Chapter 1

1 "Chase, I'm still stuck at the office working late. I'm so sorry I can't spend Valentine's Day with you."

My wife hung up the phone, wrapped her arm around the neck of her first love, Luke, and gracefully stepped into an intimate slow dance with him.

When the mood peaked, they shared a lingering kiss right on the dance floor.

I sat just a few tables away in the dimly lit restaurant, watching the entire betrayal unfold with my own eyes.

Sitting right in front of me was a bouquet of red roses and an exquisite gift box containing an expensive diamond bracelet.

In that moment, I felt like a pathetic clown.

I let out a bitter, self-mocking laugh.

I grabbed the roses and the jewelry box and tossed them straight into the nearest trash can.

Right then and there, any lingering love I had for my wife died completely.

……

"Chase? Where are you? Why aren't you home yet?"

"The power went out, and I'm terrified of being alone in the dark. Hurry back and keep me company!"

Rowena's voice over the phone sounded hoarse, like she was genuinely crying.

It seemed she was finally exhausted from her romantic rendezvous and panicked when she came home to an empty house.

She only ever remembered I existed when she needed something from me. Never for anything else.

I glanced down at my watch. It was already the dead of night.

After leaving the upscale French bistro, I had gone to a dive bar to drown my sorrows.

I drank drink after drink, but my tolerance was too high to grant me the mercy of getting drunk.

Standing outside our apartment door, I could already hear Rowena's muffled sobs.

The moment I unlocked the door, she rushed forward and threw her arms around me, clinging tightly.

"Have you been drinking?"

Rowena wrinkled her nose in disgust and let go of me.

Yet a second later, she put on an act and tried to help me toward the couch.

I shoved her hands away, refusing to let her touch me.

Those exact hands had been wrapped around another man just hours ago.

Rowena froze in shock, staring at her rejected hands in disbelief.

Throughout our entire marriage, I had treated her like a queen, never once raising my voice, let alone pushing her away.

"Babe, what is wrong with you? Are you really punishing me just because I couldn't spend Valentine's Day with you?"

I cast a cold, detached glance over her as she spoke.

That was when I noticed she was wearing a revealing, plunging silk nightgown, reeking of a heavy, suffocating perfume.

She had never dressed like this around the house before.

She used to insist on wearing modest, full-coverage pajamas, claiming she preferred to stay conservative.

She had never touched perfume either, always complaining that strong scents gave her a headache.

Rowena pulled out an elegant designer box and held it open in front of me.

"I worked so late and was completely exhausted, but I still made sure my assistant picked up a gift for you."

"It's the latest luxury timepiece. I spent ages choosing it. Try it on!"

I stared at the luxury watch in the box, and a wave of nausea washed over me.

An hour ago, Luke had posted a picture of this exact watch on his social feed.

His caption read: "Thank you for the thoughtful gift, Rowena, but it's really not my style. I told her to take it back and get me something else next time."

I knew Luke had posted it deliberately to rub it in my face and provoke a fight between Rowena and me.

Then he would play the sweet, understanding comforter while she ran back to his arms.

He pulled this dirty trick all the time.

I grabbed the watch and flung it directly into the trash bin without saying a word.

She dared to hand me another man's rejected scraps and claim she spent ages picking it out for me.

I wasn't a garbage disposal, and I sure as hell wasn't accepting her leftovers.

Rowena gasped in shock.

"Chase! What the hell are you doing?"

She frantically dug the watch out of the trash and yelled at me in fury.

I looked at her with dead eyes. "You bought that for Luke. He didn't want it, so you dumped it on me."

Guilt flashed across Rowena's face, and her eyes darted away nervously.

"That's bullshit! I bought this specifically for you! Why do you always have to start drama out of nowhere?"

She really couldn't stop lying, could she?

I pulled out my phone and tapped open Luke's social media post.

I held the screen right in front of her face to see what excuse she could possibly come up with now.

The moment Rowena saw Luke's post, all the color drained from her face.