My husband insisted I take my car to a specific luxury auto shop for maintenance every week. Since then, my car started having frequent malfunctions. Once, it almost caused a fatal crash. When my husband found out, he just coldly replied, "You didn't die, did you? Is there a need to make such a big deal out of it?" Until yesterday, when I asked him to pick up the car for me. He got into an accident on the way back. When I rushed to the hospital, a young girl with red, swollen eyes screamed at me: "What gave you the right to make Ethan pick up your car? If you weren't so lazy, he wouldn't have gotten hurt!" "Do you have any idea he fractured his leg and broke his ribs?" Her tone was incredibly self-righteous, like she was scolding a servant who had done wrong. It wasn't just me; all the friends and family who came to visit Ethan Vance were stunned. Ethan gave her a doting look, then turned to coax me: "She's just a young girl fiercely defending a client. She speaks her mind, don't take it personally." It was only then that I realized: Ethan had bought that auto shop and given it to her. Chapter 1 I stared calmly at the crying, tear-stained girl until she exhausted herself and stopped. "Are you done? My turn." "How many times has your dealership made this kind of amateur mistake? If you don't give me a reasonable explanation, you can explain it to the NYPD and the Vance family's legal team." The girl's face went pale. She looked helplessly at the man on the hospital bed. Ethan’s expression shifted. "Victoria, it was my own driving error. It has nothing to do with her. I've already handled the accident." "Your driving error?" I raised an eyebrow, looking straight at him. "How is it?" Ethan coughed. "I'm fine. Besides a fractured tibia and a mild concussion, there's no need to..." I cut him off. "I was asking about the car." Stung by my coldness, the girl's voice pitched up again. "Ethan is hospitalized, and you only care about a car?! Do you have a conscience?!" "You must be Lily Dawson, right?" I crossed my arms slowly, looking at her without a trace of emotion. "First, that car is worth eighteen million dollars. It's a global limited edition." "Second, Ethan is my legally wedded husband. Is there a problem with him picking up my car?" "And finally..." I paused, my gaze dropping to her hand tightly gripping Ethan's hospital gown. "You are just a college student Ethan sponsored. In what capacity are you standing here interrogating me?" Lily flushed bright red. She instinctively let go but still tried to defend herself. "I... I just feel bad for Ethan!" "You could have easily picked up the car yourself, but you forced him to make the trip. Now that he's in an accident, you don't even have a single word of concern..." I glanced at a text message my assistant just sent me and let out a cold laugh. "You should probably save that pity for yourself." "The damage assessment is out. The estimated repair cost is upwards of three million dollars. Will that be cash or card?" Lily's knees gave out, and she swayed, glaring at me with a mix of defiance and grief. "Th-Three million? That's extortion!" She then looked pitifully at Ethan. "Ethan..." Ethan propped himself up. The movement pulled at his injuries, and he rubbed his temples in pain. "Victoria, she just graduated. She's still a kid. Where would she get three million? Stop scaring her." "It was my mistake anyway. I'll pay you for the repairs." Lily's eyes lit up instantly, a smug curve appearing at the corner of her mouth. I looked at him, mocking, "You really are a knight in shining armor. Wasn't buying her a luxury dealership enough?" Ethan clearly didn't expect me to know about that. His expression froze. Lily lost her previous bravado. Biting her lip, she explained, "Victoria, if you're angry, take it out on me. Don't blame Ethan. He only helped me out of pity." Ethan sighed and waved Lily off. "This has nothing to do with you. Go home for now." Lily kept her head down, looking back at Ethan every three steps as she walked to the door. Just before leaving, she quickly rushed back. She pressed a beautifully decorated glass jar into Ethan's palm. She looked up at him, her eyes glistening and pitiful, radiating a sticky, undeniable affection. Anyone with eyes could tell they were sleeping together. Lily pursed her lips and reluctantly left. As she passed me, she whispered an explanation: "Victoria, it was my oversight. I let Ethan drive the car away before the inspection was fully complete, and that's why the accident happened." "Please don't misunderstand. That jar is full of origami lucky stars I folded myself, praying for his leg to heal quickly." The inspection wasn't complete? But the shop had literally called to tell me the car was ready for pickup. That time my brakes failed... was that an "incomplete inspection" too? Chapter 2 "Victoria, I've been meaning to find a time to tell you about the dealership." Ethan's voice pulled me back to reality. It was just the two of us in the room now. He put on a smile, carefully set the glass jar aside, and reached out for my hand. "She just graduated, and it was her birthday. It was just a gift. Don't tell me my CEO wife is actually jealous?" He said it so casually, as if he had just