The Transactional Marriage That Imploded novel Chapter 355

He had to weigh every single word he said to her now; otherwise, he risked setting her off again.

Be honest, he reminded himself silently. Just be honest.

After a moment, he replied, "I was the one who found the doctor for you in the first place. I was worried you'd refuse to go, so I had Simon act as the middleman. I've always cared about you. You're the one who keeps rejecting it."

Bianca astutely noticed that he was using Simon's first name instead of his full name.

Had the two men made up?

Seeing the faint hint of curiosity on her face, Mathis realized it was a rare moment where she actually cared about something involving him.

He nodded. "Yeah. The night I was drugged, Simon was the one who saved me and got me to the hospital. Otherwise, I might have actually died. You would have been a widow, and Aveline wouldn't have a father."

The mention of Aveline growing up without a father struck a chord. Bianca instantly remembered the agonizing pain of losing her own dad.

Back when the Quinn family had driven her and her mother to the brink of despair, her mom used to hold her and cry for hours.

In those moments, Bianca had missed her father more than anything in the world.

She glared at the man in front of her. "Don't talk nonsense."

He had done that on purpose. But at least it proved she still cared whether he lived or died.

He continued, "I shouldn't have held a grudge against him when I found out he liked you. After all, you can't control who you fall in love with."

Bianca felt deeply awkward. Her ex-husband's best friend liked her, and her ex knew about it. It made her feel like some manipulative femme fatale.

"Look, I barely had any contact with him in the past, except to discuss your condition. I have no idea why he would like me, but I certainly didn't lead him on."

Mathis gave her an amused look. "Are you explaining this because you still care about me? You want me to know there's nothing going on between you two."

Realizing how her tone had sounded, her face instantly turned to ice. "No. I just don't want you taking your anger out on Simon. He didn't do anything wrong.

"He and Hailey just helped me when you backed me into a corner."

Bringing up the past reignited her fury. She glared at Mathis, eyes flashing. "If it wasn't for their help back then, you would have driven me to my death."

Seeing the intense hatred in her eyes, Mathis felt a crushing weight on his chest. "I'm sorry, Bianca. I just wanted to force you to come home. I couldn't stand that you kept trying to leave me. But let's stop talking about it. Just eat your food."

He was terrified of her bringing up the past.

The rich aroma of the soup taunted her starving stomach. Too exhausted to keep yelling at him, she picked up her silverware and started eating.

After finishing her meal, she called Dr. Mills. "Dr. Mills, I'm so sorry. I was buried in work today and missed my appointment. Can we reschedule for tomorrow?"

Dr. Mills replied, "Your husband actually called me earlier. Don't worry, I'm still waiting for you at the clinic."

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