From His Wife to His Uncle's Wife novel Chapter 136

Eleanor must have checked her phone a hundred times at work, hoping for a call from her mom. But when the afternoon rush hit and the lab got busy, she didn’t have a second to spare.

It was almost five when she finally saw the five missed calls from her mother.

Glancing at the clock and realizing she could finally leave, Eleanor changed out of her lab coat, grabbed her things, and called. “Hi, Mom.”

“Come home after work. Right away,” her mom said.

Eleanor’s stomach twisted with worry. She shot a quick message to Max, then hurried home as fast as she could.

As soon as she stepped through the door, she was already scanning the place for Jared. “Mom, is Jared back? How did the test go?”

Juliana didn’t answer right away. She just glared at Eleanor. “What kind of school did you find for him? They accused him of cheating! Do you have any idea how that made him feel?”

“Jared came out of there with his eyes all red. I almost cried, Eleanor. You can’t just brush off what happens to him. He’s not in the best health. The doctor said he can’t handle big emotional swings. How is he supposed to stay calm in a place like that? It’s lucky he didn’t end up going there. If he had, I’d have lost my son for sure.”

Juliana kept ranting, but Eleanor only heard one thing. “Cheating? They said Jared cheated?”

She shook her head, not believing it. “There’s no way Jared would ever do that. Where is he? Is he in his room? I want to check on him.”

Eleanor knew with every fiber of her being that Jared wouldn’t cheat. He understood how precious this chance was. No way would he risk everything like that. Even one accusation would ruin his reputation at school. And if Brookstone High decided to spread the word to other schools, it would be almost impossible for him to get into a good private high school.

She went to Jared’s door and knocked softly. “Jared? Are you awake? Can I come in?”

There was nothing but silence for a moment. Jared just couldn’t face her. She’d worked so hard to get him this opportunity, and he knew he’d let everyone down.

“Eleanor, can I just be alone for a while?”

She sighed. “How long do you need?”

“Little cut or not, that’s a work-related injury now,” he said.

Eleanor almost rolled her eyes. “Work-related injury?”

“Yep. I already ordered takeout. It’ll be here soon and we’ll eat together. No more cooking for you for a few days. You’re officially on a three-day break.”

Eleanor thought for a second that Max might just be the nicest boss she’d ever had.

“Thank you, Mr. Clarkson.”

He gave her a small, crooked smile. “Don’t mention it. I wouldn’t want my employee getting hurt while cooking for me. If it messes with your work during the day, that’d be even worse.”

So maybe she’d spoken too soon. In the end, she thought, bosses were all the same.