She thought she must have misheard.
“Just two years ago, he married Penny Brown!” added Christina Sanchez.
She wanted to laugh.
That’s a big joke!
He had said that he did not love Penny Brown and that it would never be possible with Penny Brown again, so how could he have married Penny Brown?
And …
Or was it two years ago?
Two years ago, she just left! And … Marshall Johnson said that for the past two years, he slept at the office … If he had a home, would he sleep at the office?
Last night at his place, he clearly told her that he had a bad time in the past two years! It was a bad time!
So … how did he get married?
“Andrea Jones, Neal and Penny Brown are now married. If you don’t believe me, you can call Neal and ask him, and if you want to be a shameless third party when you know they’re married, you can keep going with Neal Williams!” Christina Sanchez simply looked at the shock on Andrea Jones’ face with admiration.
Andrea Jones was breathing heavily as she fought back tears. It took a long time before her eyes fell on Christina Sanchez, “Neal Williams told me to believe him, and I believe him! I won’t believe anything anyone else says!”
“Sister, let’s go.” She turned around quickly, not allowing herself a moment’s pause. She was afraid she wouldn’t be able to resist going back to Christina Sanchez to ask for clarification.
Neal Williams has said that he had not changed his mind in the past two years!
She believes!
She believes it all!
As soon as I turned around, my feet were already weak and tears were falling down.
But …
And she never looked back. Defiantly straightening her back, she was led away by Sammy Jones.
She didn’t know how she got home and locked herself in her room as soon as she got in. She obviously wanted to believe him, but she couldn’t stop the tears.
Sammy Jones sat outside and was distraught. The truth had come out after all, and she was worried if she could survive it. She loved Neal Williams so much! Just now, she had insisted on staying for Neal Williams! And, in such an ecstatic and happy tone.
She couldn’t even imagine what a shock such a fact would be for Andrea Jones.
It was three hours later when Neal Williams received a call from Andrea Jones.
“When will you … probably be back?” Andrea Jones smoothed her breathing as much as possible to make her tone sound less choked up.
But …
Neal Williams still understands it in one sentence.
“Was it crying?”
“I went shopping with Sammy Jones today and met an old guy.”
Neal Williams flinched. There was silence, no questions asked.
“… is your mother.” She said in a slow voice.
Neal Williams’ breathing, becoming heavy. The phone, gripped tightly.
“Andrea Jones …,” he spoke, trying to explain.
Andrea Jones cut his words off seemingly calmly, “I’ll wait for you to come back.”
After a pause, she was on the verge of hiding the choking sob in her tone, “I want to hear you tell me in person!”
Whatever the outcome, whether Christina Sanchez’s words were true or not, at this moment she had no choice but to listen to his truth.
Andrea Jones stayed woodenly at home for a few hours, she didn’t know. All she knows is that it was after 7 p. m. when she got another call from Neal Williams.
Apparently …
He came back immediately after receiving her call.
Andrea Jones just grabbed the phone and walked out the door. Sammy Jones saw her going out and followed her out, “Where are you going? I’m coming with you!”
“I’m going to meet him, and I’ll be back when I’m done.” Andrea Jones looked at Sammy Jones with eyes that had long since dimmed. It was like being drained of soul.
Looking at her like that, Sammy Jones suddenly felt very hard. Andrea Jones hugged Andrea Jones, “You still have me! Andrea, we go back to the United States together, as long as you want, I can stay with you in New York!”
Andrea Jones blinked, tears staining her eyelashes all at once. It was a moment before she hugged Sammy Jones back and whispered, “Sis, I’m fine …”
The heartache is only clear to you when you say you’re fine.
Coming out of the cell block, I saw the Hummer parked under the block at a glance. He was leaning against the car and seemed to be smoking. The street lights had come on, stretching his lonely figure long.
A sourness, rushing out from the nasal cavity, pushed straight to the heart. She thought about it a thousand times, how could she have never thought that what they had always kept from themselves was this.
As if sensing her presence, Neal Williams jerked back around. When he saw her, his eyes fluttered. Stubbed out his cigarette and threw it in the ashtray.
Andrea Jones approached him in silence, and his eyes remained fixed on her face, deep as a pool of water. However, she was not sure that she could still see his heart clearly …
The two picked a cafe that was close to the neighborhood. In the small cafe, the lights were dim and it was especially quiet.
Andrea Jones’s hand, resting on the tabletop, nails clenched on the edge of the table. With a glance at a glum Neal Williams, she took the lead: “Mrs. Williams said … you’ve been married for two years. And that the object is Penny Brown.”
Even though she tried very hard to keep her emotions steady, she could still hear her voice shaking.
Neal Williams breathed heavily and crossed his palms, trying to take her hand. Instead, she flinched and resisted, retracting her hand to her knee.
“Don’t do this!” She, in clear refusal!
With a sinking heart, Neal Williams looked up at her with desolate eyes.
Her eyes burned and rose and she simply asked, “I want to hear you tell me yourself. neal Williams, you’re married now. Are you?”
