Chapter 1

My wife hid it from me and gave the house I bought for our fifth anniversary to her old flame as a homecoming gift.

The date happened to be May 20th, our special day.

I threw the deed on the table, my eyes red as I confronted her.

She looked at me with cold, indifferent eyes and spoke with pure impatience.

"Don't twist things. It's just a greeting for an old friend. If anything was still going on between us, you wouldn't even be in the picture."

But that same day, she posted on her secret social media account.

It was a photo taken in the house I bought her. Cillian Garrow was holding her waist on the balcony while they watched the sunrise, sharing a deep, passionate kiss.

The caption read: 【He will always be my first choice.】

My whole body went numb. I silently packed my bags and prepared to leave.

I sat in the bar until late at night. For the first time in eight years, I didn't head home before midnight.

Just as I reached the front door, Yasmin Ward did something unheard of―she called me.

"Still not back? Do you have any sense of family responsibility at all?"

It was the same old scolding and finger-pointing. The funny thing is, I used to take her words as a sign that she actually cared.

I stared at the door, my throat tight. After a long silence, I finally said, "I'm home."

She hung up immediately without another word.

As soon as I walked in, Yasmin jumped off the sofa. She looked me up and down with a face full of disgust.

"Why are you out drinking so late? You know I hate the smell of smoke and booze!"

I gave her a flat look. "I'm in a bad mood."

May 20th was our fifth wedding anniversary. My wife spent it with her first love.

She didn't even blink when she handed over the house I gave her to another man.

Such an absurd thing was happening to me, yet I wasn't even allowed to drown my sorrows in peace.

She clicked her tongue in annoyance and spoke like she was ordering a servant.

"Go make some sautéed celery and beef. I'm craving it. Oh, and put it in a to-go box. I'm taking it out to eat."

Her lie was so clumsy it almost made me laugh.

She was a picky eater. She never touched celery and hated anything cooked with ginger.

I knew exactly who loved celery. I had seen his name in the notes on her phone.

It was Cillian Garrow.

Looking at the ingredients already sitting in the kitchen, I stared at her calmly and asked, "Is this why you called me?"

From the moment I got that call at the door until now, a small part of me had still been hoping.

I thought maybe she was just tough on the outside but soft on the inside. Maybe her harsh words were just her way of worrying about me.

In the next second, she completely shattered every last one of my delusions.

Yasmin glanced at me and said coldly, "Why else would I call?"

I let out a bitter laugh. No wonder she reached out first. She just needed a chef to cook a meal for Cillian.

I didn't answer. I just changed my shoes and walked straight toward the bedroom.

"Finn Quinn, you've got a real attitude now, don't you? You get upset outside and come back to take it out on me!"

Yasmin stormed into the bedroom, grabbed my wrist, and screamed in my face.

"Today is May 20th. It's our fifth anniversary."

My voice was steady. I looked at her furious, distorted face without any expression.

Her eyes flickered with guilt for a split second. Her grip loosened, and she tried to soften her tone, taking my hand.

"I'm sorry, babe. Work has been so crazy lately. I totally forgot."

She did forget. She had someone more important to be with, so she forgot me.

I looked away, refusing to meet her eyes. I stayed silent for a long time.

Sensing my coldness and distance, her voice became even softer, sweet enough to melt anyone.

"Alright, don't be mad. I'll make it up to you tomorrow, okay? Whatever gift you want, I'll buy it for you!"

She shook my arm, but I still didn't say a word. I just watched her with a frozen face.

My lack of reaction made her lose the last bit of her patience. She flung my hand away and growled with a furrowed brow.

"What the hell do you want?! I already apologized! Why are you still acting like this?!"

I lay down on the bed and said flatly, "I'm not thinking about anything."

I didn't give her the reaction she wanted. Yasmin's rage boiled over. Her face turned pale as she slammed the door, screaming at the top of her lungs.

"I've given you way too much face! Stay here and reflect on your own shitty attitude!"

She left. I tossed and turned, unable to sleep a wink.

In the middle of the night, I received a photo from an unknown number.

Yasmin was lying naked under a man, her arms wrapped tightly around his neck. She kept saying, "Cillian, I've missed you so much..."

I never could have imagined it. In our daily life, she was always so frigid, setting strict rules for our intimacy.

Yet, with another man, she was so desperate and active.

The man laughed and worked harder, intentionally asking her, "So, between me and your husband, who do you love?"

Without a moment's hesitation, Yasmin tilted her head up to kiss him. With a dazed but firm look, she said, "You, Cillian. It's always been you."

The video had thirty seconds left, but I didn't have the courage to finish it. I turned off the screen.

Her passion in that video tore my heart into jagged pieces. There was nothing left to fix.

Those images made me start remembering our past.

That was back when Yasmin Ward supposedly loved me the most.