Escape from Mr. Whitman (Emma and Theodore) novel Chapter 303

Emma saw Theodore again.

He looked terrible—drawn and exhausted, with dark circles under his eyes and the stale scent of cigarette smoke clinging to his clothes.

She instinctively frowned.

Theodore caught her reaction and coughed twice. “Sorry. I had some clients at the office this morning and ended up smoking a few cigarettes.”

Then he called Fallon over. “Since you’re back, you and your grandmother will need someone to help out at home. I know—” Theodore glanced at Larson— “I know we could hire someone new, but Fallon knows the routine. She’s always taken good care of you.”

Seeing Fallon again, Emma felt a surprising sense of comfort.

The thought almost made her laugh.

Five years of marriage, and the person she was closest to in that house wasn’t her husband—it was the housekeeper.

But maybe that was for the best. If Fallon was available and willing, she could come back for the next month. Still, Emma didn’t want to disrupt Fallon’s life just for a few weeks if she already had other plans.

So she asked Fallon first. Fallon, of course, agreed right away—said she had time and would be happy to come back. Emma relaxed. She was used to having Fallon around.

After picking up Fallon, they should have gone their separate ways—Emma and Larson would take Fallon back to the hospital room, and Theodore would leave.

But Theodore didn’t move. He just stood there, calling her name. “Emma…”

Emma sighed quietly and said to Larson, “I’ll talk to him for a minute.”

Emma held his gaze, but didn’t answer. She wasn’t ready to tell him she’d only be here for a month before leaving again. If he found out, he’d probably make a scene and ruin her plans.

“Emma,” he said softly, “I know you’re upset. But we have our whole lives ahead of us. Sooner or later, you’ll see—I never wanted to be apart from you. I want to spend my life with you.”

“Theodore.” Emma’s voice was calm and steady. “I really do want a divorce. My grandmother should be discharged in five days. After that, let’s go to city hall and get it done. I put the papers in the drawer—you’ve probably seen them already. If you have any objections to the agreement, you can bring them up.”

“I do have objections, I—”

“Theodore.” Emma cut him off. “If you don’t want to go to city hall, that’s fine. I’ll just file for divorce online. We’ve been married for five years—I have no intention of making this harder for you than it has to be, and I hope you’ll do the same for me. Let’s end this on good terms.”

She even pulled out her phone right then, ready to submit the paperwork.