Chapter 45: Hugh's POV - The Most Familiar Stranger

As Shelia finished speaking, I gradually loosened my grip on her hand.

Her expression was serious, which scared me. I feared she had truly let go, that she genuinely didn't care anymore.

The party's noise irritated me. I went alone to my study and took out the sketchbook from the drawer. I counted 72 drawings inside. Yes, she had been drawing all along, but I never cared to notice.

During those two years of marriage, I seemed to know nothing about what she did every day. I even secretly compared her to Esther in my mind, looking down on her value because she didn't work after marriage. I often felt annoyed by her excessive care.

But was it true, as Shelia just said, that I didn't like her?

No, she was wrong. I did like her. The ease she gave me was something I rarely felt from others in my 27 years of life.

But I did undervalue her. Perhaps because I got used to her admiration and generosity from the start. Things too easily obtained often seem weightless.

Flipping through the s