given away a cheap stuffed animal. I stepped sideways, avoiding his touch. "Is this your type now?" A sudden silence fell over the room. Ethan's face changed slightly, and he rubbed his brow. "I didn't tell you because I was afraid you'd overthink it." "Lily and I are completely innocent. We..." "I don't care." I cut him off dismissively. "I didn't catch you in bed, true. But I, Victoria Vance, do not tolerate sand in my eyes. Ethan, you better drop whatever inappropriate thoughts you're entertaining, or I will tear this marriage apart." Ethan looked up, staring at me in disbelief. "You don't trust me?" I looked down at him, my eyes completely dead. My silence was the most direct answer. He wanted to say more, but his phone on the bedside table rang right on cue. The name "Lily" flashing on the screen was glaringly obvious. Ethan hesitated before answering. Lily's soft, fragile voice immediately floated out: "Ethan, is Victoria giving you a hard time? Even if she's angry, please don't fight with her, okay?" "I ordered some bone broth from that Michelin restaurant you like. I was afraid Victoria might misunderstand, so I didn't bring it up myself." In just two sentences, she managed to act like the sweet victim while sneakily reminding me of her intimacy with my husband. I stood frozen. Ethan caught a glimpse of my face and quickly hung up. I sneered internally, too exhausted to keep playing these fake games with him, and turned to walk out of the ward. "Victoria!" Ethan called out frantically. "Are you really mad?" "I promise I'll stay far away from her from now on. I'll never contact her again. Just please don't be so cold to me." "My leg hurts..." I turned my head slightly, my voice dropping below freezing. "If it hurts, call a doctor. I have a company to run. Get some rest." Stepping out of the hospital, the cold New York wind hit my face, slightly suppressing the violent rage building in my chest. I pulled out my phone and called my assistant. "Do a deep background check on Lily Dawson. I suspect my last brake failure is connected to her." The last time I got my car serviced there, the brakes failed on the highway. I had to crash into a median just to avoid a fatal pileup. That night, on Ethan's orders, the regional manager of a high-end jewelry brand personally brought dozens of priceless pieces to our penthouse for me to choose from. "Mr. Vance treats you so well. Having a husband this devoted is truly enviable." I glanced over the diamonds, feeling nothing but irony. "Didn't you know? The night a man cheats, he'll tell his wife 'I love you' a hundred times just to alleviate his own guilt." Ethan thought I was just throwing a tantrum. He thought I was like those upper-east-side socialite wives who cry and scream when they catch their husbands cheating, only to be bought off with a Birkin bag and some diamonds. But he forgot. I am Victoria Vance. The sole heir to the Vance corporate empire. I took over the family business at eighteen and carved out a bloody path on Wall Street by twenty-two. I married him at twenty-five in a strategic business alliance—not because I couldn't live without him, but out of respect for our fathers' friendship. And because he promised me a lifetime of absolute loyalty. The hilarious part? It only took five short years for him to completely throw those vows out the window. Chapter 3 The next day, I received a friend request from Lily on WhatsApp. The note read: "Victoria, I want to explain what happened with your car's maintenance." I was incredibly busy that day. After back-to-back meetings, I had to fly to Chicago in the evening for my uncle's birthday banquet. It wasn't until I got off the plane that I accepted her request. Lily immediately sent a voice memo. The gist of it was that the mechanic who serviced my car was a temp who had abandoned his post, and they couldn't reach him. I didn't reply. As I backed out of the chat, my finger slipped and opened her social media feed. Her latest post was from half an hour ago. The photo showed Ethan sitting on the sofa in our Hampton villa, drinking soup. In the background, I could clearly see the oil painting I bought at auction for a fortune, and the custom-made Italian rug. What burned my eyes most was that Lily was wearing my favorite silk pajamas and slippers. She was leaning intimately against him, smiling brightly, holding up a peace sign for the selfie. The caption: "Finally get to take care of you while you're sick! Even though I've been misunderstood, the truth will speak for itself. Made you this bone broth from scratch. Hope you get better soon! ❤️" I took a screenshot and sent it to Ethan: "Staying in my house, wearing my clothes, getting cozy with my husband. Is this your definition of 'completely innocent'?!" Ethan replied instantly: "Victoria, Lily spilled some soup on her clothes while cooking, so she just borrowed yours temporarily. She's just trying to be kind, don't overthink it." I sneered and typed back: "Kind?" "More like the soup is an excuse to sneak into my house and steal my husband. Wearing my clothes to play the good little wife. What? Does she think playing cuckoo bird will make her the lady of the house?" "Can you stop being so bitter?" Ethan's tone shifted. "You're