Chapter 4

Quinn had been drinking quite a bit. His lips and the corners of his eyes were flushed, giving him an alluring, almost irresistible charm.

"What's wrong? What are you thinking? Are you afraid of me?" he asked.

I shook my head, brushing away the swirl of emotions clouding my mind. Not having children was not such a bad thing—it meant fewer attachments.

"I'm more afraid that I won't be able to control myself," I replied.

Quinn smiled faintly. "Go take a bath. I've already prepared hot water for you."

Blushing, I slowly made my way to the bathroom. The lights suddenly went out halfway through my bath.

I gasped as I stood up in the darkness, when Quinn appeared holding a candle.

He paused in the doorway, his expression briefly stunned.

His voice was husky as he spoke. "My wife… is full of surprises."

What followed felt natural, like it was inevitable. His passionate embrace made me melt like water in his arms.

In the peak of bliss, when I felt like I might faint, the lights abruptly came back on. Quinn's deep, dark eyes locked onto mine as if I were his entire world.

In my previous life, I had not spent much time with Quinn. I only remembered him as cold and aloof.

Sadie had told me that after their marriage, he was always busy with work, often staying overnight at the university.

He climbed the academic ladder from teacher to professor, and he would give his entire paycheck to her.

Sadie was dressed in finery, and she spent her days sipping coffee and shopping, while he lived with just two worn-out work uniforms until the day he died.

The thought left a bittersweet ache in my chest.

Quinn noticed the shift in my mood and leaned down to kiss me. "Ren… what's wrong? Did I do something wrong?"

I clung to him tighter. "You're perfect, honey. From now on, I'll treat you so well. So very well."

He kissed me deeply, murmuring something against my lips, but when I tried to listen, all I could hear was a soft sigh.

It was no surprise I could not get up the next morning.

Blushing, I crawled out of bed on all fours, only to be pulled back by Quinn.

"What are you doing so early in the morning?" he asked, his voice still heavy with sleep.

"I'm going to make breakfast…"

He held me close for a moment before finally getting up. "You're tired from last night. Sleep a bit more—I'll handle it."

As I watched him leave, I saw how his back was marked with faint red scratches. I buried my face in the blanket, feeling my cheeks burning.

Maybe being married to Quinn was not such a bad thing after all.

…

Life with Quinn was so sweet and peaceful that I nearly forgot about Sadie. That was until one day when Henry showed up unexpectedly.

To be honest, I rarely got angry with Henry in both of my lives.

He was not a bad husband for the era we were in—a responsible father who, aside from not loving me, did not have any major faults.

However, when he stood before me and told me to give Quinn back to Sadie, I felt a rage so intense it was almost uncontrollable.

"And what about me?" I asked coldly.

He seemed caught off guard by my question, opening and closing his mouth a few times before mumbling, "I'll marry you."

As he spoke, his tone grew more confident.

"You can divorce him, and I'll marry you. We'll live a good life together," he added. "Don't worry—I won't hold it against you for being divorced."

If God had X-ray vision, He would have seen the giant question marks flooding my mind.

I stared at Henry in disbelief.

"Do you think you're better than Quinn? Why should I choose you?"

He blurted out, "Because you owe Sadie."

"What?"

"That day at the mixer, Sadie clearly had her eye on Quinn. You're her best friend—how could you steal him from her?”

"Now she's at home crying every day, and she’s so upset she's fallen ill. If something happens to her, it'll all be your fault!"