Save Her Lose Us (Evangeline and Soren) novel Chapter 24

Winston's face darkened again.

"They're really getting divorced?" Hazel's voice was edged with surprise.

That, at least, had caught her off guard.

"No," Giselle replied, shaking her head. "I asked someone who works at the courthouse. The paperwork's not done yet—there's a thirty-day cooling-off period."

She sighed, her voice dropping to a disgruntled mumble. "Honestly, what's the point of a cooling-off period? Wouldn't it be better to just get it over with?"

Hazel noticed Winston's scowl deepen as Giselle finished. She reached over and tapped Giselle gently on the head, chiding her in a mock-stern tone.

"That's enough, young lady. Even if she does get divorced, you're not marrying into the Fawkes family."

"Mom!" Giselle protested, her tone sulky.

Hazel might have been right, but that didn't make it any easier to swallow.

Back before the wedding was finalized, the Whitmore family had actually considered sending Giselle in Evangeline's place; even Soren had tacitly agreed to the switch. But fate had other plans—and in the end, it was Evangeline who got engaged to Soren.

The Fawkes family alliance was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and now it belonged to Evangeline. The thought of it left Giselle stewing in frustration.

Seeing her daughter's gloomy expression, Hazel hurried to comfort her. "Don't worry, sweetheart. I'll find you a husband even better than Soren. Much better."

Giselle muttered under her breath, "There's no one better than Soren in all of Serenity City."

The more she thought about it, the angrier she got. She'd been planning to complain to her parents about how Evangeline had slighted her earlier, but now neither Hazel nor Winston seemed interested in listening. Hazel brushed her off with a few soothing words, then gently encouraged her to head back to her room and rest.

Reluctantly, Giselle shuffled away.

Winston's furrowed brow finally eased a little after hearing that Evangeline hadn't actually gotten divorced yet.

Hazel glanced at him, her tone exasperated. "Still, Evangeline really is too headstrong. The Whitmore family wouldn't be in this mess if it weren't for what she did back then. If only, at the time—"

She trailed off, and Winston—who had just started to calm down—felt his irritation flare all over again.

Hazel looked as if she might continue, but Winston waved her off. "Enough. It's done. There's no point rehashing the past."

Her phone chimed, breaking her reverie.

It was a text from Glenn, letting her know the research institute had relocated to Serenity City.

Evangeline blinked in surprise. The institute had been thriving abroad, always getting first dibs on the latest technology. There hadn't been any talk of moving back—and she'd just spoken to Glenn on the phone not long ago, with no mention of this.

Why the sudden change? She quickly typed out her question.

Glenn's reply was brief: Too long to explain over text. Let's talk tomorrow.

Tomorrow? Evangeline's eyebrows shot up. You're coming back?

Yep, he replied, and attached a bright photo of an airport terminal.

He was already on his way.

Evangeline realized there was nothing left to ask, but after a moment's hesitation, she sent one more message: Want me to pick you up?