My Groom Chose His Mistress, So I Married His Best Friend

My brain goes numb for a second. Right. Mason's a surgeon at Southgate Private Hospital. That's how I met him — I got hit by a car outside the ER doors. Someone carried me through traffic and into the trauma bay. I always thought it was him. My dad's lips are turning blue. I grit my teeth and squeeze the guest's hand. "Watch him. I'll be right back." I hike up my dress and run. I don't even make it to the lounge door before I hear it. A low, breathy voice. "Chloe. You feeling better, babe?" I slow down. Something in my gut tells me to stop. I peek through the crack in the door. Chloe is stretched out on the leather couch, her cheeks flushed pink. "Mason, I'm still dizzy…" She giggles. "You just ran out on your own wedding. You're not scared Sophie's gonna dump you?" Mason doesn't answer. He slides one hand under her head and lifts her up. "Why do you care about her right now? Her dad's basically a corpse, and she still dragged him here." "She KNOWS that stuff freaks you out. She did it on purpose to mess with you." "If I keep letting her get away with it, who knows how she'll treat you later." Chloe pouts. "Yeah, well, she's still YOUR fiancée." She hums and stretches. "Mason… my heart still hurts. It's your fault. I need mouth-to-mouth. Right now." Mason doesn't even hesitate. He leans down and kisses her. They kiss like they've done it a thousand times. Wet, sloppy, no rush. My vision blurs. I remember the night Mason and I made it official. Chloe got wasted, wrapped herself around his arm, and slurred, "Mason! Am I not your best friend? You said you'd tell me the SECOND you got a girlfriend! If I hadn't caught you two, when were you gonna tell me?!" That's when I found out he had a "childhood best friend" of more than twenty years. That same night, he drove Chloe home. His phone went straight to voicemail until the next evening. He showed up at my place with two dark circles under his eyes. "Chloe's first time drinking. She was a mess. I was scared she'd choke. Don't overthink it." I didn't overthink it. Then came movie night. Halfway through, she texted, "I'm lost." He dumped me in the theater and ran. The night I had a 104-degree fever, she called and said she "felt sad." He put on his jacket and left. And today, my dad used the last of his strength to give me away — and Mason scooped her up and ran. All these years, I thought I was waiting for him to come back to me. Turns out I was waiting for myself to wake the hell up. My phone buzzes. "Sophie, is Mason coming or not? Your dad's fading!" I shove the door open. "Mason. You done sucking her face?" Mason jerks up. For half a second, real panic flashes in his eyes.

I don't care about his face. I march over and grab his wrist. "My dad is DYING. Get out there. NOW." Chloe yanks him back down by the arm. She looks up at me with these big wet eyes. "Sophie, I know you're jealous. I get it, Mason came in here to help me and it's killing you." "But making up a story about your dad just to drag him back to some old-school 'giving-the-bride-away' thing? Come on." What? My eyes burn. I stare at Mason. "Mason. My dad is really—" He laughs. Actually laughs. He gently drapes his suit jacket over Chloe's shoulders. "You're fine." Then he turns to me, and I can see the disgust written all over his face. "Sophie. I'm a doctor. I told you Chloe needed mouth-to-mouth. Don't make it sound like something dirty, okay?" "And seriously? On our wedding day? Could you be any more demanding?" "That whole walk-me-down-the-aisle thing? What is this, 1950? Grow up." I stare at him. Something inside my chest snaps in half. Demanding? Five years. I never asked for a ring worth more than his monthly paycheck. Never asked for a house. Never asked for a car. Never made a scene about all those nights he spent "checking on" Chloe. The only thing I ever asked for was this: "Mason. My dad's biggest wish in the whole world is to walk me down the aisle and put my hand in yours. Please. Let him have that." He said yes. Now he's saying I'm demanding. I hear myself laugh. It sounds crazy. Because this is crazy. My phone buzzes again. It's Nathan. Sophie, ambulance is two blocks out. Five minutes. I take a breath. I turn to leave. "Mason…" Chloe's voice floats after me, all soft and sugary. "I don't wanna go out there. I'm scared. Her dad looks so… gross." Suddenly a hand yanks me backward. I stumble. Before I can catch my balance, Mason rips the phone out of my hand. He glances at the screen and his voice turns to ice. "See? Chloe's terrified. Call the home health aide. Right now. Tell them to come pick up your dad." "Otherwise this wedding waits until your dad… isn't around anymore." I clench my jaw. "Mason." "Has my dad ever been anything but good to you?" Back when my dad was still strong, he treated Mason like his own son. He found out Mason worked at Southgate Private, and he secretly funded a whole research wing there — in Mason's name. That's how Mason jumped ranks. Went from a nobody surgeon to Chief Surgeon with a six-month waiting list. My dad never told him. Didn't want him to feel pressure. Mason goes quiet for two seconds. Then he snorts. "Your dad's 'good' to me? Please. He's only good to me because I'm a surgeon. He wanted me to bump him up the transplant list." My fingers curl into fists. "Excuse me?" Chloe smiles behind him. "Sophie, honey, you didn't know? Last time your dad needed a room, there was ONE bed left. Mason didn't give it to him." "If the director found out he was pulling strings for family, Mason would've been written up in a heartbeat." "He even had me sneak in and pretend to be a patient for a night to cover it up." She tilts her head. "I get it, you love your dad. But you can't be selfish enough to sacrifice Mason's whole career for a man who's dying anyway. Right?" I stand there frozen. Three months ago, Dad had a sudden attack. He was doubled over in pain, couldn't even stand up straight. I panicked so hard I didn't even call an Uber — I called Mason, sobbing, "Mason, he's in so much pain, I don't know what to do!" He came. He helped me get Dad to the hospital. Then he told me, eyes all red, that there were no beds. That we'd have to wait in the hallway until something opened up. So Dad sat there against the hallway wall all night. Didn't say a word. Every time I tried to push, Dad would grab my arm. "Mason's busy at work. Daddy can wait a little longer." Turns out it wasn't that there were no beds. Mason had pulled strings behind the scenes and kept my dad from getting one. I slowly look down at my hand. My palm still has the warmth of my dad's hand in it. That hand he stretched out with the last of his strength. I remember what he whispered. "Baby girl… Daddy's tired." My eyes burn. I bite down on my tongue so hard I taste blood. I will not cry in front of these two. Chloe sees me quiet and nudges Mason, all sugar again. "Okay okay Mason, I'm fine. Go calm her down." "But you have to promise me — after the wedding, you're coming back to me. Prove you're not one of those guys who dumps his best friend the second he gets a girl." Mason's mouth softens instantly. "Please. I've known you way longer than her. After my mom, you're basically her second mother-in-law." "Forget tonight. Even after the wedding, you can move in with us. Sophie doesn't get a vote." Then he turns, punches in my phone code like he's done it a thousand times, and unlocks my phone. He sees Nathan's text. His eyebrows shoot up. "The hell? 911?"