John and Ellie Bradley have the love everyone wants to have, except there is one problem, Ellie is sick. John has to balance his ill wife, job, and in-laws who want to run the show. As John cares for Ellie in what the doctors say will be her last days, he reflects on their marriage and a love of a lifetime.
John POV
"You are not listening to me, John. Ellie is sick. She is too sick for you to take home. It would be best if you put her in a long-term care facility. She needs round-the-clock care until she dies," Dr. Joshua Newbern says to me sternly.
I look over the wall of awards. He probably knows more than I do, but I know my wife, and I will be damned if I put her in a hospital to die alone.
"I said I am taking her home with me," I say.
Josh stares at me. I think he is stunned that I am refusing to do what he wants. "Listen, John; I have known you and Ellie for twenty years. I mean, we all went to high school together. I remember the day you two got together like it was yesterday. I have been here every step of the way for her. I am begging you to listen to me," Josh pleads with me.
I shake my head. "I am taking her home, Josh, and that is final. That is what she wants to do, and that is what we are going to do," I say.
"She will not live long outside the hospital, and you know that, right? Will she consider staying a few more weeks?" Josh asks me.
"Ellie is headstrong and a fighter. You have no idea what she is capable of, and neither do I. She wants to go home, and that is what we are going to do. Please make the arrangements and discharge her," I say.
Josh takes a deep breath. "You will need home health, a nurse around the clock, and someone to sit with her. She cannot be left alone. How are you going to do this and be a cop?" Josh says.
"I will figure it out. I will hire someone to stay with her. My insurance will pay for a nurse. We will work it out," I say.
"John, I understand why, but I do not agree with it," Josh says.
"No, you do not understand. Your wife is healthy. My wife is dying. She is a beautiful young woman, and she is going to die. I want her to die where she wants to die and not in some damn hospital or long-term care facility with people she does not know. Ellie wants to go home, and I will make her last days perfect," I say.
Josh starts scribbling on papers. "I will write the orders for everything she needs. John, if it gets bad, I want you to call me immediately, and I will come to her," Josh says.
"Thank you for everything you have done for Ellie," I say. "Everybody loves Ellie. There are a lot of people who will help you with her. I do not see her living long outside of the hospital, and there are no treatments left for her," Josh says. "I understand perfectly. It is what she wants," I say.
I walk out of his office and down the hall. I take the elevator up to the fifth floor. I want to cry, but I cannot right now. I have to have my brave face on when I see Ellie. I get off the elevator and walk to her room. When I reach room 5523, I take a deep breath and then go into the room. Ellie looks up and smiles at me when I walk into the room.
"Is Josh going to let me leave this horrible place?" Ellie asks.
I sit down on the side of the bed. "Of course, he is going to let you leave. We are going home as soon as he writes all the orders for you," I say.
Ellie touches my face and smiles. "Thank you for not making me stay here, John. I want to go home and see my animals," Ellie says.
"Oh, I thought you wanted to go home to be with me," I say to her.
"Yeah, I guess you are a bonus. I need you too, but you don't have a fur coat or a wet nose," Ellie says.
I have always said she loved her animals more than me. I know she misses all of them. Her rescue dogs and cats mean the world to her. She has been in the hospital for three weeks this time. Her best friend comes over every day to help feed them while I am at work. Ellie has the heart of a saint. I think that is why I do not understand why someone so special has to be so sick.
The nurse knocks on the door. "Mrs. Daniela Bradley, I have your meds," she says. "Ellie, please, it is Ellie," she says softly. "Sorry, Ellie, I have your meds. Dr. Newbern will be by with your prescriptions to take home and your orders," the young nurse says. "Thank you," I say to her.
Ellie takes her meds. I sit on the side of the bed. I know she will be sleeping soon. The pain medicine always knocks her out. She hates it, but without it, she does nothing but screams. It is unfair for someone who could dance the night away to be confined to a wheelchair. She cannot walk anymore. She cannot brush her hair without half of it falling out. I look down at her nails. Her nails were painted every day, and now they are brittle and cracked. Her beautiful glowing skin is replaced with scales from the treatments. No matter how she looks to everyone else, to me, she is the most beautiful woman on earth.
Ellie reaches out to hold my hand. "I love you almost as much as my animals, John," Ellie says with a smile on her face. I laugh. "I love you too," I say. I hold her hand until she falls asleep. I need to make some calls to get the house ready for her. Her health has deteriorated so much over the last three weeks we will need a hospital bed and a shower chair. I need a nurse for when I work to stay with her. I will give her everything she needs to live out the remainder of her life in our home. I want to make sure she has everything she needs.
I kiss her on the forehead. I love you always, my Ellie.
Chloe Walker is starting over in a small town after a terrible breakup with her long-time boyfriend, Jackson Talen. She comes to Shadow Creek to stay with her brother, Cane, who works for bad boy billionaire Axel Arden. Axel Arden is a hot bachelor billionaire with a reputation for leaving women with broken hearts and the son of Vincent Arden, Alpha of the Shadow Creek Wolf Pack. Will Chloe be his mate and his little, or will she be the one to break this daddy dom billionaire's heart?
The Imperial Wolf Series Kate lives with her father, who is a rogue wolf and a drunk with a serious gambling problem. He has sold all of their possessions for gambling money or to cover his debts to the pack casino. When the Alpha's henchmen come to collect his latest debt, he has nothing to offer but his daughter. The Alpha's henchmen take his daughter to serve the Alpha and work off her father's debt. What they do not know is she is a descendant of a line of wolves with special abilities. Is Kate an Imperial Wolf? What happens when the Alpha's son takes a special interest in Kate and her uniqueness?
