Since Skylar had pancakes for breakfast and hadn’t cooked at home, she decided to grab something light—chicken soup and some bread—before heading to the hospital.
Inside Caleb’s hospital room, he was lying on the bed, playing video games to pass the time. He hadn’t expected Skylar to visit today, especially with it being her first day at work. So, when she walked in, he felt a sudden rush of emotion, almost to the point of tears.
“Skylar, I’ve been waiting for you!” he exclaimed, his voice thick with relief.
Skylar smiled, glancing at her watch before setting the lunch down in front of him. “Are you hungry? Is your family not around to keep you company?”
“Uncle John’s busy,” Caleb replied, digging into the food. “Besides, this is just a minor surgery. He just needs to be here to sign the papers. He hired a caretaker for me too.” Even though the meal was simple, it tasted better simply because Skylar had brought it to him.
“How was your first day at work? Did anyone give you a hard time?” Caleb asked.
Skylar shook her head. “Not at all. The team’s great. I love the culture there. I feel like I fit right in.”
Caleb nodded, feeling relieved. If Alexander ever gave her trouble, Caleb would be sure to have a word with him once he was out of the hospital.
Skylar stayed for about 20 minutes before she had to leave. She was eager to tackle the task Alexander had given her as quickly as possible.
On her way back to work, she received a call from Joe. “I’ll pick you up around 5:00 p.m. later. Is that okay?”
“That’s fine. I’ll see you then,” Skylar replied, checking the time.
She had confirmed with Oliver that Alexander’s team typically finished work around 4:30 p.m. It wasn’t the usual nine-to-six setup. Sometimes they worked overtime or over the weekend for on-site archaeological excavations, but generally, they had a balanced work culture.
After hanging up, Skylar received a voice note from Natalie.
Natalie:
“Skylar, guess what? I’ve got a major scoop. Apparently, Joe is married! A friend of mine works at the courthouse and saw him there. He didn’t take any pictures because he didn’t know who Joe was at the time. But while chatting in the group, he realized it was Joe who got married! He said the bride was gorgeous, but he couldn’t remember her name. And it wasn’t Annie, though. Can you believe it? Big news, right?”
Skylar could hear the excitement in Natalie’s voice, but all she could do was feel guilty about being part of the gossip.
Natalie continued:
“Annie attended John’s engagement party with Joe, but he didn’t bring his newlywed wife along. Could it be that Joe doesn’t like his wife? Now that Annie’s back in town, Joe might be planning to divorce her! I heard Joe’s wife is incredibly beautiful—the kind of beauty you don’t see every day. If she knows about Joe’s complicated relationship with another woman, she could be heartbroken.
“If I were in her shoes, I’d be devastated. But then again, Jeremy and I have been together for years. He’s always treated me like a princess. If he betrayed me, I wouldn’t know what to do. But I know for sure he wouldn’t do that to me.”
Skylar listened to all the voice notes, her mind a blur. She was speechless. She wanted to tell Natalie that Joe’s wife already knew everything. She was aware of the complications, of the past. It wasn’t news to her, even if it was to others.
Skylar wasn’t exactly heartbroken, but she did feel a pang of guilt—guilty for being caught in the middle of it all, for complicating things between Joe and Annie. She felt sorry for what she might have inadvertently caused.
Before heading to work, Skylar replied to Natalie’s messages with a simple message of her own. “How many people like you and Jeremy are there in this world?”
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