Seeing Reba’s silence, Richard pressed, “She’s not here?”
Reba replied, “She is. Come with me.”
Richard didn’t say much. He didn’t scold Reba or criticize her. He didn’t say anything harsh.
For an instant, it was like he was that gentle father from her childhood–the one who cared about her→ instead of the sharp, profit–minded Richard he’d be.
When they arrived at the rehabilitation center, Amelia had just finished her daily workout. She could walk normally for a while now, just not for too long at a stretch.
“Hey, you’re here,” Amelia called out to Richard as soon as she spotted him.
Richard masked his true feelings well. He nodded and said, “Yeah.”
Amelia said, “Let’s discuss this back in my room.”
Richard nodded.
Watching Richard acting all meek and well–behaved, Reba couldn’t help but think to herself, ‘Is this really the same Richard who was losing his mind and going off the rails just not long ago?‘
Once inside the hospital room, Richard sat down quietly. He looked at Amelia and said, “You asked me here to talk about the divorce, didn’t you?”
“Yeah,” Amelia replied with a nod.
“Alright,” Richard answered, epting it without argument.
Amelia said, “Thank you for looking after Reba all these years, for always being there for her. You made sure her childhood and her teens were full of warmth.”
Richard replied, “That’s simply what I was supposed to do. You helped me build the Jensen Group, brought me status and wealth. Giving my daughter some fatherly love was just part of the deal.”
They agreed to all of this before they ever got married. As Richard saw it, it wasn’t about gratitude–it was just mutual benefit, nothing more.
“If I’d actually listened to you back then, instead of acting so stubborn, the Jensen Group wouldn’t be in this mess,” Richard said, regret thick in his voice. He was kicking himself now for his arrogance and all that pointless pride.
He’d been worried people would say he only got where he was thanks to a woman, so he just had to do everything his own way, shutting everyone else out.
Amelia tried to talk sense into him, but he straight–up snapped at her, saying it was none of her business and she should keep out of his life for good.
11:01 <b>Thu</b>, <b>Oct </b><b>2 </b>
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Amelia said calmly. “Everyone’s got their own bumps in the road. Just think of it as learning for next time. <fnb8a8> The source of th?s content is Find[?]ovel</fnb8a8>
Richard nodded.
Amelia asked, “Are you free this afternoon?<b>” </b>
Richard replied, “Yeah, I am.”
Amelia said, “So, wanna file for divorce today? Reba said you have to file first and then sit through a cooling–off period before it’s final.
Richard said, “Yeah, that’s how it goes these days.” He then rested his gaze on Reba, who was quietly standing beside Amelia. After a long pause, he finally managed to say, “I’m sorry,”
Over the past period, he’d been overwhelmed with anxiety. The pressure drove him to the edge, and his nervespletely snapped. At rock bottom, he ended up doing some terrible things to Reba<b>, </b>almost making a catastrophic mistake.
If Amelia hadn’t called to tell him she had woken up, he might’ve kept spiraling in that madness for who knows how much longer. Now, thinking back, even he couldn’t understand what possessed him to act like that.
That afternoon, Amelia and Richard headed off together to file for divorce. On the ride back, it was just Amelia and Reba in the car.
Reba was still puzzled by how Richard had behaved today. She called out, “Mom?”
Amelia replied, “Yeah?”
Reba asked, “Why did you ever choose to marry Richard?”
Amelia said, “It was just mutual benefit. He needed money tounch his business, and I needed to get married so that those people would stop bothering me. So, after talking it out, we decided to go through with it.”
“You don’t think he’ll back out of the divorce after the cooling–off period, do you?” Reba asked, still uneasy about the whole waiting phase.
Amelia replied, “No, he won’t. We split everything up before we even got married. There’s nothing in it for him to drag this out. Honestly, being straightforward just means we can both move on peacefully.”
Reba remained silent.
Amelia ruffled Reba’s hair and said, “I know what he did to you. I should’ve protected you better.”
Reba said, “Let’s just leave all that behind. It’s over.” Right now, all she wanted was to be with Amelia and Samuel, living the life she really wanted.
The next day, Reba went to Primey Technologies to hand over her work to Jane. Just like she’d expected, she overheard somements she really didn’t want to hear.
Someone said, “I’m so jealous of Reba. She can just quit whenever she wants, no approval or anything.”
11:01 <b>Thu</b><b>, </b><b>Oct </b><b>2 </b>
Another chimed in, “Come on, she is Mrs. Hanson. What do you expect?”
