Emma couldnt remember the last time shed felt this relaxed. Her business trip had been delayed by a few hours, and without explaining a word to anyone, shed switched off her phone and stretched out on the bed. Just that morning, shed returned from her mother-in-laws cottage in the Cotswolds, where shed spent two days without sitting down oncescrubbing, cleaning, cooking, all while enduring a constant stream of criticism from her husband, Oliver, and his mother.
According to her mother-in-law, Emma had “ruined” Oliver, didnt earn enough (as if her wages alone were meant to sustain the entire household), and was generally useless. Oliver, ever the dutiful son, chimed in, insisting she could easily take on extra work since she finished her job early and “barely had to lift a finger” at home.
“Look how she mops the floor,” her mother-in-law tutted to Oliver. “Takes her ages. She could be doing the laundry instead.”
Emma finally snapped. “If you lot mopped even once a week, it wouldnt be this filthy.” Bad move. The floodgates openedscolding, guilt-tripping, the works. Emma closed her eyes and calmly suggested, “I did offer for you to move to London. Oliver and I could look after you properly there, and he wouldnt have to quit his job.”
Oliver exploded. “Oh, so Im meant to work myself to the bone and *then* care for Mum? Youve got a heart of stone, you have.”
Emma didnt stick around for the encore. She walked straight out to the bench by the garden gate, where her neighbour, Tanya, found her wiping away tears. Theyd been friends since before the wedding, and Tanya had always been the voice of reason.
“Rough day with the in-laws?” Tanya asked, plopping down beside her.
“You have *no* idea.”
“Look, its none of my business, but why do you put up with it? Olivers always there, but youre not even *really* living together. Whats the point?”
Emma sighed. “We didnt plan it this way. We cant just abandon his mum when shes poorly. Once shes better, Oliver can move back to London.”
Tanya snorted. “That woman could run a marathon while carrying us all piggyback. I reckon shes faking it. You used to have a spinewhat happened?”
“I dont know. Just drop by later, yeah?”
When her boss called to say her trip was postponed till noon the next day, Emma nearly cheered. Extra pay *and* an escape from Olivers nagging calls? Perfect. That evening, the house was oddly peacefulOliver even slept in the spare room to “avoid upsetting Mum.” Emma didnt argue. She was too knackered to care.
At 2 a.m., her mother-in-laws shrill voice woke her. “Are you *deaf*? Ive been calling you for ages!”
Emma blinked, groggy. “Sorry, I was asleep. What do you need?”
“My tablets.”
Emma stared. The medicine cabinet was *right there*, closer to Oliver than to her. But she fetched them anyway. By 5 a.m., shed barely dozed off before her alarm went off at half six. By the time she reached London, she was shattereduntil she heard her trip was delayed again. Bliss. She collapsed onto the hotel bed, finally feeling human.
An hour before her train, she checked her accountthe trip allowance had landed. For the first time, she didnt immediately transfer it to Oliver. Something had shifted. Shed already given most of her last paycheque; this time, shed keep it.
With 20 minutes to spare, she ducked into a café for waterthen froze. There was Oliver, at the florists. He was supposed to be caring for his “deathly ill” mother! Yet here he was, buying roses. Emmas stomach lurched. What if they werent for her?
Nine minutes till departure. She tailed him to a taxi, then hailed one herself. “Follow that car. Ill pay double.”
The driverweirdly posh for a cabbiearched a brow but obliged. Through the window, she saw Oliver kiss a woman and hand her the bouquet. Emmas vision blurred.
“Maybe its not what you think,” the driver offered.
She finally looked at himtoo well-dressed, too *everything*. This wasnt a taxi.
Turns out, hed just dropped his dad at the station. Emma, mortified, burst into tears.
Half an hour later, they were by the Thames, coffee in hand, watching the sunset. “Stunning,” Emma murmured. “Lived here years and never knew this spot.”
“I come here a lot,” he admitted. “Found it after my wife cheated on me.”
Emma gaped. He laughed. “Yeah, *exactly* what youre thinkingWhod cheat on *him*?”
Two days later, Oliver called as Emma packed for her next trip. “Wheres the money? They paid you, right?”
“They did. Its for my expenses.”
“So youre *not* sending it?”
“Spot on, Oliver. And I want your things out of *my* flatthe one my parents left me.”
Silence. Then, sputtering: “Are you *mad*? How am I supposed to live?”
“Get a job. Like every other bloke.”
“But Mums *ill*!”
“Not ill enough for you to buy flowers for other women *with my money* and take them to *my flat*.”
She hung up.
Later, outside her building, Oliver grabbed her arm. “We need to talk.”
“No, we dont.”
“Think you can just walk away?” He tightened his grip. “So I had a bit of funbig deal. Ive got needs!”
Emma wrenched free as the “taxi driver”Sashaappeared, shoving Oliver aside.
Oliver sneered. “Oh, got yourself a *boyfriend*? Fine. Im filing for divorce!”
Emma beamed. “Brilliant. Saves me the paperwork.”
As they drove off, Sasha grinned. “Hes still standing there, gobsmacked.”
“Ex-husbands do that.” She eyed him. “Why *are* you here?”
“You said you were leaving today.” He shrugged. “I came to drive you.”
“Thats *three hundred miles*!”
“Yep.” He braked, popped the boot, and handed her a bouquet of white roses. “Almost forgot these.”
Emma stared. Then smiled. It was better than shed dared dream.
