Chapter 2

The tips of Serena's ears turned red.

She pretended to be angry and snapped, "Stop talking already!"

Cassian wasn't intimidated at all. If anything, he seemed even more determined to provoke me. He unbuttoned his shirt, revealing the scratches across his chest.

"Your wife was in my bed last night. Do you know what position she liked the most?"

I couldn't take it anymore. I clenched my fist and punched him square in his smug face.

Cassian staggered backward, but his grin only grew wider. "Whoa. Did I hit a nerve?"

He stared at Serena, who was behind me, and said mockingly, "So this is the man you chose to love at the price of having a complete fallout with me? Honestly, I don't see what was so special about him."

Serena grabbed the hem of my shirt and demanded in a frighteningly cold voice, "Apologize to Cassian."

I shook off her hand with my bloodshot eyes. "Serena, I'm your husband, not a pet dog you can order around as you please! Cassian just publicly announced that he slept with my wife. Am I not even allowed to hit him?"

Serena bit her lip, but she still took Cassian's side. "We haven't seen each other in years. He was just trying to lighten the mood."

Her blatant favoritism made me laugh. "Fine. He was trying to lighten the mood, right? I can do that too."

I grabbed the freshly opened bottle of champagne from the table and poured it straight over Cassian's head. He screamed as he stood there, drenched and looking like a drowned rat.

The next second, I felt a sharp pain in the back of my head.

Serena threw a wine bottle at me, shouting, "Elijah, that's enough!"

She hurriedly helped Cassian to his feet, shooting me a displeased glare.

I'd seen this side of her countless times before. The only difference was that I used to be the one she protected.

Now, it was Cassian.

Cassian shoved her away and scolded, "Didn't you try to run me over with your car because of this man? So why do you care about me now? Even if I died, it would have nothing to do with you!"

With that, he staggered toward the door. As he passed me, he deliberately slammed his shoulder into mine and raised his middle finger at me in defiance.

Serena bit her lip and glared at me with disgust. "Are you done, Elijah? I already helped you get revenge for what happened before. We're even. Why do you keep going after Cassian?"

She chased after Cassian and left the private room.

Everyone turned to look at me with probing gazes.

Serena had pursued me in the first place. She'd told me she'd fallen for me at first sight and that I'd be the only man she'd ever love. I believed her and agreed to be with her.

It wasn't until Cassian kept teasing me bluntly—all the while secretly forcing me to drink laced alcohol that could cause poisoning—that I finally realized the truth.

The "boy next door" Serena was always talking about had been secretly in love with her.

After that incident, Serena felt guilty and stayed by my bedside at the hospital. "Cassian was only joking around. Please don't report him to the police, okay?"

I didn't want to put Serena in a difficult position, so I nodded and agreed. I had no idea that this single act of forgiveness would lead to months of a nightmarish life.

Razor blades were slipped into my shoes. My brake lines were deliberately cut. My personal information was posted all over shady websites.

Every time, Serena told me to let it go.

However, Cassian went on to vandalize my mother's grave, turned her ashes into fireworks, and recorded a video asking me if I liked the view.

That time, Serena finally took my side. She drove her car straight into Cassian and broke one of his legs.

After that, the two of them spent the next five years locked in a bitter feud.

This had gone on until the night Serena and I got married, when Cassian kidnapped her.