Chapter 81


    Washing dishes was such a simple task that there was no reason for Jack to be wasting so much


    time on it. Curious to see what he was doing, Rachel stood up and walked toward the kitchen,


    taking light steps.


    She stopped at the door and quietly looked inside. Jack was standing next to the sink, still


    scrubbing the dishes with detergent.


    There were only a few dishes to be washed, but he was treating them as if they were antique


    treasures, scrubbing them carefully with his slender and beautiful fingers.


    This tall man dressed in a shirt and a pair of suit pants was a striking contrast to the warm light of


    the kitchen.


    However, there was something strangely peaceful and soothing about the look of concentration on


    his face as he washed the dishes. All of a sudden, an image of him wearing an apron popped into


    Rachel''s mind.


    She continued to linger at the door and watch Jack as he washed off the detergent, and then rinsed


    the dishes once more with water.


    At this, she frowned. She had always known that he was meticulous, but at this moment, she


    couldn''t help but find him fussy. Were her dishes that dirty? It was not as if they were in a fast food


    restaurant. ■d


    What was more, Jack didn''t stop there. After he washed thedishes, he turned and fumbled around


    the kitchen until he found the automatic disinfection cab in the middle of the cupboard.


    He squatted in front of it and thought for a while. Then, he reached out and tried pressing several


    buttons on the disinfection cab. After that, as if having made a decision, he nodded and ced


    the washed dishes inside.


    Rachel waspletely stunned at this scene.


    Since she had grown up in Jack''s house, her habits were also more or less prudent, like his.


    And yet, it seemed that they had their differences. Having seen enough, Rachel tiptoed back to the


    living room and sat down on the sofa.


    "I put the dishes into the disinfection cab and sterilized them," he announced as he left the


    kitchen and sat opposite her.


    "Okay," Rachel said, pretending as if she didn''t already know. After a while, she couldn''t help but


    add, "I''ve already had my dishes regrly disinfected."


    "So?"


    Jack raised his eyebrows in confusion. "I disinfected the dishes just the day before yesterday.


    After that, I was the only one who used them, so they wouldn''t be..." ''...dirty.''


    She didn''t say thest word, but Jack more or less grasped what was going on in her head.


    "I didn''t mean to be rude or insulting. It''s just a ■d


    habit of mine," Jack exined.


    Even when he had dinner with Celine, he required his housemaid to disinfect the dishes every


    single time they were used, not just on a regr basis like Rachel did.


    Such a need for hygiene could be described as his personal preference, or even a mania.


    Rachel shrugged to show that she hadn''t taken any offense, and then prepared a cup of scented


    tea and pushed it in front of him. "I''m used to drinking scented tea, but I don''t know if you like it."


    Jack was not too picky when it came to beverages, so he replied, "I''m okay with it." Then, after a


    pause, he added, "I don''t think we have to keep being so formal with each other."


    It was true that they had always been at loggerheads, but at this moment, they were being quite


    friendly with each other.


    Rachel felt a little embarrassed after hearing his words, so she immediately took a sip of tea to hide


    her uneasiness. "Urn...you said you have something to discuss with me, right? We can talk about it


    now."


    This sudden change in their rtionship from open hostility to mutual cooperation was still a little


    hard for Rachel to ept, but since Jack was being unusually polite to her, she was following his


    cue.


    The decor in her house was warm and inviting, except for her bedroom, which seemed to be a little


    cold.


    The floor of the living room was covered with soft carpet. Light poured on the transparent ss ■d


    tea table, which reflected a little glow.


    Rachel tilted her head to one side, and that glow disappeared.


    "I''ve figured out a way to go through with the divorce in advance," Jack said slowly.


    Rachel looked up at him with surprise on her face. "Is that really possible?"


    "It will be if you cooperate with me."


    The conversation between the two of them was diplomatic; both of them knew that they were


    walking a thin line as they had to maintain civility while trying to break free from each other.


    Without responding, Rachel lowered her head and took another sip of tea with a faint smile in her


    eyes.


    The idea that Jack hade up with had taken him the whole afternoon to consider. He didn''t know


    why he had such cowardly thoughts in the first ce. For the first time in his life, he needed to rely


    on a woman for something.


    He felt a little embarrassed to even ask Rachel for her help. However, he could not think of any


    other way either.


