Chapter 1 The Decision to Sell

When Gwendolyn came home, I'd just listed the house with a real estate agent.

She tossed her apron onto the couch and rolled up her sleeves with a resigned sigh. "Honey, what do you want to eat? I'll make it right now."

"I already ate."

"What did you have?"

"Instant noodles."

Her brows furrowed. "Didn't I tell you to wait for me?"

I glanced at the clock on the wall. "I did for… two hours. You spent them teaching somebody else to make two hot dishes."

Gwendolyn stiffened, looking a little guilty.

"It's my fault. I tend to forget about everything else whenever I'm teaching him how to cook something. I'll make you some soup that's easy on your stomach."

I shook my head. "Don't bother."

"Why not? Didn't you say your stomach hurt yesterday?"

So, she did remember.

"I'm full. I can't drink any more."

She gave me an awkward smile and immediately started looking for my stomach medicine.

Alas, she'd forgotten that she'd taken the last of it from my suitcase and given it to Ryder Mercer, our darling neighbor across the hall.

"Ryder loves spicy food. He should keep some medicine on hand."

Yesterday, my stomach had hurt so badly that my entire body shook in agony. As I had no medication on hand to relieve the pain, I decided to call her.

The moment she answered, I heard the roar of the range hood.

"Gwendolyn, my stomach really hurts… I think my stomach's bleeding."

"Ryder, grab some ginger and garlic. Chop them up first… What did you say?"

I clenched the phone so tightly my fingers hurt. "My… My stomach hurts."

All she did was say an absentminded, "Oh."

Then, she finally seemed to register what I'd said, so she added, "Take some medicine. What do you expect me to do about it? Oh, be careful! Don't let the oil splatter on you…"

Sure enough, Ryder cried out in pain.

She immediately hung up, saying, "Remember to take your medicine. I'm busy."

And so, I was left curled up like a pillbug on the carpet.

I stared at my phone, at the button she'd used to end the call.

Then, I watched the screen dim and go black before letting out a bitter laugh.

My heart grew colder by the minute.

…

Gwendolyn messaged me two hours later. "Feeling any better? If it's really bad, I can come to you."

A bitter ache rose in my chest as my eyes grew damp.

She was in Northgate, while I was away on a business trip in Southgate. The two cities were a thousand miles apart, so there was no way she could realistically make the trip overnight.

Besides, I'd be home tomorrow. "Don't worry. I'm feeling better."

She sent me a smiling emoji. "Let me know an hour before you get home tomorrow. I'll buy groceries and make you something good."

That was her way of making peace with me.

In the years we'd been together, she'd apologize by cooking one dish after another whenever we got into a fight.

I was just about to send her a list of what I wanted when a new post popped up on my social media feed.

Ryder had uploaded several photos of someone holding his wrist while applying medicine to it. His caption read, "It feels so good to have someone care about you."

I stared at that caption for a long, long time. Then, I deleted the items from my list one by one.

I'd held on to one last shred of hope that someone would care about me today. Unfortunately, I came home to a cold stove and no food waiting for me.

"Stop looking. I've already taken my medicine."

Only then did she stop searching and plop down beside me.

"Could you go over to Ryder's in a bit and talk to him?"

"Say what?"

"Apologize. He spent the whole afternoon cooking for you, and you didn't even take a bite. You even gave him attitude on top of that. He was so angry that he nearly burst into tears…"

So… all the concern she'd shown me earlier since she walked through that door was to pad the conversation. She wanted me to apologize.

Her questions regarding my health were fake. Her offer to cook was fake. She didn't really care about my medicine, but her concern over Ryder crying? That was genuine.

My phone buzzed. It was the real estate agent.

"Mr. Cross, I happen to have a buyer lined up. If you're serious about selling, should I tell them?"

I looked up and met Gwendolyn's anxious gaze. Then, I sent back a single word. "Yes."