His Greatest Regret

Chapter Two: Vanessa Sinclair

The next morning, Amelia woke up to an empty bed once again, and when she reached for her phone there were no messages, no missed calls, nothing from Adrian. A tiny part of her wasn't shocked. After years of making excuses for Adrian, she pulled herself out of bed even though the dispute from the previous night still lingered in her mind, the hesitation, the stillness, the answer he had never provided.

At noon, Amelia arrived at Knight Group headquarters. She rarely visited Adrian at work anymore, since the last few times he had been too busy to see her, but she wanted to try again. The receptionist immediately stood when she entered. "Mrs. Knight."

“Hi, Jenna. Is Adrian available?” she asked

The receptionist's smile faltered. "He's currently in a meeting."

Of course he was. Amelia nodded.

She promised she'd wait, but before Jenna could respond, several executives, some of the many, elegant, confident women Amelia had never seen before stood among them, who were laughing at something one of the CEOs had said.

Amelia automatically smiled when Adrian emerged behind them but then she saw that he was grinning too, not the businesslike smile he gave investors but a sincere smile that she hadn’t seen in months.

The woman raised her head, and their gazes locked.

She was shocked for a time before smiling warmly. "Mrs. Knight."

Adrian’s smile disappeared as Amelia blinked, realizing who she was.

“Amelia” "I was in the area," she said, though the lie sounded weak even to her own ears.

Adrian glanced at his watch. "You would've called." he said

There was an awkward silence and then the woman held out her hand. "Vanessa Sinclair."

As soon as Amelia shook it, the name seemed eerily familiar.

Sinclair, the same family Victoria constantly complimented and compared everyone else to. Amelia managed to say, "Nice to meet you," and Vanessa returned the grin.

One of the executives cleared his throat and said they should get going, and Vanessa nodded.

"It was lovely meeting you, Mrs. Knight," Vanessa muttered, then walked away.

Unsettled, Amelia watched her go off in the direction of the lifts. When she turned to face Adrian again, he was already looking at his emails.

"Who is she?", "Vanessa?" She asked.

He didn't wait for confirmation. "A business partner," he said. The answer came too quickly, too prepared, as if he'd rehearsed it.

"I see." Amelia replied.

Adrian slipped his phone into his pocket. "Was there something you needed?"

The question stung. Not “how are you” , not “did you want lunch”, not even “I missed you”, just business, as if she were another appointment on his schedule.

Amelia forced a smile and said no.

“Are you sure?" Adrian asked

“Yes” Amelia replied.

He nodded and muttered “Okay”

She waited for anything else but instead he turned to face the conference room.

"I have another meeting." He said.

She stepped back. "Then don't let me keep you." she replied.

She thought he might apologize after he hesitated but all he did was nod and said “See you tonight.”

After he left Amelia stood there for a long time until Jenna’s voice interrupted her thoughts.

“Mrs. Knight?” she asked with a little smile. “I’m leaving.” she said

That evening, Adrian arrived home after ten to find Amelia on the couch, pretending to read since she hadn't turned a page in nearly an hour.

"You waited up?" he asked.

"I wanted to see my husband." Amelia replied

He loosened his tie and said “Tough day."

She replied "Mine too."

He nodded absentmindedly and headed toward the stairs, but she closed her book.

"Who's Vanessa Sinclair?" Amelia asked.

He stopped. A second passed, then another. "Why?" he asked.

"You seemed comfortable around her."

“She's helping negotiate a merger."

"And that's all?" She asked not nearly satisfied

His frown deepened. "What are you asking?" Adrian replied her.

She almost laughed. Why did every conversation feel like pulling teeth? He Asked her

"Nothing." she said.

"Amelia." Adrian muttered.

"It's fine." She said, She stood.

"Do you know what I realized today? I had to schedule a visit to see my own husband."

His jaw tightened.

"That's not fair." she said.

"Really? You know how busy I've been." He said

"There it is." She responded

"What?" He asked her

"The excuse." Amelia replied.

He exhaled sharply. "I'm not doing this tonight."

"No, let's do it tonight." For once she didn't want to stay quiet, for once she wanted answers. "Do you know when we last had dinner together?" she asked

"Amelia" he muttered.

"Three weeks ago." She laughed humorlessly. "Do you know the last movie we watched together?" She asked again.

“Silence” he replied.

Exactly, this is because of the last two years." Adrian looked away, and that hurt too. He always looked away, as if facing problems made them real.

"You're making this bigger than it is." he said.

The words hit her like a slap. "Bigger than it is? My husband barely speaks to me."

"That's not true." Adrian replied.

“You told your family about my diagnosis." She said

"They deserved to know." he replied

He stroked his temples.

“No, they didn’t”, she said.

“I’m tired and I'm lonely." The words slipped out before she could stop them, and silence filled the room.

His expression softened slightly, but not enough, never enough. "Amelia…",“I don’t know what you want from me,” he said.

This crushed her heart since she now realized that he truly didn’t know.

She had been waiting for consolation, certainty, and affection. He didn't know because he had stopped paying attention long ago.

Amelia nodded slowly. "Goodnight, Adrian." She walked upstairs, and this time, he didn't follow.

Victoria held a luncheon at her home two days later and Amelia was on the verge of turning down Victoria’s invitations but she knew from experience that doing so would lead to more issues.

When she arrived, the dining room was already packed with a number of women seated around the table including businesswomen and family friends.

Vanessa Sinclair was seated in the middle of it all.

Amelia stopped walking, thinking for a second she'd entered the wrong room, until Victoria noticed her.

"There you are." Victoria said. Every eye turned toward Amelia.

Vanessa smiled politely. "Mrs. Knight."

Amelia forced herself to smile back, and Victoria gestured toward the empty seat beside Vanessa.

"Sit." Victoria said.

Amelia sat, sensing that something was seriously off.

As lunch went on, Victoria continued to steer the conversation toward Vanessa who had recently joined the Sinclair board, graduated first in her class, and spoke four languages.

Amelia sipped her water in silence, thinking it felt more like an introduction than a luncheon, as if Victoria were showcasing and promoting someone. Then came the final blow.

Victoria smiled at Vanessa. She told her that Vanesa and Adrian have always gotten along so well. The room became quiet. Vanessa had an uneasy expression. Amelia froze.

Victoria continued, "Such a shame you never met Adrian sooner," and Amelia slowly lowered her glass as several women exchanged looks across the table.

Nothing was mentioned. Nobody had to. It was very clear what was implied. For the first time, Amelia questioned whether she was the only one who thought her marriage was secure.