LOGIN“C–Cassandra, what did you just say?” Clara asked, half in disbelief.She searched Cassandra's face hoping to see if there was any hint that she might be lying, but she didn't see anything. Clara shook her head, “You're lying,” she insisted, “There's no way my Dante would ever cheat on me.” Cassandra smiled slyly, shrugging her shoulders as she said, “Well, I’m a widow. Maybe that's his kink, who knows.” Clara’s face went from white to red, steam coming out of her ears. “SHUT UP!” “DANTE ISN'T LIKE THAT!”Cassandra let out a dry chuckle, “Whatever makes you sleep at night.” Then she entered the car and the chauffeur started the engine. She looked out the window at Clara who was still fuming and added, “Don’t test me, Clara.” “You know very well I can destroy this picture-perfect marriage of yours if I actually want him.”Before Clara could react, Cassandra rolled up her window and ordered, “Go.” The chauffeur drove off. As the car drove off, Cassandra leaned back in her seat,
Clara quickly pulled closer to Dante, “Babe, where is this coming from?” “Did my sister tell you something I have no idea about?” She questioned. “Just answer the question, Clara. I want to hear it from you.” Dante pressured, hoping Clara would be more honest with Cassandra present. But Clara was thick-skinned, and she was already used to Cassandra covering up for her, so she went on to lie with a straight face. “No. How could I force my sister to do such a thing?” She denied it blatantly, “I thought we were finally going to get along fine, but you're just going to believe her lies over me?” She shifted her gaze to Cassandra, yelling angrily, “If she was being forced, why would we give her $10M?” Dante’s jaws tightened instinctively, seeing through her lies. They'd been married for years, of course he could tell when she was lying. Clara had feigned anger, hoping to guilt-trip Dante into believing her lies, but she had been mistaken. He opened his mouth to speak, but Ca
Cassandra stood up, slowly backing away, her eyes still wide in shock of her own words. “I—It’s…it’s not…” Dante stood up, closing the gap between them and holding her hand. “Cassandra, tell me the truth. Did you, or did you not agree to be our surrogate willingly?” Cassandra swallowed, blinking fast as tears slid down her cheeks, “I already said it at the Caldwell Estate. I did it for the money.” But Dante was no fool. He knew which was a lie and which was the truth. He let go of his grip around her arm, slowly slumping back to the sofa. His eyes were red and glistening with unshed tears. “Oh my God…” his voice shook slightly, “What have we done?” He raised his head to meet Cassandra who was still frozen in place with watery eyes. “M—my wife…did she know about this?” He stuttered as he asked, “W–was she aware of the arrangement?” Cassandra bit her lip, wanting to scream…YES. She wanted to say Clara was the mastermind because she needed to keep fit. In the end, she
Dante sat on the pastel sofa in the patio of his mansion, head resting on one palm while the other held a glass of whiskey. He massaged his temple slowly, his eyes red, looking more frustrated than sad. The Clara he had fallen for would never have said that.‘It’s just a baby. We paid her to do a job.’Dante took a long sip. The whiskey burned, but the words kept playing, and under them, another voice surfaced."So a hedge fund manager is worth more than a nurse?"He closed his eyes.Nearly five years ago, he had sat in his room in the middle of the night, arguing in a group chat with a stranger.The topic had been something silly, which job deserved the highest salary. Dante had been so sure of himself. "Whatever pays most is what society values most. Money is the honest scoreboard."But the stranger on the other side of the internet had not backed down. “The market also says a nanny is worth less than a car. Some work can't be priced. You can pay for it, but the pay is never the
“Like I said, it's completely personal, if you're not okay, you can leave.” Felix reiterated as he stood a few feet away from where she was sitting. Cassandra pressed her lip into a thin line, “It's fine, Doc. Go ahead.” Felix cleared his throat and smiled, “You don't seem to recognise me at all.” Cassandra raised a brow, “Am I supposed to?” “Well, I was hoping you would. We were in the same class at Royal Heights high school for three years and always competed for the first position. I could never forget you.” Cassandra’s lips parted slightly in recognition. “Oh, Felix Truman. It's you.” She didn't recognise him. Not really. But she remembered the name. Truman. He was the only student that sometimes scored above her.But Cassandra had never considered it a competition. Hell, she just wanted to be done with high school and move to college. “You were always a loner and never even responded when others spoke to you except Seraphina. It's understandable you wouldn't recognise me.”
“Oh, careful!” Cassandra winced, leaning back on the chair, her hands hovering over her lips. Dante quickly stepped out of the car and opened the door to her seat, leaning forward to inspect her face.“Are you alright? I’m so sorry, I panicked.” Cassandra glanced at the blood that stained her finger, sighing as she rolled her eyes, “We are going to the hospital anyways, let’s get it treated there.” Dante sighed and nodded, his face pale with guilt as he returned to his seat. Cassandra wiped the blood off with a tissue. Even after the car started, Dante kept glancing at her through the rear-view mirror. Despite the pain, Cassandra hid her face and smiled. She knew why he’d reacted that way.Pookie face. That nickname triggered him. It was the nickname she’d given him during their online dating. But she had only ever said it during calls. Clara never could have known it.“You keep staring, any problem?” Cassandra questioned, trying to force him to say something. “I—uh that name.







