Chasing His Rejected Wife

I looked away and swallowed, reluctant to talk about this issue. I was already way too close to an emotional edge, struggling to keep it together and any more stress could most likely tip me over the edge into insanity town. "Can we drop this, please?" I said, my voice small and shaky. I wrapped my arms around my stomach and shivered, feeling a sudden chill that had nothing to do with the temperature of the room.

I heard him sigh and he held up his arms in surrender. "I'm sorry, Jess. I didn't mean to upset you more. I should know better how hard all this must be for you."

"It's fine." I replied, forcing a smile to assure him. I reached out and slipped my hand into his warm, calloused own.

Logan said nothing more and locked his dark brown eyes with me which made me feel a bit comfort.

"How long will you be in the city?"

He grimaced and combed his fingers through his hair. "I'm only here for three days. We're in the midst of a small company acquisition, so I need to be on site for the negotiations."

"Oh, that's how long I'll be away. I've got a flight to catch later on to Winsconsin, on business," I replied, saddened that we would not have time to hang out before he left and heaven knew when I would get the chance to see him again.

"I could extend my stay if you'd like." Logan reminded me, looking into my eyes. "Might need to move things on my calendar, but I can make it happen if you just say the word."

"Oh Logan," I squeezed his hand and smiled up at him. "Thanks, but you don't have to do that."

We were interrupted when the door opened and Craig's wife, Elizabeth peeked in. She told us, "Jessica, it's almost time for the service to begin."

*******

I went outside where a marquee had been set up for the service to accommodate the large number of guests. I nodded, smiled and chatted with a couple of the guests I was familiar with, all the while, keeping an eye out for Aiden. Inside the tent, I paused and glanced around taking in the simple yet elegant set up - rows of garden chairs sat facing a makeshift stage decorated with white gardenias, Julian's favorite flower. A stand had been set up where Julian's coffin would sit for the service and the viewing afterwards.

I spotted Craig and his younger brother Paul by the stage, fiddling with the sound system, Eliza was engaged in a conversation with a congressman, both with somber looks on their faces.

Just as the master of ceremonies climbed the stage and announced the start of the ceremony, the guests began drifting in to take their seats, Logan guided me to one of the rows of seats in the front where the rest of the family would seat, a hand at the small of my back.

My skin prickled as though someone was watching me and I turned my head to see Aiden, who had just entered the tent, watching me with narrowed eyes and a downward tilt of his mouth. Caught off guard at the intensity of his look, I tripped over my own feet and would have fallen but Logan steadied me with an arm around my waist.

"What's wrong?" Logan asked, lowering his head to watch me with a concerned expression.

"Nothing," I said quickly, though I could still feel my skin prickling from the impact of Aiden's icy stare. We took our seats, Logan sitting beside me, while Aiden strode past us without a second glance and sat down in the front row, beside his brothers and stepmother.

******

By the time the service was over, I was an emotional wreck. Halfway through the oration, there were tears streaming down my cheeks and the handkerchief Logan had given me was soaked with my snot and tears and I leaned heavily against Logan and as we all walked behind the hearse carrying Julian's casket to a private cemetery nearby where he would be finally laid to rest.

There were few dry eyes as we watched him being lowered into the grave. I was trembling so much that Logan had to support me with a hand around my waist while I hid my face on his shoulder and cried, tears that I had held in for so long. Back at the manor, I went upstairs, desperate to avoid the large crowd of mourners gathered below. I needed more privacy to compose myself. On my way to my old room, however, I ran into Jodie, who looked just as, if not more miserable than I did. She was holding onto what looked like a small safety deposit box, the sort with a combination code where you could store values.

"Jessica," her voice was raspy from crying. "I was just going to look for you, could you spare me a moment to talk?"

"Of course." I replied, curious. She gestured for us to enter Julian's study. Jodie shut the door behind her and took a seat beside the one I had chosen.

"How are you doing, dear?" Jodie leaned forward and placed a hand on mine. "You look so exhausted."

"I should be asking you that," I replied. "Today must have been so hard for you."

"It was...much harder than I thought." Jodie said sadly. "It's been a while since Julian passed away, and I thought I'd cried all the tears and mourned as much as I could, but when I saw his coffin going into that grave...I realized I was so wrong." I nodded in compassion. "Nothing could have prepared either of us for the reality of all this."

"I miss him so much." Jodie said softly, wiping her eyes of fresh tears. Then she seemed to pull herself together and held out the box to me. "Before Julian passed away, he asked me to give this to you. Keep it safe, okay?"

I took the box and studied it. Black, with no distinguishing marks and a small slot that looked like it needed a key card to open. "What's in it?"

"Julian was well aware that Aiden may ask for a divorce when he died and even though he hoped that you two would be able to work things out, he knew Aiden's temperament would make that next to impossible."

She paused as though considering her next words carefully. "Jess, if you don't want Aiden to divorce you, just give him that box, when he sees the contents, he will think twice about making such a decision."

Intrigued, I held up the box and turned it this way and that. Something that could make Aiden change his mind about our marriage? What on earth could be inside this thing? I had always wondered what had convinced Aiden to agree to Julian's ludicrous demands and why he had thought I was privy to that information and now, I held the possible answer in my hand. "Where's the key?"

"I believe Aiden has it. Julian told me he had given the keycard to him the last time they met."

I frowned, not understanding the reason for all this secrecy. "I don't understand. Jodie, why did Julian insist Aiden marry me? He knew..."

Jodie leaned forward to pat my arm reassuringly. "Don't worry, my dear. I can't really explain everything right now - but I'm hopeful that someday, Aiden will tell you. Now, I have to get back to the guests, but please, look after yourself, okay?" When she left, I sat alone, the box resting on my lap as I thought through everything. The possibility of saving my marriage had been nothing but a dim hope. Even with my pregnancy, I hadn't held out much hope of Aiden staying with me out of a sense of obligation, afterall there were a lot of parents raising their children apart from each other. But if Jodie was right and this box could save my marriage, should I take it?

Did I want to remain stuck in a marriage where my husband would still resent me, where I would be part of a couple, and yet, to all intents and purposes, I'd be alone, sitting up in bed late at night wondering in whose bed my husband was spending the night.

Still, the thought of being a single mother, of raising my baby all alone was a frightening prospect.

With a small sign, I stood up and headed towards my room, carrying the box. As I passed one of the rooms, I heard familiar voices coming from inside and without meaning to, I stopped to listen.

"Do you feel better now?" I heard Aiden say. His voice was gentle and filled with concern. I peeked into the room to see who he was talking to. Elisa lay on a daybed by the window with Aiden crouched in front of her, holding onto her hand. "Yes," She replied and smiled weakly at him. "I'm sorry to be so much trouble."

"It's fine. Vincent will be up to check on you soon."

"I really don't need a doctor." Elisa whispered. "I'll be fine, really."

"You may be, but we don't want to risk anything, especially with the baby."

Shock reverberated through my entire body as I stood rooted to the spot, my head swimming from what I'd just heard. I must have made a sound because they both looked at me, Aiden with a dark expression and Elisa with what I could only describe as a guilty flush.

"What do you want?" Aiden straightened, his eyes flashing in impatience. Through the fog in my mind, I noticed that he hadn't let go of Elisa's hand even while talking to me.

I opened my mouth several times in an attempt to reply but no words came out, my brian seemingly having turned to mush. Several thoughts were swimming through my mind but most prominent were two big questions. Elisa was pregnant and was Aiden the father?