This time, Graham Severan did not say, "Divorce or go home."

  Of course, he wanted his wife to come home with him—divorce had never been what he truly desired. But Rosemary had always been unpredictable. Even though her obsessive extramarital affair had failed, Graham couldn't be certain she would willingly return. His expression remained cold, but uncertainty churned within him.

  For Rosemary, a woman who had been abandoned by her so-called lover, having a home to return to was better than anything else.

  Now, she was being told to go home.

  Facing the man with his usual taut expression, Rosemary answered without hesitation, her voice light with an almost childlike joy. "Go home!"

  She couldn't suppress the happiness in her tone. Her bright eyes met his with an unmistakable smile, as if she were looking forward to the rest of her life.

  Graham Severan was momentarily stunned.

  As they rode back, Rosemary sat in the back of the car, feeling an unfamiliar sense of security settle over her. A man who owned a car in this era meant stability—meant she wouldn’t have to struggle just to survive.

  "Is Madam feeling better?" the driver asked as he maneuvered the vehicle onto the main road.

  The driver was a young man, barely in his twenties.

  Rosemary quickly recalled his surname—Carter. Driver Carter.

  "Yes," she said, her voice steady.

  "What did the doctor say?"

  Since he was asking her directly, it meant he hadn't asked Graham yet. Rosemary answered smoothly, "It's just a mild cold."

  "Do we need to stop by and say goodbye to your relative?"

  Rosemary's gaze drifted from the passing scenery to the rearview mirror, where she caught Graham Severan’s warning look.

  When she had left home, she had told the servants she was going to visit a distant relative. The only person who knew the truth was Graham Severan because she had left a letter in their bedroom, saying goodbye and requesting a divorce.

  Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

  Realizing that the driver was unaware of her attempted elopement, Rosemary chose her words carefully. Perhaps there had been speculation, but neither she nor Graham could afford for the truth to become public.

  She met Graham's eyes in the mirror.

  With a soft, almost apologetic smile, Rosemary lowered her gaze. Guilt twisted in her stomach.

  Graham Severan frowned. He had been trying to determine whether Rosemary had lost her mind from the heartbreak. From the moment she had woken up, she had been different.

  How many times had she smiled at him? More today than in all the years of their marriage combined.

  Worried that she might say something careless and expose the scandal, he tensed.

  But Rosemary sighed gently and said, "It was just a distant relative. You know, I have no real family left. When I heard about the wedding, I rushed over to congratulate them."

  Graham Severan withdrew his gaze from the rearview mirror and looked straight ahead.

  With Graham silent, Rosemary, too, fell quiet. She turned her attention back to the view outside. The city streets present a charming blend of historic and modern elements. People stroll with leisure under the afternoon sun. She had never truly taken in these sights before, never appreciated their simple beauty. But now, after standing so close to death, her past obsessions seemed like echoes from another lifetime.

  She turned her gaze back to Graham.

  From this angle, she could see his profile—the hard line of his jaw, the thick eyebrows, the straight nose. Even in the moments when she had despised him, she had never been able to deny that he was a handsome man.

  But now, something had shifted. The excitement of being saved from the brink of death was fading, and the memories she had long suppressed began to surface again.

  Especially when she thought of home.

  A small figure formed in her mind, fragile and innocent.

  "Mom, when are you coming back?" A child's voice echoed in her memory.

  He had asked her that, not understanding what her departure truly meant.

  The child didn’t realize he had been abandoned.

  A sharp pang of guilt twisted inside her. She could still recall the hopelessness she had felt when she had collapsed on that dingy floor, the overwhelming despair of betrayal. But more than anything, she felt remorse.

  She had abandoned her son.

  That little boy, too young to comprehend the cruelty of the world, had been left behind by his mother. And for what? A love that had never been real?

  She felt upset. No matter how her husband would punish her for her betrayal, she had to keep her marriage going. She knew that even if she was never happy in the marriage, she owed her son a stable life.

  She looked at the rearview mirror once more, only to find Graham meeting her gaze again.

  Sorry, husband, she thought, but I will still be your wife in your life. I promise!

  This time, she didn’t look away.

  Graham Severan studied her for a moment before shifting his focus back to the road. His grip tightened slightly on the wheel.

  Neither of them spoke again for the rest of the ride.