Chapter 40 The Unexpected Surprise
Honesty and trust must be maintained between husband and wife, a truth Bella had always believed in. Although her ex-husband's actions proved how foolish this idea was, Bella still clung to her beliefs.
But today, she almost left this faith behind and believed Lanny's lies. If Edward hadn't given up his life of helping her and been thrown to the ground by Lanny, she would have suspected that her husband had lied about his physical condition.
Looking at the red wine chicken stew Edward made for her, Bella almost cried. He was so devoted to her that he had no idea that his wife had doubted him for a moment, and if Edward didn't know that, how pathetic he would be!
Bella hesitated to tell Edward her dark secret throughout dinner, trying to muster up the courage, but she was afraid Edward would be disappointed in her.
Eventually, Edward noticed her abnormality and took the initiative to ask her what was on her mind. Edward's gentle and thoughtfulness made Bella's heart warm. He was also bullied by Lanny today, but he didn't have a word of complaint; instead, he was more concerned about her mood.
She wanted to put the inner thoughts tray out, but a lie escaped from her mouth, "Nothing, I'm just a little tired."
She felt guilty, and she knew it was unfair to Edward.
Bella didn't dare to look Edward in the eye. She kept her head down and sullenly chewed the chicken.
"Is that so? I think you're still depressed about what Lanny did. In that case, I think I'll have to help you get revenge, I'll hire a killer to go and cut Lanny's head off, so you'll be happy," Edward said with a serious look on his face.
"No! Don't say such horrible things, and never do that. It's not about Lanny," Bella glared at Edward and hurriedly retorted.
"Since that's the case, it seems that I made a mistake, and that's why you're unhappy, right? Then you can punish me in any way you like," Edward said, a smirk spreading from the corner of his mouth.
Bella hurriedly put down the fork in her hand and grabbed Edward's hand, pleading with him not to say such things. He was too selfless, and it made Bella feel even more guilty.
"No, you didn't make a mistake. It's my fault, and it's all my fault. I almost believed Lanny's lies today," after saying this, Bella's face turned red, and she lowered her head, on the verge of tears.
Bella's answer made Edward feel so complicated. On the one hand, he felt ashamed of his blind confidence. Whether he was faking a disability or doing rehab, he hadn't faked any evidence to back up his lies. On the other hand, he was ashamed of his dishonesty with Bella. Bella had trouble letting go of her husband simply because she had a moment of doubt about him while he had been lying to Bella with no apologies.
Edward gently stroked Bella's hair, pulled her into his arms, and whispered, "No, your suspicions are justified, and I understand why you are like this, but don't beat yourself up over it, okay? I promise I'll introduce you to Dr. Leonard some other time."
Edward secretly sighed when he said this. He did not want to lie to Bella but had to use more lies to deceive her.
After receiving Edward's forgiveness, Bella, who had been nervous all day, was relieved and soon fell asleep in bed.
Looking at the sleeping Bella, Edward whispered, "I'm sorry, I just don't want to lose you."
***
When Bella woke up, it was already 9 a.m.
She usually picked up her phone to browse today's news when a text message popped up, alerting her of a 6,000 dollars paycheck arriving in her bank account.
Bella jumped out of bed with excitement. It was the first paycheck she had received in five years.
After the excitement, she suddenly realized that the money was a bit strange. She hadn't worked for a month yet, so how could she get paid?
Bella hurriedly called Helen, the finance manager, and asked her for information. If this were a windfall, she would not want it.
Helen quickly answered the call, and she told her over the phone that the one-month advance was a decree from the president, a reward for her hard work.
The affirmation from the president made her happier than the 6,000 dollars salary.
Bella was delighted that she had forgotten to put on her shoes and ran to Edward's room barefoot to share the good news with him.
"I didn't expect that the president is still quite nice," Bella said with a smug look.
Edward heard Bella's compliment on "the president" and asked with a smile, "If your president pursued you, would you choose him or me?"
Bella frowned and sulked when she heard this question, "Do you think I'm someone who would throw away my marriage for money?"
Hearing this, Edward hurriedly waved his hand, "No, no, I was just kidding." He tried to take Bella's hand, but she waved it away.
Edward saw this and changed the subject, "By the way, didn't you say that when you received your first paycheck, you would go buy your parents a gift and visit them? Let's go to the mall now."
***
At Lanny and David's house
After a night of meditation, Lanny finally emerged from the shadow of yesterday's failed revenge.
Edward's acting was superb, but his deception could not escape her.
Yesterday, in the small garden of Bella's house, she clearly saw Edward standing up, but when he saw her, Edward immediately sat down in his wheelchair, clearly weak-minded. Lanny thought this kind of lame lie could only fool people like Bella.
'Why did Edward pretend to be disabled?' This question Lanny thought for a long time and finally came up with an answer, 'Edward had long been hooking up with Bella, and it was all planned for them to get rid of her.' Lanny was so proud of her cleverness that she had forgotten that she had cheated with David and asked for a divorce from Edward.
Since this was the case, she had to find evidence to expose Edward's true colors.
She consulted several private detectives on the Internet, and the price they offered shocked Lanny; the lowest was 200 dollars an hour.
"Why is their rate so expensive? As if they are the best detectives in this world!"
Lanny suddenly had thought of something.
There was such a person holding a grudge against Edward and Bella, and now short of money, Lanny believed that she only needed to provide him with 100 dollars a day to make him willing to sell his life for herself.
With that thinking, she turned off her computer, took out her phone, and sent a text message.
'Edward, Bella, your good days are about to come to an end,' Lanny thought silently in her heart with a cold smile on her face.