Elissa remembered how busy she and Tanya Foster had been back in college.
They were ordinary girls, and they knew that studying was their only way forward. So they raced against time, squeezing every spare moment into their books.
Since they didn’t even live in the same dorm, they might only see each other once or twice a week.
Elissa nced at Tanya. “So what happened? Why did you two break up? Honestly, when I saw Rex today, it was obvious he still has feelings for you.”
“Because of the gap between us,” Tanya said, her tone light, as if it didn’t matter at all. “His older sister gave me a check for a million dors and asked me to break up with him.”
Rex’s sister was over ten years his senior, and in the Wilkinson family, her word carried as much weight as their parents.
She’d joined the army early and risen quickly through the ranks, and over the years, she’d be someone who never took ‘no‘ for an answer.
“What?” Elissa gasped.
Tanyaughed. “Honestly, it’s not that strange. Aren’t there a million soap operas like that?”
“No,” Elissa shook her head. “That’s not what I meant. I wanted to ask–you didn’t actually take the money, did you?”
“…No.” Tanya sighed. “I was just too young back then.”
She’d been barely twenty. Her own family’s relentless favoritism toward sons had already taught her how important money could be. But at that age, even if you’re dirt poor, pride always feels more precious, and you just can’t stomach a single ounce of
humiliation.
Tanya flopped onto the bed and stared at the ceiling, lost in the memory. “I almost started crying. I jumped up, told her I’d break up with him, and then–right in front of her–ripped the check to shreds and pped it back down on the table.”
Sheter heard that Rex’s sister got another promotion, and for days Tanya couldn’t sleep, terrified she’de after her in some way.
After all, it would take just the flick of her finger to ruin Tanya’s whole future.
<b>08:56 </b>L
Chapter 20o
Luckily, it ended up being nothing. Rex’s sister probably forgot her name the very next day.
Elissa listened, torn between wanting tough and feeling a pang of sympathy. “So… how do you feel about it now?”
Tanya blinked her dry eyes. “Do you really think his family would ever let him me?”
Elissa’s heart ached even more at that. She didn’t know what to say.
marry
The only reason she’d married Frank was because it suited them both. Even then, the Atwaters hadn’t approved at first–Frank had to fight for her.
But the Wilkinsons were famous for being strict. And Rex wasn’t even the eldest; he was the fourth child, with not just parents and grandparents above him, but three older siblings, too.
In the end, his sister’s opinion pretty much summed up the family’s stance.
Seeing Elissa fall silent, Tanya just smiled, as if she’d expected it. “So what I think doesn’t really matter, does it?”
It didn’t matter.
She wasn’t about to be someone’s mistress, and there was no way Rex’s family would ever budge.
Elissa reached out and gently mussed Tanya’s hair, at a loss for words..il she could do was sit quietly by her side.
A long while passed before Elissa’s phone rang. She stood up and walked out to
answer.
“Hello, Mrs. Garrett?”
Janice Garrett’s voice was cheerful and warm. “Hi, Dr. Elissa! Are you free tomorrow?”
“I am,” Elissa replied, smiling. “If you have time, I’d love toe over and wish you a happy New Year.”
She’d been thinking about it for days. But given how close–or not–they were, it didn’t feel right to visit too early and risk intruding on Janice’s time with her other friends and family.
If Janice hadn’t called today, Elissa had nned to ring her in the morning to ask if it was convenient.
08:56
“That would be wonderful!” Janice eximed, practically beaming through the phone.
When she hung up, she was so delighted she could hardly contain herself.
Rowan, watching her glow with happiness, raised an eyebrow. “Who was that on the phone?”