A hidden camera was live-streaming inside my house, and I had absolutely no idea. On the screen, Liam walked up to me, his voice icy. "You're playing games again?" My online haters were gloating in the comments. "Aria is always clinging to the CEO, faking their perfect romance. Now her true colors are showing!" My in-laws and sister-in-law were watching the stream too, offering cold remarks. "If Liam really doesn't like her, they shouldn't force this miserable marriage." But then, the camera captured me—the woman who always maintained a gentle, graceful, and obsessively-in-love public image—impatiently shoving Liam's handsome face away. "What is your problem? Back off." Instead of getting angry, Liam's stoic face revealed a hint of grievance. "Are you sick of me?" 1 The day I married into money, the internet tore me apart, sending me straight to the top of the trending topics. "What is going on?! Did my ultimate OTP just sink?" "Does Aria have no shame? She knew the CEO was in love with someone else, but she still seduced him. The worst part is her scheming actually worked!" My husband, Liam Sterling, was childhood friends with Mia Kensington, an A-list sweetheart of the entertainment industry. He had invested in her movies, ruined the careers of sleazy executives who tried to take advantage of her, and even showed up on variety shows just to support her. The "Billionaire & America's Sweetheart" pairing was the nation's favorite unspoken couple. Unfortunately, that fairy tale was ruined by a manipulative witch like me. During an interview, Mia forced a brave smile. "Liam and his wife are a great match." But when she turned around, her eyes were red with tears. The internet instantly rallied behind the heartbroken childhood sweetheart. They dragged my name through the mud, accusing me of using dirty tricks to climb the social ladder. They even pointed out that my in-laws hated me. They weren't wrong about that last part. Liam's parents were incredibly displeased with me. Even at our wedding, their expressions were stony. His younger sister, Harper Sterling, had never once called me "sister-in-law." She only ever called me by my first name. The public noticed all of this. The hashtag #WhenWillLiamDivorceAria trended year-round. I didn't really care. It wasn't like Liam and I were strangers forced together, but we weren't exactly in a passionate, sweeping romance either. I had money to spend and a gorgeous man in my bed. Life was great. Who cared what the internet thought? But I never realized they hated me this much. Sterling Tech had just developed a fully automated tracking drone camera. It was tiny, hovered silently, and featured an AI recognition system programmed to strictly avoid filming any private or explicit moments. To promote this revolutionary product, the PR department decided to sacrifice their CEO. The invisible drone was going to follow Liam, live-streaming the daily life of a billionaire CEO to the entire world. And absolutely no one told me. While I was sprawled on the couch in my messy pajamas, my hair a tangled nest, the live stream quietly began. 2 "Shouldn't someone have told Aria about the stream? What if she says something she shouldn't?" Harper pouted, glaring unhappily at the screen showing her brother. On the stream, Liam wasn't interacting with the chat. He was leaning back in the leather seat of his chauffeur-driven car, his eyes closed, looking slightly exhausted. He had woken up early to host the product launch, and now he was doing this live stream to appease the marketing team. He was drained. But his cold, aloof demeanor didn't dampen the internet's enthusiasm one bit. "The most hardcore brand ambassador in the world—CEO Sterling has arrived!" "Hahaha, this is way more entertaining than watching celebrities!" "Speaking of celebrities, is Aria going to show up in this stream?" "Ugh, please don't bring up that toxic woman right now." "Help! Just thinking about her fake, try-hard face makes me suffocate for my ruined OTP." "Don't worry, guys. A live stream is the ultimate lie detector. Just wait for Aria's true colors to be exposed." Mrs. Sterling glanced at the hateful comments scrolling across the screen and spoke mildly. "Aria is a pop singer, not a trained actress. She can't fake a natural demeanor for hours on end. If we warned her, the viewers would think it was scripted, which would ruin the promotion." "Besides, your brother knows what he's doing." Harper's pout deepened, clearly annoyed. "I just don't understand why he had to marry someone like her!" Mr. and Mrs. Sterling fell silent. They didn't like Aria as a daughter-in-law, but they had always respected Liam's decisions. They hadn't actively stopped the wedding, but they certainly weren't warm to her. This live stream was an opportunity for them to see the reality of Liam and Aria's marriage. It would determine whether they needed to step in and offer Liam some "sincere advice." If the two were truly miserable, it was better to cut ties sooner rather than later. Meanwhile, I was wearing a fuzzy yellow bear onesie, my hair clipped up haphazardly with a cheap plastic claw. I was curled up in a beanbag chair, furiously tapping on my phone, completely oblivious when Liam walked through the front door. He took off his suit jacket and tie, poured a glass of water at the kitchen island, and then paced back and forth in front of me a few times. I caught his shadow out of the corner of my eye, but I was in the middle of a ranked match. I couldn't be bothered. Seeing that I was ignoring him, he walked right up to me, clearly displeased. His jaw tightened, and his tone was as cold as frost. "You're playing games again?" Instantly, a tidal wave of comments flooded the screen. "You can't blame Mr. Sterling for being mad. He works all day, comes home, and doesn't even get a 'welcome back.' I wonder who the real boss is here." "A freezing house, a cold husband. Welcome to Aria's tragic reality." "She deserves it. That's what she gets for using dirty tricks to tear apart the Golden Duo. Ugh, poor Mia." The haters were practically throwing a parade, fully expecting me to jump up in terror and grovel for his forgiveness. After all, my public persona was that of a submissive, gentle wife who was desperately, madly in love with Liam. Instead, I frowned impatiently and swatted my hand out, shoving Liam's handsome face as far away as possible. "What is your problem? Back off." You're blocking my screen. Liam's eyes widened slightly. His stoic, chiseled face revealed a distinct hint of grievance. "Are you sick of me?" For a solid ten seconds, the live chat was completely, utterly blank. Harper nearly dropped her phone in shock. "Am I hallucinating?! Is my brother... whining?!" 