Chapter 3

Monday, I went to work as usual.

I'm a budget estimator at a renovation firm. The pay is low and the work never ends.

Hugh Gilbert used to complain that the job was too hard on me. He said once we were married, he'd take care of me.

In my last life I actually believed him. After the wedding I quit and built my whole world around him.

Then he got sick, and every bill, every payment, every loan fell to me alone.

"Zoe." Nanette James, my department manager, tapped my desk.

"The Harbor City project team needs a records clerk. Three-month posting."

"Housing's covered out there, and the pay's a little better than here."

"Weren't you saying you couldn't travel far because of the wedding?"

Harbor City was over eight hundred kilometers away. Going meant leaving Hugh behind.

Nanette saw me hesitate and added,

"You don't have to answer now."

"But there's only one spot."

I answered quietly,

"Let me think about it, Nanette."

At noon Hugh showed up in the lobby, waiting for me.

He had a hot latte in his hand, the one I used to love most.

My coworkers were all teasing me with a smile.

"Zoe, your boyfriend's here to pick you up again."

"So handsome, and he does it every day. I'm so jealous."

Hearing all that, Hugh slipped back into his old gentleness and handed me the latte.

"Still angry?"

"I was busy taking care of Mari all weekend. I didn't have time for you."

I didn't take the latte.

"What did you come here for?"

The smile on his face thinned a little.

"I wanted to talk something over with you."

"Marianne's rental has a leak. The landlord says it'll take a few days to fix."

"Her leg still isn't healed, and a hotel would be inconvenient for her."

"I told her she could stay at our place for a few days."

I looked at him and asked,

"And where are you putting her?"

"The master bedroom," he said.

"It's close to the bathroom, so she can get around easier."

"You can take the spare room."

Then, as if afraid I'd read too much into it, he added,

"Just a few days."

"Don't overthink it."

A wave of exhaustion hit me. That apartment was one he and I had rented together.

I was the one who washed the sheets, chose the curtains, carried every potted plant onto the balcony one by one.

But in Hugh's mouth, I could be tossed somewhere else the moment it suited him.

I stared at him and asked, one word at a time.

"Hugh, what exactly is Marianne to you?"

His brows knotted tight.

"Here we go again."

"I've told you plenty of times, she's just an old friend."

"She's having a hard time right now. I'm only giving her a hand."

"A friend?" I let out a cold laugh.

"Does a friend need to move into the master bedroom you share with your fiancée?"

"Does a friend need you to abandon me at my own proposal?"

"Does a friend need you to walk out on the day I was visiting my mother's grave?"

Hugh's face darkened further.

"Zoe, can you stop clinging to all these things?"

"You know how sensitive Mari is."

"If she finds out you resent her this much, she'll be hurt all over again."

Even now, all he could think about was whether Marianne would be hurt.

He never once asked whether I was.

Seeing my eyes redden, Hugh reached out to hold me. I stepped back and dodged him.

His hand froze in midair.

"Enough."

"I'll cook for you tonight."

"Just give her the master bedroom for a few days. Don't make it awkward for everyone."

He turned and left the moment he'd said it, without even waiting for me to agree.

At six that evening I got home, and the door opened onto an unfamiliar perfume.

Marianne was sitting in my usual seat, her leg wrapped in a bandage, hugging my throw pillow to her chest.

Hugh was cooking in the kitchen. He heard the noise and leaned out.

"You're back?"

"Go put your things in the spare room first."

"I made bone broth for Mari. There's some in the pot for you too."

I stood in the entryway and didn't move.

Marianne hurried to get up.

"Zoe, I'm sorry."

"I didn't want to stay in a hotel, so Hugh brought me here."

"I meant to take the spare room, but Hugh said the master was more convenient..."

As she spoke her eyes reddened, and Hugh dropped the spatula at once and rushed out.

"Don't move."

"The doctor said you can't strain yourself."

He steadied Marianne and looked back at me.

"See? It's really not a big deal."

I bent to change my shoes, and beside the shoe cabinet I saw a wad of tissues stained with blood.

I went still. Hugh's hand shot out to grab it, but I picked it up first.

There was a dark red patch inside the tissue. My voice shook.

"You're coughing up blood?"

Hugh's expression shifted slightly. "It's just a scratched throat."

I seized his wrist. "Tomorrow you're coming with me to the hospital for a checkup."

He flung my hand off.

"Zoe, don't make a fuss over nothing."

"I've got something to do tomorrow."

I stared at him and demanded,

"What could be more important than the hospital?"

Hugh said nothing. Marianne spoke up softly from the side.

"Hugh promised to help me move things out of my studio tomorrow."

"Or I could just go myself..."

Hugh whipped his head around and stared at her. "No."

"Your leg isn't healed. Don't push yourself."

My hand slipped off his wrist. So the something he had to do was Marianne again.

He looked at my pale face and seemed a little guilty.

"After I finish the move tomorrow, I'll go to the hospital."

"I promise you."

I said nothing more. That night I messaged Nanette.

【Nanette, is the Harbor City spot still open?】