His Belated Love for the Abandoned Ex-Wife Chapter 189: Choosing Herself

This was the last piece of dignity and freedom she had fought to keep for herself.

Iris slowly let go, as if she were finally setting down the weight of everything that had come before. Without looking back, she turned away from Julian's car and started down the street, each step steady, deliberate, even as it felt like she was walking straight through pain that cut deeper with every stride.

The street was nearly empty, the kind of quiet that made the wind feel louder than it should. It swept past her in sharp gusts, tugging at her coat as her vision blurred with tears she refused to let fall.

She tipped her head back, staring up at the night sky. The stars were faint, scattered thinly across the darkness, and the moon was buried behind heavy clouds that refused to break.

She had never been the kind of person who needed to rely on a family or a man to survive, and she wasn't about to start now. Her life was hers to decide.

From here on out, I'm living for myself.

The next day, she stopped by a grocery store and carefully picked out a few gifts before taking the subway across town to visit one of her former professors from college, Nolan Brown, the same man Celeste had once twisted into something scandalous in her rumors.

When Nolan opened the door and saw her, his face lit up instantly. "Iris? Is that really you?"

She smiled politely. "Happy New Year, Professor Brown."

"Happy New Year, come in, come in," he said warmly, taking the bags from her hands. "Perfect timing too, Edmund's here spending the holiday with me."

As Iris stepped inside, she saw Edmund Boyd sitting in the living room and greeted him with a small smile. "Happy New Year, Professor Boyd."

Edmund stood up, clearly pleased. "Well, if it isn't Iris, the star of the Department of Pharmacology."

Nolan closed the door behind her, still smiling. "Of course it is. I still remember her wedding, you know. You and I practically played matchmaker."

Edmund laughed, rubbing the back of his graying hair as he tried to recall. "Right, right, what was his name again? Julian... Everhart, wasn't it?"

Iris sat down, her smile polite but faintly stiff, unsure whether she should tell them the truth about her divorce. In the end, she said nothing, letting the silence cover what she couldn't bring herself to explain.

"Julian," Nolan confirmed, pouring her a cup of warm water and handing it over before giving Edmund a pointed look. "You introduced them. Don't tell me you forgot."

"Thanks," Iris said softly, wrapping her hands around the warm cup.

The two professors settled in, their conversation flowing easily.

"He wasn't actually my student," Edmund explained.

Nolan raised a brow. "And you still set him up with my student without really knowing him? That's bold."

Edmund chuckled, though his tone softened with sincerity. "I'll admit, I was convinced by how serious he was. That kid had been into her since middle school. Said he wanted to be good enough to stand next to her one day, so he pushed himself like crazy, turned his grades around, and eventually made it into Stanford University. For years, he kept his distance because he didn't want to mess with her studies. The moment he heard she might start dating, he flew back from overseas and tracked me down. Kept showing up until I finally agreed to help. I've never seen that kind of persistence."

Iris held her cup tighter, but her hands still trembled.

Her chest tightened as if something invisible had wrapped around her heart and refused to let go, the dull ache spreading until it was hard to breathe.

She could barely process what she was hearing.

He had liked her since middle school?

All those years... the person he had quietly loved, the one he had worked so hard for... had been her.

Even his so-called first love.

And yet, he had known her for over a decade, while she had only truly known him for a little more than two years.

The warmth from the cup did nothing to steady her shaking hands.

Now it all made sense.

Why he had insisted on marrying her, even when he believed she had betrayed him.

Why he had refused to let the marriage end.

Twelve years wasn't something you just walked away from.

Compared to that, what she had felt for him seemed almost insignificant, like something small and fleeting against something vast and unshakable.

"Why didn't you bring your husband with you?" Nolan asked casually.

Iris snapped back to the present, forcing a small, composed smile. "He's with his family for the holiday. I actually came to talk to you about something work-related."

"Work?" Nolan looked surprised.

She met his gaze, calm and steady now. "The research project you invited me to join two years ago... I'd like to be part of it."

For a moment, both professors just stared at her, stunned.

"I'm bringing funding with me," Iris added, her voice firm, her eyes clear with purpose. "Two hundred million."

The reaction was immediate.

Nolan stood up, visibly moved, gripping her hand tightly as if afraid she might change her mind. His voice shook with emotion. "Iris, you're serious? This is... this is the best news I could've hoped for this year. We need you on this team."

Edmund nodded, equally impressed. "With you joining us, our work in rare pediatric disease treatments is going to move forward faster than we ever imagined."