Chapter 4

That evening, when I came out of the shower, Marcus was actually sitting on the bedroom sofa waiting for me. He wasn't scrolling through his phone or reading documents.

He held a glass of warm milk, his voice incredibly soft. "Still mad? Kids say stupid things. Don't take it to heart."

I took the glass, laughing bitterly in my head. We had been married for five years, yet he couldn't remember that I was lactose intolerant. But he remembered Chloe's pollen allergy perfectly—the very day she moved in, he threw away all my houseplants.

"There's an auction tomorrow," he said, pulling me closer. "I'll take you. I want to buy you a gift."

I nodded submissively, then dumped the milk into a potted plant the second his back was turned.

In the middle of the night, the soft click of a door woke me.

I instinctively reached out next to me. Marcus's side of the bed was empty.

I slipped out of bed quietly, walking barefoot down the dimly lit hallway toward Chloe's room.

The door was slightly ajar. From inside, I heard heavy breathing and hushed, intimate whispers.

"Is she asleep?" Chloe's voice was dripping with honeyed sweetness.

"Don't worry, I put a double dose of sleeping pills in her milk," Marcus murmured huskily. "I can finally touch you properly..."

"Will that hurt her health?" Chloe asked hypocritically, followed by the rustling of clothes.

"Who cares about her?" The mattress creaked under their weight. "You have no idea how hard it's been to hold back. Let me hold you."

Chloe giggled. "Marcus, who's better? Me or Elena?"

"She's like a stiff board compared to you," Marcus panted. "If it weren't for the Carter Enterprises project, I would have divorced her a long time ago."

My heart was completely frozen. I clutched the hem of my pajamas, my knuckles turning white.

Chloe whispered something with a laugh, but then her voice turned cold. "It kills me to hear Leo call her Mommy for five whole years... He's my baby."

"Shh, baby. Soon, Leo will be able to call you Mommy legally."

"Three months max," Marcus coaxed. "As soon as we sign the Green Valley contract, I'll file for divorce."

"And then, the three of us will finally..."

His words were cut short by heavy gasps.

I stood in the dark corridor, trembling.

I walked back to my room like a ghost. My phone vibrated in my pocket. A new email notification flashed on the screen:

[DNA Test Results: There is 0% biological relationship between Chloe Miller and Leo Vance. There is 0% biological relationship between Marcus Vance and Leo Vance.]

I stared at the report. Then, I burst out laughing.

Rain started to pour outside, tapping against the windowpane like a ticking clock.

I opened my Snapchat chat with my father and sent a message:

"Dad, go ahead and start pulling out our investments."

Then, I lay back down in bed, closing my eyes amidst the lingering scent of Marcus's cologne.

Tomorrow, at the auction, I'd make him buy me that sapphire necklace with his own hands—using the very last of Vance Group's liquid assets.