Chapter 4

Melissa's breath hitched. She held it, straining to hear how Hayden would respond.

A second later, a low laugh came from the man inside. "Of course, she will. She's always done whatever I asked."

A bitter smile tugged at Melissa's lips. She was his wife. Even in a secret marriage, she shouldn't have been reduced to a lapdog.

Yet he didn't defend her for a second. He simply went along with their mockery.

After taking a deep breath, Melissa pushed the door open and stepped inside. Lydia was nestled close to Hayden's side.

The lively atmosphere vanished instantly. One of the guys who knew about them chuckled awkwardly to cut the tension. "Hey, Melissa's here too. Take a seat!"

These were Hayden's close friends, but none of them thought she was good enough for him. None of them ever recognized her as his wife.

Melissa handed the medicine to Hayden. "Here's your medicine."

She turned to leave right after, but Hayden's brows knitted together.

Lydia reached out and grabbed her wrist. "Melissa, thank you for bringing my medicine. It was all Hayden's idea. I told him I didn't need it, but he was so worried he made you run all the way over here."

Hearing the smug triumph in Lydia's voice, Melissa felt a bitter ache rise inside her.

So, Hayden had made her fetch the medicine for Lydia, not himself.

Lydia continued, "Since you're here, why don't you stay and have fun with us?"

As Hayden stared at Melissa's expressionless face, a sudden spike of irritation flared inside him.

His tone turned chilly. "Sit down for a few rounds. Everyone here knows you. There's no need to pretend to be so above it all."

Melissa went pale. So, in his eyes, she was just pretending to be above it all.

Yet he was the one who had kept their marriage hidden for three full years, never taking her to a single party or gathering.

She had never been allowed into his circle, nor had she ever been introduced to his friends.

Melissa sat down in the furthest corner from Hayden.

The game began. With Hayden guiding her every move, Lydia didn't lose a single hand.

Melissa, having never played before, had no idea what she was doing and lost several rounds in a row.

Lydia fluttered her lashes and giggled. "Looks like you lost, Melissa. Time for a penalty!"

The rest of the room chimed in with jeers. "Yeah, losers gotta take the punishment!"

Lydia offered generously, "Let's go easy on Melissa. Just down these ten shots, and we call it even."

Melissa's face was drained of color. She had just had an abortion a few days ago, and her doctor had explicitly warned her against having alcohol.

Hayden frowned at the suggestion. He remembered that Melissa couldn't hold her liquor.

But just as he opened his mouth to speak, Lydia chimed in with an innocent pout, "Unless Melissa can't handle a simple game?"

Melissa took a deep breath and looked straight at Hayden. He just sat there, silently watching her with a frown.

She let out a bitter laugh. What was she even expecting?

"I'll drink."

Hayden's face darkened instantly. Why didn't she ask him for help? If she had just opened her mouth, he would have stepped in for her.

The first gulp choked her, bringing tears to her eyes. Shot after shot went down, leaving her face paler by the second.

By the time she drained the tenth glass, she instinctively clutched her stomach. Her body was trembling from the agonizing pain.

"I'm done. Enjoy the rest of your night. I'm leaving."

Hayden instinctively moved to hold her back, but Lydia immediately wrapped her arms around his.

"Hayden, if Melissa doesn't want to play, let her go home and rest. Why don't we keep going?"

Hayden froze mid-step. Watching Melissa's figure disappear into the distance, he couldn't help feeling a wave of irritation.

Melissa rushed to the hospital to get her stomach pumped before sinking into a deep sleep.

Her sleep was restless, haunted by dreams of Hayden. One moment, he was smiling at her tenderly; the next, he was pushing her away with disgust.

A suffocating ache tore through her chest in her sleep. When she finally woke up with a start, her face was drenched in tears.

Melissa picked up her phone.

A new post Lydia had shared on Instagram three hours ago caught her eye.

It featured photos of her and Hayden with their fingers intertwined, as well as a shot of them feeding each other drinks mouth-to-mouth.

Hayden smiled with doting fondness, while Lydia looked radiant with happiness.

Melissa quietly hit the "like" button before opening her calendar.

Only seven days left.

After that, she would leave Hayden forever, never to cross paths with him again in this lifetime.