She looked straight at him, the eyes as if to look into his heart, can not allow him to have any escape. And he, too, did not want to escape at all.
“Yes.” He nodded heavily and pursed a short word from between his thin, dry lips. It was like a fierce bomb that exploded on Andrea Jones’ heart, making her feel the sky spinning and her heart, something was collapsing inch by inch.
Her pale fingers almost pinched into the edge of the table before she could barely support herself from collapsing in too much of a mess.
Neal Williams felt pain and guilt. He wanted to go over and embrace her, but he held back.
“I’ve wanted to tell you for a long time, but … the closer you get to me, the more I don’t know how to say it. Andrea Jones, believe me, I never meant to hurt you!”
“But … you’ve already hurt me.” The words broke and tears fell from his eyes at once. “Almost … almost I was the third party in your marriage.”
Heart, so painful.
It was like a piece was plucked out alive. When she came back home and saw him, she couldn’t restrain the heartbeat and even foolishly thought that they could be together again. It is silly to think that two years have swept the past knot between them clean.
But, to this day, she realizes …
Two years is the Queen Mother’s golden pin, a gentle stroke, has allowed them to separate the two ends of the Milky Way. And … no more chance …
There will be no more chances!
It turns out that from the day she came back, she was wrong …
“I’m sorry, Andrea Jones …” he apologized painfully, “Originally, I thought I would take care of it and I wanted to come clean with you when it was clean …”
“What do you mean, handled cleanly?”
“I will divorce her.”
Andrea Jones couldn’t be happy. She couldn’t imagine that for two years he had been beside another woman, occupying the sacred position of ‘husband’. 700+ days and nights they had shared a bed, even … more intimate… …
Sorry, she’s petty! She couldn’t take it! Just the thought that he would hold another woman’s hand, that he would hug another woman as he hugged her, that he would caress someone else as he caressed her, made her heart burn harder than if she were on fire!
No! Penny Brown is not another woman! Penny Brown is his wife! The real other woman is her! She’s the one!
Like a sharp pain in her heart, she could not afford to load, she covered her chest with force, for a long time before she could barely hold up her body and stand up.
When Neal Williams stood up to help her, she ducked, her hands trembled and clutched the fence, her eyes resisted him, and her eyes clearly said, “Don’t touch her!
Neal Williams’ eyes sunken, his hand extended, awkwardly frozen in the air.
The look of her resistance hurt him.
Indeed …
What qualifications does he have to approach her again today?
Andrea Jones walked out of the cafe hurt. In his mind, back and forth were the words Neal Williams said last night. He said that in the past two years, he had never wavered! She really wanted to ask him, already married, with another woman for life, and still call it not shaken?
Standing on the street, covered with a blur of tears, Andrea Jones blankly looking at the city. Suddenly everything here feels so strange again. As if nowhere is where she should be …
For a moment, she didn’t know where to go.
Through the heavy glass, Neal Williams looked painfully at the slim back. In the evening breeze, she looked so slender. He tried his best to protect her under his wings, but, in the end, he took the knife and peeled her heart away.
She … hates herself, right?
Suddenly, standing up, Neal Williams lifted his steps to chase out. However, outside the door Andrea Jones already let Sammy Jones hold, leaving.
After Sammy Jones sent his application email to his teacher, he turned his head toward Andrea Jones. There were no more tears on her face, she was just squatting on the floor packing her bags. Mrs. Ning and IG’s case has not yet come to an end, but the dust has almost settled, even if she is not here, the impact of manipulation from afar will not be too great.
“Really decided to go?” Sammy Jones asked again.
Although staying now, it will not end well between her and Neal Williams. However, she left with the pain at this moment, and let her not bear. When she left two years ago, she cried all night long and lost sleep all night long. This time back, this wound, and how long it will take to recover?
Andrea Jones didn’t say anything, as if she hadn’t heard Sammy Jones’ words, just folding her clothes and packing her bags.
Sammy Jones squatted down in front of her and looked into her empty eyes, “Andrea, he told me last … time that he would get a divorce. What do you think? Maybe … he doesn’t have any feelings for his wife at all?”
The hand that collects things is slightly stiff.
The eyes, flowing down, fell to Sammy Jones, “How could he marry if there were no feelings?”
Sammy Jones can’t say the same. Perhaps what Andrea Jones can’t stand is not that he is married, but that … his feelings have swayed to other women.
This is indeed the most hurtful.
The last time we met at IG, Andrea Jones showed up anyway.
The project manager was giving a presentation in front of the slides, and Neal Williams was sitting across from Andrea Jones. She always kept her head down, occasionally lifting her pen to take notes, as if she was very serious, so serious that she could ignore the occasional glances from across the room. However, only she knows best, how bitter and astringent her heart is.
When the meeting was over, she gathered her things and said to Anli, “I’ll go back and check it out, and then I’ll mail the information back to you. I’ll leave it to you guys here.”