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One sneered, “She’d turned up her nose when we said she was just here to ‘experience life–and look how things turned out.”
A girl said, “I wish I could marry someone loaded like that. Living the dream, seriously. Being rich must be nice.”
Jane caught the change in Reba’s mood and said gently, “Just tune out their rumors. They’re not living your life–they have no idea what you’re really up against.”
“Okay,” Reba answered quietly.
Meeting friends like Jane and E was probably the best thing that came out of Reba’s time at Primey Technologies.
Still, Reba knew in her heart that their friendship would onlyst for a part of the journey–some people were just meant to walk alongside her for a while before heading off on their own paths.
Reba finally asked, “Jane, don’t you me me?”
Jane asked gently, “me you for what?”
Reba said, “You’ve really taken me under your wing, taught me so much, and yet I’m leaving you with all this mess.” She felt guilty. But sometimes, she just couldn’t have it both ways.
Jane said, “You’re the kind of person who always takes responsibility–if you really had another option, I know you wouldn’t be leaving like this. Don’t let it bother you too much.”
Reba murmured a quiet “thanks” and hugged Jane.
Once she had taken care of everything, Reba went straight to Jeffrey’s office and handed him the paperwork to sign.
Jeffrey didn’t hesitate at all. He signed it and gave it right back, acting like it was no big deal. He said, “Just wait here for me. When I wrap things up, I’ll go to the hospital with you.”
Reba asked, “What about the penalty for quitting?”
Jeffrey shrugged, “You don’t have to pay anything.”
Reba asked, “What do you mean?”
She could still remember when Jeffrey had started working here–she’d gotten a clear warning: if she ever wanted to quit, she’d have to cough up the penalty.
Jeffrey said, “That use is really just for show. Thepany calls the shots on whether to enforce it. I only used it to make you think twice about leaving.”
Reba asked calmly, “If my mom hadn’t woken up, would I still have to pay?”
<b>11:01 </b><b>Thu</b><b>, </b><b>Oct </b><b>2 </b>
Jeffrey looked up, paused for a moment, and then answered honestly, “Yeah.”
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Reba took her signed resignation slip and turned to leave. Only now did she <i>realize </i>the penalty came hard been nothing more than a leash meant to keep her there.
She had once stayed because she couldn’t afford to leave, she walked away now because that same summas pocket change to her mother. What had been a lock, she saw atst, was only a thread she hadn’t beer enough to break.
“Just give me ten minutes and I’ll be done. Wait for me after you’re finished, jeffrey called out.
Reba went straight to HR to grab her exit paperwork, got all her stuff sorted, and walked right out of Primey Technologies. She didn’t wait for Jeffrey.
Suddenly, a horn sounded from nearby. A sleek ck car pulled up right in front of her.
Jeffrey stepped out, shooting Reba an indulgent smile. “I knew you wouldn’t just stand there waiting.” he teased, then ushered her into the car before telling the driver, “To the hospital.”
During the drive, Reba didn’t say a word. She gazed out the window at the endless stream of cars and pedestrians, lost in her own thoughts. It wasn’t until they reached the hospital that she finally came back to herself.
Jeffrey got out of the car with her and naturally grabbed her hand. He said, “About that penalty thing—it was totally my selfish move. Come on, be merciful and forgive me just this once, okay?”
Reba totally ignored him, speeding up as she headed straight for the hospital room. But Jeffrey stuck close, making sure not to fall a single step behind.
When they got <i>to </i>the room, Timothy was already there, exining Amelia’s current condition. He greeted Reba and Jeffrey when they walked in.
He then said, “Ms. Jensen’s recovery is going better than expected. If everything continues this way, she’ll be discharged in about a week.”
“Really?” Reba asked, her surprise clear.
Timothy replied, “That’s right. But once she is home, she’ll need to stick to her prescribed exercises. Right now, she can walk pretty much like anyone else, but to reach full strength, she’ll need to keep doing <i>rehab </i>for a good while longer.”
Hope flickered in Reba’s eyes as she nodded. She asked Timothy a few more questions about all the things she’d need to pay special attention to.
Timothy patiently told her everything she needed to know, leaving nothing out.
Watching Reba rattle off questions at Timothy, Jeffrey couldn’t help but think about how cool and distant she’d been with him not long before. He knew she was gearing up to walk away.
Jeffrey thought, ‘Reba, you don’t get to just slip out of my life. You want to y? Fine, I’ll y along. But once you’ve had enough, you’reing home–because that’s where you belong.‘