Chapter 3

I smirked bitterly as the cold ocean water surrounded me.

Suddenly, a hand grabbed my waist and pulled me up from the water.

I instinctively wrapped my arms around my rescuer's neck, staring into his worried eyes.

Oliver Reed? What was he doing here?

We were both PhD students under the same advisor.

Before I could speak, his lips crashed into mine.

He was giving me rescue breaths, and I froze in shock.

My conservative upbringing made me want to push him away, but he pinched my side hard to keep me still.

Too weak to resist, I let him carry me back to shore.

I collapsed on the beach, coughing and gasping for air, feeling half-dead.

My anger and disappointment peaked when Noah approached with his fake concern and that smug smile.

I slapped him across the face hard.

Ruby jumped to his defense. "What's wrong with you? He's your husband! How could you treat him like that?"

I said, "Oh, so you remember he's my husband? Funny, that didn't stop you from throwing yourself at him, you cheap homewrecker."

The three of them stood there stunned, shocked to hear such crude words from my mouth.

Noah's guilty eyes darted between me and Oliver, finally fixating on Oliver's mouth.

His face contorted with rage. "You've got some nerve! Here I was feeling bad, and you're cheating on me? You slut! You whore!"

Following Noah's gaze to Oliver's mouth, everything suddenly clicked into place.

During our struggle earlier, I had accidentally bitten Oliver's lip.

Oliver, ever the gentleman, furrowed his brows in disgust.

He spoke calmly but firmly, "What kind of monster tries to feed his wife to the fish?"

Then, with a knowing smirk, he added, "By the way, you can't afford this brand of diving equipment on your salary."

He was right. I had paid for all our diving gear and even covered most of our daily expenses.

Noah's face and neck flushed red with shame. He stood there speechless momentarily before shaking off Ruby's hand to hug me.

He tried to sound casual, "Let's put this behind us, okay? How about we go get some dinner?"

With false cheerfulness, he added, "You've been looking forward to that seafood feast!"

What a joke! Me? Looking forward to it?

I was allergic to seafood, but he insisted on going! He just told me to order something else at the restaurant!

Ignoring him completely, I turned to Oliver. "Let's go eat together. Thank you for saving my life!" Oliver smiled warmly, "I'd love to!"

Noah stood frozen in place, his face darkening with anger.