Page 53 of Shadowing You

DDW

How is Mei Lin’s health? I’ve been doing some research. You might want to look into getting her supplements.

MW

They’re a little busy, doc. Also, E’s a doctor too.

DDW

He’s busy keeping them alive. E, if you pass a health food store…

Ethan gave his message a thumbs-up. He should get Mei Lin some supplements, but he didn’t know what she needed. Everything, probably.

BW

Been doing some research. Vitamins D and C would be a good start.

DDW

Did you ask Dr. ChatGPT?

BW

It’s less sarcastic than the human doctor I know.

Daniel had given that text a thumbs-down. The other brothers had added little Haha emojis.

Ethan tapped a reply.

ML’s health is improving. She needs food and rest and to not be running for her life.

Good ideas. I’ll look for supplements. Thanks.

Ethan searched for a store that might sell supplements nearby, but there wasn’t anything within walking distance.

Mostly, he was avoiding looking at Mei Lin. He didn’t want to tell her the truth, that he’d texted Michael and asked him to find them a two-bedroom suite, or at least a suite with a sitting area and a sofa.

Michael hadn’t asked any questions, just replied with a thumbs-up.

This hotel was a step down from the one he’d booked the only other time Ethan had been in this city, though it was still nice, made for people much wealthier than the locals. The living room between the two bedrooms had a balcony that overlooked the Qing River, which cut between the mountains. Late-afternoon light slanted across the floor, and the heater clanked every few minutes like it resented being asked to work.

Behind him, Mei Lin settled on a chair, and though she didn’t speak, he could feel her eyes on him.

He gave up on shops and looked at restaurants. “Looking for a place to eat,” he said, not that he could read any of the Chinese characters staring back at him. “You hungry?”

“I will eat.”

He’d heard of people coming out of starvation who gorged on food as if they might not ever get full. His wife was apparently the opposite. She’d never been much of an eater, but if she didn’t stop picking at her food, how was she going to get back to a healthy weight?

He kept scrolling uselessly, but his mind wasn’t on dinner or even on Mei Lin’s health.

He was too focused on not thinking about the last time he’d been in Enshi City. He wasn’t going to think about the flowers he’d ordered to fill the room or the way she’d gasped when she’d seen them, inhaling as if their scent were the most fragrant perfume. He wasn’t going to think about the way she’d laughed at his pathetic attempt to use chopsticks and how he’d thought, I will never get tired of that sound. He wasn’t going to think about the bed where they’d spent their first night together as a married couple or the way she’d felt in his arms.

There was a reason he’d asked for two rooms. He needed the wall between them.

He wanted her so much it hurt, and it was getting worse, not better. In Changsha she’d been sick, and he’d had something to focus on—feed her, get her warm, diagnose what ailed her.

The night before had been harder, but she’d been so tired, and the story she’d told certainly hadn’t enhanced the mood.