Eleanor had seen Vanessa''s schemes and maniptions firsthand. The woman would stop at nothing to get what she wanted.


    Eleanor''s heart sank as she remembered those years-Gina Quinn''s increasingly critical and cold attitude toward her, and the undisguised affection she had shown Vanessa during Christmas of the fourth year.


    "At the time, I was pushing for a core business transformation at Goodwin & Co.,"n exined. "After my father passed, the board tried to rece me several times. If I couldn''t meet the project deadlines I''d promised them, I could be ousted at any moment. The pressure was immense, and I was spread too thin. By the time I realized what was happening, Vanessa had already deeply influenced how my mother and Serena saw you."


    Eleanor''s breath caught. "You never told me any of that."


    "I''m sorry. I tried talking to my mother about Vanessa, but I was indecisive and didn''t handle it firmly enough. That''s what allowed Vanessa to create all the problems that cameter."


    Eleanor understood his predicament. Vanessa was his mother''s only hope for survival at the time. No matter how ruthless he was, he couldn''t afford to burn that bridge. As long as Vanessa was willing to threaten her own life, he had to beg her, to cate her.


    "I wasn''t talking about that," Eleanor said softly. "I meant thepany. Why didn''t you tell me what was happening at work?"


    Eleanor fell silent. He had certainly been proud back then.


    But a sharp pang still pierced her heart. It all made sense now-why he came hometer andter those years, always looking exhausted. In a world she couldn''t see, he had been fighting a silent war, where one misstep could have cost him everything.


    She remembered seeing news a few years ago about a major shake-up on the Goodwin & Co. board. That must have been his move to save himself.


    So,n had never brought his work problems home, nor had he ever truly brought her into his world. She had been like a sheltered wife, living a carefree life, oblivious to the harsh realities he faced.


    Eleanor felt a lump in her throat, a bittersweet ache that was hard to put into words.


    She had once thoughtn kept her out of his world because he felt she wasn''t good enough that she couldn''t help, or perhaps that she wasn''t presentable enough.


    Later, she assumed it was to hide the truth about his ambiguous rtionship with Vanessa.


    But it turned out he had been fighting battles on two fronts, in ces she could


    never see.


    "So," Eleanor''s voice was a bit hoarse, "you thought that was what was best for me?"


    Locking her away in an ivory tower while he shouldered everything alone.


    They had loved each other the


    wrong way after they married. They


    had spent their entire marriage


    speaking two different


    other never needed, while the other


    craved what was never given.


    "I''m sorry, Ellie."n''s eyes grew misty. It had been so long since he''d called her by her nickname.


    "It was my arrogance and my assumptions that destroyed what we had and hurt you so deeply."


    Eleanor''s own eyes welled with


    tears. She turned away, looking elsewhere. "You don''t have to


    apologize anymore. We both made


    mistakes, and we both paid the


    price."


    Suddenly, a firm hand wrapped around her shoulder. The next second, she was


    pulled inton''s arms.


    His other arm circled her waist, holding her tight.