Blizzard, First Love and a Wife Who Finally Snaps novel Chapter 255

“Even if Selena is still alive when you release your new drug,” Julian stated a harsh truth, “your ex-husband will never let her take the fall. He’ll find a way for someone else—be it you or another person—to bear the blame for her.”

Isabel’s expression grew serious. “Then what’s the point of all this?”

Julian gently stroked her head. “You do what you need to do. I’ll see what I can find out about the Grey Zone. Dealing with Selena was always a secondary benefit of your drug launch. Your ultimate goal has always been to help people. Don’t overthink it.”

Isabel smiled. “You know me so well, Julian.”

He grinned back. “This pair of eyes is more perceptive than an MRI.”

......

By the time their plane landed and they drove home, it was very late.

Isabel opened the door as quietly as she could.

Julian watched her, amused by her cat-burglar-like stealth.

“Edmund’s room is on the second floor, with the door closed. You could open the door normally and it wouldn’t wake him.”

Isabel gently pushed the door open, and the dim entryway light flickered on. As she changed her shoes, she said, “You can’t treat him like a typical six-year-old.”

She instinctively reached to get him a pair of slippers, but he stopped her hand.

“I’m hungry. Go make some pasta or something.”

Isabel straightened up and walked into the kitchen.

Julian changed his shoes and was about to follow when he received a call.

He spoke for about five minutes, then hung up.

As he walked toward the kitchen, the serious expression on his face dissolved, replaced by his usual lazy smile.

“Need any help?”

“I think I can manage a bowl of pasta.”

Julian watched her wash some greens, then rolled up his sleeves and took over.

Julian wiped the droplets from his face. “Stop instinctively waiting on people, even if you feel like you owe them something.”

“If you’re not comfortable with something, you have to speak up.”

It clicked for Isabel then—his seemingly unrelated comments from earlier.

She remembered how he had stopped her from getting his slippers at the entrance.

To say her heart wasn’t stirred would be a lie.

“I didn’t feel...” Isabel began to explain. “Even if it wasn’t you, if Evelyn and Amanda were behind me, I would have gotten them slippers too. When I go to their houses, they do the same for me. It’s just a small gesture, not about serving someone or feeling put upon.”

Julian wagged a finger. “As the host of this house, it’s fine for you to get them slippers. As the hosts of their homes, it’s fine for them to get you slippers. It’s fine for you to cook for friends here, and for friends to cook when you visit them.”

“But you and I, right now, are in what amounts to a marriage. We’re not just friends.”

Isabel didn’t understand why he was suddenly making such a big deal out of a small thing.

“You’ve gotten slippers for me before without me asking.”