Chapter 6 My Husband Reminded Me to Be Proper
1409 Words
I accepted the transfer.
He was using $200,000 to buy my propriety.
And I was going to use this dress to buy every last bit of his fear.
At lunch, I had a wonderful conversation with my teacher and fellow violin students.
They agreed to notify me if there were any performance opportunities in the future.
I understood something then.
Standing under the spotlight, being admired and liked by others, could greatly satisfy a person's emotional needs.
That sense of value was something an invisible, supportive wife could never experience.
Lila was a natural social butterfly.
She chatted quite well with my classmates and even started thinking about learning with me.
I immediately shut down her unrealistic idea.
"This is an adult class. We'll talk about it when you're older."
*****
For the college reunion that night, after finishing my afternoon lesson, I dropped Lila off at the Hale family estate.
I ignored Margaret's dissatisfaction about my upcoming return to work and left the estate, heading straight to pick up Josie.
The moment Josie got into the car, she tossed the three divorce case files she had handled today into the back seat, rubbed her temples, and complained,
"Another scumbag trying to transfer marital assets. These men's methods are getting dirtier and dirtier."
As a top divorce attorney, she had seen the darkest side of marriage.
And because of that, she had always stayed single, enjoying absolute financial freedom and emotional independence.
I simply listened quietly and gave no opinion.
Josie suddenly tugged at my clothes and smiled.
"Serena, do you know who's treating everyone tonight? Our college class president. He's a manager at a tech company now. Very promising."
When we arrived at the restaurant, the entrance was full of familiar faces.
As soon as Josie and I walked over, everyone's eyes lit up.
"The campus beauty is here."
Back in college, another great beauty and I had both been nominated as campus beauties, but I had lost because of family background.
I did not care about it myself, but plenty of people had treated it as gossip behind my back.
"The fake campus beauty," I said modestly as I greeted them.
At the dinner table, a group of men bragged about their success.
Someone asked what I was doing now.
I said I was a full-time wife, and that ended the conversation.
In my previous life, I had not attended this reunion.
Facing these successful old classmates, I had always wanted to hide as a full-time housewife.
Aside from Josie, not many people knew I had married Julian.
They only knew I was married.
They did not know exactly what my husband did.
At most, they probably knew I was not short on money.
Halfway through dinner, Julian called.
I let the ringtone play until my phone went quiet.
The man paying for tonight's reunion was our class president, Leo Burton.
He had a dignified appearance, wore a suit, and carried the air of a corporate executive.
He stood in the center of the crowd, being flattered by everyone, wearing the expression a successful man ought to have.
His gaze kept drifting toward me from time to time.
"Serena..."
Suddenly, not far away, the most outgoing guy in our class, who had once been one of my pursuers, loudly called my name.
Everyone turned around.
When he called my name, a group of people was walking out.
The man at the very front stopped and looked back at me.
He was very young, lean and tall, over six feet, dressed in a dark blue suit with gold-rimmed glasses.
The vintage light by the door fell across his face.
I accidentally met his eyes.
Leo rushed over in just a few steps, eagerly introducing himself to the man like a loyal lackey and handing over his business card.
The man nodded politely and reached out to take the card.
"Hello."
After saying that, he suddenly glanced at me.
Actually, I had been watching him the whole time.
I could not help it.
When a young, handsome face suddenly appeared among a crowd of unattractive men, it naturally drew the eye.
After the polite farewells at the restaurant entrance ended, I planned to send Josie back to her apartment.
Just as I was walking down the steps, I heard someone call my name again.
"Serena."
The voice was very familiar.
But it startled me as I was going down the stairs.
"Careful!" Josie shouted.
My heel caught on the edge of the step, and my body pitched forward.
I did not scream.
Instead, I steadied my balance, swiftly slipped off the shoe, and stood barefoot on one foot on the step.
"Need any help?"
A low male voice came from behind me.
I turned around.
It was the man who had been surrounded by Leo at the restaurant entrance.
He did not reach out to touch me.
He only stood at a polite but quietly imposing distance and handed me the phone I had dropped.
"Thank you."
I took the phone without the slightest embarrassment.
Then I walked down the rest of the steps openly, wearing only one shoe.
His gaze followed me, and the corner of his mouth curved in an almost imperceptible smile.
Julian stood at the bottom of the steps.
The streetlight shone from behind him, so I could not see his expression clearly.
I could only see that his shoulders were tense and his jaw was tight, like some kind of animal ready to strike.
It was the look Julian had when he was angry.
I curved my lips mockingly.
He was the one who suddenly called out and startled his wife.
Now a kind stranger had helped me, and he still had to act like this?
"Did you twist your ankle?" he asked me.
But his eyes were fixed on that man.
"No."
"That's good."
Only then did he finally shift his gaze to me.
The corner of his mouth pulled into an arc that was not a smile.
"I came to take you home."
"Mr. Reed," Julian said, extending his hand. "Thank you for taking care of my wife."
He emphasized the last two words heavily.
Their hands clasped together.
The veins on the back of Julian's hand stood out slightly.
Mr. Reed's knuckles turned pale.
"It was nothing."
Mr. Reed's gaze swept over me.
"Ms. Voss... watch your step."
He did not call me Mrs. Hale.
Curious, I glanced at him.
The corner of Julian's mouth twitched again.
He reached out, wrapped an arm around my waist, and led me down.
"Seen enough?" Julian's voice came from above my head.
He had already opened the car door, one hand resting on the doorframe as he waited for me to get in.
I bent down and sat in the passenger seat.
He shut the door with more force than usual, and the car trembled slightly.
The two of us sat in silence.
I did not know how he had found out where his wife's reunion was, or why he had rushed over just to play the role of a devoted husband.
I did not want to ask either.
Julian broke the silence in the car and looked at me.
"Do you know that man, Hudson Reed?"
I looked out the window.
"His name is Hudson? That's a nice name."
"You've changed a lot lately. What is going on?" Julian's tone carried displeasure.
"What part are you referring to?"
I reached up and twirled a strand of long hair around my finger.
"The way you dress. It's different from before."
Sure enough, Julian had noticed my appearance.
"Do I not look good dressed like this?" I smiled.
"You don't look dignified enough."
Julian went straight to the point.
I suddenly found it amusing.
"Dignified? Do you still remember the vows you made when you married me? No matter what I became, you said you would like me, support me, and love me."
I used his own words to block him.
Sure enough, he went silent.
"Anything else? I'm tired. I want to rest."
I did not want to listen to his nonsense and waste time
"Why can't you stay home more? Lila’s still little and needs you to look after her."
I let out a cold laugh and turned to glance at Julian, whose expression reeked of self-righteousness. "Who said I lose the right to my own social life just because I’m a mother?"
- Writer
