Chapter 1

Seven months into my pregnancy, my husband bought me a medspa just to help me treat my stretch marks.

On New Year's Eve, I called a technician for a home treatment.

Instead of a massage, I found Holden pinning her to the bed, their bodies tangled in raw passion.

"Mr. Hearst, your hands are so powerful... please, be gentle..." she whimpered.

"Gentle? Don't you love it when I'm rough with you?" Holden growled back.

The technician looked up and saw me, letting out a sharp gasp. "Jenevieve!"

Holden immediately muffled her cry with a kiss. "Don't say my wife's name. You're not worthy of it."

Listening to their heavy breathing, my heart turned to ice.

I closed my eyes and summoned the System I hadn't contacted in years. "I want to go home."

1

"Are you sure? Once you leave, the child in your womb will also..."

The mechanical voice was cold and piercing. I looked down at my swollen belly.

Today, I had planned to go shopping and come home for a relaxing treatment.

I never expected to witness something so foul at my own front door.

My voice was steady and absolute. "I'm sure. I want to leave."

I wanted to sever every single tie with Holden Hearst.

"Very well, Host. Request granted. Departure in five days."

As soon as the System replied, Holden sent me a voice note.

"Babe, it's cold tonight. I'll come pick you up if you're done shopping."

His voice carried that lazy, satisfied tone that only follows a session of pleasure.

I told him I was already in the underground garage.

Chicago's winter was bone-chilling, yet Holden was waiting for me at the villa's entrance.

He wore a doting smile, but he frowned slightly as he took my hand.

"Sweetheart, why didn't you wear more layers? Your hands are freezing."

Those hands of his had been wandering all over another woman just moments ago.

I instinctively pulled back and walked straight toward the guest bedroom.

I ran right into Sia, the technician, as she was coming out.

The scent of lavender perfume from the medspa hit me like a physical blow.

It triggered the memory of them entwined in that same fragrance.

A scent that used to be comforting now made me want to retch.

I pushed Holden aside, ran to the bathroom, and threw up until my stomach was empty.

He didn't follow me. Instead, I heard him coldly warning Sia.

"Miss Sia, don't wear that perfume again. My wife hates the smell."

Sia, thinking I couldn't see her, gave a provocative reply.

"Then let's do it in the master bedroom next time? It sounds much more thrilling."

I saw Holden's Adam's apple bob. He looked tempted.

Then he turned around and jumped, startled by my staring eyes.

"Babe, how are you feeling? Are you okay?"

I looked at him through tear-filled eyes and whispered, "It's so dirty."

The atmosphere froze. A flash of panic crossed Holden's face.

I forced a smile and pointed at the suspicious damp spot on the massage bed.

"I mean the bed. It looks messy," I explained nonchalantly.

He let out a microscopic sigh of relief and turned to bark at Sia.

"What's wrong with you? Don't you know how to keep things clean?"

"Get out. Go back and learn how to actually serve a client before you come back!"

In the master bedroom, Holden brought a basin of warm water to soak my feet.

He expertly held my cold feet in his hands to warm them up.

"Honey, let me apply the essential oils for you later, okay?"

"Tonight was a bust. I'll have them send a different technician next time."

My feet were getting warm, but my soul remained frozen.

I pulled up my shirt, revealing the deep purple marks stretching across my stomach.

I suppressed the bitterness spreading in my chest.

I pretended not to see the flicker of disgust that flashed in his eyes.

I stopped him before he could touch my belly. "No need."

"I'm exhausted from shopping. I just want to sleep early."

Holden immediately put on a worried face, asking if I was in pain.

Once I assured him I was fine, he pulled me into his arms and drifted off.

After a while, his phone buzzed on the nightstand.

Once he was sure I was asleep, he crept out of bed and left the house.

I quietly got up, changed my clothes, and followed him to the edge of the estate.