Chapter 2

3

Luckily, I hit the record button the moment I heard his voice.

This girl was manipulative. She wanted me to hear this.

After hanging up, I sat in the dark for a while.

I created a new social media account and searched for her handle.

I sent a follow request. She accepted almost instantly.

She really wasn't the cautious type.

Asher didn't come home that night.

Clearly, his "Little Glutton" had kept him satisfied.

The next morning, as soon as I got to the office, his secretary arrived.

She brought a huge bouquet of roses and a bowl of warm porridge he had supposedly made.

Then my phone rang. "Babe, I got called away on a last-minute business trip. I won't be home for a few days."

"I stopped by the house to pack and made you some breakfast. Eat it while it's hot."

After hanging up, I scrolled through my feed.

Lexi―the girl from the villa―had posted an update just minutes ago.

It was a photo of a lavish breakfast, featuring the exact same porridge.

Her caption read: "Master made me breakfast to reward me for working so hard last night."

Asher once told me he would only ever cook for one woman in his life.

A female colleague stared at the roses on my desk with envy.

"Where do you find a guy that attentive and rich? You're so lucky!"

Yes, to the outside world, he was madly in love with me.

He was the picture of loyalty, handsome, and successful.

But I wasn't exactly a charity case either. There was a reason he worked so hard to get me.

If I could attract him, I could attract thousands of other men.

I saw how much my colleague loved the flowers. "You can have them," I said.

She gasped. "Really? These are gorgeous. Are you sure?"

I smiled thinly. "Yeah. And take the breakfast too if you want. I already ate."

I didn't want a single bite of his poisonous, fake love.

Over the next week, I kept track of them through Lexi's frequent posts.

They went hiking in a rainforest. They visited Disney and kissed under the fireworks.

He took her to my favorite steakhouse and cut her meat for her.

Then he took her to a hot spring resort for a weekend of indulgence.

He even bought her several sets of lingerie that were too vulgar to even look at.

I watched it all with a strange numbness. There was no more pain, only cold calculation.

I saved every piece of evidence of his infidelity.

Asher finally called me a week later. "Babe, we haven't been to your favorite spot in ages. Want to go this weekend?"

It was pathetic. He had just taken Lexi there, and now he was circling back to me.

I didn't call him out. I just asked, "Are you back from your trip?"

He started acting cute over the phone. "Yeah, I'm so exhausted. But the thought of seeing you makes it all better."

I gave him a vague response.

I hadn't stayed at our place since he left.

I moved back to my own condo because the thought of being near his things made me sick.

That night, he returned to our house full of energy, only to find it empty.

He called me, sounding like a wounded puppy. "Babe, why aren't you here? I'm so sad coming home to an empty house. Come cheer me up."

"I'm working late. I'll be staying near the office for a few days. I'm swamped."

He immediately sounded annoyed. "Why didn't you tell me sooner?"

It was hilarious. If I had told him, he probably would have just stayed at her place.

I used his own tactics against him. "It was a last-minute assignment. You know how it is."

He groaned. "Babe, you should really think about quitting. I can take care of you. I hate seeing you work so hard."

He probably thought that once I was a trophy wife, he could control me even better.

When I didn't respond, he sighed. "Fine. Can you at least make it to the party tomorrow night?"

"The party? What for?"

"Did you forget? It's Bennett's birthday. He invited us weeks ago."

I brushed him off. "Sorry, babe. Tell him I'm sorry, but I really can't make it."

"Oh. Okay."

Asher's voice didn't betray any emotion.

"Take care of yourself then. Let me know when you're done so I can pick you up."

"Sure. Back to work now."