Chapter 2

Vanessa immediately grew indignant. “Were you following me?”

Aaron saw her anger but had no intention of soothing her.

Instead, he said, “Before I met you, I had never dated anyone. After we married, you became the first woman I’d ever slept with.

“That was when I learned what it was like to have sex with a woman. You’re beautiful, and you come from an excellent family, so you must have plenty of admirers.

“There are probably countless men more accomplished than me. If you ever meet someone who truly makes your heart race, tell me. I’ll set you free. But if you deceive me, that changes everything.”

“Aaron, what are you talking about? This afternoon… it wasn’t what you think! His name is Gavin Ford, the chairman of Longshore Industries. I was discussing a business account with him.”

Vanessa picked up her phone and pulled up the bank’s client list.

Longshore Industries appeared near the top.

She explained, “The bank set a midyear deposit-acquisition target. Each of the five vice presidents is responsible for one of the top five companies.

“Gavin and I were already friends, so I was the one assigned to meet with him. He happened to be meeting a client at the hotel and introduced me to him. It was nothing more than an ordinary business lunch.”

Aaron had no interest in listening to her excuses.

His head began to pound, and he pressed his fingertips against both temples. “You take clients to a hotel to do business? What kind of deal could possibly be worth—”

“Aaron, stop being so sarcastic! I didn’t do any of the disgusting things you’re imagining!”

Vanessa was furious.

She puffed out her cheeks and said, “You come home and immediately start acting suspicious. Aren’t you going to apologize? Beg me to forgive you!”

Aaron rubbed his temples for a while longer. Once he felt a little better, he took a document from his briefcase and handed it to Vanessa.

“What’s this? Divorce papers? You want a divorce?”

Vanessa flew into a rage and tore the papers apart.

“Aaron, you want to divorce me over something you imagined happened at the hotel this afternoon? Are you out of your mind?”

“Yes, I’m sick! I must have been blind to marry a woman as promiscuous as you!”

Aaron’s anger flared. He stood up abruptly, grabbed his briefcase, and turned to leave.

“Don’t you dare walk away! Who are you calling promiscuous? Aaron, apologize right now, or you’ll regret it!”

Vanessa reached out to stop him, refusing to let him tarnish her reputation.

But before she could say anything else, Aaron spun around and slapped her across the face.

Vanessa stood there, completely stunned.

“After everything you’ve done, you still expect me to apologize? To hell with that! I’m not letting this go either!”

Aaron looked at Vanessa’s stunned face. Her eyes brimmed with hurt and resentment, and an inexplicable ache pierced his heart.

She was the one who infected him with HIV, and he had already progressed to the symptomatic stage. He could die at any moment.

As a dying man, what did he have left to fear?

“I’ll print another copy of the divorce papers. If you still refuse to sign, I’ll see you in court!”

With those final words, Aaron slammed the door behind him and left.

Once inside his car, tears welled up again, blurring his vision.

Three years of love disappeared in an instant.

His life was ending too.

When he got home, Aaron took a shower and ate some bread, only to vomit it up when another wave of AIDS symptoms hit him.

He printed another copy of the divorce papers on the computer in his study. Just as he was about to shut it down, an email notification appeared in the lower-right corner of the screen.

He opened it and saw that the sender was his supervisor at work. He was also his doctoral advisor.

The attachment contained research materials relevant to the project he was working on.

The message asked him to finish the remaining work on one project and claim the final installment of its funding—around one million.

He also needed to proofread two other papers as soon as possible and handle their publication if everything was in order.

His mentor’s wife was celebrating her birthday next month, so he had to make it back in time.

His mentor, Edward Jones, had always treated him well.

Without him, Aaron would never have achieved anything he had today.

Before he died, he could at least help Edward finish a few tasks as a final repayment.

Aaron sighed, shook off his exhaustion, and began working.

When he was only three or four months old, someone abandoned him outside an orphanage.

After growing up, he was lucky enough to earn admission to college.

He treasured the opportunity and worked hard, maintaining excellent grades throughout his studies.

During his freshman year, Edward took pity on him and recognized his potential.

After learning about Aaron’s circumstances, Edward took it upon himself to pay his tuition and living expenses.

