The Abandoned Wife's Second Chance (Scarlett and Jasper) novel Chapter 178

+25 Points

Three weeks after James’s funeral, I find Virginia in her room–in the new house James allowed her to

choose, the one she decorated in that completely different style, trying so hard to carve out a space that

was hers alone.

Now she’s packing it all up.

“You don’t have to leave,” I say from the doorway.

She glances back at me, and for the first time since I’ve known her, there’s no hostility in her eyes. No

jealousy or resentment. Just exhaustion and something that might be peace.

“I know.” She folds a sweater carefully, placing it in the open suitcase on her bed. “But I need to.”

Blair’s downstairs, moving through the house like a ghost. She doesn’t eat unless I force her. Doesn’t sleep

unless she’s too exhausted to stay awake. Just sits in James’s study, holding his reading glasses, staring

at nothing.

I’m not much better. But at least I have Lily to take care of. A reason to get out of bed every morning.

Virginia doesn’t even have that.

“Where will you go?” I ask, stepping into the room.

“Europe. Maybe Switzerland first.” She closes the suitcase, zipping it with steady hands. “An old friend offered me a position at his research facility. It’s a good opportunity.”

“Running away won’t make it hurt less.”

The words come out harsher than I intend. Virginia flinches, her fingers stilling on the suitcase handle.

“I’m not running away,” she says quietly. “I found a new goal, a good opportunity to start over.”

She turns to face me fully, and I see the dark circles under her eyes, the weight she’s lost in just three

weeks. She looks fragile. Breakable in a way she never did before, even during her most dramatic

moments.

“I spent my whole life believing I wasn’t loved,” she continues. “That my mother threw me away because of a greedy businessman’s schemes. I had to fight and claw for every scrap of affection because no one ever gave me any. And Morgan used that to twist me into someone I hate. Someone who hurt the people who

cared about her.”

“Virginia-”

“Let me finish.” She takes a shaky breath. “I destroyed your marriage. I made your life hell. I helped Morgan plan things that could’ve killed you and Lily. And for what? To gain the approval of someone who always called me stupid, desperate, useless. And Morgan was right. I was too stupid and desperate to see the

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truth.”

“You weren’t stupid. You were manipulated.”

*25 Points

“I was willing to be manipulated.” Her voice hardens. “I wanted to believe that I couldn’t get her love because of what James did. But the truth is, even if James had destroyed her family, I shouldn’t have had

to fight to get her approval, her love. I wanted to believe that you stole something from me. That I deserved Jasper’s love more than you did. That James and Blair owed me something. It was easier than

admitting the truth that she didn’t love me. It was because I was willing to be stupid that I refused to

accept this truth until it was too late.”

“Virgina, you weren’t stupid…”

“Yes, I was.” She laughs, but there’s no humor in it. “Morgan didn’t force me to sabotage your marriage. She didn’t make me fake panic attacks or send those texts or any of it. I chose to do those things. Because I

was jealous and angry and so desperate to be loved that I became someone unlovable.”

The words hang between us, raw and honest.

“Wanting to be loved isn’t a crime,” I say. “It doesn’t make you stupid, or useless, or desperate. So your

fault isn’t in wanting love, but in failing to love yourself first.”

“I know.” Her eyes fill with tears, but she blinks them back. “And that’s why I have to leave. I can’t learn to

love myself, until I rebuild myself, or rediscover a redeemable quality in myself. I can’t…I can’t look at Blair

knowing I’m the reason he’s gone, and not hate myself. I can’t-”

Her voice breaks. She covers her face with her hands, shoulders shaking.

I cross the room and pull her into my arms. She stiffens at first, like she’s forgotten how to accept

comfort. Then she melts against me, crying into my shoulder the way she did that night in the warehouse.

“It wasn’t your fault,” I whisper. “Morgan pulled the trigger. Her men shot him. Not you.”

“But if I hadn’t helped her-”

“Stop.” I pull back, gripping her shoulders so she has to look at me. “You can spend the rest of your life.

drowning in what–ifs, or you can honor James’s memory by becoming the person he believed you could

1. be. The choice is yours.”

She stares at me, tears streaming down her face.

“He wanted us to support each other,” I continue. “To be there for each other. You leaving–that’s not what

he wanted.”

“Maybe not.” Virginia wipes her eyes roughly. “But it’s what I need. I need to figure out who I am without Morgan’s voice in my head. Without comparing myself to you every second.”

She pulls away gently, sitting on the edge of the bed.

“I’m going to live for myself now,” she says. “Not for Morgan’s revenge. Not for Jasper’s attention. Not for

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James and Blair’s approval. Just for me.”

*75 Points?

There’s something different in her voice. Something determined and clear that I’ve never heard before.

“The research position–it’s a chance to make a real difference in the field. To be recognized for my work, not for who my parents are. I need to prove to myself that I can be someone worth knowing.”

I sit beside her, our shoulders touching. For a long moment, we just sit there in silence.

“Will you come back?” I finally ask.

“I don’t know.” She leans her head against mine. “But I’ll call. And write. And maybe–maybe when I’ve figured out who Virginia Stone really is, I’ll come home.”

“Blair needs you.”

“Blair needs time.” Virginia’s voice is soft. “And so do I. We all do.”

She’s right. I know she’s right. But it still hurts, watching another person I care about walk away.

“Promise me you’ll take care of yourself.”

“I promise.” She squeezes my hand. “And you promise me you’ll give yourself a second chance.”

“I’ll try.”

“Try harder.” She manages a small smile. “Someone needs to live the happy ending James wanted for us.

Might as well be you.”

Two days later, I drive Virginia to the airport.

Blair came to say goodbye, holding Virginia so tight I thought she’d never let go. They both cried. Blair gave her James’s watch–the one he wore every day, the one that somehow survived everything.

“So you’ll remember,” Blair whispered. “That he loved you. That we both love you.”

Now Virginia and I stand at the security checkpoint, her carry–on bag slung over her shoulder.

“This isn’t goodbye forever,” she says, but her eyes are already red.

“It better not be.” I pull her into one last hug. “You’re my sister. I just got you. I’m not losing you too.”

“You won’t.” She holds me tight. “I promise. We’ll video call. And text. And I’ll send you terrible European chocolates that you’ll pretend to like.”

I laugh despite myself. “I’ll hold you to that.”

When she finally pulls away, she looks at me–really looks at me–and smiles.

“Thank you,” she says. “For not giving up on me. For holding my hand when I didn’t deserve it. For being the

sister I never knew I needed.”

“That’s what sisters do.”

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