From His Wife to His Uncle's Wife novel Chapter 36

“Do yourself a favor and stay away from Peter. You know he doesn’t love you, right?”

Eleanor had no idea what crawled under Jessie’s skin today, but watching her drop the good-girl act was honestly kind of entertaining.

Jessie crossed her arms and smirked. “Eleanor, let’s not pretend. There’s no one else around, so I’ll be real with you. Peter has always loved me. I’m the one he can’t have. You? You’re just a stand-in.” She let out a little laugh, sharp and mean. “And you know what’s even sadder? Olga likes me better, too. So if you keep hanging on to the Clarksons, you’re just setting yourself up to get kicked out.”

Jessie leaned in, her voice suddenly syrupy. “But don’t worry. When you’re gone, I’ll take good care of your daughter. She’s only four now. By the time she’s fourteen or twenty-four, she probably won’t even remember what you looked like.”

Every word was meant to hurt, but Eleanor felt nothing. She’d been through worse. Pain didn’t stick to her anymore.

She managed a cool smile. “Is that so? Well, congrats. Guess you’ll get to be a stepmom soon.”

Jessie’s face twisted in annoyance. “Just wait and see.”

Eleanor watched Jessie walk away, then took out her phone and stopped the recording she’d started earlier. A cold satisfaction crept in. She wondered if Jessie would still be so smug if this conversation ended up online.

Her phone buzzed. It was Yolanda. “Eleanor, where are you?”

“I’m not feeling great, Yolanda. I’m heading home. You stay and have fun, okay?”

“Oh, alright. But it’s tough to find a cab from here. Are you sure you can get a ride?”

Eleanor stared at the app on her phone. No cars in sight. She bit her lip. “I’ve already called one. It should be here soon, don’t worry.”

Yolanda sounded relieved. “Okay, text me when you get home.”

Eleanor sighed. Her trench coat was still in Yolanda’s car. She silently hoped her driver would be a woman. Getting a ride dressed like this felt risky.

A tiny smile played at the corners of his mouth. He leaned in, reaching across her to pull the seatbelt over her waist and click it into place.

His cool fingers brushed against her stomach, and Eleanor instinctively tensed.

Max glanced at her, his eyes lingering on the way she sucked in her breath. “Relax. Even people in the back seat need to buckle up.”

He leaned back, his face unreadable, as if all he’d done was make sure she was safe.

He spoke again, his tone polite. “Where to, Ms. Rolland?”

She hesitated, then answered softly, “Whitehaven Commons.”