Yet after all these years, she still revolved around Soren, never growing tired of it.
Liam was convinced she’d never agree to a divorce so easily.
But he didn’t want to see Soren unset, so he was just about to offer a few words of
comfort-
When he caught sight of Soren’s eyes narrowing, a hint of satisfaction lighting his face, as if his mood had actually improved.
“So that’s how it is.”
Soren let out a soft, dismissive laugh.
The confusion he’d felt earlier now had its answer.
Of course–Evangeline was so hopelessly in love with him. Why would she ever be the one to suggest ending things?
Clearly, she’d learned Poppy had come back and was now afraid of being
abandoned. This was just another calculated act–playing hard to get, trying to win
him over.
Did she really think that by doing this, he’d feel too guilty to go through with the
divorce?
Seeing the faint, almost playful smile on Soren’s lips, Liam grew even more confused.
Since when did the news that Evangeline was willing to be “the other woman” leave Soren not distressed, but oddly pleased?
Before he could ask, a gentle female voice spoke up.
“Soren, I knew I’d find you here.”
At the doorway, Poppy stood in a flowing floral dress, tall and willowy, her complexion still pale from a recent illness, lending her an air of fragile beauty.
“Poppy.”
Everyone’s demeanor shifted the moment they saw her. The joking stopped; they greeted her politely, and the guy who’d been smoking stubbed out his cigarette and took a few deep breaths, trying to clear the air.
Soren ignored the others and walked over to her, his voice uncharacteristically soft.
21 04
“What are you doing here?”
Poppy didn’t mention that Liam had texted her his location, or that Liam had said Soren was in a bad mood.
She dangled her car keys with a small smile. “Heard you’re feeling down. Like old times–how about a drive to clear your head?”
Soren nodded and stood. “Sure.”
After hanging up the phone, Evangeline was sorting through paperwork when at message popped up.
It was a photo from one of Soren’s friends.
In the picture, Soren stood beside a luxury car, his hand braced protectively on the door frame as he helped a woman inside.
She could only see the woman’s back, but Evangeline recognized Poppy in an
instant.
Over the years, she’d never gone out of her
way to dig up information about Poppy.
But Soren’s feelings for Poppy were an open secret, and evidence of their closeness always found its way to her phone.
And whenever Soren wasn’t looking, she received her share of mocking and threatening messages as well.
She used to tell herself it was all hearsay, nothing to believe. But with time, Poppy had become a thorn in her heart, lodged deep and impossible to ignore.
In the past, receiving a photo like this would have left Evangeline feeling lost, anxious, and afraid.
But now–maybe because she’d braced herself, maybe because she’d finally decided on divorce–she felt nothing but a quiet calm.
She even found herself studying the photo more closely. She’d never noticed fore, but looking at it now, she realized that Poppy and Soren really did seem more suited to each other.
Evangeline let out a long, resigned sigh.
She figured Soren would probably stay out all night, just like he always did. She tossed her phone aside without a second thought, took a shower, and went to bed.
21:04
early.
Two hours later, Soren pulled up in front of the house.
He frowned as he looked at the scene before him.
Macy didn’t live at the house at night, but Evangeline always left the lights on whenever he came home.
From outside, the house would be lit up as bright as midday.
But tonight, aside from the faint glow of the garden lights, the whole place was shrouded in darkness, swallowed up by the night, like a withered old manor left to decay.
A strange unease crept into his chest.
Was Evangeline not home?
He pulled out his phone and dialed her number.
