From His Wife to His Uncle's Wife novel Chapter 113

Jared reached for Eleanor’s hand. “Eleanor, let’s just go for it. Thirty percent is still a chance. I want to try.”

She could see the worry in his eyes, the way his grip tightened just a bit. He was scared that if Jessie turned out to be a match, things would only get more complicated for her.

“It’s okay,” Eleanor said gently, giving his hand a squeeze. “Let’s just see how it goes. If it’s a match, we’ll deal with it then.” For Jared, she’d swallow her pride. If it meant begging Jessie, she would.

Waiting for the results felt endless. Peter didn’t want to sit in the room with Eleanor’s icy silence, so he moved to a bench out in the hallway. Juliana paced back and forth inside, nerves stretched tight.

After what felt like forever, a nurse came in to say the testing was finished. Peter was on his feet immediately, heading straight down the hall. Eleanor watched him go and felt a strange calm settle over her. His concern for Jessie hardly fazed her anymore.

Juliana heard the commotion and followed Peter out. “I’m going to check,” she said over her shoulder.

Eleanor stayed behind, peeling an orange for Jared. She handed him a segment. “Here, try this one. It’s sweet, I promise.”

Jared took it, worry written all over his face. “Eleanor…”

She forced a smile. “Next year you’ll be eighteen. I’m counting on you to go to college and take care of me.”

Jared had never really pictured a future. He lived one day at a time, not sure if he’d even make it to adulthood. In these past few months, the fear had grown. He’d started to doubt he’d even see eighteen. He wanted to fix things between his mom and Eleanor, but he didn’t know how. He felt helpless.

“If I make it to eighteen, I’ll get into college. I’ll have your back, Eleanor. I promise.”

She turned her face away so he wouldn’t see the tears in her eyes.

Out in the hall, Juliana was already anxious. “Doctor, how long until we know the results?”

“It’ll be noon at the earliest.”

Peter checked his watch and stood up. “I need to get to the office. Call me as soon as you hear anything, okay?”

Jessie glanced at Juliana. “I’ll go back to work with Peter. Don’t worry, Juliana. Just call us if there’s any news. I really hope Jared gets a match.”

Neither of them bothered to say goodbye to Eleanor. Peter didn’t even mention the divorce hearing that was coming up next week. He was clearly avoiding her.

Eleanor had taken the whole day off. Whatever happened, she wouldn’t have time to make dinner for Max that night. “Jared, I’m going out for a bit. I’ll be back by lunchtime.”

Juliana immediately wanted to know when Ms. Goff could donate, but Jessie had brushed her off. She just said she was busy and that Eleanor should come talk to her.

Juliana turned to Eleanor, her voice urgent. “I don’t care what happened between you and Ms. Goff, you need to clear things up. She has to be willing to help Jared. Make her happy, whatever it takes.”

Now that they had a match, there was hope. But just like that, Eleanor felt the power shift. She was the one on the back foot now. She knew it would be tough to get Jessie to agree.

“I know, Mom. Give it a couple of days. I’ll talk to her.”

“A couple of days? Go now!”

Eleanor frowned. “Mom, I’ve taken so many days off already. Let her cool off a bit. I’ll go this weekend.”

Jared jumped in before the argument could get worse. “Eleanor, it’s fine. I’ve waited seventeen years. What’s another day or two?”

He looked at her, worry in his eyes. “Do you want me to come with you this weekend?”

She shook her head, her voice steady. “No, I’ll be okay. I can handle it.”