Stuart could tell that Edie was taking everything in, just as she always did before concluding. She no sooner got the words out of her mouth, and she turned her head so he couldn’t see the expression on her face. But he could hear the sadness in her voice.
Stuart lowered his voice and said, "Look at ." Edie turned to face him, and he put an envelope on her lap.
Edie jerked her head with surprise as she looked up at Stuart. For a second, she lapsed into stunned silence. "What’s this?" she asked.
Stuart raised his eyebrows. "Open it, and you’ll understand," he said, keeping his voice low.
As Edie opened it, she read the top of the first page, "You have been accepted into The London College. You will be provided with many advanced training courses.....This....." She was so shocked, she could barely speak. "Is this what I think it is?" she managed at last. "I can’t believe this. Only actors with all kinds of money can afford to go there. Who paid for this? It definitely wasn’t Star Entertainnt. It was you!" Edie said. Her eyes are shining with excitent.
"You like it then?" said Stuart, who laughed at the curious look on her face as they embraced warmly. "This ans you’ll have to stay in England longer. I know how you like to keep yourself busy, so now you have sothing to do. I don’t want you to worry about Danny. I’ve already talked to him."
Edie hesitated, an uncertain expression crossing her face. "I thought you hated acting?"
Stuart shook his head. "No, I don’t hate what you do. I don’t like the things you’ve had to go through because of it." He kept his voice calm and steady and continued. "Whatever you choose, I’ll stand by you."
Tears stread down Edie’s cheeks. His words deeply touched her. Her heart was overflowing with emotion, and she threw herself into his arms. "Thank you so much it ans so much to . I can’t believe you’d do this for ," she said, her voice quivering slightly.
Stuart pulled Edie closer, not wanting ever to let her go. "You don’t need to thank . I’d do anything in the world for you." He sighed, his tone full of regret. "All that you’ve suffered is my fault. I should’ve done a better job of protecting you." Stuart’s heart tightened as he thought about what Edie had been through. "When you were kidnapped, I nearly went out of my mind with worry. I couldn’t sleep or eat, knowing I may never see you again. I....."
Edie could feel Stuart’s whole body trembling. ’Is he afraid? He’s afraid that I would end up like Marina," she thought. "Stuart...." she hesitated. She didn’t want to say it, but she had to know. "If he raped , would you leave ?" As she spoke these words, she began to tremble.
Stuart held her tightly, "I prepared myself for the worse when Aaron took you. I was worried that if he did sothing to you that you may not have been able to live with yourself," he replied, anguished by his own sentences. Stressing over each word, he said.
"You would still love ?" Edie stares at Stuart, and her gaze was still growing. She fixes her eyes on him. Her face is expressionless.
Stuart felt his heartbreak and said, with a voice full of sorrow and grief, "Of course I would! I could never stop loving you. If I were never to see you again, I could live with that as long as I knew you were safe."
Every word touched Edie’s heart; she caught her bottom lip in her teeth and blinked rapidly. "You were willing to give your own life for my safety."
Stuart groped for Edie’s hand. "I’ve been selfish, trying to keep you all to myself. I want to spend the rest of my life, making you happy and making you smile." He softened his tone. "I want you to be happy and safe. That’s all that matters."
Edie felt like crying. Her head shot up, her heart beating against her ribs as she stared at him. "You’ve done so much for , and you almost died because of !" She shook her head, trying to get her emotions under control.
"I’m your husband, and it’s my responsibility to protect you. If you get hard in any way because of , the only one to bla is . Do you understand?" Stuart said in a somber tone.
Edie’s expression changed imdiately, and her voice suddenly held a sharp tone. "No, that’s not fair. How do you think I’d feel if sothing were to happen to you?" she said, shaking her head. "We’re in this together. All the problems that we have overco were overco because we worked together and made it a matter of importance. I am willing to do whatever it takes to protect you, as you want to protect ."
Stuart softened his voice and kissed the top of her head. "All I’m saying is that no matter what happens in the future, I don’t want you to bla yourself. I’m not going anywhere. We’re going to be together for a very long ti," he said, trying his best to reassure her. Stuart’s mind wandered back to when his father was alive. He rembered his father getting ill, and instead of his mother standing by his side, she threw herself into another man’s arms. He swore to himself, and he would never do that to Edie.
Edie nodded. It was easier than arguing. "Okay, I’ll handle everything inside the house, and you can take care of everything outside of the ho. I only ask one thing of you, and that’s you always tell the truth."
Stuart had a satisfied expression on his face. "That’s my girl, "he said in a tone of mild amusent.
Hearing the tone in his voice, Edie rolled her eyes and began to read her schedule, "It starts in two days. On July the fifth," she said, raising her voice in excitent. "It hardly gives enough ti to get myself prepared."
Stuart sighed. "Let’s get our things together, we’re going to the Bolton Chateau," he said as he pulled from the sofa.
A confused look ca across Edie’s face. "What....do....you an? Are you coming with ? Aaron will probably kick us both out!" Her voice quaked, unable to hide her nervousness.
"Don’t get yourself worked up, and it’ll be fine. I have sothing to talk to him about, and I think it’ll finally put an end to all of this." His face changed for the worse in a mont, and an angry light blazed in his eyes.
Edie rembered what Wilson told her about Aaron. She grasped Stuart’s hand. "Aaron...doesn’t...have anyone...." but she couldn’t finish the sentence, not knowing how to make him understand. She gazed gloomily at him. "Wilson is very worried about him, and so am I," she said with a concerned tone. "Do you really believe he murdered Marina? Maybe there was soone else involved." She looked at him with pleading eyes. "He’s not as evil as you think he is. He could’ve hurt , but he didn’t."
Stuart tried to remain calm as he explained it to Edie. "Aaron didn’t hurt you because you’re my wife. He knows what the consequences of his actions would have been. I will take it easy on him, but I will also make him understand that you’re never to be involved in our feud."
"But...." That was all Edie could say before Stuart interrupted her.
"You need to listen to . This is a matter involving the outside. Rember what we discussed earlier?" Edie could hear the hardness of his low voice as he enunciated each word.
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