What Separates Me and You
Chapter 42

Chapter 42 This Was Not Love

Because the lights were on, Lewis saw her wince, and he paused. He grabbed her wrist and pulled up her sleeves. Her elbows were grazed, and he could see a big bruise forming. He then pulled on her collar, her shoulders revealing a patch of green.

Lewis looked at Josephine, who had her eyes shut tight in a grimace. It took her a while to ease up.

"Why didn't you apply medicine to it?" It was only after Lewis peeled off the bandage that he noticed.

Josephine opened her eyes and tried to hide the pain, gesturing, "I'm fine, it's not serious."

She didn't dare apply any medication, since she was afraid of the effects on her baby. After all, her baby's life was precarious.

Lewis got down from the bed, rummaging through the drawers. After a while, he came back and asked, "Where is the first aid kit?"

Josephine had always been the one to tidy up the house. It was funny when she thought about it. Lewis wasn't familiar with his own home.

Josephine shook her head, not wanting to get any medication applied. "We don't have one," she gestured.

Lewis frowned and was going to pull her off the bed. "Then, let's go to the hospital."

Josephine was taken aback, waving her hands and gesturing hastily, "No need for the trouble, I've disinfected the wound. It's fine, really. There's a scab forming already. I'm tired. I want to sleep." With his eyes fixated on her, he replied, "Are you really not going?"

Josephine shook her head furiously, afraid that Lewis would think otherwise if she slowed down.

"Fine." Lewis finally gave up, going back to bed.

This time, he didn't attempt anything, only hugging her to sleep. The lights in the room were glaring. Lewis didn't like sleeping with the lights off. Since Josephine couldn't talk, if the lights were off, especially when they were getting intimate, he wouldn't be able to see a thing. As time went on, the lights just stayed on.

When they got married three years ago, Lewis kissed Josephine for the first time when they shared a room together.

He stared at her innocent face the whole day, muttering that he felt like he was committing a crime. However, with his body being more honest than his words, he pulled her deeper into the abyss. And as his deep voice hovered around her ears, he told her to not be scared, asking her to be a good girl. Josephine had thought that was how a man and a woman built their love for each other. That was why she was obedient, following his every instruction.

However, she realized later on that all that stuff wasn't love. It was lust and an obligation toward their spouses. The number of intimate moments did not determine the value of their love. Someone once told her, people slept together even in the absence of love. That was because love and sex were never equal.

When Josephine woke up, it was already noon. The first thing she did was check her phone. Avery still had not replied to her messages. As she looked at the messages she sent that got no reply, her heart sank. This all started because of her, so it was normal for Avery to blame her.

It was as she expected-someone like her could never have any friends...

Josephine sat dazedly on the sofa with the television still on. It had been left on since last night. She turned the volume up to the loudest, but it still couldn't make up for the desolation of the mansion.

Tyler had agreed to Lewis' demands, helping him with his problem. However, the situation with Avery was not improving, it intensified instead. The Green family's stock prices were going down every day, and almost hundreds of millions of dollars were lost every day. In just a few days, the stress had given Mr. Green a head of gray.

hair.

Standing by the door of the study, Avery looked at her father's haggard appearance, her expression complicated. All Lewis did was wag a finger, and he had made sure Avery brought down her entire family with her. Avery's haughtiness, dreams, and hopes for the future, had turned into a joke.

She knocked on the door. "Dad."

Mr. Green looked up at her, his appearance betraying his exhaustion, as well as his disappointment in her. "Why are you looking for me? You should be staying in your

room."

"I'll submit to a marriage of convenience," she said.

Mr. Green was taken aback. He looked at Avery in disbelief and thought he misheard her. "What did you say?"

Avery's voice was slightly hoarse. After a pause, she repeated, "Only a marriage of

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convenience can solve our problems and save the stock market."

Mr. Green gaped, his expression unreadable. Previously, he had pushed for Avery to get married, hoping she would have a happy family to return to and be able to live the remainder of her life peacefully. However, she had rebutted him with her talk of dreams, purpose, and the future. Although it was surprising that she brought up a marriage of convenience on her own, that was not what Mr. Green wanted. He had never thought of exchanging his daughter's happiness for his own gain.

"Stop fooling around and go back to your room!"

Avery did not leave. "I'm serious, this is the fastest way. Please agree to it, Dad!"

Mr. Green smashed the things in his hands on the table and shot up from his seat, blasting, "How many times do I need to repeat myself? Go back to your room! I, Howard Green, will not sell my daughter off no matter how bad the situation!"

The marriage was a well-matched arrangement then. This time, it would be a negotiation and a transaction. How would Avery be happy if she got married in a situation like that?

When Avery saw the angry look on her father's face, she did not feel the satisfaction. she got in the past. Instead, what she felt was an inexplicable pain. She only realized now that she had misunderstood her father! She had yearned for a free life flying in the sky, but in the end, she was thrown back onto the hard ground by reality. Her wings were broken.

Avery excused herself, going back to her room. She had received a lot of messages on her phone, but she didn't read any of them. Staring at her phone that was on the bed, she noticed her phone was almost dead.

Before the phone shut down, Josephine called her.

Avery was deep in thought before picking up the call, bringing the phone to her ear. However, since Josephine couldn't talk, she was only met with silence. Avery also stayed silent. In the end, the phone call ended in silence.

Josephine stared at the call that was cut off, her lashes trembling. She opened up her texting app, afraid of missing Avery's messages. The pattering rain outside made the temperature cooler inside the house as she waited. Up until the sky turned dark, she waited with her phone in her hands.

A sudden knock at the door startled her. She tilted her head and listened carefully. There really was a person knocking instead of ringing the doorbell. She got up to open the door, but when she saw the person standing outside, she instinctively closed it again.

However, he was faster and held on to the edge. "Don't be nervous, Josephine. Nancy asked me to come to fetch you."

He was beautiful. Yes-beautiful. However, it was obvious with a glance that he was male. Josephine found it hard to describe his face. It was like... God's meticulous creation, with every part fitting together perfectly. If even one facial feature of his was removed, it wouldn't give off the same feeling.

According to Daphne, he was a classic, attractive gent.

He was wearing a maroon, vintage coat, and his hair was just long enough to be tied up into a ponytail. As he stood in front of Josephine, he gave her a smile. However, that smile was insincere. He was Daphne's husband-Seth Fairchild.