ying back in his bed, scrolling through his phone again.

“Everything okay?” he asked as I sat down.

“Yeah.

Just threw out some trash.”

But my mind was racing. Carla’s words echoed in my head: “Look under his bed.”

I needed an excuse. Something casual.

I quickly grabbed the apple I’d been peeling earlier and pretended to drop it.

“Oops,” I said, crouching down.

That’s when I saw it. My heart stopped.

There, under the bed, were eyes… staring back at me.

At first, I thought I was imagining things. But no.

There was a woman crouched there, staring back at me like a deer caught in headlights.

“What the —” I shot to my feet. “Who the hell are you? What are you doing under my husband’s bed?”

Ethan’s heart monitor started beeping faster.

“Wait, wait… Samantha, it’s not what you —”

“Don’t you dare ‘wait’ me! After everything we’ve been through? After ten years of being together?”

“Sam, please —”

I didn’t let him finish.

“What is she doing here, Ethan?” My hands were shaking as I grabbed my phone. “I’m calling the police. What is this?

Some kind of joke?”

The woman scrambled out from under the bed, her face as red as a firetruck. She looked mortified.

“Please!” Ethan started to panic. He reached for my phone, wincing as the movement pulled at his IV.

“Samantha, stop. It’s not what you think.”

“Not what I think?” I stared at him, my chest heaving. Tears were burning in my eyes.

“There’s a WOMAN under your bed, Ethan! What else am I supposed to think? That she dropped her contact lens under there?”

“Miss Samantha, I can explain —” the woman started.

“How dare you?” I yelled, backing away from both of them.

“How long has this been going on? Is this why you’ve been acting so strange, Ethan?”

The heart monitor’s beeping grew more insistent. Ethan shifted in the bed, wincing as he carefully swung his legs over the side.

His movements were slow and deliberate, his hands gripping the edge of the mattress for support. The IV pole rattled softly as he stood, unsteady on his feet, his hospital gown fluttering slightly with the effort.

I could see him struggling to keep his balance, his knuckles white as he braced himself. “Please, just listen to me,” he said, his voice trembling.

“I can explain.”

“Explain WHAT, Ethan? That you’re cheating on me in a hospital room? While I’m at home, taking care of our children, running myself ragged trying to keep everything together?”

“No!

God, no. It’s not like that.” He glanced at the woman, who looked like she wanted to sink into the floor. “Tell her,” he said.

The woman hesitated, then mumbled, “I’m a wedding planner.”

I blinked.

“A… what?”

She straightened, still avoiding my gaze. “Ethan hired me to help organize a surprise wedding. For you.”

I stared at her like she’d just spoken another language.

“A… wedding? For me? What are you talking about?”

Ethan sighed, running a hand through his hair.

“It’s true. I’ve been working with her to plan a wedding. For us.

A real one.”

“But… but why all the secrecy? Why hide her under the bed like some… some teenager sneaking around?”

“Because you weren’t supposed to be here!” Ethan’s voice broke. “We’ve been planning this for months.”

The woman nodded awkwardly.

“We were finalizing the details — your favorite colors, flowers, everything. He wanted it all to be perfect. We overheard you talking to someone on the phone outside the ward, and we didn’t want to give away the surprise… so he told me to hide under the bed.

I’m so sorry for the misunderstanding.”

“I found our old wedding photo the other day,” Ethan continued, his eyes glistening. “Remember? City hall, you in that simple white dress, me in my dad’s old suit?

You deserved so much more than that rushed ceremony.”

I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. The anger I’d felt moments ago melted into something softer, something that made my chest ache.

“You… you were planning a wedding?” I whispered. “All this time?”

Ethan nodded, reaching for my hand.

“I know it sounds crazy, but… I just wanted to surprise you. To make you happy. To give you the wedding day you always dreamed about before…”

“Before what?” I pressed, squeezing his hand.

“Before anything else can go wrong,” he whispered.

“I love you, Sam. More than anything. I want to marry you again, properly this time, surrounded by our kids, family, and friends.”

For a moment, I just stood there, staring at him.

Then, slowly, I started to laugh, tears streaming down my face.

“You are insane!” I said, shaking my head. “Do you have any idea how close I was to calling 911? I thought… God, I thought the worst.”

Ethan gave me a sheepish smile.

“Yeah… sorry about that. Not my brightest moment, having Jessica hide under the bed.”

The wedding planner — Jessica — muttered another apology before slipping out of the room, leaving the two of us alone.

As the door clicked shut, Ethan reached for my hand. “So… what do you think?

Still mad at me?”

I squeezed his hand, my heart full. “Mad? No.

But you owe me a real explanation… and maybe a drink when we get out of here!” I laughed, then added softly, “And Ethan? I don’t care if we have to have our first dance in wheelchairs when we’re 90. As long as it’s with you.”

He pulled me close, and I could feel his tears dampening my shoulder.

“I love you,” he whispered. “Even after ten years, I fall more in love with you every day.”

“I love you too,” I murmured back. “But next time you plan a surprise?

Maybe don’t hide the planner under the bed!”

His laughter, warm and genuine this time, filled the hospital room, and everything felt right again.

Source: amomama