Goodbye, Mr. Regret

Sandra's voice was sharp and unforgiving. "Do we really need to persuade you? If you have any decency left, you should file for divorce yourself! Honestly, you're infuriating me. If I hadn't come back to Riverside City, I wouldn't have even known about all the appalling things you've done. I'm so disappointed in you!"

Her expression was grave, lips pressed into a tight line.

Timothy turned toward his grandfather and his father-in-law. "So you both think I should be the one to initiate the divorce?"

"That's right," Abell and Phelps answered in unison.

"I'm not divorcing her." Timothy didn't even hesitate.

Phelps's main concern was avoiding a public trial and all the ugly details coming out in court. Sandra and Abell, on the other hand, thought Timothy had gone too far and shouldn't drag Jessica along with him any longer; they wanted him to settle this quietly, out of court.

Different motives, but the same desired outcome.noveldrama

Yet Timothy still refused.

Phelps's voice was urgent. "Do you really not get what you've done? If you refuse to divorce and this ends up in court, who do you think will look bad? The whole city will be laughing at us. That's the least of it-if you push her too far and she actually sues, do you have any idea what the consequences will be?"

Sandra tried a gentler approach. "You haven't treated her well, Timothy. Why keep dragging things out? End it on good terms. We're not unreasonable people-let her decide about custody, it's the least we can do to make up for everything."

"That's out of the question." Timothy hadn't even opened his mouth before Phelps cut in. "Henry is the eldest grandson of the Lawson family. Custody must stay with Timothy."

"If you elders haven't worked this out among yourselves, there's no point talking to me about it right now. I have things to do—I'm heading out."

"Wait." Sandra stopped him at the door. "You're not going anywhere. We'll discuss custody later. But the divorce-we need to settle that now. Do you really think this marriage should continue?"

Sheila, standing just outside the study, caught snippets of the argument.

Both the Howard and Lawson families wanted Timothy to divorce. Timothy, stubborn as ever, refused.

Sheila didn't linger by the door, worried the housekeeper might see her and think she was eavesdropping. She slipped quietly into the living room and sat down.

Around that time, Timothy began to suspect he might have made some kind of mistake. Everyone wanted him to get divorced. He didn't want to upset the elders, but he also refused to give up his marriage. After a moment's thought, he said, "Seven years ago, you all tried to interfere when I got married. Now, seven years later, I finally have a complete family and you're still meddling. Do you think I'm still a kid who can't make his own decisions?"

Abell could see Timothy was calm, not angry—yet he also knew Timothy hadn't handled things well. "Timothy, I know you're grown and have your own mind. But it's clear there isn't much affection between you and Jessica anymore. Otherwise, you wouldn't have treated her like this. She's determined to leave-you can't force a relationship that isn't working."

Timothy pondered. "What if she changes her mind and doesn't want a divorce?"

"If she forgives you and wants to stay, then I won't object," Abell said. "But I really don't think she will."

Abell and Sandra had both spoken privately with Jessica.

Sandra glanced at Phelps. "If Jessy decides not to divorce, how will you handle it?"

"If she stays, that's the best outcome," Phelps replied.

What he feared most was Jessica insisting on divorce and dragging everything out into the open.

Sandra turned to Timothy. "If you're able to win Jessy back, of course we'd rather see your family stay together."

"Then let me handle this," Timothy said. "I'll sort things out myself. There's no need for anyone else to get involved."

He understood that the more upset the elders became, the harder it would be for them to let it go—and if things got ugly, their health might suffer. It wasn't worth the risk.

His calmness managed to placate

the three elders, at least for the

moment. None of them truly wanted t. to tear his family apart. Years ago, they'd been relieved when Timothy chose to marry Jessica instead of insisting on marrying Sheila, which would have caused even more headaches.

For now, there was nothing left to say.

But as Phelps was leaving, he threw one last warning over his shoulder. "I don't care how you handle it, but what you did to Jessica-you'd better make it right."

Phelps left the study and spotted Sheila in the living room.

Sheila greeted him politely, "Good evening, Mr. Lawson." Phelps gave her a curt nod, his expression still stern, and walked away.

From Sheila's perspective, it would be best if Timothy didn't get a divorce.

Jessica returned to the country the day before the hearing.

Vince picked her up at the airport and, for safety's sake, drove her straight to the Zimmerman house.

Larkin Zimmerman was delighted to see her. He told Jessica that Sandra and Abell had visited him during their trip to Riverside City, just to discuss Timothy's divorce and hope for a peaceful settlement.

After everything that had happened, Jessica knew a friendly divorce with Timothy was out of the question. The hearing was tomorrow-once she had the judgment in hand, their marriage would be officially over.

She had more than enough evidence to win the case.

"Grandpa," Jessica said, "Abell and Sandra may mean well, but that doesn't mean they can change Timothy's mind. You elders want us to staymarried, but really, the best outcome might be no divorce at all. Stiff, you never know-Timothy might just sweet-talk them into going along with whatever he wants."