Chapter 1

I had just returned from a business trip. The moment I stepped through the door, I scooped my wife into my arms and rushed her straight to the bathroom for a steamy shower together.

We were kissing passionately when, out of the corner of my eye, I noticed something: the toilet seat was flipped up.

I froze.

Seven years ago, my wife had read a post online claiming that when men pee standing up, bacteria splash onto the seat. She begged me to sit down to pee for the sake of her health.

I have kept that promise. For seven years of marriage, that seat has never been up.

A knot formed in my stomach, but the bathroom was spotless, so clean it looked staged, not a single stray hair anywhere.

Then I noticed the shower temperature. It was set five degrees lower than her usual 43°C.

Men like cooler showers. Women like them hotter…

At that moment, I knew, Ruby Lynch had cheated on me.

Chapter 1

"Someone's been here, hasn't they?"

I broke from her kiss and turned my head to stare at the showerhead, my voice steady.

Ruby Lynch's eyes darted to where I was looking, and she turned pale.

"It's... Janice. She's staying with me for a few days. You know, with you gone, I get scared in this big house all alone."

My heart sank.

Janice was Ruby's bestie and the secretary to the president at the company I work with.

I had just seen her yesterday in the city.

Ruby was lying to me.

"Go ahead and shower. I'll start on dinner," I said, nudging her away, keeping my tone even.

She nibbled her lip, her eyes brimming with tears.

"Honey... have you stopped loving me?"

I held back a scoff.

'Ruby, who's stopped loving who?' I wondered.

"Okay, okay, I get it. You're tired. I'll shower now."

She quickly hid her hurt, gave me a hard kiss on the cheek.

However, as she looked down, I caught sight of the telltale red marks under her collar.

She was scared, alright.

I turned away and scrubbed at the lipstick stain she had left.

Seven years of marriage, and people said Ruby was lucky to land me, like she had saved the galaxy in a past life.

They did not know that I, the big-shot CEO, had passed up three promotions to stay close to her, because she was afraid of being too far apart, of losing her sense of security.

I had offered to bring her along, but she always said her career was just taking off, not wanting to be a kept woman.

At this point, it was clear she just could not leave her lover.

The shower started, and right on cue, her startled yelp echoed through the house.

"Hey! You're back and showered, but you left me to fend for myself with the water temperature!" she called out.

"I haven't showered yet," I said, my voice cool and detached. Her outline was a blur against the glass door, frozen for a split second.

"Oh, never mind, it's probably just the water heater acting up."

Just then, her phone outside the bathroom blared with a shrill ringtone. The screen flashed [Big Shot].

I reached for the phone, about to answer.

However, she burst through the door, snatched the phone with frantic hands, and cut the call.

Wrapped in a towel, she looked almost comical to me.

She glanced at me, her voice laced with feigned innocence, "Honey, there's some stuff at work, waiting on a call, got a little jumpy...

"Shoot, just a telemarketer... All that worry for nothing. I'll get back to my shower. Can't wait to dig into the dinner you've whipped up!"

She rattled off and spun around, locking herself in the bathroom.

I took my time, pulling out her tablet and unlocking it with the fingerprint I had saved. The next moment, her sordid texts with [Big Shot] filled the screen.

[Stop it. I told you–my husband's home.]

[What's the big deal? You said it was a rush doing it on your bed, right?]

[Ugh... You're such a pest, you've got me all flustered…]

Blood boiled in my veins, my finger pressing the record button until it blanched.

However, I just watched as the messages kept coming...

'Not yet, this isn't enough to bring them down.' I thought.

Their talk got dirtier by the message.

I quietly recorded it all on my phone.

Then I checked the guy's social media.

Well, well, someone I know.

If my memory served me right, the guy's name was Seth Carter.

He was Ruby's supervisor, the one who handled all the dealings with our company.

I was scrolling through their old messages when I stumbled upon the day everything between them went south.

That was three months ago.

The sound of the bathroom door snapped me back to the present.

I quickly shut off the tablet and put it back where it belonged.

Ruby emerged, her cheeks rosy and her eyes darting nervously, like she was on the verge of saying something but could not quite get it out.

"Go get changed. I'll whip up something warm for you to eat," I told her.

She nodded and hurried off to the bedroom, while I made my way to the kitchen.

In that brief moment we crossed paths, I could not help but smile.

'Enjoy your last supper, Ruby,' I mused silently.

Chapter 2

I was always the type to hold a grudge.

Bright and early the next day, I cooked up some excuse to get Seth over to my office.

