Chapter 1

On our seventh wedding anniversary, the man who had been secretly pining for my wife for five years intentionally rammed his car into mine.

Seraphina, the woman who swore she only loved me, signed a waiver of prosecution while I was still unconscious.

She let Caleb walk free without any consequences.

When I finally woke up, Seraphina looked at me with a helpless expression.

"Caleb just had a moment of temporary insanity. We can't destroy his entire future over one mistake."

"He only did it because he's too in love with me."

I looked at Seraphina. She tried to remain calm, but she couldn't hide the flicker of pain in her eyes for the other man.

That was the moment I knew our marriage had rotted to the core.

1.

"And what if I insist on pursuing this?"

I stared at Seraphina, my face a mask of calm.

She looked at me with deep disapproval.

"Bennett, you're an attorney. You know how cruel a criminal record is for a young man just starting his career."

"Don't you lawyers always say the law should be tempered with mercy? Caleb knows he messed up. He even tried to harm himself because of the guilt. Isn't that enough of a lesson?"

I watched her in silence. She was being so aggressive, all for the sake of another man.

A bitter ache surged in my chest.

Realizing her tone was too harsh, Seraphina abruptly shut her mouth.

I didn't step in to smooth things over like I usually did. I just watched her coldly.

After a long pause, she explained that she simply couldn't bear to see a young person throw their life away. She told me not to overthink it.

I let out a soft, dry laugh but said nothing.

My lack of response made her uneasy. She called out to me, her voice trembling.

"Honey, I..."

Before she could finish, a nurse burst into the room.

"Dr. Sterling! The patient you brought in yesterday is awake. He's throwing a fit and threatening to end it all!"

Seraphina's expression shifted instantly. She threw out a quick "I'll go check on him" and vanished without looking back.

Caleb had pulled stunts like this many times before. I had never taken them seriously.

But I hadn't realized how much power he held over Seraphina.

A moment later, a notification popped up on my phone.

It was a social media update from Caleb.

"She says she doesn't love me, but everything she does proves otherwise."

The attached photo showed Seraphina looking frantic as she checked his vitals.

I scrolled up through his feed. There were dozens of similar posts.

Almost every single one featured a photo of Seraphina.

Apparently, while I wasn't looking, their lives had become deeply intertwined.

There were so many times Seraphina told me she was working late at the hospital.

Now I realized that those late nights were actually spent with Caleb.

Through Caleb's posts, I saw the clear progression of their affair.

In the middle of the night, unable to sleep, I stood up and walked to the window.

As I looked down, my eyes locked onto two figures in the parking lot below.

"Seraphina! You do love me! Otherwise, why would you care so much?"

Caleb was looking at her with feverish intensity.

"I just couldn't bear to see you..."

Caleb cut her off.

"Stop lying to yourself! It's okay! As long as I can be with you, I don't care about a title."

A flicker of emotion crossed Seraphina's face.

Caleb clearly saw it. He suddenly reached out, cupped her face, and kissed her.

Seraphina's hands rose as if to push him away, then hesitated.

After a few seconds, she seemed to surrender, wrapping her arms around him and returning the kiss.

I watched them in the moonlight, lost in their passion. I lowered my head and laughed at the irony of it all.

Eventually, someone passing by made a noise.

Seraphina snapped back to reality and shoved Caleb away.

Unprepared, he tumbled to the ground.

But he looked ecstatic. He sat there on the pavement and laughed out loud.

Seraphina hissed the word "psycho" before turning to walk away.

I sneered and looked down at my phone. I sent a quick text and headed back to my bed.

The reply came almost instantly: "Are you serious?!!"

A second later, my phone started ringing.

Just as I was about to answer, Seraphina pushed the door open.