Chapter 10 The days that followed blurred into one another , filled with meetings , documents , emails , and more meetings . I threw myself into the research project with Alice , letting the schedule bury me so deep that I could barely come up for air . I told myself it was for progress . For growth . For distraction . But distraction wasnt easy when my mind kept drifting back to the estate . No matter how much I worked , Rozens presence clung to me like a scent I couldnt wash off . The way he held open the door every time I entered the car . The way hed loosen his tie first thing when we got home , sighing like he had carried the world all day . The way he silently placed my favorite tea on my desk one morning , without a word , only a small post it . You looked tired . And the way hed glance at me sometimes , across the dining table , when he thought I wasnt looking like he was trying to memorize my face . It was ridiculous how little things stuck with me . One afternoon , I had gotten a mild fever after a meeting , and instead of calling staff , he sat by my bed , reading his emails beside me , waiting for the doctor . He didnt say anything , just stayed there . That was the thing with Rozen he didnt talk much , but his silence often said more than words could . But then I would remember the library . The vase . The rage in his voice . You ruined her vase . This is something she had made . Whoever she was . The girl in the painting . The ghost he still mourned . No matter how many warm gestures he gave me , I reminded myself he never chose me . He married me because of a deal . Because of inheritance . Because I was convenient . I had no place in his heart . And I didnt want to beg for one . One morning , as I arrived at the research center , a staff member walked up to me holding a bouquet of peonies . My stomach twisted . If its from Thomas or Scott , I snapped , throw it . The staff flinched slightly . Its from your husband . I blinked . Rozen ? He handed it over . I stared at the white and blush pink arrangement subtle , delicate , elegant . There was a small black envelope tucked in between the stems . My fingers hesitated , then slid it open . Be ready by 7. Wear something red . That was it . No explanation . No apologies . No mention of what happened that night . I shouldve ignored it . But I didnt . That evening , I found the red gown hanging on my bedroom door . No one said a word about how it got there . I changed , painted on a smile, and accompanied him to yet another business affair where I played the part of the poised 2/2 40.0 % 19:25 Fri , 18 Apr 60 % wife . Standing beside him , smiling for cameras , shaking hands with strangers who all thought our marriage was built on romance and wealth . We never spoke of the library again . The silence was heavy between us , but we carried it like professionals . During dinners , hed ask how the project was going , and Id answer politely . Sometimes hed sit across from me in his study , typing away , while I read through research journals . Comfortable . Pretending nothing happened . But the more I tried to forget him , the more I noticed things . Like how he always made sure there were strawberries in the fridge my favorite . Or how he texted Alice once to ask if Id eaten when I hadnt come home for two days . Or how his expression always darkened slightly whenever I wore anything sleeveless as if he remembered the bruises from the glass . I hated it . I hated how he noticed . I hated how I noticed him back . Because there were moments stolen glances , lingering touches , awkward silences that bordered on something deeper when I felt something stir . But I pushed it down . Because I remembered Thomas . I remembered Scott . I remembered betrayal and promises shattered like that vase . No strings attached , I reminded myself every time I caught myself smiling at Rozens jokes . Every time I caught myself waiting up for him to come home . Every time I let my eyes linger on him too long when he wasnt looking . I didnt want to fall again . Because love ? Love was dangerous . It made you believe . It made you hope . And then it destroyed you . So I returned to the research center the next day and told myself this was my real life now -spreadsheets , data analysis , grant proposals , and academic debates . I told myself that Rozen was just a partner in a contract . Nothing more . Just a man . But sometimes , just sometimes , when the world went quiet at night , I would remember the sound of his voice when he said , Youre my wife . They need to know that . And I hated that it made me feel anything at all . Audrey's biggest regret? A one-night stand with Floyd, her secret love for eight years. Despite his arranged marriage and his family's troubles, he kept rescuing her. She thought she was just a fling,...