Jeffrey said, “I will, as long as it’s legal.”
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Andrea didn’t bother pretending to be na?ve in front of him anymore, knowing he could see right through her no matter what. She said, “I want shares in the Scott Group–a bigger stake than Jessica.”
Jeffrey looked up.
The atmosphere in the hospital room instantly grew heavy.
Meanwhile, back at Reba’s, once Samuel was asleep, she returned to her sketches, watching her bnce creep up–small gains, big relief. Near 1 a.m., Reba’s phone buzzed–it was the group chat she had with Jessica andn.
Jessica texted: [Heard Andrea ended up in the hospital yesterday. True or not? Wait, actually, it was the day before yesterday. It’s already past midnight.]
After that, Ian sent a voice message thatsted over ten seconds, telling Jessica about everything—from Andrea’s car ident to Jeffrey sticking with Samuel and Reba through it all.
Jessica texted: [Serves her right. She can’t be stirring anything up thesest few days. So your waiting period ends on the 12th, and you and Jeffrey are getting your divorce certificate on the 13th, right, Reba?]
When Reba picked up her phone, that message was right at the top. She nced at the calendar and typed back: [Yeah, seems like it.]
It had been a little over twenty days since Reba and Jeffrey applied for divorce. Reba had worried she wouldn’t be able to handle life without him, but now, while her heart hadn’t fully adjusted, she’d mostly gotten used to it.
She could look after herself and Samuel. She could pay for her mom’s medical expenses. She realized she didn’t need Jeffrey anymore.
Jessica texted: [Oh, almost forgot–you know how I went out to the bar yesterday? Ran into your dad there. He wants you to see him on Wednesday, says it’s super important and something to do with your mom.]
Reba paused.
Another voice message from Jessica arrived. She said, “Honestly, I’ve got a feeling he’s up to no good, so I didn’t tell you right away.”
Reba typed back: [Just ignore him.]
Richard might really know something about Amelia, but after getting yed once, there was no way Reba would fall for it again. For all she knew, Richard just wanted to drag her along for drinks–or something even more disgusting.
Besides, after what May had saidst time, Reba was even more convinced that Amelia had been keeping
<b>14:54 </b>Mon, <b>Sep </b><b>22 </b>
things from her on purpose.
Jessica asked, “Why are you still up sote?”
Reba replied: [I’m basically a wage ve now.]
:
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Jessica said, “If your mom had let you learn how to run apany with me back then, you wouldn’t be stuck grinding away at grunt work now.”
Reba rested her head on her hand, lost in thought.
The Jensen Group was founded by Amelia and Richard together–Amelia was the one calling the shots for most of the big moves<b>. </b>
But from as far back as Reba could remember, Amelia had stepped awaypletely and never let her get involved or learn the ropes. When the Jensen Group went bankrupt, Amelia didn’t lift a finger to help. She didn’t even bat an eye.
Reba replied: [Maybe she figured I’d never go hungry, so she wanted to keep me away from all the betrayal and scheming in the business world.]
It’d be a lie to say Reba was not curious, especially after what that mystery man and May said. But she knew Amelia couldn’t give her any answers right now. There was nothing she could do except wait.
The three of them kept the group chat alive for a few more minutes until Reba dropped a quick “back to the grind–OT calls” and vanished.
Jessica and Ian both tried to convince Reba to join theirpanies, but they knew she wouldn’t go for it. So instead, they told her, “Just let us know if there’s ever anything you need.”
The next day rolled around in a sh.
After Victor dropped Samuel off at school, thepany car pulled up and whisked the whole department off to their team–building retreat.
At first, things in the car were pretty quiet, but as the morning went on, everyone shook off their sleepiness. Soon enough, scattered bits of conversation filled the car.
Lisa suddenly leaned in from the seat next to Reba and called softly, “Reba.”
Reba shot her a sideways nce.
Lisa nced around and whispered, “Andrea said your family used to be loaded. Is that true?”
Reba replied, “Not even close.”
“And she said your family went bankrupt before?” Lisa asked, probing for more.
Reba replied, “I guess everyone’s got their own idea of what ‘bankrupt‘ means. Most families hit a point
where they gotta wipe out their savings for some big thing. Ours was no exception.”
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…
51
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Lisa picked up on it–Reba clearly didn’t want to talk about it any further. But the more Reba kept quiet, the more curious Lisa got. She even ended up gossiping about it with a couple of other teammates in a group chat.
Reba had zero clue what everyone was gossiping about, and honestly, she couldn’t have cared less. Right now, all she wanted was to figure out what this team–building trip actually meant–whether it was about team spirit or just a random outing.
Most importantly, she needed to know if joining the activities was mandatory or if she could simply chill on her own.
The minute the van pulled up to theke–house vi, Reba had her answer: the schedule read “free time- do your own thing.”
Inside the vi, there was a bunch of stuff to do–billiards, poker, karaoke, swimming, Werewolf, and a huge pool too.
Reba didn’t give a damn about any of it. She was wiped out, and all she wanted was to hit her room and dive straight into sleep.
“You’re not gonna join in?” Jane asked.
“I’m not really good at this stuff,” Reba replied, making up an excuse. Not wanting to skip outpletely, she added, “Go have fun. Once it’s time to eat, I’ll cook something up for you guys.”
Jane didn’t call her out. She said, “Alright.”
Reba breathed a little easier. Just as she was about to head upstairs, her phone rang in her pocket–it was May calling. She walked out into the garden outside the vi before picking up. She called out, “May?”
May teased, “Why do you sound so worn out? Did you and your husband have a little too much funst night?”
Reba was speechless.
May added, “Youth is the best. I’m honestly jealous.”
“You’re reading way too much into this,” Reba replied.
“You know exactly what I’m getting at,” May teased, her voice full of meaning. She knew Reba could be shy, so she didn’t push too hard.
She said, “Why don’t youe see me? I’m at the airport now, but I have to fly out again tonight.”
Just thinking about thepany’s strict no–leave rule made Reba wince. She replied, “I’m afraid that’s impossible. We’re at apany retreat right now, so I can’t get any time off.”
May was sure she’d misheard. She couldn’t picture Reba and the words “get any time off” ever showing up
in the same sentence.
Reba told May what she’d been up totely, skipping over Jeffrey’s challenges and Amelia’s surgery. She
<b>14:54 </b>Mon<b>, </b><b>Sep </b><b>22 </b>
only mentioned the divorce and that she had to get a job to earn money.
51<b>) </b>
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May was just as surprised as Jessica. But since she was older, after a moment of shock, she just took it in stride. She said, “Even if you’re getting divorced, you don’t have to go to work, do you?”
Reba said, “There’s a lot I need money for. If I don’t earn anything, how am I supposed to pay for my mom’s hospital bills or just live day to day? I can’t survive on thin air.”
“Your mother has got plenty stashed away. Why not just dip into her savings?” May blurted out.
Reba said, “Didn’t I tell you about the time thepany went under and my dad took off with everything?”