My husband was in love again. With some girl, this time. I’ve learned my lesson. No tears, no screaming matches. I even give him a gentle nudge out the door for his dates. He’s pleased. “See?” he boasts to his friends, a proud arm slung around my shoulders at whatever cocktail party we’re at. “This is why you marry the good ones. The ones who get it.” But his friends—his brothers-in-arms—they just shift their weight and look at their drinks. Because they know. I’ve had my moments of not being so “good” with every single one of them. Especially the one in the corner, the ice king himself. Just last night, when I was so exhausted I couldn’t lift a finger, he was whispering in my ear, pinning me to the sheets. “When are you going to make this official, hmm? Say it.” 1 Alex was in love again. This time, a college girl. He was obsessed with her. And she was the clingy type. Today was my birthday. For once, Alex was actually home to celebrate. I hadn’t even blown out the candles on the sad little cupcake he’d bought when his phone started buzzing, a persistent, demanding vibration on the marble countertop. He took the call on the balcony, hiding from me. I could still hear her. “Are you really at home with her? Your boring wife?” “If you sleep in the same bed with her tonight, we’re done. I’m serious, Alex.” Her voice was all sugar and petulance. Alex didn’t even seem annoyed. He just softened his voice, charming her through the glass. “Hey, don’t be like that. My little jealous thing. I’ll just be here for the cake, and then I’m all yours, okay?” “I bought you that pink diamond you wanted. I’ll bring it with me.” That seemed to placate her. She added, in a saccharine sweet voice, “Well… you can’t kiss her.” I heard Alex chuckle. “Babe, I won’t even touch her. Deal?” A bitter laugh escaped my lips. Does the other woman always get to be this self-righteous? When Alex came back inside, I kindly handed him the small, velvet box from the table. The one with the pink diamond. “You grabbed the wrong one,” I said. He froze for a second, then reached into his coat pocket and pulled out another, identical box. “An emerald necklace. For your birthday.” He can’t even keep his gifts straight. Is that how little thought he puts into me now? “Thank you.” I took it without another word. No point in getting angry. Green was a fitting color for me, anyway. Maybe my quiet acceptance was too much for him. A strange look flickered in his eyes. “Maya…” He stepped closer, leaning in to kiss me. I put a hand flat against his chest, stopping him. “Don’t. Your girlfriend has rules.” His eyes darkened, a flash of anger on his face. He threw himself onto the sofa, sprawling like he owned the world. “Maya, are you trying to start a fight?” Ha. The question was so absurd it was almost funny. But I had no time for him. I picked up my phone and sent a quick text to the girl. Your man wants to get cozy. Tonight’s date might be off. A moment later, Alex’s phone rang again. And then, just like that, he was grabbing his keys and rushing out the door to put out the fire he’d started. I let out a long, slow breath. People change. I used to be terrified of him not coming home. Now, my only fear is that he’ll stay. He’s getting in the way of my plans. 2 Alex and I married for love, of course. But he was born a wild horse, and all he ever wanted was a prairie filled with other mares. Over the years, his lovers have been a blur of shapes and sizes, too many to count. In the beginning, I fought it. I cried, I screamed, I broke things. I begged him, humbled myself completely, pleading for him to cut them off, to come back to our family. Alex would just watch me with cold eyes. “Maya, stop it.” “In our world, who doesn’t have a few women on the side?” “You’re Mrs. Corbin. Isn’t that enough?” I laughed through my tears. “You’re my husband. Is it okay if I find a lineup of male models, then?” Alex’s jaw clenched. “You’re insane,” he spat. “Maya, I dare you to try.” A dare is a dare. Of course, I didn’t hire models. I just… opened my mind. I stopped trying to manage Alex’s love life. I became a placid lake, a silent observer of his messes. No tears, no tantrums. A perfect, mute wife. He loved it. After a few drinks, he’d sling his arm around me and show me off to his friends. “See? This is why you marry the good ones.” On that particular night, his friends all looked away. Because I had been “bad” with every single one of them. For every new affair Alex started, I’d secretly start one of my own. With one of his best friends. If he was going to cheat on me again and again, then I was going to knit him a beautiful, seamless crown of thorns. Especially with the one in the corner, the untouchable one, the heir to the Croft family fortune—Sebastian Croft. The night before, when I was so tired I couldn’t move, he was still pressing, whispering against my skin. “When are you going to make me the main event, hmm? Tell me.” Yes, Sebastian had become quite demanding lately. His jealousy was starting to rival that of Alex’s new girl. I opened the voice message he’d sent. His voice was like a Mojito on a hot summer night—cool, intoxicating. “Maya. Come out.” I didn’t reply. Three seconds later, a picture arrived. A neatly arranged landscape of lean, hard abs. A few drops of water, not yet dried, traced a path down the deep lines of his hips, disappearing just out of frame. Sending me a picture like that. He was practically begging me to come over and clean him up. And I’m not one to back down from a challenge. With him, it was becoming an addiction. 