My Cheating Husband

LILITH POV

FLASHBACK: THREE YEARS AGO

I stepped out of the cab and walked briskly toward my apartment building, my heels clicking against the pavement. I still couldn’t believe I had grabbed the wrong purse. I’d arrived at the hotel yesterday morning, but I hadn't realized my mistake until it was almost too late. My flight was in thirty minutes, forcing me to rush back home to grab it.

Reaching the front door, I turned the handle. It opened with a soft creak. Thankfully, my boyfriend, Daniel, was still at home. A smile touched my lips as I thought about how surprised he’d be to see me.

Closing the door quietly behind me, I made my way down the hall. But as I passed Daniel’s bedroom, the sound of soft giggles filtered through the wood. Did Daniel bring someone home? A colleague, maybe? I paused, pressing my ear closer to the door.

"Really, babe? I thought you were three weeks due, not a full month," Daniel’s voice echoed from inside, followed by a sudden burst of laughter.

"Babe, I’m a month due," a woman's voice chimed back playfully. "Why wouldn't my baby’s father remember that?"

My heart jolted, my whole body freezing on the spot. My fingers tightened over the brass doorknob as an icy chill ran straight down my spine.

Daniel? Baby’s father? And that voice, it sounded unmistakably like Anna, my best friend. A wave of confusion crashed over me, making my chest tighten and my pulse skyrocket.

I shoved the door open.

The sight inside turned me to stone. Anna was lounging across Daniel’s bed, completely naked. Daniel was beside her, equally bare, his arms wrapped around her waist.

My mouth fell open. I stumbled back, my heels skidding against the floorboards as my entire frame shook with violent disbelief. "What..." I gasped, my hand slipping from the door handle. "What the fuck is going on here?"

I stepped into the room, my hands curling into tight fists. My heart hammered wildly against my ribs as I stared at my best friend cuddling my boyfriend in our bed.

Anna sat up slowly, clutching the sheet to her chest. "Lilith... it’s not what you think."

"Pardon?" I snapped, turning to her, my voice trembling with rising fury. "Not what I think?"

I looked at Daniel, who remained seated calmly on the mattress. He didn't even try to cover himself. I waited for him to offer an explanation, to say something, anything, but he kept his mouth shut.

"No, no..." I whispered, shaking my head as tears stung the corners of my eyes. A tight knot formed in my throat, and I pressed a shaking hand against my ribs. "Don't tell me... don't tell me that baby is yours."

Our eyes met briefly before he looked away, staring off at the opposite wall.

"Lilith," Daniel finally said, breaking the suffocating silence. He shifted uncomfortably on the bed, avoiding my gaze. "Let's be real. We both know our relationship wasn't going to last."

"Our relationship?" my voice cracked as I fought to hold back a sob. I wrapped my arms around myself to stop my trembling. "Is that what you call what we had? Just a mistake?"

"Let's be frank with each other," he replied coldly, rubbing the back of his neck. "I didn't want to break your heart. I planned on telling you eventually, but since you found out today, it's better this way."

"You thought it was better to go behind my back and impregnate my best friend?!" I shrieked, anger erupting through the pain. "Are you fucking serious right now?!"

"Lilith, please just calm down," Anna interjected softly, reaching a hand out toward me.

"Shut the fuck up!" I snarled, rounding on her. "I don't want to hear a single word out of your mouth, you backstabbing bitch!"

"Enough!" Daniel suddenly roared, swinging his legs over the edge of the bed. "Don't you dare call her a bitch! You're the real bitch here, going around to clubs, dancing for rich men, and sucking their dicks for cash!"

My jaw dropped. "Pardon me for trying to pay our rent while you sat your lazy ass on the couch all day! You're nothing but a worthless loser!"

"I'm sorry, Lilith," Daniel scoffed, brushing his messy hair back. "But I can't stay in a relationship with a whore. I should have ended this a long time ago."

My jaw clenched tight as I wiped away the tears spilling down my cheeks. "How long?" I demanded, my chest heaving. "How long has this been going on? When did she get pregnant?"

"A year, maybe," Daniel answered with a dismissive shrug, his face entirely blank. "Anna is seven months along."

His cold indifference tore through me deeper than the lie itself. I turned to Anna, my arms trembling at my sides. "I trusted you both. You didn't just stab me in the back... you told me you were traveling for work! For seven months, my best friend was carrying my boyfriend's child, and you both played me for a fool!"

Tears blurred my vision into a haze. I wiped my face frantically, but the tears kept coming, burning my skin. "What did I ever do to deserve this?" I whispered, taking a shaky step back. My knees buckled slightly, forcing me to catch myself against the doorframe.

I turned on my heel and walked toward the stairs.

"Lilith!" Anna's voice called out from behind me.

