Seducing My Husbands Best Friend

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I woke up in the middle of a Tragic Wife novelthe kind where the heroine dies a slow, miserable death just so the hero can finally realize he loved her all along.

Right now, I was at the part where the husband brings his pregnant soulmate into our home and demands I wait on her hand and foot. Hed just finished warning me not to try any "pathetic little tricks," reminding me that his heart belonged only to her.

Knowing how the plot was supposed to go, I nearly burst out laughing. Why? Because that baby isn't even his.

When I told him, he didn't believe me. He thought I was just being a jealous, delusional bitch. He was so enraged by my "slander" that he locked me in the cellar, practically intending to starve the truth out of me.

To survive, I had no choice but to seduce his best friendthe very doctor overseeing the mistresss pregnancy.

So, when the mistress tried to frame me for spiking her tea with abortifacients and my husband forced me to my knees to beg for forgiveness, his best friend stepped forward as my alibi.

"Gavin, leave her alone," he said, his voice cold and steady. "She couldn't have done it. She was with me all night. She never even came home."

My husbands face turned a shade of white I didnt know was humanly possible.

...

Before I ended up here, I thought I had it made. I had a solid career, a fat savings account, and zero drama.

After waking up in this body, all I could think was: I am screwed.

I had been dropped into a "Dead Protagonist" story. The life of Riley Prescott, the woman I now inhabited, had been a relentless sequence of tragedies. Orphaned young, bullied in school, starving and coldshe was the poster child for misery.

By some twist of fate, she had saved the male lead, Gavin West, when they were younger. But her bully, Melanie Hart, stole the credit. Riley, being the quintessential martyr, never said a word. She just watched as Gavin fell for her tormentor.

When they eventually marrieda business arrangement Gavins mother forcedGavin treated it like a prison sentence. Now, he was forcing Riley to serve the woman who had made her childhood a living hell.

In the original book, Riley works herself to the bone until she develops terminal cancer and dies. Only then does Gavin see Melanies true colors. Cue the "husbands funeral regret" and the tear-jerking redemption arc.

Readers were supposedly moved to tears, claiming Gavin "just didn't know how to love" and was "blinded by the villainess."

To hell with that. Blinded? He was a sociopath.

The second I realized where I was, I didn't waste time trying to punch Gavin or run away. I went straight to the hospital for a full work-up. When the results came back clean, I let out the longest breath of my life.

Thank God. No cancer. Not yet.

But then, my phone buzzed. It was Gavin.

"Riley, Melanie is at the house. Where the hell are you? Stop acting out."

I blinked, trying to ground myself. "Who? Who did you say is at the house?"

"Melanie Hart," he snapped. "Her pregnancy is high-risk, and I need you there to look after her. Don't do anything stupid. Be the bigger person for once."

"When the baby is born, Ill let it call you 'mother.' But thats all I can give you. Melanie is the only woman Ive ever loved."

So, here it was. The pivotal moment. The next step in the script was me becoming a literal servant until my body gave out.

I wasn't going to follow that script.

"Gavin," I said, my voice dripping with forced pity. "Don't be a sucker. That kid isn't yours."

In my head, I figured if he saw Melanie for who she was, we could reach a civil truce. Id ask for a divorce, take a nice settlement, and be free.

Gavins voice turned icy. "Is this your new game, Riley? Slander? Just wait until I get my hands on you."

...

It didn't take long. A group of his "security" team cornered me and dragged me back to the estate. He didn't put me in a bedroom. He put me in the reinforced cellar, a literal gilded cage.

Gavin looked down at me, his expression cold. "No food until I say so. Maybe a little hunger will clear your head."

I grabbed the bars, my heart hammering. "Gavin! Im telling you the truth! Just run a DNA test. Check her phone!"

Melanies baby belonged to some guy named Travisa deadbeat shed been seeing on the side. She only came to Gavin for the bank account and the social standing.

Gavin just sneered. "You think Id believe a word out of your mouth?"

Damn it. I was too naive.

By the end of the first day, the hunger was unbearable. I wasn't the type who could skip a meal without getting a migraine, let alone a whole day. I decided to fake a collapse.

It didn't take long for someone to find me.

The man who came to check on me was Sebastian Mercer"Bash" to his friends. He was Gavins best friend, a top-tier OB-GYN, and coincidentally, Melanies doctor.

I realized immediately that I couldn't fool a doctor with a fake faint. As his hand reached for my wrist to check my pulse, I shifted it away. He tried again; I moved again.

Finally, Bash sighed. "Riley. Stop it."

I opened one eye. Before I could speak, my stomach let out a thunderous growl.

"I'm starving," I whispered.

