Chapter 2

The half-full glass of water Gabrielle had left on the table was still warm.

Just then, my phone rang. My friend, Harry Westman, called. "Hey, Liam. Did your wife go to Cloudwater Leisure Club? I just saw her there with some guy. I think I've seen him somewhere before…

"Wasn't he the swimmer called Caleb Fisher? Honestly, the way those two were together, they didn't look like ordinary friends to me."

I hung up and drove to Cloudwater. I spotted Gabrielle's car outside the leisure club, but I didn't go in. I simply sat in my car, staring at the entrance.

One hour passed, then two.

At 10:00 pm, Gabrielle finally walked out, side by side with a man. He was tall, with broad shoulders, and wore a simple T-shirt that showcased his toned arms—the unmistakable build of an athlete.

That was Caleb.

Gabrielle looked incredibly happy beside him, smiling in a way I hadn't seen in all three years of our marriage. She tilted her head up to look at him, her eyes bright.

Caleb said something to her, then ruffled her hair. The gesture was effortless. Not only did she not pull away, but she even reached up and straightened his collar.

At that moment, they looked like a real couple while I was the clown hiding in the shadows, stalking them. I had always believed we were everything to each other, but it turned out I was nothing more than a reserve.

I started the car and drove away quietly. When I got home, I deleted the short video and my account. I sat in the dark and waited for Gabrielle to come home.

At midnight, the door opened. She walked in, smelling of hot spring water and alcohol. She jumped when she saw me sitting on the couch.

"Why didn't you turn on the lights?" she complained, switching on the living room lights. "You scared the hell out of me."

"Did you have fun?" I asked.

Her expression went unnatural. "It was… fine. It was just a class reunion. How fun can it be? We drank, talked, and sang karaoke."

She kept avoiding my eyes as she spoke.

I stood up and walked over to her. "Really? I thought you went to a hot spring."

The smell of alcohol on Gabrielle was even stronger up close.

"They wanted to go sing afterward, so we never got around to it," she said, still lying.

"Gabrielle, Caleb touched your hair."

She jerked her head up, her eyes widening. "You… You actually followed me! Liam, you're freaking me out!"

"I didn't follow you."

I took out my phone and tapped open one of my chat boxes. It was with Harry's wife, who was an account manager at Cloudwater.

"Could you pull up the security footage from the entrance to the VIP area tonight?" I texted her.

A few minutes later, she sent me a video. I held my phone up in front of Gabrielle.

In the video, Caleb ran his fingers through her hair while she rose onto her toes to straighten his collar. The interaction was so intimate that they didn't even seem to care who might be watching.

"My friend saw you two together. This is the footage."

Gabrielle's face turned pale. She stared at the video, lips quivering, but nothing came out.

"No hot spring? Just karaoke? Gabrielle, look me in the eye and tell me exactly what you two did today."

She flipped out. "We didn't do anything! We'd both had too much to drink. He just helped me when I stumbled. What's wrong with that? Do you really have to look at us through that filthy mind of yours?

"We're championship partners! You don't know what we had!"

I laughed. "I don't? You're right. I don't. Let me ask you something I do know. Did you accept the bracelet he bought you?"