I met Marcus Hale at a small café near downtown.
In my first life, Marcus was the first person to recognize my ability to grow a cybersecurity company. He once offered to partner with me. I turned him down because Adrian said the company would take up too much of my time.
Then Adrian used the same idea to expand his own business.
I wouldn't let history repeat that part.
Marcus stood when I arrived.
“You look different.”
“I just got out of the hospital.”
“That’s not what I meant.”
I sat across from him. “I want to buy back my shares.”
His eyebrows rose.
“You’re serious?”
“If I weren’t, I wouldn’t have come.”
Marcus studied me for a few seconds. There was no pity on his face. That was why I had liked him in my first life, even though our relationship had never been more than business.
“Does Adrian know?”
“Not yet.”
“And you want to keep it that way?”
“For now.”
Marcus leaned back. “You know, Evelyn, most people go back to work because they need money. You’re going back because you want to take something.”
I smiled.
“Then you still know me.”
We discussed numbers, contracts, and the company’s structure for an hour. I didn’t ask for a major position. I only bought back the portion I had once sold. Bit by bit, using my personal savings and assets that were still in my name.
When I left the café, a message came in.
Vivian: I heard you’re home. Can I come over tonight?
I stared at the words for a long time.
In my first life, I had replied immediately. I needed someone to keep me company. Vivian knew that. She had come carrying soup, hugged me, and cried on my shoulder longer than I had cried on hers.
Now I let her message sit for twenty minutes.
Then I replied:
Come over.
Vivian arrived with sunflowers. She wore a simple dress, her hair loosely tied back, her face arranged into grief that looked utterly convincing.
She hugged me before taking off her coat.
“I was so worried about you.”
“I know.”
Her embrace paused for a moment.
I pretended not to notice.
We sat in the living room. Vivian looked at the vase of lilies she had brought the day before.
“I didn’t know Adrian would buy them.”
“He said they were from you.”
“Really?”
Vivian smiled. “Maybe he wanted to make you feel better.”
In my first life, she had never mentioned the flowers. She had simply let me assume Adrian was the one who chose them.
I poured the tea.
“Adrian looks exhausted.”
“He is.”
“He loves you.”
My hand stopped above the cup.
Vivian looked at me carefully. “I mean, he loves you as his wife.”
“As his wife?”
“Evelyn, don’t get the wrong idea. I just want you to know that he’s devastated.”
I lowered my head, letting my hair cover my face.
“Sometimes I feel like he’s pulling away.”
Vivian didn’t answer.
I raised my eyes just as she turned her face away.
“Do you know something?” I asked.
“No.” She answered immediately. Too quickly. “Adrian never talks to me about personal matters.”
I nodded.
“I’m sorry. I’m confused.”
Vivian took my hand. “You can tell me anything.”
I squeezed her hand back.
“Then I’ll rely on you.”
Her smile softened. She liked that. Vivian had always wanted to be the person everyone needed most.
I gave her a small gift: trust that looked sincere.
In return, she would give me information.
When Vivian left, I stood by the window and watched her car disappear at the end of the street.
I didn’t need to separate them now.
I only needed to make every lie feel a little heavier when they carried it home.