I paused at the top of the staircase and turned around. My eyes burned, my lungs fighting for air. Anna was standing at the edge of the hallway, rubbing her heavily swollen stomach with one hand while holding her lower back with the other.

"You shouldn't have said that, Lilith," Anna whimpered, tears spilling over her lashes as she clasped her hands together.

"Said what?" I snapped, staring at her in disgust. "You're the one who ruined everything!"

"You shouldn't have called Daniel a loser!" she suddenly spat back, a flash of ugly malice crossing her face as her posture shifted.

"I..” I started, taken aback by her sudden change in tone.

Before I could finish, Anna’s eyes locked onto mine, and a wild look came over her face. "Help! Daniel, help me! She's trying to kill me!" she screamed at the top of her lungs.

She lunged forward, grabbing my wrists with surprising strength and forcing my hand against her shoulder, using my own momentum to yank herself violently backward.

"What are you doing?!" I shrieked, frantically trying to wrench my hands free from her grip. "Let go of me!"

"Daniel! Help!" Anna shrieked again.

She abruptly released my wrists, threw her hands into the air, and allowed her body to tumble backward right off the top step.

"Anna!" Daniel screamed, bursting out of the bedroom just as her body pitched down the staircase.

I froze as I watched her bounce down the hard steps, her body coming to a sickening halt at the bottom landing. A dark trail of blood immediately began pooling beneath her head.

"Anna!" I screamed, breaking out of my paralysis and racing down after Daniel.

"Anna! Wake up! Look at me!" Daniel pleaded, dropping to his knees beside her and tapping her pale cheeks with trembling hands. She remained completely motionless.

I reached out to touch her arm, but before my fingers could make contact, a violent force cracked across my face.

My head snapped sharply to the side, and I stumbled back into the drywall, clutching my burning cheek. I stared at Daniel in absolute shock, tears stinging my eyes.

"You did this!" Daniel roared, rising to his feet, his chest heaving as he pointed a trembling, rage-filled finger at my face. "You pushed her!"

"I didn't touch her!" I sobbed, shaking my head wildly as I cupped my aching jaw. "She pulled me! She fell on purpose!"

"Don't you dare lie to me! I'm going to ruin you for this!" he growled, pulling his phone from his pocket.

He dialed three numbers, barking our address into the receiver while claiming his pregnant fiancé had just been brutally assaulted. I stood frozen in place, terrified. I thought he was calling for an ambulance, but within minutes, flashing red-and-blue lights illuminated the front windows.

Daniel dragged Anna out to the paramedics, pointing at me as the police slammed through the front door. I tried to explain what happened, but no one listened. They shoved me against the wall, snapped handcuffs over my wrists, and hauled me out to the squad car while I wept helplessly.

********

Two days passed inside the cold, damp holding cell.

I had been allowed a single phone call, which I used to contact my boss at the lounge. I explained the situation through broken sobs, but forty-eight hours had passed without a word. I sat curled up in the corner on the hard bench, wrapping my arms tight around my knees. My eyes were swollen shut, and every muscle in my body ached from exhaustion.

"I can't believe it..." I whispered into the silence, a fresh tear trailing down my cheek. "The man I was going to spend my life with... my best friend... everything taken away."

"You look entirely too broken for someone with your potential," a smooth, deep voice echoed from the corridor.

My head snapped up, standing on the other side of the iron bars was a tall man clad in a tailored dark suit. He had sharp, dark hair and piercing blue eyes that seemed to look straight through me. My breath hitched as I recognized his face. It was Morello, one of the most powerful and dangerous syndicate leaders overseeing the city's nightlife district.

I swallowed hard, my hands gripping the cold metal bars. "My boyfriend... and my best friend... they framed me," I rasped, my voice raw from crying. "They took everything."

"I have the power to clear your charges and walk you out of here today," Morello stated calmly, his dark eyes fixed on mine.

I narrowed my eyes, searching his unreadable face. "What's the catch?"

"Simple. You agree to take over and manage my flagship club," he replied, tilting his head slightly.

I let out a harsh, disbelieving breath. "That's too easy. I know who you are, Morello. There are always conditions."

A faint, sharp smirk touched the corner of his lips. "Intelligent. Your boss spoke very highly of you when she came to me for help. She practically begged me to intervene. I've had my eye on your performance for a while now, so I decided to see you in person. So, Lilith... will you take my offer and manage my club, or will you rot in this cell for a crime you didn't commit?"

I stared at him, my mind racing as I weighed the trap before me. I knew stepping into his world meant signing away my freedom in a completely different way. But as I looked at the cold concrete walls around me, I knew I had no other choice. I wasn't going to spend the rest of my life behind bars for Anna and Daniel's twisted game.

Slowly, I stood up, walked to the edge of the cell, and looked Morello dead in the eye.

"I agree," I whispered, the weight of the promise settling heavily in my chest. "I'll manage your club."