Everything’s Better Without You

I sat on the couch in a daze until 7:30 pm when the door lock turned. Eli's mother, Amy Reeves, was back after a night of playing poker.As soon as she stepped in, she raised her voice in anger. "What's wrong with my son sleeping with another woman? In fact, it's my money that he's spending! If you've got the guts, yell at me instead. What's the point of blaming Eli?"She grabbed my hair harshly, adding, "You can't even satisfy your husband. What kind of woman are you?"I no longer felt pain. I had done nothing wrong, yet I didn't dare fight back. It had been three years since I got pregnant. With no job or income of my own, I was completely stripped of the right to speak.Six months after giving birth to our daughter, Hazel Daugherty, Eli wanted to sleep with me. The pain of childbirth was still fresh in my mind, so I refused. Despite this, he pestered me relentlessly, and eventually, I gave in.Halfway through, he secretly removed the contraceptive for his own pleasure. When I f

As always, I was the one left to tidy up the table after dinner. I hadn't even finished washing the dishes when I heard Hazel crying. I dropped everything and rushed to the living room, only to find her sitting in a puddle of water with her clothes and pants soaked, crying for her father.Beatrix sat cross-legged on the couch, nestled in Eli's arm. She was flirting with him.Rage surged through me. I ran over, scooped Hazel into my arms, and roared, "Who did this?"Eli lazily pinched Beatrix's waist and looked at me with irritation. "Hazel is so clumsy. She couldn't even hold a cup of water properly for Bixie. It's just a little fall. Kids don't even feel pain. Just go change her clothes. Why are you yelling?""You two will pay for this!"Leaving those words behind, I carried Hazel to the bedroom to change. She didn't understand that she had been carrying hot water. Her whole hand was bright red from the burn. From the moment I picked her up until now, she hadn't made a sound

Many local fans visited after hearing about my restaurant, and they all left with great compliments. By the time we closed for the night, it was already past 10:00 pm.As the restaurant's reputation grew, more and more customers came. I hired two chefs and taught them my cooking methods. Everything was runnning smoothly.…"Welcome!"I was calculating the day's earnings when I heard the door chime. I quickly smiled and looked up."Oh, it's you, Keri. This is impressive. I heard that the food here is pretty good. Have you become a chef now?"Eli walked in while supporting Beatrix, whose hands rested on her belly. She looked smug.As someone who had been through it, I immediately understood what it meant. She was pregnant.I raised an eyebrow at them and said, "Welcome. Billy, get them a seat, and make sure to take good care of them."Hearing the sarcasm in my voice, Billy quickly realized that the people before me were my shameless ex-husband and his mistress. With a bright smi

Eli's eldest aunt stepped forward and pulled Amy aside. She said, "Come on, Amy. What man in this world doesn't cheat? Just turn a blind eye, and it'll pass."The words sounded all too familiar. Amy wanted to argue, but Eli's second aunt spoke first. "It's normal for men to have their fun outside. You should be grateful as long as he doesn't bring back any disease!"I pushed through the crowd, mimicking their tone as I lectured, "Amy, back when Eli was fooling around with other women, it was your money that funded him, wasn't it? "It must be because you couldn't satisfy your husband, so he had to sleep with Silvia instead. You really should learn from me. I even let Eli bring Bix home! You should take after me."She raised a trembling hand and pointed at me. "You…"I smiled sweetly at her and asked, "Amy, don't you agree?" She couldn't hold it in any longer and collapsed straight backward."Mom!" Eli's panicked voice rang out as chaos erupted.See? One would never know how much

Other than this house, Eli had no savings. Now that half of it belonged to me, the only option was to auction it off and give me my share.Afraid that Beatrix would take the money and leave before he got out of prison, he handed everything over to his father. Andrew happily took the money, sent Amy to a cheap nursing home, divorced her, and ran off with Silvia.Beatrix, the newlywed wife, didn't get a single cent.The next day, I was swamped with work at the restaurant. Beatrix, looking utterly exhausted, stumbled in. Her eyes were bloodshot, her hair a mess, and her once-polished nails chipped beyond recognition.The moment she entered, she dropped to her knees with a thud, with tears streaming down her face.She sobbed, "Keri, I asked around. This restaurant is yours. I just married Eli, and you personally sent him to jail. Please, have mercy on me. The money to organize our wedding reception and the wedding gifts—it was all borrowed from relatives."I'm still pregnant with his