Jasmine falls into bed with her boss after her husband asks for a divorce, but there's a lot more to sleeping with her boss than she expects. Her boss is an old God who uses his hotel to enslave women. Jasmine and her best friend are trapped in an ancient liar full of men looking for a good time. How are they going to get away from the Lotus?
Alpha Kai has no intention of choosing a mate. He prefers taking a different woman to his bed every night. Things are going great for the Dark Moon Wolf Pack until he gets a call from Alpha Jake from the Red River Pack. He has a problem with two of his warriors and needs to relocate one. Alpha Kai can always use another warrior. The new wolf Beta Finn has a wife, Alaska, and she is the woman of Alpha Kai's dreams. Alpha Kai wants Alaska to be his mate, and he will stop at nothing to have her.
To secure a treaty and bring peace, the Fairy Council demands a marriage between a hidden fairy princess and the vampire prince. Fairy Willow is displeased with the situation, but vampire Prince Lazarus is compassionate and quickly wins her over. The two quickly fall in love as he lavishes her with kindness, but their union is not without its opponents. Her joy is slowly fading away, but Prince Lazarus is prepared to safeguard his new bride and her family.
What happens when a vampire and a wolf are destined mates? Chaos and a wild romance begin when two lovers step into a whirlwind relationship. Love, Marriage, and of course a little drama among the vampires.
For the sake of their company, Atasha Rae was forced to marry the known heartless billionaire, Lorcan Amadeus. But it only took her a week as his wife because later on, he suddenly wants a divorce immediately. So as he wished, she signed the divorce paper even after admitting to herself that she was somehow starting to fall inlove with him. Heart badly wounded, she ran away from his life. Until she discovers that she's pregnant with his child and as a result, she ends up with no choice but to keep it a secret. Out of Lorcan's awareness, she's keeping a secret that would lead him to an overflowing regret. Because for a week of their fallen marriage beyond repair, she's carrying the billionaire's heir.
June Rivera was divorced by her husband after three years of marriage to be with her sister who was pregnant for him. Kicked to the curb with a divorce and rejected by her parents, she struggles to make ends meet and get a job until she saves Luis Ambrose from an accident - the only child of Rafael Ambrose, a widowed man and the CEO of Ambrose Corps. When little Luis asks to have her as a nanny, and Rafeal's mother pressures him to get married, they draw a contract. To be Luis's Nanny and his fake wife for one year in exchange for 50 million dollars!
In their three years of marriage, Chelsea had been a dutiful wife to Edmund. She used to think that her love and care would someday melt Edmund's cold heart, but she was wrong. Finally, she couldn't take the disappointment any longer and chose to end the marriage. Edmund had always thought that his wife was just boring and dull. So it was shocking when Chelsea suddenly threw divorce papers at his face in front of everyone at the Nelson Group's anniversary party. How humiliating! After that, everyone thought that the formerly-married couple would never see each other again, even Chelsea. Once again, she thought wrong. Sometime later, at an award ceremony, Chelsea went onstage to accept the award for best screenplay. Her ex-husband, Edmund, was the one presenting the award to her. As he handed her the trophy, he suddenly reached for her hand and pleaded humbly in front of the audience, "Chelsea, I'm sorry I didn't cherish you before. Could you please give me another chance?" Chelsea looked at him indifferently. "I'm sorry, Mr. Nelson. My only concern now is my business." Edmund's heart was shattered into a million pieces. "Chelsea, I really can't live without you." But his ex-wife just walked away. Wasn't it better for her to just concentrate on her career? Men would only distract her—especially her ex-husband.
It took only a second for a person's world to come crashing down. This was what happened in Hannah's case. For four years, she gave her husband her all, but one day, he said emotionlessly, "Let's get divorced." Hannah's heart broke into a million pieces as she signed the divorce papers, marking the end of her role as a devoted wife. Within Hannah, a strong woman awakened, vowing never to be beholden to any man again. Embracing her new life, she embarked on a journey to find herself and command her own destiny. By the time she returned, she had experienced so much growth and was now completely different from the docile wife everyone once knew. "Is this your latest trick to get my attention?" Hannah's ever-so-arrogant husband asked. Before she could retort, a handsome and domineering CEO pulled her into his embrace. He smiled down at her and said boldly to her ex, "Just a little heads-up, mister. This is my beloved wife. Keep off!"
When they met again, Jason cast aside his paranoia and pride, warmly embracing Chelsey. "Please, come back to me?" For three years, she had been his secretary by day and his companion by night. Chelsey had always complied with his requests, like an obedient pet. However, when Jason declared his plans to marry another, she chose to stop loving him and to let go. But life took unexpected turns. His unyielding pursuit, her pregnancy, and her mother's greed gradually pushed her to the brink. Eventually, she endured tremendous suffering. Five years later, when she returned, she was no longer the woman she once was. Yet he had spiraled into five years of chaos.
The dream of everyone with regards to marriage is to be able to find that special someone and settle down with them. Even arranged marriages grant you an opportunity to meet your partner briefly before the wedding. How will you feel about waking up in the morning with someone sleeping next to you who is not just anyone but your legally married partner yet with no memory of how that had happened in just a few hours of going out the previous day? This is the story of Jason Haward and Julia Harrison, two strangers trapped in a marriage they never planned. The quest to find out why led to the unfolding of a mystery which made them realize they are both living a lie. To find out more, read this amazing story of love, betrayal, revenge and murder.