Chapter 1

It was my wife's birthday, so I drove all night with our daughter to surprise her.

I wanted to give her an unforgettable celebration.

Instead, I caught her locked in a passionate embrace with her first love.

That was the moment I realized every single business trip had just been a secret getaway with her lover.

1

Knowing my wife, Chelsea, had a business dinner tonight, I sat in the hotel lobby holding our daughter and waiting for her.

Time slipped by, and Annie eventually fell asleep in my arms.

Just as I pulled out my phone to call Chelsea, a familiar voice drifted over.

"I honestly don't know what I would do without you tonight."

I looked up and saw Chelsea. She was flushed from alcohol, her arms wrapped around a man's neck, her eyes sparkling with affection.

She looked entirely like a woman flirting with her lover.

The man had his back to me, so I could not see his face at first.

The moment he turned around, the blood in my veins turned to ice.

It was Ian Fletcher, her first love.

Right there in the crowded lobby, without a shred of shame, they pulled each other close and leaned in for a kiss.

"Chelsea, what the hell are you doing!"

My chest heaved as I stood up with our daughter in my arms.

Hearing my voice, both of them froze on the spot.

"Babe? Why are you here?"

Chelsea reacted first, turning around stiffly. The drunken haze in her eyes vanished instantly.

Instead, pure guilt washed over her face.

"If I had not come, how else would I get to witness such a wonderful show?" I sneered, glaring at them.

Their bold display had already drawn glances from passersby, and now even more people were staring.

Annie stirred in my arms, on the verge of waking up.

I did not want to cause a scene in front of our child, so I demanded the keycard with a dark expression and walked into the elevator.

"Babe, you should have told me you were coming early. I did not prepare anything."

"Here, let me hold Annie for a bit."

I shifted my body to dodge Chelsea's reaching hands.

The harder she tried to please me, the clearer it was that she knew she had crossed the line.

Once inside the room, my suspicions were completely confirmed.

As I gently laid our daughter on the bed, I spotted an opened condom wrapper sitting on the nightstand.

A wave of fury instantly surged through me. After tucking Annie in, I walked out to find Chelsea sitting on the couch pouring a glass of water.

"You drove all this way, babe. You must be exhausted."

She handed me the glass and stepped forward to wrap her arms around my neck.

At that moment, I found her utterly repulsive.

"Babe..."

She tried to speak, but I shoved her away and tossed the opened wrapper right at her.

"What is this?"

Once she saw what it was, her expression crumbled.

"Babe, let me explain. The previous guest must have left it behind. I really don't know how it got there."

I let out a cold chuckle. "And what about downstairs just now?"

"I just had too much to drink at dinner, and Ian helped me a lot tonight. I only wanted to thank him. What is wrong with leaning on a colleague when I am tipsy?"

I stared at her with mockery in my eyes. "Thanking him by taking him to your bed?"

"Now you are just being unreasonable."

I was sick of her excuses and held out my hand. "Give me your phone."

She hesitated, her face tightening. "Why?"

I said nothing, staring her down until she finally handed it over.

The passcode was still the same―our daughter's birthday.

I opened her messaging app. The bitter irony was that Ian's chat was pinned right at the very top, while my thread was buried under a pile of group chats.

They worked at the same company, and while they occasionally discussed work, most of their messages were blatant flirting.

I scrolled through the logs, and one text pierced my eyes like a blade.

Ian had texted: "How do you want to celebrate your birthday this time? You always care so much about romance."

Chelsea replied: "How else? It is always so boring spending it with my family. But before leaving for this trip, I told them I was coming back a day late so I could spend the whole day with you."

Ian replied: "Ha, who knew I would get to experience the thrill of an affair one day?"

Because my arrival was so sudden, Chelsea had not found the time to wipe her chat history.

Flirtatious exchanges like this happened almost every single day.

Even though they traveled together and spent their days side by side, they still acted like teenagers in heat.

The most recent message was sent just two minutes ago, where Ian asked if she was okay, and she had not had time to reply.

When I looked up, tears were already welling in Chelsea's eyes.

I used to fall for this act every single time.

Now, it only made me sick to my stomach.