Chapter 2

Hunter got to her first, playing the victim. He claimed I had blown a minor mistake out of proportion and slapped him across the face, holding a hand over his slightly red cheek.

He had never acted like this before. Chloe sighed deeply. "Why do you always have to make things difficult for him? Assault is a crime, Logan. You're lucky Hunter is kind enough not to call the police."

"..."

I admitted I had lost my temper, but the potential consequences were life-threatening.

The doctor had warned us strictly to handle Arthur's meds with extreme caution, though thankfully, Arthur was out of immediate danger for now.

Once the test results confirmed he was fine, Chloe grew even angrier. She demanded I apologize to Hunter.

"You're embarrassing me. Logan, apologize to him right now."

"You want me to apologize? Chloe, have you completely lost your mind?"

Hunter was the one who screwed up and neglected her father, yet Chloe acted completely blind to it. The young man lowered his head, speaking in a soft, pitiful tone.

"It's fine, Chloe. Logan was just stressed. It was my own carelessness. I'll be more careful next time. Please don't fire me, Chloe... I really need this money to pay rent."

His eyes were rimmed with red, and with his clean-cut, youthful looks, he played the wounded puppy perfectly.

He had come from some impoverished small town in the middle of nowhere. Chloe used to look down on him, calling him a tacky hillbilly with a cheap vibe. But somehow, things had completely flipped.

Now, she not only defended him, but she also couldn't seem to get enough of his company.

"It's not your fault," Chloe said, shooting me a cold glare. "Some people are just too petty to act like real men."

"That is your biological father! If he had a toxic reaction to those pills—"

"Isn't he perfectly fine?" Chloe crossed her arms. "You're just using Dad as an excuse to bully Hunter. If you have an issue with me, say it to my face. At least then I’d respect you as a man."

My chest tightened with utter disgust. Without another word, I turned and walked straight out of the hospital.

Chloe stayed behind that night. She never came home.

Late that night, I saw Hunter update his SnapChat story with a new photo.

It was a luxury watch worth tens of thousands of dollars, resting against a woman's slender hand—Chloe's hand.

His caption read: Best boss in the world. Chloe bought me a gift the second she knew I was treated unfairly. The price tag matches the size of her heart.

Beneath the post, Chloe had commented with a red heart emoji: As long as you love it.

I turned off my phone, refusing to look at any more of this trash. Our company had entered a hectic phase, and I was constantly traveling to close partnership deals.

On paper, Chloe was the public face and CEO of our firm. That was something she had begged me for when we first got married. She wanted to be seen as an independent, powerful woman. Back then, I loved her to death, so I indulged her every whim.

The strategic planning, funding, and real operations were all managed by me. Chloe was merely a figurehead. As for me being a "kept man"? It was laughable.

My family was exceptionally wealthy. In the beginning, my parents strongly opposed me marrying Chloe, feeling our backgrounds were worlds apart. I was the one who fought for her, even causing a massive rift with my family.

I had moved out on my own for a long time just to get my parents' reluctant blessing. Chloe and I had met during an overnight hike in the mountains.

The temperature had plummeted near the summit, and she was underdressed and suffering from mild hypothermia. I carried her all the way down the mountain on my back. She was so touched she cried, and that was how we bonded. We went hiking together often, and slowly, we fell in love.

I loved her deeply and trusted her with everything. From the start, I never suspected anything inappropriate between her and Hunter.

Yet she constantly turned the tables, accusing me of being insecure. Every time I brought up firing Hunter, she blew up in irrational anger!

Chloe didn't come home that night. Early the next morning, I boarded a flight for a business trip, so I didn't bother asking.

Midway through my trip, my phone rang. It was Arthur.

He was frantically tapping on the screen, mumbling broken words into the mic. I panicked. "Arthur, what's wrong? Are you okay?"

All I heard was his muffled weeping. Panicking, I texted Chloe, but got no reply. Using my work phone, I dialed Hunter’s number.

The line picked up. Through the receiver, I heard running water, followed by Chloe’s sweet, breathy voice:

"Babe, I forgot to grab a towel. Can you hand me one?"

They hadn't gone home last night. They were together right now, in the same hotel room.

A suffocating wave of humiliation washed over me.

Chloe was cheating on me.