Harrison was a stickler for his personal stuff, especially private items like underwear. He never let the housemaids wash his undergarments, and wouls toss them in a specialized washer and dryer that sterilized his stuff. And even when they were all dried and ready to go into the closet, he wouldn't let the maids lay a finger on them.
Roxanne turned around and said, "I saw you didn't wash them, so I did it for you."
She added, "Don't worry, I used a new basin, hand-washed them myself, and even separated your clothes from the rest."
Still, Harrison was a bit miffed. He snatched his underwear back with a gloomy face. "You don't have to wash them for me. Don’t touch my stuff from now on."
"All this help and you don't appreciate it," Roxanne grumbled under her breath.
But she wasn't mad. She just wouldn’t touch his stuff next time.
"I toasted some bread and fried some eggs. There's milk in the fridge. Help yourself. I'm heading to work."
Despite the slight unpleasantness, nothing beat making a living.
Roxanne headed to the office with a spring in her step. Around 10 o'clock, she was about to head out for some errands when Chloe called her, wanting to meet up at Starbucks.
No replies or calls for two days and now she wanted to meet out of the blue?
Roxanne found it strange. "Chloe, what's up?"
"Anne, let's talk in person. I'll be waiting for you at the Starbucks we usually go to."
When Roxanne arrived, she only saw Chloe.
"Why didn't you bring Austin?" she asked as she sat down.
"I asked my mom to watch him for a while." Chloe pushed a coffee in front of her. "I ordered your favorite latte."
Roxanne was taken aback. "You put on makeup today?"
It's been years since she last saw Chloe wear makeup. This was a rare sight indeed!
Chloe gave a bitter smile. "Even with makeup, I can't hide my pallor, can I?"
"No way, you're naturally gorgeous," Roxanne reassured her, not having the heart to tell Chloe that her makeup was a bit too heavy. It might also have been because of age, Chloe's skin was not as youthful as before, and the makeup made her look a bit older. After all, she was already a mother of two.
But Chloe was beautiful even without makeup. “What brand of makeup are you using? It seems a bit patchy, did you apply too much?”
Chloe didn’t even know what brand of makeup she was using.
With two young kids and a husband to take care of, she hardly had time to apply makeup, let alone sleep properly. She thought her hard work was worth it with a successful husband, a talented daughter, and a cute son. But when she overheard Oliver’s conversation with Roxanne the other day, she realized how miserable she was.
Looking haggard, with no ambition, she was feeling left behind by society, and her husband was no longer interested in her, only thinking about her best friend.
Each word was like a crumbling rock, hitting Chloe's fragile heart hard, and causing unbearable pain.
Chloe had been holding a grudge against Roxanne for the past couple of days. Why did Oliver have to have feelings for Roxanne, her best friend?
So, she didn't respond to Roxanne's messages or calls. But after careful consideration, she regained her composure.
How could she blame Roxanne? It was Oliver's fault. Even if Roxanne wasn't there, it would be someone else. She almost lost her best friend due to her pain and anger.
Maybe Roxanne rushed into marriage because of Oliver's harassment. Otherwise, Roxanne, who had been single for seven years and had always been resistant to love and marriage, wouldn't suddenly get married. Maybe it was for her.
She almost lost a good friend who truly cared for her because of a man's provocation.
"Anne, I'm sorry. I was too tired taking care of the kids these past few days and wasn't feeling well, so I didn't reply to your messages. I didn't even properly congratulate you on your marriage," Chloe apologized sincerely.
Comments
The readers' comments on the novel: The Windfalls of Love