The proposal I slammed down in front of him was flawless, but I tore into him anyway, nitpicking in front of the colleague he had brought along.

When he slunk out with a strained smile, I could see the anger simmering in his eyes.

I pulled out my phone and started the GPS tracker.

The night before, while Ruby was out on the balcony deep in conversation with Seth, I had slipped a tracker into her purse, tucked inside her favorite tube of lipstick.

As expected, her location started to move, first away from the office, then stopping at the Horton Hotel downtown.

What irony–that was where we had our wedding.

That wedding day snapshot remained my wallpaper all this time.

Seven years ago, she was in white, clinging to my arm, tears of joy streaming down her face.

Who would have guessed that seven years later, she would be at that same hotel for a secret rendezvous with another man?

Of course, I was not in any hurry.

I needed solid proof of their little affair, and a simple scandalous snapshot would not be enough to ruin them completely.

In that high-society whirl, where scandal was as common as breathing, bedding someone else's spouse could bizarrely earn someone a standing ovation.

However, Ruby, it seemed, had a lapse in memory. She had forgotten that the hotel she had chosen for her wedding was once mine.

I rang up the hotel manager.

"Upgrade Ruby's room," I instructed, "to the presidential suite."

No big deal, except that the suite had a little something extra, a high-definition camera I had had installed.

The manager called back promptly.

"Mr. Scott, we've upgraded her as requested, citing her past wedding here as a loyal customer," he reported.

"Ms. Lynch was thrilled, and the word 'wedding' didn't even make her flinch."

It seemed I had overestimated Ruby. She clearly felt not an ounce of guilt about cheating.

Well, that was fine. At least I was completely free of any emotional burden.

Timing was everything. I had my secretary, incidentally, Ruby's distant cousin, reschedule my day to Horton Hotel.

As I left, my gaze flicked past him, busy on the phone. Hook, line, and sinker.

I knew he had been pocketing Seth's bribes for a while, playing the family card. I had let it slide, thinking it was just Seth's way of networking.

It turned out that he was their inside man.

'An exposed spy is just another tool,' I mused.

I strolled to the hotel, unhurried. Just before the entrance, Ruby and Seth made a brief, furtive appearance around the corner.

Perfect timing.

I walked in, feigning ignorance, and settled into a chair in the lobby's lounge area.

A couple of minutes had passed when Ruby, cool as a cucumber, strolled up to the hotel's grand entrance.

Her eyes widened in mock surprise the moment she spotted me, and she hurried over with that overly sweet voice of hers. "Whoa, hubby, what brings you here?

"That Janice–she's got no conscience, telling me to come snap some pictures for her and then she's a no-show. Left me high and dry."

While she complained, Ruby grabbed my hand and swung it, pouting with a look of pure hurt on her face.

However, the tiny beads of sweat on her forehead gave away her anxiety.

The odd smell coming off her was enough to make my stomach flip.

I shook off her grip and faced her squarely.

Chapter 3

"Mr. Carter, fancy meeting you here," I said, my attention shifting past Ruby to Seth, who was trying to slip out unnoticed.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the sweat on her brow gather and slide down in a neat streak.

I let out a soft laugh, gave a nonchalant shrug, and said with a hint of scorn, "Here I was thinking you'd be busy revising the bid for that Cascade City deal. Looks like your company isn't exactly chomping at the bit..."

Seth stepped forward, head down, a glint of resentment fleeting across his eyes.

"Mr. Scott, Mrs. Scott, good to see you. I was just wrapping up an impromptu meeting here and was about to head back to work on that bid, just like you wanted."

Ruby, quick to pick up on Seth's discomfort, latched onto my arm and said in a sugary tone, "Come on, love. Mr. Carter is my supervisor, and he's always looked out for me at work. Let's not give him a hard time, okay?

"Mr. Carter, you really should've come to me knowing my husband's company is eyeing the Cascade City project. I could've talked to him. He'd do anything for me, and I bet he'd have handed the project right over to us."

I could not help but smirk on the inside, though my face stayed cool as ice.

'Ruby, dear Ruby. After everything, do you really think I'd just hand over a cash cow to your little side piece?' I mused.

"Mr. Carter, I would've been more understanding if I'd known you were looking after my wife so well.

"However, there's a snag with the bid today, Mr. Carter. Why don't you give it another once-over, and we'll touch base about what's next?"

Seth, seeing I was softening, could not thank me enough before he scurried off.

His smug, mocking face was plastered all over the hotel's glass doors as he left.

