted back into consciousness, the familiar sounds of her hospital room slowly filtering through the haze. But instead of the soothing quiet she expected, her ears were met with the distinct noise of raised voices.

"This is all your fault, Mary!" Lily recognized her father's booming tone immediately. "If you had just put your foot down and stopped her from getting those ridiculous cosmetic procedures, we wouldn't be in this mess! "

"But…," her mother retorted, voice trembling with emotion. "You know how badly Lily wanted this. I couldn't bear to take that away from her, not when she's been so unhappy her whole life!"

"Don't act dumb now, Mary!" Lily's father roared. "What if it had been too late to save her, huh? What then?" 

His voice was thick with emotion, the anguish of nearly losing his only child etched into every word. "I can't...I can't lose her. Not like that. Not because of some vanity project you and Lily cooked up!"

Lily's eyes fluttered open as she struggled to make sense of the heated exchange. Her parents were fighting...over her? And it was all her fault! She hated that she'd caused such turmoil in her family.

After all, Lily knew her father loved her deeply, even if he didn't express it as openly as her mother. And now, she realized, he simply couldn't digest the fact that he'd come so perilously close to losing her forever. The fear and guilt must have been tearing him apart.

Lily wanted to reach out, to console them both. But the ventilator tube down her throat made speech impossible. All she could do was watch helplessly as her parents' argument continued to unfold.

"I was trying to give her the life she deserved!" Mary cried. "You know how much she's suffered, how cruelly she was treated. I couldn't deny her this chance at happiness, not when it was finally within her grasp."

Her father's shoulders slumped, the fight seeming to drain out of him. "I know, I know," he said wearily. "But at what cost, Mary? At what cost? What if we hadn't got a donor today?!"

Lily's heart clenched as she saw the tears in her mother's eyes. This was all her fault. She had put her parents under so much stress. The guilt threatened to overwhelm her.

Just then, the door burst open and the stern-faced doctor reappeared. "That's enough, both of you!" he demanded. "This is a recovery ward, not a boxing ring. If you can't keep your voices down, I'm going to have to ask you to leave immediately."

Lily's parents fell silent, chastened by the doctor's scolding. He shook his head in disapproval.

"Your daughter is alive and well," the doctor said firmly. "There's no use dwelling on 'what ifs' now. She received a donor heart just in time, and the surgery was a success. You should be grateful, not fighting like this in front of her."

Lily's father had the decency to look sheepish, while her mother dabbed at her eyes with a tissue. The doctor fixed them both with a stern look.

"I suggest you two take a breather, collect yourselves, and come back when you can visit Lily in a calm, supportive manner," he said. "She needs rest and healing, not the added stress of your arguing."

With that, the doctor turned on his heel and strode out of the room, leaving Lily's parents in a chastened silence. Lily allowed her eyes to drift shut once more, too weary to keep them open. She hoped her parents would not fight again. And just accept her choices even if it was a mistake. 

…

Lily drifted in and out of a restless sleep, the exhaustion of her surgery weighing heavily on her. When she finally managed to open her eyes again, she found herself disoriented, unsure of how much time had passed.

A movement in the corner of her vision immediately caught her attention. Lily blinked in surprise, thinking she must still be hallucinating from the anesthesia. Sitting in a chair beside her bed was a strikingly handsome man, his focus intent on the papers in his hands.

Lily couldn't help but drink in the sight of the man sitting beside her bed. He was undeniably, breathtakingly handsome - the kind of rugged good looks that seemed almost unreal.

His broad shoulders strained against the tailored fabric of his expensive suit, exuding an aura of masculine power. The way he sat, with a regal, almost kingly posture, only highlighted his commanding presence. 

Lily's gaze traced the sharp line of his chiseled jaw, the sensual curve of his full lips. And his eyes - oh, those eyes. They were a mesmerizing shade of blue, framed by thick lashes and a lock of neatly styled brown hair that had fallen across his forehead.

There was no doubt in Lily's mind that this man was Chris Eaton, the notorious son of the powerful Eaton Enterprises dynasty. His face had been plastered across countless news channels and magazine covers over the years. 

But what was he doing here, in her recovery room? Lily's family and the Eatons had been fierce business rivals for as long as she could remember.

So why was the younger, devastatingly handsome Eaton heir now sitting vigil at her bedside? Lily wracked her brain, searching for some logical explanation. 

Before she could ponder that unsettling notion any further, Chris looked up and met Lily's gaze. A warm, almost affectionate smile spread across his captivating features.

Lily's breath caught in her throat as Chris Eaton's deep, velvety voice sent a shiver down her spine. 

Pathetic! How pathetic of her to drool over a man who was her father's rival's son. 

"Or should I now call you my wife..." Chris continued, a smirk playing across his sensual lips. "After all, we are married now."

Lily blinked in utter bewilderment. "I'm sorry...we're what?" she croaked, her voice raspy from the ventilator tube.

"We are married, dear," Chris said, fixing her with an amused gaze. "Husband and wife."

Lily let out a disbelieving laugh. "That was a nice joke! Are you high on something…"

"I only mean serious business, sweety," Chris reached over, producing a stack of papers. "You already signed the contract, sweetheart. I gave you the heart, and you agreed to marry me in return."

Lily's eyes widened as she scanned the documents, recognizing her own shaky signature at the bottom. This couldn't be real. Did she actually sign something like that?! Then she recalls how the doctors insisted on 

Horror crept upon her bones as the realization sank in. She had blindly signed those papers, trusting that they were simply the standard consent forms for the heart transplant surgery. The doctor had pressured her to sign immediately, without explaining the full contents or implications.

"Shut up!" Lily almost screamed, the words muffled by the ventilator mask. This couldn't be real - there was no way she had willingly agreed to marry Chris Eaton…

Yet the infuriating smirk on his face told a different story. "Yes, sweetheart," he drawled smugly. "I gave you the heart, and in exchange, you signed the contract to become my wife."

Lily felt panic rising in her chest. "No, that can't be true!" she insisted. "I was unaware of any marriage clause - that has to be null and void by law!"

But Chris merely shook his head, his piercing blue eyes glinting with calculated triumph. "I'm afraid it's not that simple, my dear. This was a contract marriage, you see. The terms stipulate you must remain my wife for at least one year."

Lily's blood ran cold as the realization hit her. Chris Eaton had trapped her, using her desperately vulnerable state to manipulate her into a binding agreement. Her life-saving heart transplant had come at an unimaginable price - 

Mustering what little strength she had, Lily let out a harsh, bitter laugh. "Well, this is all just utter bullshit," she spat. "I'll have my lawyers tear this so-called 'contract' to shreds."

Chris leaned back in his chair, seemingly unfazed by her defiance. "Feel free to try," he replied coolly. "But I can assure you,

the terms are ironclad. You're mine now, Lily Smith...or should I say, Mrs. Eaton."