Chapter one My Lovely Family

The first time I saw my husband with another woman, I almost laughed.

Not because it was funny. But because my brain refused to believe what my eyes were showing me.

I was sitting on the living-room floor with Evelyn's mathematics workbook spread across my knees when my phone buzzed beside me.

“Mummy, you skipped the question.”

Evelyn was pointing at a fraction problem with the serious expression of someone twice her age.

“I didn't skip it.” I smiled. “I was giving you time to solve it yourself.”

“You don't know the answer,” She replied in a cute enthusiastic voice.

“I know the answer. I just wanted to see how you would solve it.”

“Then why haven't you written it?” She narrowed her eyes at me.

I laughed and reached for my phone. “Well, because I know you can solve it.”

The notification was from a business page I followed. One of the companies Ronan had been dealing with recently was hosting a small corporate event, and someone had gone live.

I almost swiped it away. Then I saw him, my smile faltered.

Ronan, he was standing near a glass wall with several men in suits around him. But there was one problem, he wasn't supposed to be there.

He was supposed to be three hours away, in another city, negotiating a contract that was important enough for him to spend four days there.

I stared at the screen, maybe it wasn't him.

The video was a bit blurry so I leaned closer.

The man turned slightly. He has the same dark hair, broad shoulders and the same watch I had bought him on our fifth wedding anniversary.

My stomach tightened when a woman stepped into the frame. She stood in front of Ronan, barely visible.

She was elegant, dressed in a fitted cream-colored dress, her hair falling neatly over one shoulder.

She said something to Ronan, almost brushing his lips with her. She laughed, and Ronan smiled.

Not his polite business smile, but his real smile. The one I had knowns for years.

My fingers went cold. “What the hell is this?”

“Mummy?” I barely heard Evelyn. “You're squeezing the phone.”

I looked down. “Hmm? I am coming, Evelyn. Give me a minute.”

I looked at my hands, my fingers were wrapped tightly around it.

I released my grip, “It's nothing, my love.”

But my eyes remained on the screen.

The woman touched Ronan's arm but he didn't move away. And I abruptly left the livestream.

I simply stared at my reflection on the black screen for a few seconds before I called him.

I called twice but there was no response. But on the third call, he picked up.

“Baby?” His voice was calm.

“Where are you?” I asked him without hesitating.

There was a pause. “I'm at the hotel. Why?”

I swallowed hard, “Can I see you? Like right now!”

He chuckled softly. “Of course, Why not?”

The camera came on; Ronan's face filled my screen.

He was wearing a white shirt with the sleeves rolled to his elbows. His hair was slightly messy.

And there were dark circles around his eyes that looked completely genuine.

“Happy now?” he asked. “ Why do you sound panicked?”

I forced a smile. “I will explain to you later. Show me the room.”

He raised an eyebrow. “Seriously? Are you okay?”

“Please. Just show me the room.” I tried calming my voice.

He turned the camera around. The hotel room appeared on my screen; Bed, desk, suitcase and curtains.

Then he walked toward the window and pulled it opened.

He turned the camera back to himself.

“Do you want me to give you a full tour?”

“No… Sorry. I did not mean to disturb you.”

“Then what is this interrogation?” He dropped his phone on the desk.

I hesitated for a few secound. There was no easy way to ask. “I thought I saw you somewhere.”

He laughed. “You thought you saw me? Where?”

“On a livestream. Around a lot of people and a young lady.”

He tilted his head slightly. “What livestream?”

I showed him the screen recording. He watched it, then he laughed. “Lydia, that's the event I'm attending tomorrow.”

My brows pulled together. “Tomorrow?”

“Yes. Today we had a preliminary meeting at the hotel. Tomorrow is the actual event.”

I stared at him. “But I saw you there.”

“You saw a video from today.” He briefly ran his fingers through his hair.

“That was…” I stopped, took a deep breath.

He looked at me through the screen.

“Baby, did you miss me so much that you've started seeing me everywhere?”

