Page 99 of The Humiliated Wife

For the first time in years, he didn’t care if it won an award. He wasn’t here to impress other ad execs at a conference. He wasn’t chasing applause.

He was chasing something tangible. He was chasing function.

He was chasing Fiona.

Richard scratched his jaw, looking thoughtful. “Put it into a proposal. I want numbers.”

Dean nodded. “You’ll have it by end of day.”

As the meeting ended, Jared and Roxanne left in a huff of vintage perfume and passive aggression. Dean stayed behind, packing up his notes in silence.

Richard paused on his way out. “Didn’t think you had that kind of idea in you,” he said. “Solid work.”

Dean looked up, smiled faintly. “Just trying something new. Thought I’d focus on being good instead of being clever.”

Richard gave a thoughtful nod and left.

Dean stayed seated for a moment longer, staring at his coffee.

He wasn’t trying to besomeoneanymore. He was trying todo somethingthat mattered.

And for once, that felt better than praise ever had.

CHAPTER 41

Fiona

"Okay, scientists,"Fiona said, pulling the brand-new microscope out of its box. "Today we're going to look at pond water and see what's actually living in there."

A collective "ewww" rose from the class, followed immediately by excited chatter. Marcus raised his hand so high he nearly fell out of his chair.

"Are we going to see bacteria?"

"Maybe," Fiona grinned, setting up the microscope on the center table. "What else might we find?"

"Gross stuff!" shouted Isaiah, earning giggles from his classmates.

"Scientifically speaking," Fiona said with mock seriousness, "yes. Definitely gross stuff."

She looked around at their faces—twenty-three ten-year-olds practically vibrating with curiosity—and felt that familiar flutter of joy in her chest. This was why she taught. Not for the salary that barely was enough to live on, not for the recognition thatnever came. For moments like this, when learning felt like magic.

The microscope was still in its protective plastic, price tag carefully removed but the smell of newness still clinging to it. Along with the prepared slides, the petri dishes, the pH strips she'd been dreaming of buying for months. All of it purchased with the anonymous donation that had appeared like a miracle in her inbox.

She'd been rationing supplies for so long that having actual materials felt almost decadent.

"Miss Fiona, can I look first?" Rae asked, bouncing slightly in her seat.

"We're all going to take turns," Fiona said, adjusting the microscope's focus. "But first, let's talk about what we might see..."

She placed the first slide under the lens and bent to look through the eyepiece. Tiny organisms swam across her field of vision—paramecia, maybe some amoebas, the invisible world suddenly visible.

"Oh wow," she breathed, forgetting to be the teacher for a moment. Even after years of doing this, the microscopic world still amazed her.

"What? What do you see?" Lucas was practically climbing over his desk to get closer.

"Come see for yourself."

She stepped back and watched as Lucas pressed his eye to the microscope, his face cycling through confusion, then wonder, then pure delight.