Jessica’s smiling face disappeared in an instant. She watched as Chris laid out the food on the table and poured water for her, gentle and attentive as always.
If she hadn’t already known that Chris had the day off, she might Bave thought he had made a special effort for her.
The two sat in silence, facing each other. Chris didn’t have much of an appetite and put down his cutlery after only a few bites. Jessica, on the other hand, ate a little more.
When she got to the roast pork, she suddenly paused and looked up at Chris.
“Did you make this yourself?” she asked.
Chris didn’t respond.
Jessica suddenly became angry and slammed her cutlery on the table. “Chris, is it really that hard for you to cook a meal for me? We agreed on this yesterday–yet you still went out and bought it?
For a moment, Chris was surprised that she could tell.
Seeing his confusion, Jessica pointed at the roast pork. “You always add an extra spice when you cook this dish. One bite and I knew it wasn’t your cooking. Did you really think I’m too stupid to notice?”
Stanned, Chris lowered his head and smiled. Habits really were hard to break.
Jessica loved roast pork, and his habit when making the dish had always been to add an extra spice.
He had assumed she wouldn’t notice.
These little details in daily life had never seemed to matter to Jessica. She often read company contracts even while eating. Even when the two of them sat at the same table, they rarely exchanged more than a few words.
“I forgot,” Chris explained calmly. “I’ve been overwhelmed with surgeries these past few days. It was quite late when you told me about it last night–I was already half asleep. If you hadn’t called me, I probably wouldn’t have come.”
The office was quiet, and only their heartbeats could be heard. Jessica stared into Chris’s eyes for a long time, trying to find even a trace of the warmth he used to show her–but she was disappointed.
“What exactly do you want me to do?” she asked.
Chris didn’t understand why she was so upset over this. It was just for show–the business partners wouldn’t know the food wasn’t homemade.
“Our partnership is just an act. The clients didn’t suspect anything, so I’ve done my part.”
“Chris, are you pretending not to understand?” Jessica stepped closer, grabbed his collar, and forced him to look at her.
“I kept you by my side–do you really not know what I meant by that?”
“I don’t, and I don’t want to know,” Chris replied calmly. With no one else around, he used a bit of strength to push Jessica away and straightened his collar. He said, “We’re already divorced. I’m only playing along because I don’t want all of Madam Wilder’s hard work to go to waste. Jessica, I’ve made myself very clear.”
They parted on bad terms that day.
Even after Chris left, Jessica remained seated in her chair, unmoving.
It wasn’t until Shannon came in and saw the half–eaten food on the table that she realized they had argued again.
Shannon had worked with Jessica for many years. She was not only a colleague but also somewhat of a friend.
“Ms. Wilder, you’re pushing him too hard.”
1/2
Chapter 32
+25 BONUS
“What do you want me to do then? The moment I loosen my grip, he wants to leave the country. What else can I do? Why does he care so much about Michael anyway? I never wanted to break up with him!”
Shannon cleaned up the mess on the table. “You should really think carefully about what it is you want. You’ve been married to him for five years, but it was always lukewarm between you two. I remember a few years ago he brought you lunch, and didn’t you throw it away? He never brought you food again after that.”
Those things had happened so long ago that Jessica couldn’t even remember.
१
Chapter 33
+25 BONUS
Chapter 33