3 The usual spot. A suite at a five-star hotel. I stood outside the door for a minute, but there was no sound. Oh, so someone was angry. “If you don’t open this door, I’m leaving.” I don’t play these games. The door flew open and a hand with long, elegant fingers pulled me inside. Sebastian was sitting on the sofa, radiating a wounded pride. He was wrapped tightly in a robe, his face a mask of cold indifference. “What does it mean when you don’t answer my texts?” His profile was so perfect it made my voice soften against my will. “He was home. It wasn’t a good time.” His dark eyelashes trembled. “Maya, divorce him.” “I can’t.” He flinched, and the corners of his eyes immediately flushed red. “You still love him?” “Then what am I?” What are you? Don’t you know? But I couldn’t say that out loud. Out in the world, Sebastian was a shark in the boardroom, a killer at the negotiating table. But with me, he transformed into this wronged puppy, constantly acting like I was the one hurting him. And damn it all, I fell for his soft side every single time. “If I loved him, would I be here with you?” “Just… wait a little longer.” I’m past the age where love is the only thing that matters. I have my own agenda. At the end of the year, the North District project that Alex’s company has been planning for five years is set to launch. His assets could triple, maybe more. If I’m going to divorce him, I’m waiting until I can walk away with a very large check. It’s what I deserve. After all, I was the one who lived with him in a garden-level apartment and ate ramen with him when he was just starting out, broke and dreaming. I used the same placating tone on Sebastian that Alex used on his little girlfriend. “I’m not leaving tonight. I’ll stay with you. Be good.” A slow smile spread across Sebastian’s lips, his eyes so bright they could have blinded me. “Right. I’m handsome, and my… performance is excellent. There’s no reason you wouldn’t choose me.” Men are children until the day they die. He gently took my hand and guided it to the knot on his bathrobe. “Here,” he whispered, his voice turning husky. “Your gift. Come unwrap it.” He’s good. He’s very good. Faced with a temptation like this, my resistance crumbled. I think I was starting to understand Alex’s thrill. The forbidden fruit really is sweeter. But I knew this was a happiness born from moral decay. It couldn’t see the light of day; it wasn’t something the world would ever accept. “Maya, when am I getting the promotion? Hmm? Say something.” “Maya, I really, really like you. What about you?” Looking into his sincere eyes, I couldn’t answer. I reached up and stroked his cheek. A rare flicker of conscience, but a small one. I was already thinking about how to end this, and he was thinking about a future. I’ll just wait a little longer, I thought. Eventually, he’ll get bored of this, just like Alex did. They all do. The passion burns hot and bright, and then it fades to embers and ash. Besides, with rich kids like them, who knows what’s real and what’s a line? Trusting a man’s words is a good way to get your heart broken. The next day, when I dragged my sore body home, a voice cut through the morning quiet. “Where have you been?” Alex was sitting on the living room sofa. It was the first time in ages he’d been home this early. 4 I froze for a second. “I went downstairs for breakfast. Is that a crime?” I said, forcing a casual tone. Alex’s gaze swept over me, and then he was on his feet, standing directly in front of me. His eyes were dark, his voice cool. “Maya, where did that mark on your neck come from?” My mind flashed to Sebastian. My heart skipped a beat. “Stress,” I blurted out. “It’s a rash. I was pinching at it.” He stared at my neck, his expression hardening. He clearly didn’t believe me. The hickey was too obvious. He spoke through gritted teeth. “Maya, are you screwing someone else behind my back?” “Who is he?” I slammed my bedroom door shut, the sound echoing in the silent apartment. I almost caught his nose. Thank God we’d been sleeping in separate rooms. Alex’s furious voice came through the door. “Maya, if I find out you’re seeing someone, I’ll kill him.” “It’s Sebastian Croft,” I called back. “Go on. Kill him.” I knew he wouldn’t dare. The Croft family was in another league. Alex couldn’t touch him. At most, they’d have a fight, and it would be a good way to finally sever my ties with Sebastian anyway. To my surprise, Alex was silent for two seconds, then let out a cold, sharp laugh. “Maya, if you’re going to lie, at least make it believable. Sebastian Croft? A guy like that wouldn’t give you a second look.” In that moment, something inside me shriveled. It