Bash started to stand up, his face an unreadable mask of professional detachment. I reached out, grabbed his hand, and pulled it firmly against my chest.

"Im actually in a lot of pain," I said, looking up at him through my lashes.

He tried to pull his hand back, but I held on tight. Bash was one of the few characters in the book who wasn't a total monster. He had a code. He had a conscience.

Eventually, he caved. He brought me a tray of food from the kitchen, and I inhaled it like it was my last meal.

When I finished, he stepped back. "You can go back to the room now."

I shook my head. I wasn't going back into that cellar. But Gavins men were everywhere. I couldn't run.

I pressed a hand to my forehead. "I can't. Im dizzy. Blood sugar... I think I'm going down again."

Bash frowned, but before he could react, I "fainted" right into his arms.

"Riley, get up," he muttered, his breath hitching.

I wrapped my arms around his waist, pressing my face against the solid muscle of his chest. "I'm not going back down there. Help me. Or I'll tell Gavin you were feeling me up during the exam."

"To a doctor, there is no gender, only patients," he said, though his voice lacked conviction.

I leaned up and pressed a quick, soft kiss to his jaw. "How about now? Still just a patient?"

...

I was going to ruin Sebastian Mercer. I had to.

In the original story, Bash was the one who eventually handled Rileys funeral arrangements. He was the only one who showed her a shred of dignity in death. That meant he had a crack in his armora latent guilt regarding how Gavin treated me.

In this world, I needed an ally.

Bashs ears turned a deep shade of crimson. "Youre my best friends wife. Have some self-respect."

But he didn't pull his hand away from my waist.

"Best friends shouldn't keep secrets, right? Melanies pregnant. Ill be out on the street the second that baby breathes. I won't be 'the wife' for long."

Just then, the housekeepers voice drifted from the hallway. "Dr. Mercer? Ms. Hart says she wants the mistress to prepare her dinner."

I looked up at him, my eyes welling with practiced tears. "See? This is my life. The legal wife, serving the pregnant mistress. It's pathetic."

Bash looked toward the door, then back at me. "You can order takeout. Ill handle the staff."

He handed me his phone.

When the food arrived, I didn't just plate it. I went into the kitchen and added a few "special" ingredientsbitter herbs, extra salt, and some stuff Id found in the back of the pantry that definitely wasn't meant for human consumption. I stirred it until it was a homogenous, disgusting mess.

I carried it up to Melanies room, playing the role of the defeated wife.

Melanie was lounging in bed, her eyes gleaming with triumph. "Oh, Riley. Youre so pretty. Its a shame, really. Even with that face, you couldn't keep Colton interested. He loves me."

"Thank you," I said sweetly. "I agree. I am very pretty."

Melanies smile faltered. She picked up a crystal vase from the nightstand and hurled it at me. I ducked with a grace I didn't know I possessed.

She threw something else. I dodged again.

"You should eat," I said, grinning. "Before it gets cold. You wouldn't want the baby to go hungry."

Melanie touched her stomach protectively. "Give it here. And if my son doesn't like it, Ill have Gavin skin you alive."

I bit my lip to keep from laughing as I handed her the tray. I watched her take a big, greedy bite. It wasn't poisonousI wasn't a murdererit was just... filthy.

The original Riley was too good for this world. She actually served this woman. Me? I was going to enjoy every second of the payback.

When she finished, she held out the plate. As I reached for it, she let go. The porcelain shattered against the hardwood.

Then, she scrambled out of bed and threw herself into Gavins arms as he walked through the door.

"Gavin! I don't know what I did to upset her! I just wanted to bond over dinner, and she... she smashed the dishes and threatened me!"

Gavin wrapped an arm around her, his eyes burning with disgust as he looked at me. "Riley, is your life really so empty that all you can do is play these petty, jealous games?"

I almost laughed. This guy was the hero? This was what readers "forgave"?

"Gavin, youre pathetic," I said, my voice clear and sharp. "Bringing a mistress into our home? Ive never seen a man with so little dignity."

He deserved the horns he was wearing.

Gavins face twisted. He wasn't used to me talking back. Before he could erupt and throw me back in the cellar, I did the only logical thing.

I fainted. Again.

Practice makes perfect. I even managed to fall in a way that looked elegant.

Gavin froze, his instinct to reach for me warring with his loyalty to Melanie. Melanie saw it and immediately moaned, "Gavin, the baby... he kicked. Hard. I feel sick."

His attention snapped back to her. "Ill get Bash to check on you."

I stayed still until they left. When I opened my eyes, I was staring directly into Sebastians gaze.

He was standing there in his white lab coat, looking down at me. "I heard you collapsed. Again."

