Chapter 4

The M-embroidered slippers on Monica's feet bobbed up and down, while I was still wearing a pair of disposable ones.

The sizzle of hot oil drifted out from the kitchen.

When she saw me, Monica stood up. There was no trace of her taunting from that afternoon, only an air of humble gratitude. "Laurel..."

I walked past her and went to the walk-in closet to get my suitcase.

Just then, Kevin Russell came out of the kitchen, his tone accusatory. "Laurel, why are you putting on airs? Monica came all the way here to thank you in person. Can't you be a little more gracious?"

My gaze swept over him, a spatula in his hand and an apron tied around his waist.

In all the time we'd been married, Kevin had never once cooked. He said his sinuses couldn't handle the cooking fumes. He said he was a university professor, and his hands were meant only for holding a pen.

But now, for his beloved student, he had a spatula in one hand and a dishrag in the other.

His sinus problems, his lofty airs, were all miraculously cured.

And even so, he still thought I was the one in the wrong.

I didn't even have the energy to argue. I just shook my head and turned to leave.

He caught hold of me, his eyes earnest. "I told Monica about us. She knows you're my wife."

I stopped and looked at him, unmoved. "And?"

Kevin frowned, as if it were hard to say.

Monica stepped closer, her eyes red. "Laurel, you've got the wrong idea about Professor Russell and me. He just felt sorry for me and wanted to help.

"You passed the staff hiring exam, and your name is up on the university's notice board. Could you..." She glanced at me, her voice timid but her eyes vicious. "Could you put out a statement... saying you're voluntarily giving up your spot? That way, my hiring would be legitimate."

The moment the words left her mouth, Kevin looked away, embarrassed. He didn't dare look at me, much less ask me himself.

But the fact that he'd brought Monica here at all already made his position clear.

I smiled and turned to Kevin. "I'll put out the statement. But you have to sign a document for me."

"What is it?"

Kevin put down the dishrag and wiped his hands on his apron.

I took the agreement out of my bag and held it out to him.

He froze. His brown eyes wavered for a moment, as if they'd turned to ice.

Monica looked at the document in my hand. A gleam of secret delight flickered in her eyes, but she started sobbing out loud.

"Mrs. Russell, it's okay if you don't want to! Worst case, I'll give up the position and go back to working odd jobs. You don't need to scare the professor with a divorce!"

Her crying seemed to jolt Kevin awake. He stood there stunned for a few seconds, and then a flash of suppressed anger rose on his face.

"Laurel! Are you done yet? Do you really want a divorce that badly?"

"Yes!"

I nodded and met his gaze without backing down an inch.

"She likes you, and you like her. I'll hand her my place as the professor's wife. From now on, she doesn't need to hide her slippers in my safe. They're filthy!"

Kevin's face went rigid.

I shoved the agreement into his hands and turned to leave.

The next second, something crashed.

Kevin had hurled the spatula into the corner. His face darkened, his eyes full of fury.

"I'm the one who's been holding this family together all along! What gives you the right to just walk away? You think you're the only one who's been wronged? Monica..."

"Professor! Calm down! Don't say it."

Monica was urging him to stop, but at the same time, she shoved the page I'd already signed right in front of Kevin's face.

His face darkened completely. Gritting his teeth, he spat, "Monica's pregnant, and she never once thought about fighting for any kind of recognition. All she wants is a staff position. She even came here in person to apologize to you, and you're threatening me with a divorce!

"Let me tell you something. Without you, I'll be better off!"

Kevin stepped forward, his glare seeming to pin me in place. "Fine, let's get divorced! Laurel, don't you dare regret this!"

I didn't look at Monica's smug face, nor at her slightly rounded belly. I kept my eyes locked on Kevin.

He had once carried me on his back for miles through heavy snow. His feet had been covered in bloody blisters, but he couldn't bear to let me walk a single step.

He'd secretly used his teaching assistant's salary to pay four years of my tuition and living expenses. He'd been so broke himself that he lived on stale bread rolls, but he never said a word to me about it.

The night I got my diploma, he knelt on a mountaintop and shouted to me, "Laurel Ferris! Wait three years for me. No, just one. Once I make associate professor, we'll make it public!

"I'm dying for the whole world to know you're my wife, and I can't wait to start a family with you!"

But I waited year after year.

Now he'd finally become a full professor, and he was about to become a father with someone else.

My heart ached with bitterness. Holding back my tears, I let out a soft laugh. "Congratulations, then."

"Laurel! Is that all you have to say?"

Kevin's brows were drawn, and his expression was harsh, a cruelty I'd never seen on him before.

I shook my head, my voice so soft it seemed to scatter in the wind. "Once you've signed the papers, please send them back to me."

With that, I didn't bother with my suitcase. I didn't bother with Kevin's furious face. I turned and ran out the door.

I got in a taxi.

Changed my flight.

Checked in.

As the cabin door closed, my phone buzzed nonstop. Every notification was a voice message from Kevin.

"Laurie, look at your phone. I've already announced our relationship..."