felt like a plum dropping into ice water, cold and sour. It was the contempt he held for me, laid bare. Was this why he could betray our marriage over and over without a shred of guilt? Because he had never truly valued me? The truth is, besides Sebastian, I never went all the way with his other friends. I tried. But I just couldn’t. My body wouldn’t let me. The worst time, I left the guy completely speechless. He looked down at the mess on his expensive shirt, bewildered. “I’m this handsome, and you threw up?” I apologized profusely. “I’m so sorry. It’s not you.” “It’s me. I have… a kind of emotional block.” I was different from Alex. I couldn’t be as careless with my body, with my heart. Except for Sebastian. That was an accident. A beautiful, complicated accident. “Alex, let’s get a divorce.” I couldn’t do this anymore. It was time for us both to be free. Alex was quiet for a few seconds. “Maya, you know I hate it when you throw tantrums.” “If I agree to this, you’d better not regret it.” He was so sure of himself. He thought I was just bluffing, using divorce as a threat. He had no idea how quickly the whole thing was about to blow up in his face. 5 My best friend, bless her soul, is the new events manager at a high-end boutique hotel. She insisted on giving me a voucher for a free night’s stay. Sebastian raised an eyebrow over FaceTime. “Well, I’ve never been. I demand you take me.” What we didn’t expect was that Alex and his new girl were also drawn to the same place. They had just swiped their key card and disappeared into Room 817. And I swiped mine for Room 818. One wall separating us. The thought sent a illicit thrill through me. A thrill that apparently affected Sebastian too, because the moment the door clicked shut, he pressed me against it and kissed me, deep and hungry. “Wait, hold on,” I gasped. “They’ll hear us next door.” He nibbled on my earlobe, his voice a low purr. “Don’t worry. The soundproofing in this place is decent.” How would he know that? I narrowed my eyes. “Who have you been here with?” Sebastian’s eyes lit up. “Maya, are you jealous?” “I have to say, I like it when you’re jealous for me.” “But relax. You’re the only one. All my inventory is reserved for you.” He buried his head in my neck again, his lips finding that sensitive spot. Sebastian definitely had a touch of the hopeless romantic about him. When I first started flirting with him, he was so cool and distant. Sometimes I wonder if it was all an act. Just then, my phone rang, a shrill, jarring sound. “Phone…” I mumbled. He reluctantly pulled away, his eyes glazed with desire, giving me a soft glare. I glanced at the caller ID and my stomach dropped. It was Alex. His voice on the other end was low and cold. “Open the door.” Ten seconds passed. His voice came again, laced with a threat. “Maya, I have plenty of ways to make you open this door.” He must have heard me when I gasped earlier. I know him. He’s stubborn. And if he made a scene, it would be impossible to explain. His girlfriend in one room, my… whatever Sebastian was, in the room right next door. The optics were terrible. I’d have to inconvenience Sebastian. “Can you hide in the bathroom for a minute?” He clung to me, not moving. “Am I that shameful? Someone to be hidden?” I pressed my fingertips to my temples. “That’s my husband outside the door.” “Which makes you the other man right now. Got it?” He bristled. “He’s got his mistress with him! Why does she get to be so brazen, and I have to be so pathetic?” Seriously? The house is on fire and he’s comparing notes? But he had a point. Alex’s little girlfriend was brazen. I felt a pang of guilt. I had put him in this cowardly position. So I leaned in and crushed my mouth against his. “Because this makes it more exciting,” I whispered against his lips. One kiss wasn’t enough, so I gave him another, harder one. “Be good. Think of him as just a prop in our little game.” Sebastian’s eyes brightened, a slow, wicked smile spreading across his swollen lips. “Now that’s more like it.” Finally, the big baby relented, strolling casually into the bathroom. I pulled open the door. Alex stood there, his face as black as thunder. “Where is he? The bastard you’re with.” Alex’s jaw was tight. He scanned the room, then marched to the bathroom and tried the handle. It was locked. “Fine,” he sneered. “You think you can hide in there forever?” “This hotel is owned by one of my friend’s companies. One phone call, and I’ll have the security footage from this entire floor.” “You just wait, Maya. I’m going to see exactly who it is.” Go ahead, I thought. I already checked. This particular spot is a blind spot for the cameras. But sometimes, your best-laid plans are derailed by the one thing you didn't account for. Alex pulled out his phone to call his friend. And at that exact moment, a phone started ringing from inside the bathroom. Alex looked at me, his eyes filled with suspicion. He hung up his call. The ringing in the bathroom stopped. He dialed again. And again, the cheerful ringtone echoed from behind the bathroom door.
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