never around. She went out of her way to take care of me. Can't you be a little more tolerant?" "Victoria, you never used to be like this. When did you become so overbearing and heartless?" Staring at the screen, I laughed out of pure anger. Overbearing? Heartless? When the Sterling Group's supply chain snapped, I was the one who ruthlessly led my team through a month of sleepless nights to secure the critical funding he needed. When his father was dying, I—the "heartless" one—dropped a billion-dollar M&A deal to sleep on a cot in his hospital room for two weeks. He used to say my decisiveness and ruthlessness in the boardroom were the things he admired most about me. Now that he has a sweet, gentle little angel by his side, I'm suddenly too overbearing and bitter? Because my aunt insisted I stay a bit longer, I didn't catch a flight back until the morning of the third day. The smart lock hadn't been replaced, but my fingerprint had been deleted. I stood at the door and rang the bell. The person who opened it was Lily. This time, she was wearing Ethan's button-down shirt. The hem barely covered her thighs, and her hair was wet, like she had just stepped out of the shower. "Victoria?" She sounded shocked. "Why are you back? Ethan is still sleeping..." I cut her off. "I can't return to my own house?" "Move!" "I didn't mean it like that." She stubbornly blocked the doorway. "But Ethan is resting, and you look like you're in a bad mood. I'm afraid you'll disturb him..." I didn't have the patience for her garbage. I shoved her hard out of the way. "Get out of my way!" The commotion woke Ethan. He came out of the master bedroom on crutches. Seeing the explosive tension, he frowned. "What's going on here?" Chapter 4 Before Lily even opened her mouth, the tears started flowing. "Ethan, I'm sorry. You were so tired last night, I just wanted to let you sleep a little longer. I didn't mean to offend Victoria." She sobbed, her shoulders hitching, looking like a brutally bullied little bunny. Yet the tips of her ears were conspicuously flushed red. Ethan turned his head and coughed twice before speaking: "Victoria, you're really misunderstanding Lily. Apologize to her." I ignored him and sat down on the sofa. I looked up and noticed that the framed photo of Ethan and me on the display shelf was gone. In its place was the glass jar filled with Lily's origami lucky stars. Lingerie that definitely didn't belong to me was scattered across the coffee table. "No wonder you tried to block the door. You two have been busy, haven't you, Ethan?" Lily scrambled crying to pick up the underwear. "These are mine. I... I washed them, I was just letting them dry here..." "Drying them in the living room?" I scoffed. "Can Ethan even satisfy you with a broken leg?" Lily's face burned crimson. She stammered: "Victoria, you... you really misunderstood. Ethan and I haven't done anything." "Enough!" Ethan glared at me impatiently. "Victoria, do you have to use such filthy language to humiliate her?" "She's just an innocent young girl. She's not like you, with a head full of endless calculations!" I raised my eyes to him. "What exactly am I calculating?" "You're calculating how to embarrass her, how to ruin her reputation, how to make me your obedient dog, revolving around you and only you forever!" Ethan grew more agitated as he spoke. "Yes, I let her stay here! But absolutely nothing happened between us!" "She took care of me, and I'm grateful to her. It's that simple! Why do you always have to assume the absolute worst of people?" "I don't care how dirty your heart is." I pulled a document from my bag. "What I do care about is the fact that six months ago, you used corporate funds and resources to open a luxury car dealership for her. A twenty-million-dollar investment labeled as a 'charitable grant.'" "Ethan, did the board of directors approve that? How does 'embezzling corporate funds to keep a mistress' sound as a headline?" Ethan's face turned ashen. "You investigated me?! She is not my mistress!" "Then what is she?" I stood up and walked over to Lily. "Ms. Dawson, why don't you tell us? What are you?" Lily bit her lip. "I... I just admire Ethan. I'm so grateful for everything he's done for me, so I came to take care of him for a few days..." "Admire him enough to wear my clothes and sleep in my bed?" I pointed at the master bedroom door, which was left slightly ajar. "Ethan, I saw you both come out of the master bedroom with my own eyes. How do you explain that?" Ethan gritted his teeth. "Believe what you want. Lily slept on the floor to keep an eye on me. We didn't do anything!" "I really don't care if you slept together or not." I put away the financial document and dropped a divorce agreement onto the coffee table. My tone left absolutely no room for negotiation. "Ethan, revoke her ownership of that dealership, sign this divorce agreement like a good boy, and we'll split the assets according to our prenup. We can end this with some dignity." "Otherwise, I will sue you for embezzlement and marital infidelity, and I'll report you to the board. Do you want to bet whether those old foxes will use this excuse to kick you out of your own company?"
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