I rolled my eyes. “Don't flatter yourself.”

“There she is.” His smile softened. “Are you okay now?”

I looked toward Evelyn. “Yes. I feel okay now.”

“Have you eaten?”

“Yes. We have eaten. We are just waiting for you to get back in a few days.”

“Did Evelyn finish her homework?” He asked warmly.

“She is still fighting with fractions.” I chuckled, responding to his question.

Evelyn shouted from across the room.

“I can hear you!”

Ronan laughed, “Put her on. I want to see my princess.”

I handed her the phone. Within seconds, her suspicious little expression disappeared, replaced by a bright smile.

“Daddy!”

I watched them talk about school, about the toy he promised to bring back.

About whether she was behaving herself.

And slowly, the knot in my chest loosened.

Maybe I had really made a mistake, Or I had seen something else. Perhaps the woman had simply been a colleague.

Ronan had never given me a reason to distrust him. Not after everything we'd been through.

We hadn't started with no money. We had started with a mortgage on the house my father left me and a ridiculous amount of faith in an idea neither of us knew would work.

I remembered the nights Ronan and I sat at the dining table calculating expenses.

The first client, the first payment.

The first time our company made enough money for us to breathe.

I remembered how proud I had been when Ronan told me, “One day, Lydia, this will be bigger than both of us.”

And it had become bigger, much bigger.

I had eventually stepped away from the business when Evelyn was born.

Ronan told me I had done enough. That he could handle the company, that I deserved to enjoy the family we had worked so hard to build.

So I trusted him. I trusted my husband.

By the time our call ended, the strange feeling in my chest had almost disappeared.

Ronan came home two days earlier than expected.

I was in the kitchen when I heard the front door open. “Lydia?”

I froze, then I let out a warm smile. “Ronan?”

He appeared in the doorway with a suitcase in one hand.

Evelyn screamed. “Daddy! You are back.”

She ran toward him.

He dropped the suitcase immediately and caught her in his arms. “There’s my princess.”

“You came back! I missed you.” Sir giggled

“You promised me chocolate!”

“ Yes, my princess I remember. I brought two.” He kissed her forehead. “Three!”

She giggled, “I will eat the three today. Thank you , Daddy!”

I stood there watching them. Then the uneasiness I'd felt earlier returned for a moment.

Ronan glanced towards me. His expression softened as he walked over.

He wrapped one arm around my waist, and kissed my forehead. “I missed you too.”

I looked into his eyes. There was no hesitation, no nervousness and absolutely nothing I could point to.

“You're back early. Welcome, My Darling.”

“The meeting ended sooner than expected.”

“And the event? Hope you were not stressed?”

“It went well. Everything is going well. I just have to wait for a good news.” He nodded.

Then he brushed a strand of hair away from my face. “You look tired.”

“I was waiting for you. I missed you so much, that I was hallucinating.”

“You shouldn't have. I missed you too, my love.” He smiled and he kissed me again.

For the first time since seeing that livestream, I felt embarrassed by my own suspicion.

Maybe I had been looking for something that wasn't there.

And after all these years, I had simply forgotten that being married to a successful man meant people would naturally surround him, women included.

But that didn't mean anything. That night, we had dinner together.

Ronan told us funny stories from his trip. Evelyn kept interrupting him with questions. I laughed more than I expected.

Later, after Evelyn had gone to bed, Ronan fell asleep beside me almost immediately.

I stayed awake for a while, watching him.

The man I had built a life with, the man I had trusted with everything.

I finally smiled to myself. “You're being ridiculous, Lydia.”

I turned off the bedside lamp. Just as I closed my eyes, his phone vibrated. Once and then again.

I opened my eyes, Ronan didn't move.

The screen lit up on the bedside table.

I wasn't trying to look. At least, that's what I told myself. But the name on the screen was impossible to ignore.

“Vivian.” I frowned. The message appeared beneath her name. “Did she find out?”