I sighed. Gavin was a lost cause, but Bash... Bash actually looked concerned. I reached out a hand to him. "Help me up. My blood sugar is crashing."

The moment he pulled me up, I tucked myself against him, letting my hands wander over the firm lines of his chest and abdomen.

"You smell amazing, Doctor," I whispered, inhaling the scent of expensive cologne and sterile soap.

Bash stiffened, but he didn't push me away.

"Riley, stop. I'm not Gavin."

"I know," I murmured, leaning in closer. "You're much better. You're the one taking care of me."

I squeezed his arm, letting my fingers linger.

Suddenly, Gavins voice boomed from the doorway. "What the hell is going on in here?"

Bash didn't flinch. "Im helping her up, Gavin. Shes hypoglycemic. She needs medical attention, not a jail cell."

Gavin bought it instantly. In his mind, Riley was too obsessed with him to ever cheat, and Bash was too "noble" to ever touch another man's wife.

I stayed slumped against Bash, sounding as pathetic as possible. "Its my fault, Gavin. If only youd let me eat, I wouldn't be such a burden. Now Im too weak to even look after Melanie."

Gavins expression soured. He hated being reminded of his own cruelty when it wasn't framed as "discipline."

"Stand up, Riley," he barked.

He ignored my words, but his eyes kept darting to where Bashs hand was resting on my waist. It was bothering him. Good.

I tried to stand, but I let my knees buckle, "falling" backward.

Bash caught me by reflex. One hand on my shoulder, the other sliding right under my thigh to steady me.

"Oh... sorry," I whispered. "I'm just so weak."

Gavins pulse was visible in his neck. He was losing his mind. He shoved Bash aside and grabbed my wrist, hauling me out of the room.

"Riley! We're leaving!"

As he dragged me away, I looked back at Bash and mouthed three words: Tonight. My room.

I knew Bash was hooked. Men like himthe "good" onescan't resist the thrill of something forbidden. He hadn't pushed me away once. That primal reflex when he caught me? That wasn't a doctors move. That was a mans.

Gavin threw me onto the sofa in the living room. "Riley, faking illness won't get you my sympathy. You are going to take care of Melanie, and youre going to do it with a smile."

I stared at him, genuinely puzzled. "We have a dozen maids, Gavin. Why me?"

"Because you owe me," he whispered, leaning down. "Youre the one who insisted on this marriage. Youre the reason Melanie and I were separated. You brought this on yourself."

What a load of horse-shit.

The original Riley only married him because Gavin had been drugged at a party, wandered into the wrong room, and forced himself on her while she was working as a waitress. Gavins mother found out and forced the marriage to avoid a scandal. She threatened to cut off the funding for the orphanage Riley grew up in if she didn't comply.

Gavin knew this, but in his twisted head, he was the victim.

Before I could tear into him, Melanies voice drifted down the stairs. "Gavin! The baby moved! Come see!"

He dropped my arm and ran to her without a second thought.

Bash stepped out of the bedroom, and I turned to him, my eyes red and shimmering. "Dr. Mercer... my heart hurts. Can you check it for me?"

I was laying it on thick. Bash turned to leave, but I reached out and hooked my pinky around his. He could have broken the hold easily, but he stood there, frozen.

"Sweetheart, it hurts," I whispered. "I need you."

Bashs face went pale. He looked around to make sure the coast was clear. "Riley, if you don't love Gavin, divorce him. But don't play with me."

I interlaced our fingers and kissed the back of his hand. "Take me for an exam. Somewhere private."

...

Thanks to Bash, I actually got out of the house. I don't know what medical jargon he used, but he convinced Gavin that I needed "specialized monitoring."

He took me to his private apartment. I spent the first hour poking around like a curious cat, eventually "discovering" that beneath his serious scrubs, he wore boxers with SpongeBob on them.

He kept saying "no," but his body was saying "yes."

By the time the sun started to go down, his interest in my "anatomy" had become very, very thorough. He explored, and I enjoyed.

Id picked a winner.

The next morning, I was woken up by the shrill ringing of my phone. It was Gavin.

"Riley! I thought you were finally behaving, but you're still a monster!"

Bash stirred next to me, his face groggy as he pulled my naked body against his chest. I snuggled into him, leaving a mark on his collarbone.

Gavins voice was screaming through the speaker. "You dared to give Melanie abortifacients? I told you, Id let you be the mother! Is your heart really that small?"

Bash couldn't help himself. He leaned over and spoke into the phone.

"Gavin, shes been with me all night. She hasn't been anywhere near your house. She didn't do it."

The silence on the other end was deafening.

Bash hung up.