Jeffrey,e over and have a chat,” Amelia called out to him. She caught the look in his <i>eyes </i>when he nced at Reba.
Jeffrey walked over and sat down.
Amelia kept a polite smile, but she didn’t pull any punches. She asked, “So, have you made up your mind about what we discussed before?”
Jeffrey replied firmly, “I already told you. Reba is my wife, and I’m not divorcing her.”
Amelia pressed, “Even if she’s unhappy with you?”
Jeffrey said, “I’ll do everything I can to make her happy.”
Amelia locked eyes with him and asked, “And if she’s still unhappy after all your efforts?”
Jeffrey said, “We’ll cross that bridge when wee to it. But right now, the bigger question is whether you want Reba to acknowledge Ryan as her father. From what I’ve heard, he’s been making preparations for that since he returned to Honn.”
Amelia shot back, “What does that have to do with me?”
Jeffrey said, “Reba is his daughter.”
Amelia asked, “And where’s the proof?”
Jeffrey paused for a second, a little stunned.
Amelia continued, “A private DNA test isn’t legally binding. Even if he tries to take it to court, he’ll lose. He doesn’t stand a chance with this.”
Jeffrey didn’t say a word. His question was just him probing, trying to see if Reba would ever admit Ryan was her dad–and working out his next move.
Amelia saw right through him but didn’t expose it. Instead, she added, “But if anyone tries to mess with Reba, I won’t hesitate to use him to shield her.”
Jeffrey nced up and thought, ‘Amelia is just too clever for her own good.
Just then, Reba walked over after finishing her chat with Timothy. She asked, “What do you mean by using him?”
Amelia replied, “Nothing. Why don’t you arrange for a couple of cleaners toe tidy up our ceter? Since we’re leaving the hospital next week, it’ll be nice to go home to a fresh house.”
Reba replied, “Okay.”
Jeffrey said, “Reba’s Manor has a dedicated team of nutritionists and rehab specialists. You should just
<b>11:01 </b><b>Thu</b><b>, </b><b>Oct </b><b>2 </b>
move back there.”
Amelia shot back. “No. I’ve got zero interest in a ce that keeps swapping owners.
Jeffrey wanted to say it was only something said out of frustration, but quickly realized Amelia wasn’t just hung up on the past–she was also quietly nning for their departure.
If they stayed at Reba’s Manor, it would be too obvious when they decided to leave.
Jeffrey said. “Then I’ll have the nutritionist and rehab specialiste over to your ce. You’ve only just woken up, so you need to be careful with what you eat.”
Reba said, “I’ve already got everything arranged. Really, you don’t need to bother.”
Jeffrey said. “It’s my job as your husband to help out with these things. Why don’t you show me the nutritionist you’ve hired? Let me make sure they’re good enough.”
Reba just gave him a long, silent stare.
For once, Jeffrey had no idea what had made her so angry. He asked, “What’s wrong?”
Reba hesitated for a moment, but ended up swallowing her true feelings. She just brushed it off, saying, “It’s nothing.”
Everything Reba had gone through recently had her so on edge that the smallest thing Jeffrey said–if it rubbed her the wrong way–could make her snap at him without even thinking.
The moment she heard his words, she couldn’t help but feel that Jeffrey didn’t trust her, like she was hopeless and couldn’t do a thing right. But the truth was, she was overthinking it. In reality, it was just him trying to care about her.
Since Reba didn’t want to talk, Jeffrey let it go. When mealtime rolled around, he had dinner delivered, ate with them, then headed back to work.
After that, he made a point to drop by every single day. Even though Amelia didn’t really want him around, he kepting no matter what. And when it was time for Amelia to leave the hospital, he sent someone to pick her up.
If anyone was happier than Reba when Amelia got discharged, it was Timothy. He was genuinely overjoyed to see Amelia fully recover, and couldn’t help but feel moved knowing that all of Reba’s tireless efforts had finally paid off.
Before they knew it, the end of the month had rolled around.
After dinner that night, Amelia and Reba took a stroll through the vi’s garden.
