Chapter 86: The Phone
William loosened his tie and tossed his jacket onto the bed. He exhaled heavily, not from the weight of work or the never-ending cascade of responsibilities, but from something far more draining.
Anna... He closed his eyes and rubbed them with both hands, trying to shake off the persistent sting of guilt. Why did it always feel like he got everything wrong when it came to her?
Sometimes I’m so overwhelmed by these wild emotions that I fear showing them might break her. I don’t even know what I’m feeling. What am I feeling?
With another weary sigh, he ran a hand through his tousled brown hair. I should talk to her. This silence between us... it’s pointless. It’s eating away at me.
Determined, he stepped out of the room and headed downstairs to the living room, hoping to mend the growing rift between them over a glass of wine. Tonight, he was even willing to drink—if it meant making her feel just a little bit better.
As he’d expected, Anna was in the living room, sitting quietly by the open patio door, completely absorbed in a book. But what surprised him was the absence of her usual glass of wine on the small table beside her chair.
"You look very serene like this," William said gently.
Anna flinched, startled—she hadn’t noticed him enter.
"Oh..." she murmured, setting the book aside. "You’re back early. Is everything okay?"