    "When my fatheres here, we should pretend to be a good couple in front of him."


    "What?" Rachel didn''t follow.


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    "You know that he won''t give up easily. Even though we''ve signed the divorce agreement, we still


    need to figure out whether it can be realized at this time next year. Besides, I want to solve this


    matter as soon as possible," Jack exined. ■d


    However, all this talk about the divorce agreement only confused Rachel even more. ''Why bother


    with the agreement when we''ve already signed it?'' she wondered.


    Rubbing her temple with her fingers, she said reluctantly, "Jack...you don''t have to do that. If you


    want, you can talk to Dad. I''m not in a hurry."


    She had already been in this marriage for about five years, so she didn''t mind waiting one more


    year for the divorce.


    In fact, she couldn''t understand why Jack was so concerned about the matter. It was only then that


    something urred to her.


    "Are you in a hurry to marry Celine?" she asked hesitantly.


    Jack''s expression changed instantly. He pursed his lips unhappily and his dashing eyebrows


    furrowed across his forehead. "How many times do I have to tell you? The divorce has nothing to do


    with her," he said, raising his voice.


    "This is the first time you''ve told me this," Rachel said coldly.


    For a moment, Jack was speechless, and then he apologized in a softer tone, "I''m sorry, you''re


    right. I told Michael several times."


    He didn''t try to give Rachel any other excuses.


    It was true that in the beginning, he had nned to marry Celine as soon as he got divorced from


    Rachel.


    In fact, he wanted to get a divorce because he wanted to enjoy freedom. ■d


    But nobody would believe him. In their eyes, he waspletely free.


    Jack hadn''t told anyone that although the marriage failed to stop him from dating other women, he


    would feel trapped on the inside.


    Since Rachel continued to be silent, Jack continued, "Anyway, the only thing we need to do is to get


    along well with each other in front of him."


    Rachel felt like she was stepping into a huge trap. "Will Dad believe us?"


    Jack briefly exined his n. He had always been good at scheming, and he didn''t want to waste


    this chance.


    After listening to his words, Rachel thought for a while and then asked another question. "Did you


    break up with Celine?"


    All of a sudden, Jack''s eyes became cold. Rachel thought that she had hit a sore spot and that he


    wouldn''t answer her, but unexpectedly, he said, "We''ve been ready to take a break recently."


    ''Take a break?'' Rachel kind of understood what he meant, but she had never expected them to


    break up so easily.


    She recalled Celine appearing in the hospital earlier, apanied by a man. She also thought of


    the first time when she had seen Celine; at that time, it was Jack who sent her to the hospital.


    Back then, he held her in his arms like he was holding a treasure. But at this moment, it seemed as


    if he didn''t know or care that Celine was badly injured. ■d


    Rachel blinked her eyes and stared at the wound on Jack''s forehead. ''This couple is really in a


    dilemma,'' she thought to herself.


    Rachel lowered her eyes and gently blew on the tea in the cup.


    Jack wanted a divorce as soon as possible, but he seemed to be very clear that it was not because


    of Celine.


    After thinking for a while, Rachel asked tentatively, "So you have a new girlfriend?"


    Jack''s face darkened again and a single word came out of his thin lips. "No."


    Rachel nodded thoughtfully. "Whatever. As long as you don''t cause any more trouble, it''s fine with


    __ _ ii


    me.


    They had always pretended to be friendly in front of Jonathan, but she wanted to see how far Jack


    would go to make him buy their act.


    Now that they had spent their first day of living together peacefully, Rachel told Lea all about it on


    the phone.


    On the other side of the line, Lea sneered, "Is that so? Are you two still putting on a show?"


    Rachel rubbed her forehead and yawned. "I feel like I''m falling deeper and deeper into this huge


    hole."


    "Yes, you are," Lea agreed.


    Time flew. The next two days, Jack stayed at home, getting documents brought to him by his


    secretary. Rachel was a little curious about the reason why Jack wanted to work in her house these


    days, but it was only when she happened to see him in the bathroom, looking at himself in the


    mirror and raising his hand to touch his forehead with a frown, that she realized why.


    It seemed that Jack cared about his appearance a lot.


    On the third day, Rachel received a call from Jonathan asking how she and Jack were doing.


    After exchanging some pleasantries, Jonathan asked, "Did Jack tell you? I would like to visit you


    today."