Page 349 of In Love with a Cruel Billionaire

But not once did she remember to pray that the day would never come...and it would be her love for him that would spell their end, and she would find herself leaving, not because of him, butfor him.

Him

THE PROFESSOR WAS NOsentimental fool.

For every cause of joy, there would be pain. It had always been this way, and he knew his life would be no exception, not even when he had his own beautiful saint to love. For every day in his life that she changed, for every day that she made good andhappy,he knew there would be a corresponding effect, that one day life would inevitably come to collect.

He knew this.

He believed in this.

But such was the power of love that he refused to let this govern him.

He loved her, and she him, and he began to live according to these two principles. His work, his attitude towards other people, virtually every aspect of his life reflected the changes loving Diana wrought in him, and the results were as he expected.

He had colleagues ridiculing him, saying that whereas his essays once delivered great insights, they were now nothing but a disastrous mix of spiritual gibberish and emotional rubbish.

Professor Matthijs de Graaf has clearly lost it,one peer scathingly wrote in his review,to even dare think we would let him get away with quoting the bible in a scientific journal.

A number of invitations had also been rescinded ever since knowledge of his relationship with Diana came about, some of them politely worded while a few had been openly malignant and bordered on libel.

It is my responsibility to protect the reputation of my university and ensure the well-being of my students. If I have you lecture them, I might as well have the Devil corrupt their souls.

Added together, the incidents should have taken a toll on the professor, but it did not. Not once did it make him regret his decision, and he knew it would always be so. For when one faced the stakes that he did, the trivialities of life ceased to matter, and one learned to appreciate what truly made each day worth living.

And for him, it was her.

The way she was always there, waiting and smiling to welcome him home.

The way she took him in her arms and loved him without fear or hesitation.

All of these things and more were the reasons he loved her and why, later on, the status quo was no longer enough.

He was at the airport in Frankfurt, waiting for his private jet to be refueled, when he found himself stopping in his tracks. Before him was the display window of a famous jewelry chain, and catching his eye was a pair of platinum bands lying in a bed of white silk.

The last time he bought a ring, the professor thought,his life had fallen apart soon after.

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