3 Hearing the pouty grievance in his voice, I finally pulled my attention away from the game and looked up in surprise. He was leaning over me, one arm planted above my head, his warm breath lightly brushing against my face. I reached out and poked his arm. He didn't budge. He just stayed there, stiff and stubborn, staring at me with dark, intense eyes. I immediately realized what was happening. The guy was secretly throwing a tantrum again. He was always like this. Whenever I ignored him for too long, he would trap me in his arms, refuse to speak, and refuse to let me go. He would just press his lips together and stare at me, as stubborn as a massive, sulky golden retriever. But he was incredibly easy to coax. All it took was a hug or a kiss. Then he would act like nothing happened, quietly curl the corners of his lips, and revert back to his calm, collected CEO persona. I figured it had to do with how he was raised. As the eldest son and heir to the Sterling empire, his parents demanded absolute perfection from him. From his academics to his business acumen, down to his every word and action, he had to be flawless. He used to perfectly fit my stereotype of an alpha billionaire. Stern, humorless, and incredibly elegant. Honestly, he cared more about his image than I did as an actual pop star. It wasn't until we got together that I realized his entire personality was basically an act. On the outside, he was all business. On the inside, he was a giant softie constantly craving affection. I sighed, put my phone down, and wrapped my arms around his neck. I pressed a few soft kisses behind his ear and whispered, "How could I be? You're the absolute best, honey~" Liam's earlobes turned bright, cherry red. He hugged me back fiercely, burying his face in the crook of my neck, as if trying to absorb my body heat. A moment later, he straightened up. Then, his body suddenly went completely rigid. By now, the live chat was exploding in absolute shock. "What is CEO Sterling doing?! Was he throwing a tantrum?!" "Is this how they actually act at home? I refuse to believe it. It has to be scripted!" "Definitely an act! Remember when Mia was filming that reality show and Mr. Sterling visited the set? He yelled at Aria to shut up in front of everyone!" "Mr. Sterling is sacrificing so much for this PR stunt." "Wait... but his ears are literally red?" 4 The internet was in mourning. They couldn't believe a dignified billionaire was lowering himself to act like a cheesy influencer for a marketing campaign. But Harper knew better. Her brother was rigid and principled. He would never force himself to act out a fake romantic script just for PR. Especially not a script that ruined his intimidating reputation. Honestly, the fact that he agreed to let a camera follow him at all had already shocked the entire company. Harper stared blankly at the screen. After a long pause, she pointed at Liam and asked her parents, "Did they hire a body double? The makeup is really convincing." Mr. and Mrs. Sterling were speechless. As their eldest son, Liam had always been mature and dependable. They never had to worry about him. But seeing their cold, ruthless son blushing and burying his face in Aria's neck... their brains short-circuited. When a person is shocked beyond a certain threshold, they just go numb. They sat there in a daze, completely unable to form words. The haters in the chat were coping hard. "This makes me sick. Why does Aria get to live this perfect life after the disgusting things she did?" "I feel so bad for Mia. Aria literally stole her life." "Uh, wait. The side-chick's fans are dragging the actual legal wife? You guys are delusional." "Whatever, Aria isn't worth a single hair on Mia's head." 5 Liam's sudden stiffness felt a bit odd, but I didn't think much of it. Having successfully appeased him, I grabbed my strawberry bear pillow and curled back into the sofa to resume my game. Liam opened his laptop on the coffee table and started working. As his fingers typed across the keyboard, he kept looking up to stare at me. Being a celebrity, I'm highly sensitive to being watched. After having my focus broken for the fifth time, I finally got annoyed. I shifted my body so my back was facing him. But a few minutes later, I felt that heavy, unmistakable gaze burning into my back again. I peeked over my shoulder. He had literally moved his laptop to sit on the opposite side of the table just so he could face me again. ...So annoying. I groaned, crawled off the sofa, ruffled my messy hair, and prepared to relocate to the bedroom. "Where are you going?" Liam's hands stopped typing. "Somewhere else, so you can stop harassing me." "I'm harassing you?" He looked genuinely shocked. I scoffed, pointing two fingers at my own eyes, then at him. "You are visually harassing me." "..." The chat was losing it. "Hahahaha, is Mr. Sterling always this clingy?!" "Am I crazy, or does Aria seem totally indifferent, while Mr. Sterling is the one obsessing over her?" "Aria's fans are so delusional. He gives her one nice look and suddenly they're 'deep in love'?" "To be honest, their house is really cozy. TV tropes lied to me. Not every billionaire lives in a sterile, modern-art mausoleum." Harper had never actually visited her brother's house, so this was her first time seeing it too. Back at the family estate, Liam's bedroom was entirely decorated in sophisticated greys and blacks—clean, sharp, and minimalist. But now? A cartoon desk calendar, a cat-paw mug, and a Hello Kitty desk mat. Things her brother would have never touched in a million years were proudly displayed right next to his work laptop. It somehow made his stoic resting-bitch-face look incredibly cute. Harper's feelings were a complicated mess. She felt a weird mix of relief—like watching a dead tree suddenly blossom—and awkward guilt. After all, she had given Aria a lot of attitude over the years. "Oh God, I'm doomed... If I start calling her 'sister-in-law' now, is it going to look like I'm sucking up to her?"
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