Page 111 of The Professor's Wife

Tristan’s gaze intensified as he watched me. “Your mind never leaves anything alone, does it?”

I stiffened slightly.

“I like that about you,” he added. “I like it a lot, actually.”

Stunned, it took me a beat to gather a response, but by then the moment passed and he looked away, thoughtful.

We lay there in silence, the van creaking softly in the wind.

“I think,” I said finally, “next time…I’d want to look.”

Tristan reached for my hand, his grip warm. “Then next time we look.”

I nodded. “Next time we look.”

Then Tristan surprised me.

“You know what else it reminds me of?” he said quietly. “The Allegory of the Cave.”

I blinked. I hardly heard myself speak. “You know that one?”

“The cave,” he said. “People spend their whole lives chained up, thinking the shadows are real. Then one of them gets out and sees the world for what it is. When he comes back, the others don’t thank him for telling them the truth. They reject him. The lie is familiar, and the truth hurts.”

I stared at him, stunned. “You’ve read The Republic?”

“More than once,” he said. “I know a thing or two as well. Used to think the cave wasn’t just about ignorance, it was about fear. That people would rather live in shadows than face the light because the light hurts.”

I swallowed hard. “That’s exactly it. It hurts.”

“We didn’t look at the truck. Maybe we stayed in the cave. But maybe next time, we walk toward the light. Even if it blinds us.”

I didn’t speak.

I just held his hand tighter.

We walk toward the light…

The words disturbed something inside me. The panic that hit me was fleeting. A quick reminder of my past. Of something else, too. Something intangible.

I swallowed thickly and breathed. Here, nothing could hurt me. Here, I was safe from the shadows. From myself. I hadn’t wigged out on Tristan. I was being good. No black-out moments.

I was good.

I needed to stay that way.

I dreamed of June that night.

CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

THE PAST

My dreams had come true.

Oliver loved me. I loved him. And Rowe adored him. Watching them together felt like watching a future I never thought I’d have—arealfamily, one that felt safe and whole.

The wedding was elegant. Held at a vineyard just outside the city, the ceremony took place under a canopy of white roses and soft golden light. My satin gown shimmered in the sun, and Oliver looked devastatingly handsome in a tailored suit. Rowe walked down the aisle with a grin so wide it made everyone laugh. It was perfect.

But June had been distant for weeks.