Countdown to Goodbye

"This is Kayla's first project since coming back. I don't want it to fail."

I watched the whole thing with a kind of emotional detachment.

That night, after the negotiations ended and we got home, Lawrence hesitated on the couch for a long time.

In the end, he explained, "We're still secretly married. I just haven't found the right chance to explain it yet. In the future, I'll make it public. For now, the most important thing is getting this project done properly."

I nodded, neither agreeing nor disagreeing.

I didn't remind him that what should really matter most was the wedding we were supposed to have soon.

A wedding he had promised but never prepared for, not even once.

I also didn't remind him that by that day, the divorce cooling-off period would be over.

After all, in his eyes, Kayla still mattered the most.

During the project, Lawrence deliberately avoided situations where Kayla and I might meet, but Daphne still noticed something was off.

She asked me with clear curiosity, "Did you and Mr. Schwartz have something going on before?"

I smiled. "What do you mean?"

Daphne pursed her lips. "He's looked at you more than once with this really guilty expression. That's exactly how a guy who hasn't fully turned heartless yet looks at an ex."

I froze for a moment and thought back carefully.

It wasn't that I hadn't noticed. It was just that everything from the past made it impossible for me to trust what I saw in his eyes.

Ten days left.

That day was supposed to be our regular project meeting.

Kayla chatted with me for a long time. I wasn't sure if it was intentional. I knew she had probably figured out my relationship with Lawrence.

I still responded politely.

After the meeting, Lawrence unexpectedly offered to drive me home.

It was the first time.

"Your work ability really exceeded my expectations," he said.

After five years of marriage, this was the first time he had praised me.

My hands paused while organizing the files, and I looked at him in confusion.

Lawrence hesitated for a long time before finally saying, "The makeup wedding. Do you think we can make it?"

I lowered my head, knowing he probably wanted to cancel it. Most likely because of Kayla.

"Let's just cancel it. We don't have time to prepare, anyway."

I looked up at him, not exposing the truth and not wanting to make things awkward.

Lawrence stared at me in shock, as if he had gotten an answer he never expected.

He suddenly asked, "You're okay with that?"

Fair enough. If this were the past, I probably would've lost control on the spot, demanding an answer.

So many ugly moments in our marriage had come from my losing control, even though every one of those moments was caused by him.

I wore a small smile. "Of course. It's just a ceremony."

After a long silence, Lawrence spoke again on his own initiative.

"How about this? In a few days, I'll take you to the old town nearby to relax."

I looked down at the countdown on my phone.Ten more days until the entire divorce process is finalized.

I declined.

His hands stiffened on the steering wheel, and he almost ran a red light.

"What about the beach? Or we could go eat at that restaurant you've always wanted to try."

Lawrence suggested several ways to relax in a row, but I turned each one down.

By the time we got out of the car, his expression had shifted from awkwardness and guilt to confusion and irritation.

Seeing his face, I took the initiative and asked, "How about we go check out the old house?"

The old house was where Lawrence and I lived when we first got married.

I really did miss it a little.

Lawrence froze for a long time, clearly trying to figure out what I was thinking.

Even after I got out of the car, he was still sitting there, staring ahead for a long, long time.