He even invited Aaron to stay at his home on many occasions.

Edward had only one daughter and no son. Since they shared the same surname, he treated Aaron as his own.

Whether at the university or through his connections at the Eastbridge Geological Survey, Edward did everything he could to nurture Aaron’s career.

Though they were not related by blood, he treated Aaron better than a biological son.

Aaron and Vanessa fell in love at first sight, but that wasn’t the only reason they got married.

Edward personally persuaded Vanessa’s parents, meeting with them several times and urging them to accept Aaron as their own son.

Eventually, Vanessa’s parents let go of their prejudice against his humble family background.

After contracting this disease, how could he ever face Edward again?

“I have let Professor Jones down!”

The thought filled Aaron with fresh, inexplicable grief. Tears streamed down his face, and he covered it with his hands as he broke down sobbing.

Much later, after finishing his work, he sat there in a daze. A loud bang suddenly came from outside. The study door was kicked open, jolting him back to reality.

Vanessa stormed in, her eyes blazing with fury.

“Aaron, go ahead and hit me again if you’ve got the nerve! Let me see what kind of man you really are—a man who can bring himself to hit his own wife! Come on! Hit me until I’m dead!”

Aaron frowned and pulled out the freshly printed divorce papers, holding them out for Vanessa to sign.

Vanessa did not even glance at them. She tore them to shreds and flung the pieces straight at Aaron’s face.

For a long moment, Aaron and Vanessa stared each other down. Neither of them showed any intention of backing down.

Aaron rummaged through his briefcase, took out the test results, and handed them to Vanessa. “Take a good look.”

HIV Test Result: Positive.

“You—you have AIDS?”

Vanessa staggered back in shock, and the notice slipped from her fingers.

Aaron saw something different in her eyes—prejudice and disgust.

The realization broke his heart. “You don’t need to recoil from AIDS as though it were poison. You’re infected too!

“The doctor even said you were the one who passed it on to me. You said I was sick, and for once, you were right. I am sick. But so are you!”

“Aaron, stop talking nonsense! How could I be infected? I’m perfectly healthy!”

Aaron studied Vanessa’s radiant face and healthy-looking body. If he were not living with HIV himself, he would never have believed that she could be infected too.

But could anyone really tell just by looking?

“Then go to the hospital and get tested!”

“Of course I’ll get tested! But how can you say I infected you, Aaron? Just because I’m your wife?”

Aaron counted the possibilities on his fingers.

“There are three main ways HIV spreads: through blood, sexual contact, or from mother to child. We both underwent infectious-disease screenings before getting married, so we can rule out mother-to-child transmission.

“I don’t use drugs, I’ve never suffered any serious injuries, and I’ve never been exposed to an infected person’s blood. That rules out blood transmission too.

“So that leaves only one possibility. I’m not gay, I’ve never paid for sex, and you’re the only woman I’ve ever been with. You’re promiscuous. If you didn’t infect me, who did?”

“I—I’m not promiscuous…”

“Vanessa, you don’t need to explain yourself. The more you explain, the guiltier you sound! Your job requires you to attend social engagements, doesn’t it?

“When you travel for work, you stay in hotels or private clubs. You’re always meeting people, and plenty of your close friends spend their nights in karaoke bars, nightclubs, and hotels!

“I just happened to see you getting that close to another man this afternoon. Who knows how many times you’ve done the same thing when I wasn’t around?”

Vanessa had intended to argue with Aaron and make him admit his mistake and apologize.

Instead, she learned that he was living with AIDS. The news struck her like a bolt from the blue.

Worse still, Aaron suspected that she was the one who infected him.

She felt deeply uncomfortable with his accusation.

But when she thought about it carefully, it did seem possible.

After all, the men and women who came and went through karaoke bars, nightclubs, and hotels could easily include people living with HIV.

Could she be infected too?

Vanessa suddenly grew uneasy.

Forget her friends, even Aaron, who stood right in front of her, was living with AIDS.

As his wife, she was at obvious risk of exposure.

She instinctively took another two steps back.

When Aaron suddenly rose to his feet and walked toward her, she warned him, “Don’t come any closer!”