Chapter 1

1

It was the 999th time I touched Ethan.

Even just brushing against the back of his hand.

And like always, he absolutely lost it.

"Audrey, is it physically impossible for you not to touch a man?"

He wanted to make damn sure I remembered the "cleanliness" agreement we signed right after getting married.

So, ignoring my begging, he threw me into the pool full of disinfectant and made me stay there for two hours.

It was the butler, James, who saw how bad I looked and secretly pulled me out.

As I stumbled past the study, dripping and miserable, I heard his voice from inside, tight and controlled:

"Sophia, I've already disinfected myself, and I threw Audrey in to disinfect too."

"I told you, every single part of me belongs only to you."

"No other woman can touch me..."

Through the crack in the door, I saw Ethan, totally lost in his own world, holding a pair of black silk stockings like they were sacred.

That's when it hit me.

The real reason he punished me like that today?

Because his precious hands had just been touched by his stepmother, Sophia.

The stinging pain burning all over my skin seemed to shoot straight into my chest.

I choked back the tears and called my dad.

"Dad, I'm ready for a divorce."

"I want to come home to you and Mom."

...

Dad sounded surprised at first, then thrilled.

"Audrey, are you really ready to leave Ethan?"

I looked down at my red, irritated skin, feeling the itch that felt like a million bugs crawling on me, and nodded, even though he couldn't see.

"Yeah, Dad, I am."

What choice did I have?

The night we got married, my dream of a romantic wedding night ended with me signing that ridiculous cleanliness agreement.

He said he needed time to get comfortable with physical touch.

He said before that happened, I couldn't touch him.

His therapist said the same thing, told me to give him time to overcome his fear of women.

I thought, because he actually married me, I must be different.

I thought I was the exception, the only one.

But I spent five whole years trying, and I never even got to hold his hand.

The only woman who could get close to him, from day one, was always his stepmother, Sophia.

I used to think she was special just because of who she was �C his father's wife, only five years older than him.

But tonight, I finally got it.

It wasn't about her title.

I just lost to her, Sophia, the person.

"I told you from the start, honey," Dad began, "Men only behave when they're six feet under."

"There's no such thing as a guy who can resist temptation, it just means he doesn't love you."

"You just wouldn't believe me..."

Mom yelled something in the background, cutting Dad off.

He quickly changed his tone to soothe me.

"Sweetheart, it's good you've finally seen the light."

"Dad will sort everything out for you to come overseas right away!"

I couldn't help but let out a shaky laugh, but the tears wouldn't stop falling.

I didn't want them to worry, so I quickly hung up and rushed to the bathroom to soak in a medicated bath.

But I ran right into Ethan, his face flushed.

His hands, usually so elegant, were rubbed raw from scrubbing with disinfectant.

But underneath the sharp chemical smell, there was this faint, earthy scent that made my stomach turn.

A flicker of panic crossed his eyes.

Then his gaze swept over my clothes clinging to my wet skin, and his expression immediately turned angry.

"Audrey! Didn't I tell you to soak for two full hours?"

"Who said you could get out?"

"Are you deliberately showing up looking like this?"

"Trying to tempt me again?"

Furious, he yelled for James.

"I told you to watch her!" he roared. "Not one second less! Is this how you follow my orders?"

James froze, terrified by Ethan's icy rage, barely able to speak.

"Sir, Mrs. Hayes is allergic to the disinfectant."

"If she stays in any longer, I'm afraid..."

Only then did Ethan seem to notice how abnormally red my skin was, already starting to swell.

He looked away, his lips pressed into a thin, cold line.

"So sensitive."

"Maybe now you'll think twice before touching me again."

"Next time, it won't just be two hours!"

The stinging was everywhere, relentless, but I managed a small smile.

"Don't worry," I said softly.

"There won't be a next time."