Amelia noticed that Reba seemed happy on the surface, but something was weighing on her. She asked, “I’m pretty much back to normal now. Do you want to leave soon, or wait a bit longer?”
Reba asked, “Are we really going to Honn?”
<b>11:01 </b><b>Thu</b><b>, </b><b>Oct </b><b>2 </b>
Amelia nodded. <fn25c3> Th?s chapter is updated by FιndNovel</fn25c3>
” L80 <b>] </b>
55 vouchers
Reba’s expression was conflicted. She asked, “But weren’t you always saying you hated that ce?”
Amelia replied, “I used to, but now I just feel indifferent.” Moving to Honn was not something she decided on a whim–she gave it a lot of thought.
Whether it was education, healthcare, or starting a business and finding jobs, Honn was the best ce after Jsburg.
Reba asked, “Why?”
For Reba, if Amelia was only doing this for her and Samuel–suppressing her real feelings–Reba wouldn’t hesitate to choose another city. She didn’t want Amelia to sacrifice so much for her, especially when Amelia hadn’t truly moved on.
Amelia said, “I used to be so stubborn. I thought I couldn’t go back just because the people I hated were still
there.
“Now I’ve figured it out–the ones at fault are they, not me. Why should I be the one who leaves? They’re the ones who should feel ashamed when they see me.”
Back when she was young, Amelia was way too stubborn for her own good. That stubborn streak stuck with her, even as she got older.
But seeing what Reba had gone through–and how Ryan hade all this way for her—Amelia understood. The ones she cared about would always be close. The ones she couldn’t stand would still pop up sooner orter.
So she figured she might as well pick a good ce, stay with loved ones, and forget all that old baggage–just focus on living the good life.
“Once you and Richard get the divorce certificate, we’ll leave,” Reba said. She hadn’t been able to get her own, and she didn’t want her mom to miss out, too.
Amelia nodded and said, “Alright.”
Once all that was settled, Reba just acted like everything was normal, keeping up appearances through the rest of her days.
Jeffrey came by every day, sharing a room with Reba, saying “I love you” over and over again. Sometimes he’d bring her gifts–flowers, or some quirky little thing he’d stumbled across.
He kept treating her with the same devotion he’d shown all throughout their five years of marriage.
But Reba just couldn’t bring herself to love him back. A wall had grown between them, thick and imprable; no matter what he did, it was never enough for her.
She’d find herself shutting him out without even thinking about it, her heart drifting further away every day.
Before they knew it, August 16th had arrived. The mandatory cooling–off period before Amelia and Richard’s
11:02 Thu<b>, </b><b>Oct </b><b>2 </b>
divorce was just about over.
Reba had already booked their flights out of Jsburg, and Amelia took extra steps to hide their booking information so Jeffrey wouldn’t be able to trace their departure.
That night, Jeffrey got off work early. After dinner, he gently took Reba’s hand and led her into the garden for a walk. He could tell from her absent–minded look that she was no longer truly with him–her heart had already drifted away.
“Reba,” he called softly.
Lately, Reba’s attitude toward him had been gentle but distant. She replied, “Yeah?”
Jeffrey squeezed her hand and said, “There’s a dinner on Monday night. Come with me?<b>” </b>
Reba paused.
Monday was August 19, the day Amelia and Richard were to finalize their divorce. Once it was done, Reba and Amelia would <i>be </i>leaving with Samuel.
Jeffrey pressed, “You said you couldn’t handle being close to me, but that you’d stille along to events if I needed. It’s just showing up for a bit, nothing serious–half an hour, tops.”
Reba finally said, “I’m busy that day. I’ve got something else I need to do.”
Jeffrey frowned and pressed, “What exactly?”
Reba replied, “We’re celebrating Mom and Richard’s divorce.”
“Dinner’s at five. We’ll just swing by, make an appearance, and get back in time to party with your mom. Sound good?” Jeffrey replied, totally unfazed, like he’d already mapped out every detail.
Reba frowned.
Jeffrey fixed his gaze on her and suddenly cut straight to the point, “Or do you mean the real celebration is you heading out with Amelia and Samuel?”
<b>AD</b>