Chapter 4

Julia was warm and chatty. "Emily, that's such a pretty name. What do you do for work?"

"I used to do project management at a tech company. Right now, I'm unemployed." I answered.

"Oh, so you're a stay-at-home wife."Julia's voice lifted, drawing glances from the others. "Then what do you usually do at home?"

"Read, watch shows, sleep."

"Doesn't that get boring?"

"Honestly, it's pretty comfortable."

Julia smiled, then turned and whispered something into Dave's ear. I couldn't hear it, but I could guess. Probably something about how a rich man's wife really did end up living like this, basically retired in her early thirties.

Sophia leaned over. "Emily, how did you and your husband meet?"

"On a blind date." I said.

"A blind date?"Sophia's eyes went wide. "People from rich families do that too?"

"Rich people have to get married too,"I said. "Back then, he thought I was a pretty good deal: good school, respectable job, decent face, presentable in public, low maintenance at home."

The whole table went quiet for two seconds. Charles's fork stopped midair.

Brian let out a laugh. "Damn, Emily, you're brutally honest."

"It's the fact."I picked up some food. "Eat, eat. This fish is pretty good."

Mark adjusted his glasses. "Mrs. Grant, that sounds like there's some resentment in there."

I shake my head."Stating the facts. What does Mr. Evans tech?"

"Sociology," he said.

"Then you should know marriage is a social relationship to begin with. Whether two people fit together isn't that different from whether they'd make good business partners.

"Assets, liabilities, investment, return. Those all need to be accounted for clearly. Once they are, resentment comes a lot less easily."

Mark paused, then smiled. "Interesting. Very interesting."

Anna didn't smile. She looked at me with something unreadable in her eyes that is caution, maybe, or hostility.

Near the end of dinner, the director announced tomorrow's first task: each couple had to make breakfast for the other on camera, and the crew and online viewers would vote for the "warmest breakfast."

Sophia cheered. "That's so romantic."

Julia smiled gently. "My husband's actually really good in the kitchen."

Anna said nothing. She just glanced at Mark.

Charles looked at me and lowered his voice. "Do you cook?"

"Nope." I straightly said.

He felt speechless.

"What about you?"

"Me neither."

The two of us went quiet at the same time.

"We'll order delivery,"I said.

"There's no delivery in this town."

"Then you go and learn it."

Charles looked at me, his expression complicated.

I smiled at him. "Mr. Grant, tomorrow's breakfast is all on you. Good luck."

He took a deep breath and said nothing.

When we went back to the room that night, the cameras were already set up. There were two bedrooms with a door connecting them in the middle.

Charles had the master bedroom, I had the guest room. The production team said it was to "capture the couple's real dynamic."

After I showered and changed into pajamas, I opened my laptop to read through some materials. Then my phone buzzed with a message from Charles: [You're really not making breakfast tomorrow?]

Me: [I really don't know how.]

Charles: [You've never done it before?]

Me: [I used to. Then I realized it made no difference. If I cooked, you didn't eat. If I didn't, you didn't care. So I figured I might as well save the effort.]

There was a long silence on his end.

Charles: [Emily, I know I haven't done right by you these past three years.]

I looked at the message and didn't reply.

Charles added: [But I really want to try and see if I can fix this. Before the show ends, can you give me a chance?]

I stared at the words on the screen, my fingers hovering over the keyboard.

Three years ago, when I was signing that surgery consent form alone, where was he? In a full year, the days he spent at home didn't add up to two months.

When I needed him, he wasn't there. Now that Grant Holdings needed me, suddenly he showed up. And that was supposed to be making it right?

I turned off my phone, put on my sleep mask, and went to sleep.