Chapter 1

"Here at the hotel with my wifey. Even though I can't marry you, taking you to bed is enough to satisfy me."

Allen Jamison stared at the Instagram story on his phone in disbelief, his breath hitching.

The story was visible to him alone, and it was a series of two images. The first was a photo of a stunning beauty lying on a hotel bed, smiling brightly.

He recognized her at a glance. It was his wife, Carina Simpson, in the same outfit she'd worn when leaving the house this morning.

The other image was a screenshot of her conversation with Jonah Ingram.

Jonah: "Are you here yet, wifey? Stellar Grand Hotel, Room 2203. Don't go to the wrong one."

Carina: "Don't worry, Jon. I'll be there soon."

Jonah: "Why are you calling me Jon? I'm already calling you wifey. You should call me that special word, too!"

Carina: "Let's wait till we meet in person. It wouldn't be good to send it as a message. Allen might see it."

Jonah: "Didn't you say he trusts you and won't check your phone?"

Carina: "That's true… Well, wait for me, hubby. I'll be there soon!"

Allen's hands trembled. His blood surged through his veins as his rage nearly drove him wild.

Jonah was Carina's childhood friend, one whom she kept saying was like a younger brother to her.

Allen couldn't believe it. How could his wife, with whom he'd been in a loving relationship for 12 years now, betray him?

Body shaking, Allen called Carina. "Hey, babe. When are you coming home?"

"I have to leave on a business trip tonight, Allen. I won't be going home today."

Allen's expression froze. "But it's our wedding anniversary today."

"Oh. That slipped my mind. Sorry about that, honey," Carina said, sounding a little annoyed at herself. "But this trip is extremely important. It's concerning the company's overseas market. I promise I'm not trying to avoid spending our anniversary with you on purpose…"

"Where are you now?" Allen asked.

"I'm… I'm at… Oh, stop being so sensitive, honey. Don't you trust me?"

"I… trust you."

Allen remained silent for a while. After thinking about the love and devotion they'd shared for the past 12 years, he chose to believe her one more time.

"Work is important. Go ahead. Don't forget to drink the bone broth I made for you."

"Thanks, honey. Love you!"

The call ended.

Allen stood there, staring blankly at the candlelit dinner he had so meticulously prepared. Perhaps he was just being too easily agitated. Why would Carina betray him?

Perhaps Jonah had only posted that Instagram story to get on his nerves.

As for the screenshot of their chat, Allen decided to wait until Carina came back to find out what the deal was. Maybe she had simply stopped by to see Jonah on her way to the business trip. She would probably leave soon after, right?

After all, in the photo, she was only lying on the bed. She hadn't done anything…

Feeling restless, Allen picked up his phone again. He wanted to call Carina and get to the bottom of things. But he saw that Jonah had just updated his Instagram story again.

"Wifey is in the shower now. Once she's done, we'll get started on the fun."

It was the caption to a photo taken through the bathroom's frosted glass door. A woman's graceful silhouette was faintly visible.

This time, Allen could no longer deceive himself.

Fury burned in his chest, the sensation clearly stating to him that Carina was cheating on him.

He slammed his fist onto the coffee table, and the glass shattered instantly.

"Carina, is my trust something you can abuse to toy with me like this?"

"What's going on, Allen? What was that sound?"

Romina Simpson, Allen's sister-in-law, had just come in through the front door of the villa. The moment she saw the shattered table and Allen's bleeding hand, her eyes widened in horror.

"Allen! Are you alright?" she cried out as she dropped her bag and rushed over to check his injury. "No matter what happened, you can't hurt yourself like this. Besides, it's your wedding anniversary today. Carina is going to be so worried when she comes home and sees you like this."

"Hah! Worried?" Allen sneered. "The only person she'd worry about is her precious hubby, Jonah Ingram."

"Jonah? Why are you bringing him up? Just his name alone is irritating enough!" Romina's eyes flashed with repulsion.

She was aware that Jonah banked on his close relationship with Carina to constantly wedge himself between Carina and Allen. Even she, who was just Carina's younger sister, couldn't stand the sight of it.

After bandaging Allen's wound, Romina suddenly caught a glimpse of the Instagram story Jonah had uploaded. Once she read the whole thing, she stiffened. Her gaze swept over the shattered glass on the floor before settling on Allen's bloodshot eyes.

"Allen, has my sister… cheated on you?"

"That's something you should ask her in person."

Allen took back his phone and strode out of the villa.

"Allen! Wait—" Romina hurried after him and slid into the passenger seat beside him.

The Rolls-Royce roared out of the villa and sped down the road.

"You need to calm down, Allen," Romina said as she looked at him.

His face was as dark as night, and the veins along the hand gripping the steering wheel were popping.

"Maybe it's just a misunderstanding," Romina suggested. "Carina knows her boundaries. She wouldn't do anything to betray you…"

"If she knew her boundaries, she wouldn't lie to me on our wedding anniversary and go to a hotel with another man! She even called him her hubby. Well, I'd like to find out from her just how many husbands she has!"

There was nothing Romina could say in response to that.

Heavy rain began to fall. As the luxury car cut through the storm, Allen's reflection in the rearview mirror was grim and furious.

He and Carina had been each other's first love. They'd met in college, dated for four years, and had been married for 8. That was a total of 12 years of being together.

After they got married, Carina's father, David Simpson, ended up buried in debt after having mismanaged his company. The crisis had severely affected the couple's life.

Believing that family should stand together in hardship, Allen had resolutely turned down an offer from one of the most successful conglomerates globally. He chose to join the Simpsons' company and help them out instead.

To revive the struggling company, he pushed himself at all hours of the day and night, working, studying, and dealing with clients. At his most pressured, he handled the work of 13 departments alone.

The relentless workload also meant that he and Carina had no time to think about starting a family.

And now, after eight years, not only did Simpson Group rise from its calamity, but it had ridden the wave of opportunity to become one of the leading companies in the city of Rhombury.

Carina served as the CEO of the company, poised to take over David's role as chairman.

Having accomplished his mission, Allen voluntarily stepped down from the board and became director of operations instead. Eight years of work had given him complete mastery over every aspect of the company. Any problem could be brought to him for resolution.

It wouldn't be wrong to say that his role in Simpson Group was far more crucial than Carina's or David's.

Yet, he never took any credit for that. He worked diligently at the company and personally tended to all of Carina's needs at home. He was always a gentle and dependable husband to her.

All along, Allen had believed their future would continue smoothly like this.

But six months ago, the day after Simpson Group went public, Jonah returned to the country. Relying on the fondness Carina's parents had for him, he brazenly inserted himself into their marriage.

During work hours, he spent all his time with Carina in the CEO's office, getting her coffee, feeding her snacks, and chatting endlessly. He stayed by her side constantly, even for meals and bathroom breaks.

After work, when the couple finally had time alone, he shamelessly showed up at the marital home they shared and treated it like his own home. It'd caused increasing strain between Allen and Carina.

He often posted Instagram stories visible only to Allen, filled with vague, suggestive insinuations about his relationship with Carina, openly provoking Allen.

Allen had informed the Simpsons of his dislike for Jonah before, but Carina's parents doted on Jonah, and Carina herself certainly wasn't the least bit put off by her glib-tongued "younger brother".

As a result, they simply brushed off Allen's concerns.

Allen figured that it would all pass over eventually. He only had to put up with it for a little while. Never did it occur to him that Carina would brazenly go this far. She would rather deceive him than give up going to a hotel with Jonah.

He could put up with all sorts of things, but loyalty was the line he would never cross.

The Rolls-Royce shot through the streets and soon arrived at the entrance of Stellar Grand Hotel.