"Don't worry, your grin won't last long," I assured myself.

I peeled Ruby off me and, taking her hand, we made our way into the hotel.

"Honey? What's going on?" she murmured, her eyes downcast, the picture of faux innocence.

I did not bother with an answer, just led her into the elevator and hit a button without looking.

The doors slid shut, and she was all over me, eyes batting and lips pouting.

However, her breath... It reeked of something foul.

Trapped in that tight space, the stench was unmistakable, and Ruby clammed up, her eyes darting around until they landed on the button I had pressed.

It was the floor of her recent rendezvous with Seth.

A fresh sheen of sweat dotted her forehead, and she kept her mouth clamped shut, the bad taste betraying her.

"What are you up to, honey..." she started to say, her voice trembling.

She did not get to finish. The elevator dinged, and we were there.

I marched her down the hall to the presidential suite I had prepared.

With each step, her resistance grew stiffer, and by the time we reached the door, she was shaking like a leaf.

I flicked out a key card, swiped us in, and flung Ruby into the room.

Chapter 4

"Honey... When did you get this place, and why is it such a mess? Maybe we should call someone to clean up..."

Ruby stumbled back from my push, but she braced herself and tried to act clueless.

I had to stop myself from laughing at her act.

Ignoring her question, I headed straight for the television, flicked it on, and quickly found what I was looking for.

The sounds that filled the room were intimate and cringeworthy.

Ruby, the voice behind those sounds, stood frozen in shock.

"Ahhh!"

She shrieked and scrambled toward the TV, desperately trying to shut it off, to silence the mortifying noise.

When she realized it was no use, she threw her arms out, shielding the screen with her body.

Fear was written all over her face, her voice shaking uncontrollably.

"Honey... Let me explain..."

I grabbed a chair and sat down with a gesture toward the television. "Do we really need an explanation?"

"I..." Ruby's voice faltered, and then tears streamed down her face. "I'm sorry... I messed up, honey...

"Please, just forgive me this once, will you? I swear, it was only this one time!"

I watched her well-rehearsed plea, feeling a sharp sting in my heart.

I had indulged her too much, and she still thought I would forgive her.

"Fine," I said calmly, my expression unreadable, "but from now on, you do as I say."

"I will! I'll do anything you say!" Ruby, relieved, moved closer, her voice urgent.

Just as her hand was about to touch mine, I stood up and stepped aside.

I towered over her, my gaze emotionless. "Now, call Seth. Tell him to come back. And don't let on that I'm here."

Ruby's eyes shot up to mine, filled with utter disbelief.

"Right now," I commanded, my patience with her worn thin. "You'll know what to do later."

Ruby, in a panic, wiped her tears and fumbled for her phone with shaking hands.

As soon as she answered the call, her voice was calm, betraying no sign of the turmoil she had just shown.

She was as convincing as she had ever been in her performances for me.

I realized then that I had never truly known the woman who had been at my side for seven years, with her remarkable talent for deception.

I tapped my phone screen lightly, and within moments, I had set my plan in motion.

Soon, there was a knock at the suite door. Ruby's eyes, filled with questions, turned to me. I nodded for her to answer it.

Behind me, the door opened, and Seth's eager voice mingled with Ruby's soft cries.

"Did that good-for-nothing husband of yours take off? Couldn't wait, could you..."

He froze when he saw me, his embrace around Ruby halting, his taunt cut short.

However, then, he shrugged off the meekness he always showed me and laughed with brazen confidence.

"Never would've pegged you for this, Mr. Scott. A man of your reputation...

"I just don't get you rich folks. Ruby says you're a bore in bed. So this is what gets you going?"

Seth edged closer, his smirk twisted with a sense of triumph.

I balled my fist and let it fly into his face.

"What are you doing?!" Ruby shrieked, lunging for Seth as he hit the floor.

He shoved her off with a snarl, jumped up, and aimed a kick at me.

I did not try to escape, just sidestepped enough to avoid the worst and let myself drop.

Ruby's gaze held a flicker of remorse as she looked at me.

However, Seth was relentless. He yanked her to the bed, tossing her down as he started to undress, all the while giving me a look of sheer disdain.

"You're nothing but trash, acting all high and mighty. You deserve nothing more than to lie there and watch your wife with another man!"

He was ruthlessly ripping at Ruby's clothes, while she seemed torn between resisting and giving in.

In the next instant, the suite's electronic lock clicked open.

I could not help but smirk, a sly grin spreading across my face.