My Father Married Me to a Billionaire in a Coma—Then He Opened His Eyes When He Heard My Voice
PART 3 — The Billionaire Who Woke in Silence
“Don’t trust Jason.”
The words were barely breath, but they struck Claire harder than a scream.
Ethan Thornton’s eyes were open—gray, fever-bright, and filled with a kind of fear Claire had never seen in a man who owned skyscrapers, islands, and half the skyline of Manhattan.
She stumbled back from the bed. “You’re awake.”
His fingers twitched against the sheet.
Then his gaze moved—not to her, but past her shoulder.
Claire turned slowly.
On the far wall, tucked inside the golden center of a decorative clock, a tiny red light blinked once.
Her blood went cold.
“A camera?” she whispered.
Ethan blinked once.
Yes.
Claire forced herself not to look panicked. She turned back toward him, lifted the blanket with shaking hands, and pretended to adjust it like a dutiful new wife visiting her unconscious husband.
“Can you speak?” she breathed.
His lips moved with terrible effort.
“Not… much.”
The sound broke something inside her. This man had been trapped inside his own body while everyone discussed his fortune over his silent head.
Claire leaned closer. “Who did this to you?”
His eyes sharpened.
Footsteps sounded outside the door.
Claire’s heart slammed against her ribs.
She wiped her tears quickly and sat in the chair beside the bed, hands folded, face lowered. A second later, the door opened.
Jason Thornton walked in with a smile too smooth to be human.
“Well,” he said, looking around the room. “The grieving bride.”
Claire kept her eyes on Ethan’s still hand. “I wanted to sit with him.”
“How romantic.” Jason strolled closer. “Careful, Claire. People in this house mistake kindness for weakness.”
“And what do they mistake you for?”
His smile thinned.
For one terrifying moment, Claire thought Ethan’s breathing changed.
Jason glanced at him.
Claire moved quickly, reaching for the water glass on the bedside table and knocking it onto the floor.
Crystal shattered.
“Oh!” she gasped.
Jason’s eyes snapped to her.
She bent to clean the pieces, using the moment to hide Ethan’s face from view.
Jason crouched beside her, close enough that she could smell his expensive cologne. “You’re cleverer than you look.”
Claire picked up a shard of glass.
“And you’re less subtle than you think.”
Jason laughed softly. “Careful, Mrs. Thornton. This family buries inconvenient women.”
Claire’s fingers tightened around the glass until it bit her palm.
When Jason finally left, the door clicked shut like a verdict.
Claire rushed back to Ethan.
His eyes were open again, fixed on her bleeding hand.
“Claire,” he whispered.
It was the first time he had said her name.
And somehow, it sounded like a promise.
