The Cheater

"But this is my last money," Regina said irritably. "If you use this, what will happen next month? Your mother and siblings will be begging me for this and that, and then you'll tell me to shut their mouths with my money!"

"Gosh, Regina!" Asher snapped sharply. "Why is your temper so bad? Are you really going to start counting and arguing with me about money? Again?"

"Oh, you said I count my money?" Regina said sharply. "Of course I have to count it! It's my money. I worked hard to earn it. Now, I can't even use it to buy an Americano at the cafe because I have to pay for your mom's spa bill, Olivia's pink bag, and Janus's game point refill! Does that make sense?"

"My mother almost died giving birth to me! She raised me, spoiled me, so it's only natural that I do everything for her now. You don't have a mother, so you don't know what it feels like," Asher snapped mockingly.

Regina's face flushed red.  She stood up and pushed Asher so hard that he stumbled backward.

"You bastard!" Regina cursed angrily. "You don't even want to know how much I had to pay to keep your troublemaking brother out of jail! I should have just let the police take him!"

Asher smacked his lips in annoyance and grabbed Regina's hand, gripping it so tightly that she winced from the pain.

"Don't ever talk bad about my family! You work and earn your own living. That's why I agreed to marry you," Asher said. "Living in this house, being able to manage everything as a respectable wife, that alone should be enough to make you grateful!"

"A wife? You've never even introduced me to your friends, or taken me to office or family events. You've never even posted about me or us on your social media, even though you're quite active and always posting about the cheesy things you do with your friends and family!" Regina snapped hoarsely. "Wife my ass!"

Asher raised his hand, and without thinking, Regina thrust it at his cheek with a cold expression.

"And now you're starting to slap on me?" Regina challenged. "Just slap me. I'll take a picture and go to the police with proof that you abused me. Go ahead and slap me!"

Asher snorted angrily, then slapped Regina's hand away angrily.

"You've become annoying just because you're the only one working now," Asher hissed. "Do you think what you give us is worth what you get from us?"

Regina felt her heart being squeezed by an invisible hand. So now Asher was using the word "us" to refer to himself and his family, making Regina an outsider.

"Then I'll quit my job too," Regina said calmly. "Besides, I've been wanting to quit for a long time, because I want to focus on my pregnancy program."

Asher's face turned angry.  "Don't you dare do that! Who will pay for all the family's needs if you quit your job too? Pregnancy programs? Will they be of any use? Who will pay for the exorbitant costs? You should realize, if only you were normal, you could definitely get pregnant without any programs!"

This time, Regina couldn't hold back her tears. She let her cheeks wet and sat down in front of the dressing table, ignoring Asher.

Asher held Regina's shoulders from behind and stared at her through the mirror.

"Honey, I'm sorry if I was too harsh," Asher said softly, stroking Regina's shoulder. "But, my friend asked anyone who wants to join her business to deposit the capital immediately. I don't have much left after resigning from the office, so I need your savings. I'll replace it once the business is up and running and I get my share of the profits."

"What about me? I have needs too!" Regina asked sharply.

Asher stroked Regina's necklace. "You still have some jewelry you can sell, right?"

Regina slapped Asher's hand away and threw her ATM card on the edge of the table. She then continued to put on her makeup after wiping away her tears.

Asher smiled and took the ATM card, kissed the top of Regina's head, and quickly left the room. He didn't even say thank you.

Regina threw her blush brush at the door after Asher left. Things were getting more and more unbearable.

"Regina, why are your eyes so puffy?" Sonya asked when she saw Regina enter the staff room. "Did you not get enough sleep or have you been crying too much?"

Regina sighed. Sonya had been her best friend since high school and was now her coworker at The Violet Orchid Hotel.

"I think I'm going to quit my job, Sonya," Regina said quietly.

"What?" Sonya said, shocked. "Stop talking nonsense, Regina! What are you going to do if you're not working? And didn't you say your husband hasn't found a new job yet?"

"Hmm," Regina muttered. "And I don't think he's really interested in looking for a new job. Lately, he's been talking about business with his friends. I don't know which ones."

"In fact, an accountant like your husband, I'm sure he'll easily find a job at any company he wants," Sonya said with a sneer.

Before she could answer, Regina's phone rang with a text message. Regina picked it up and read the message.

"Regina, transfer the money immediately to pay for Janus's field trip next month. The school has already requested the payment, and Janus won't go to school unless it's paid!"

Regina bit her lip in exasperation. Sonya raised an eyebrow without asking any questions, and Regina flatly showed Magie the message.

"Gosh!" Sonya growled. "That old bitch! Do they think you're an ATM machine?"

Regina just shrugged and put her phone in her bag. She wasn't going to send the money Magie asked for, and she didn't care what her mother-in-law would say.

"Regina, let's go to dinner first," Sonya said, after finishing her work. "I just got news from home. My sister gave birth to a baby girl two hours ago!"  I'm an auntie!"

"Wow, congratulations," Regina said happily. "That means I get to choose the most expensive restaurant in town."

"Go ahead," Sonya said with a laugh. "I'll pay for whatever you eat!"

Sonya's favorite restaurant was located a bit out of town and served excellent seafood. It wasn't the weekend, but when they arrived, it was bustling.

The restaurant manager, who was actually Sonya's cousin, found a place for her on the second floor, in an open area near a beautiful fish pond.

The restaurant had several gazebos for customers to eat in, which had a pleasant natural feel.

"I need to go to the bathroom for a minute," Regina said. "You can order first. I'll eat whatever."

After leaving the bathroom, Regina was about to enter the gazebo she and Sonya shared when her eyes accidentally caught sight of another gazebo and she froze.

Sonya grabbed Regina's hand. "Hey, why are you still standing outside?"  Come on in, the food will be served soon."

"Just a moment," Regina said. "My mother-in-law and sisters-in-law are in the gazebo.  I'll go greet them."

Regina stepped toward the gazebo, but then Sonya pulled her hand back.

"What?" Regina asked.

"Isn't that your husband?" Sonya pointed toward the elevator, whose doors had just opened.

Regina followed Sonya's finger and was stunned.

Asher, wearing a clearly new and expensive suit, slicked-back hair, and a beaming face, was holding the waist of a glamorous woman in a beautiful evening gown and dazzling jewelry.

They walked close together toward the gazebo where Asher's family was sitting. Upon seeing them, Magie and Asher's two younger sisters immediately stood up and greeted them affectionately, as if they were already very close.

Regina felt her heart skip a beat. In all her time married to Asher, Magie had never smiled so brightly or given her such a tender look.

"Oh my God, Regina," Sonya said angrily. "Look at the way your bastard husband kissed that woman. Gross!"