Chapter 32
When Love Breaks by jack
Chapter 32
About fifteen minutes later, the car slowly rolled into the driveway.
âWeâre home, Bryant, I announced as I opened the car door.
Unexpectedly, the man beside me, who was out cold from drinking, slumped toward me as I opened the door.
I frowned, bracing myself to hold him up. âCan you stand up on your own?â
But I got no response.
Left with no choice, I had to wake Emma, who was sound asleep, to help me get Bryant back into his room.
âMrs. Ferguson, do you need help?â Emma asked, rubbing the sleep from her eyes.
âNo, itâs fine. Go back to sleep,â I replied, feeling sorry for disturbing Emmaâs rest.
After Emma left, I struggled with the nausea from Bryantâs alcohol fumes as I bent over to help him out of his shoes and tie, then straightened up to head downstairs. But as I turned to leave, I found my hand suddenly gripped in his.
âSweetheartâ¦â he mumbled with his eyes still closed.
I didnât think he was calling for me. More likely, he had reached a point with Margaret where they called each other endearing terms like that.
I tried to pry his eyelids open. âBryant, look at me. Do you see who I am?â
âSweetheartâ¦â He wasnât cooperating, turning away from my attempts and pulling my hand closer, whispering, âJane, my wife is Jane.â
My heart skipped a beat. But I quickly reminded myself, thinking Bryant was just drunk. wouldnât take it seriously. When he was sober, he would only choose someone else.
I pursed my lips, saying lightly, âIs that so? But you donât even love Jane. Must be tough, being married to a woman you donât love.â
His words in the office, spoken to Timothy, were etched clearly in my mind.
âJane, donât be foolish anymore.â I told myself inwardly.
âItâs not toughâ¦â He nuzzled my hand, his usually cold face showing a hint of contentment, drunkenly saying. âMy wife is great. Sheâs the best woman.â
âAt least your eyes arenât blind.â I snorted.
After marrying into the Ferguson family, I had been perfect toward the elders and Bryant Even if Bryant didnât love me, he couldnât fault me there.
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Chapter 32
I
Bryant mumbled a few more words I couldnât make out, probably thinking I had left, and drifted back to sleep.
After ensuring he was sound asleep, I freed my hand and went downstairs to make him a hangover soup.
He tended to wake up in the middle of the night after drinking too much.
With this soup, heâd wake up the next day without a hangover.
It might have been a habit formed over the three years. Even though Iâd had the divorce papers drafted and I had moved out of this house that no longer felt like mine, I still found myself taking care of him.
As I fished the softened ingredients out of the boiling pot, I finally realized what I was doing, smacking my forehead in frustration.
âWhat am I doing?â I couldnât believe it.
I wanted to leave, but wasting food didnât sit right with me either. I would chalk it up to a good deed for the day, like looking after a stray dog. I found a reasonable excuse for myself.
I strained out the ingredients when the soup was ready and carried it upstairs.
I intended to leave it on the bedside table and go, but as I reached the bed, I found myself caught in a pair of lucid eyes.
Startled, I felt somewhat uneasy. âYouâre awake?â
âYeah,â Bryant murmured.
âThis, um, I made you some hangover soup on a whim.â Feeling like I got caught do something wrong, I placed the bowl on the bedside table, âDrink it if you want, or jus
throw it out.â
I turned to leave, in a hurry to escape. Unexpectedly, the man, who was too drunk to st an hour ago, suddenly reached out, pulling me back with a firm grip around my waist.
âSweetheart, can we not get a divorce, please?