Chapter 3

Evelyn continued, "Don't believe everything Arthur says. People get paranoid after a brush with death. For all we know, that's why you got divorced back then. Maybe you never trusted your ex, either."

Dad trembled with anger.

I stared at Evelyn, disappointment sinking deeper by the second.

Back when I told her my mother had secretly had another child, one even older than me, Evelyn had held me around the waist and sworn she would never cheat on me.

Technically, she had kept that promise. I was the only man she had ever been with.

But since when did an emotional affair not count?

Thomas hid behind Evelyn and sniffled softly.

"Professor, let's just go. Uneducated people are terrifying. I thought I was looking at my own parents for a second."

At that, Evelyn's face hardened. "You'd better think this through."

I ignored Thomas's little performance and waved a nurse over.

Dad's head still needed treatment. There was no point wasting any more time on two people who no longer mattered.

After I returned to my hospital bed, I opened the divorce agreement I still hadn't finished.

My phone buzzed. It was a message from Evelyn.

[I deposited some money with the hospital. Don't skimp on anything.]

Fifteen minutes later, a delivery guy came in, carrying a bouquet of roses.

The nurse setting up my IV looked openly jealous.

"Mr. Wells, your wife is so romantic. I don't think I've ever seen a man receive flowers before."

I gave a bitter smile and murmured, "Is that right?"

But I was allergic to roses.

On our first date, Evelyn had given me roses, too.

I hadn't wanted to embarrass her, so I forced myself to say I loved them. After that, whenever she bought me flowers, she always chose roses first.

Never mind that they made my nose turn red and left my arms covered in angry little rashes.

Evelyn never noticed.

I scrolled on social media and saw Thomas's newest post. He had taken a picture of a meal without showing the woman's face.

But he had caught her hand as she cut into a steak.

Her ring finger, the one that should have had her wedding band on it, only held a faint pale mark.

I closed the app and slipped off the wedding ring I had worn for three years. Then, I sent the completed divorce agreement to Evelyn.

The next second, her call came through.

"Arthur, what the hell are you doing? You know I can't leave you, so you're using that against me, aren't you?"

I let out a self-mocking laugh. "You must be having a great time taking Thomas to the most famous date-night restaurant in town."

The line went quiet for a few seconds.

When Evelyn spoke again, guilt had crept into her voice. "How did you know? Did you have someone follow me?"

"I'm not that bored."

I heard her footsteps on the other end, like she had moved somewhere quieter.

"Thomas and I aren't what you think. We were busy dealing with his parents last night, and he hadn't eaten all day. I picked the restaurant at random. What was I supposed to do, let him starve just to avoid gossip?"

I tightened my grip on the phone, my voice turning cold.

"Evelyn, do you know what gives you away? You talk too much when you're guilty."

I didn't wait for her answer. I hung up.

After I was discharged, I told Dad to go home and rest while I went back to the apartment alone.

I hadn't been there in a month, and the place looked almost unfamiliar.

A pair of men's running shoes sat beside the entryway. My favorite mug was gone from the counter, replaced by a brand-new coffee maker.

The plants I used to keep on the balcony were gone, too. In their place, a pair of men's boxer briefs hung out to dry.

I still remembered the day Evelyn put the deed in my hands. Back then, her eyes had been full of me.

"Arthur," she said, "we have a home now. When we have kids someday, we'll move into a bigger place."

Three years of marriage, and there had never been a child.

The future she had promised wasn't something I believed in anymore.