Chapter 4

"I'm a normal woman, and no normal woman would be okay with another woman taking up her husband's time and energy! William, you're such a smart person—how can you ask such a stupid question? Because I was never the one you wanted to marry, you've never cared about how I feel."

Rebecca thought her own words sounded as pitiful as a resentful wife. This feeling was absolutely terrible.

"Rebecca, it's been five years. I thought we had an understanding by now. Celeste and I grew up together after all. Her parents helped our family when we were at our lowest point. Like Esme said, during those years, I grew up eating the Brown family's food. Without the Brown family, the Spencer family would never have had a chance to bounce back, and I wouldn't be where I am today. People need to be grateful, don't you think?"

"She has a terminal illness. All she wants before she dies is for me to spend more time with her. In my heart, she's just like a sister."

"Then what about me?"

"You're my wife. You and Oliver are the two most important people to me. That will never change. Trust me, okay?"

Rebecca looked at William's serious expression at that moment. Every word he said seemed genuine, but somehow, she felt like she'd lost the strength to believe him.

"I know next week is our wedding anniversary. Rebecca, just the two of us—we've rarely had time alone these past few years. Next Friday, nothing and no one will interrupt us, okay?"

Rebecca's eyes flickered slightly, her fists clenching. She didn't know what to say.

What was this? Was he trying to please her?

And why? For Celeste? Or for this polite, distant marriage?

William stepped forward and gently hugged Rebecca. "You've always been so understanding and considerate. I've neglected your feelings, but please believe me—you, Oliver, and I, the three of us are a family. And please, just bear with me a little longer. Okay?"

So it was still for Celeste.

Rebecca closed her eyes again. "Okay."

She answered softly. Was it a compromise? No, she was just going through the motions.

But William didn't notice. After Rebecca said she wanted to be alone for a while, he headed toward the hospital room.

The emergency stairwell was silent. Rebecca's body had long been drained of strength. She leaned against the stair railing and slowly sat down on the steps. She hadn't slept much all night, hadn't eaten anything after getting up early. She came to the hospital and had a fight—now she felt dizzy, nauseous, with cold sweat dripping down her forehead.

Just then, a ringtone suddenly broke the silence. Rebecca froze slightly, then heard a man's voice from above, clear and bright, with a relaxed, amused tone.

"Yeah, I'm here. Came out for a smoke and caught some dramatic soap opera audio. Okay, I'll be right over."

The man hung up, and then footsteps approached, one step at a time.

Rebecca bit her lip secretly, feeling embarrassed and annoyed. She could tell from the man's teasing tone that he had clearly overheard her entire conversation with William from his hiding spot.

Right now, she just wanted to disappear into the ground, except she didn't even have the strength to stand up.

Rebecca kept her head down, buried in her arms. She really didn't want to be mocked by a stranger and have him see her face clearly. But before she could think any further, everything went black, and her body uncontrollably fell toward the stairs.

Then, slightly warm hands touched her forehead, pried open her jaw, and put a candy in her mouth.

"Getting low blood sugar from being upset by a mistress."

Rebecca wanted to argue, but before she could recover, the man had already stood up and walked away, leaving only one sentence. "Once you feel better, go eat something. If you still feel sick, go register at the clinic. You're at the hospital anyway."

In her blurry vision, she saw a tall figure in a white coat.

About five more minutes passed before Rebecca's discomfort eased somewhat. She sent William a message and went home first.

Tammy saw her pale face with red marks and was very worried, but Rebecca said she was hungry. After eating a proper meal, she went straight to sleep.

When she woke up, she saw two messages on her phone—one from William saying he'd be home late, and one from a friend inviting her to dinner. She freshened up and went out.

Her friend, Natalie Foster, and Rebecca had studied music together abroad, but later neither of them continued that path—one got married and had children, the other switched to studying medicine.

Downtown was filled with high-rise buildings and commercial complexes, but Natalie and Rebecca sat in a small restaurant in an old alley, with the table filled with spicy food.

Rebecca loved spicy food, but the Spencer family couldn't handle even a bit of chili pepper, so over the years her taste had become much milder too.

Now Rebecca held her utensils, swallowing her saliva, and Natalie teased her, "Look at you drooling like that."

Rebecca rolled her eyes at her. "Just laugh. When you get married, you'll understand everything."

Natalie shrugged dismissively. "If marriage means I have to change this much, I'd rather stay single forever."

Rebecca, whose mouth was burning from the spice, kept drinking water but still shot back, "That's because you haven't met someone who makes you willing to change."

"Is William really that great?"

Natalie had never understood Rebecca's love for William from the start. "Your family is a prominent household in Silverlight City. The Spencer family—sure, they were pretty powerful here in the past, but the financial crisis ten years ago nearly bankrupted them. William carrying the Spencer Group on his own since then hasn't been easy. But getting back to their former glory? Who knows how long that'll take."

"That's why he works so hard."

Rebecca murmured, "Fifteen years ago, I met him. He wasn't like this then."

Natalie caught a whiff of gossip. "So it was a teenage crush? I never knew you were so romantic, Rebecca!"

"That year I came here with my mom and dad to visit a friend, and later we attended an elite social event. Back then, William was the most refined young man at the party. He was asked by the elders to look after me, but that day there was an accident."

"An accident?"

Rebecca nodded. "The kitchen at the event exploded and started a fire. I was in the lounge, nearly suffocating from the smoke. William was the one who rescued me."

Natalie stared at Rebecca intently.

"What?"

"Rebecca, this is so cheesy."

Rebecca rolled her eyes at her again. "So what if it's cheesy? You know what? It's only when those cheesy romance-novel moments actually happen to you that you realize that 'butterflies-in-your-stomach feeling?' It's real."

Natalie smiled softly. "Rebecca, I'm suddenly very curious."

"Curious about what?"

"You're so innocent and romantic, how did you manage to seduce William into bed back then?"

Natalie's question wasn't very polite, but there was no malice in it. They were best friends who talked about everything.

"Yeah, I'm curious too. That night, why was he willing?"

"Are you and William really okay?"

Natalie caught the flash of sadness in Rebecca's eyes.

"What's there to be okay or not okay about? I chose this path myself..."

"Rebecca, do you know where you fall short compared to Celeste?"

Rebecca looked up.