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Chapter 2

Author: Hilly Rain
I'd already grown indifferent to the plot. That was, until I went to look for Xavier and overheard him chatting animatedly with his friends.

"Irene's nothing but an old wretch. If I hadn't been in the mood to play around, she would never have gotten close to someone of my standing in her life," he mocked.

One of his lackeys immediately refilled his glass with a fawning smile. "When are you going to tell her that you're a scion from Stellaria?"

"I'll wait a little longer. I haven't had my fill yet," Xavier replied disdainfully.

I let out a sneer.

Fine, then. He could keep playing with my feelings while I stood here waiting for him.

It wasn't like I felt even the slightest bit exhausted at all.

However, it was clear that breaking things up with Xavier clearly wasn't going to work.

He immediately panicked the moment I mentioned it. The sight of tears streaming down his face tugged at my heart.

So, I steeled myself and returned home. It was time for Plan B—divorcing Rafael.

Rafael was seated on the couch as he studied the tablet in his hand. The glow of the financial charts on the screen reflected off his impassive face.

"Good luck, Irene! I'll consider it a success if you manage to break things off with one of them," the system urged in my mind. At that point, I was about to reach my wits' end.

I took a deep breath. Then, I channeled every ounce of acting skill I had and put on a pained and resolute expression.

"Hubby, I've had an affair, " I declared.

Rafael's expression barely changed, yet I could feel the air around us getting colder. He gave a nod before adjusting his gold-rimmed glasses.

"I'm aware," he replied.

His response left me utterly baffled, but I supposed it worked out in my favor as well. Either way, it spared me a lot of explaining.

I carried on acting the part of a heartbroken woman.

"So… let's get a divorce."

"Yes, that's it! Once Rafael agrees, he'll meet the female lead when he drowns his sorrow at the bar. Then, they can officially be together forever!" The system was practically buzzing with excitement in my mind.

The two of us waited in anticipation for Rafael's reply.

Rafael fixed his gaze on me. Although his tone remained composed, there was still a trace of anger beneath it.

"So why aren't you breaking things up with that side piece of yours when the affair is between the two of you? What does it have to do with me? Don't drag me into your business," he snapped.

I was left completely speechless.

What the hell was going on?

"But I don't love you anymore," I argued, trying to awaken his innate role as the male lead.

"That's your problem. Go sort it out on your own," he replied impatiently.

Why were the two of them passing me around back and forth?

The room fell into heavy silence. Just then, careful footsteps echoed from the foyer. The housekeeper, George Sanders, stood there with a lit phone in hand.

He glanced at Rafael, then at me, clearly torn. "Mr. Cortez, I've just received a call from Ms. Lloyd. She asked if you have time to meet her tomorrow."

The sound of glass clattering on the ground rang out before it rolled to a stop at my feet without shattering.

That was the first time I'd seen Rafael lose his composure. His expression softened for a moment as a flicker of emotion crossed his face.

"Yes, I do," he replied. There was an unmistakable trace of delight and surprise in his tone.

I bent down and picked the glass up from the floor. My fingertips were cold when I placed it back on the table. "This is better for both of us, isn't it?" I asked softly.

Rafael turned to look at me. "Don't overthink it. My wife can only be you."

"Huh?" I was completely baffled.

That night, Rafael's words kept replaying in my mind.

I lay in bed as I glared at the ceiling. "So what should I do now? How's the plot supposed to progress when both of them are bugged?" I asked the system.
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  • Survival by Infidelity   Chapter 11

    The confrontation ended with Rafael and me returning home. Just before I left, I caught a glimpse of the reluctance in Xavier's eyes.Rafael's expression darkened the moment we arrived at the Cortez residence. "Aren't you going to explain yourself?" he questioned."And what exactly am I supposed to explain? It's obvious you like Evelyn, so why won't you agree to a divorce? "You paid three million dollars for Evelyn, dated her, and even treated her with care and tenderness. So where does that leave me?" I shot back.He grew flustered at my words. "It's not what you think—""Then what is it? For the past three years, we were little more than strangers. I always thought you were cold by nature, but it wasn't until I saw the way you treated Evelyn that I realized that you only kept your distance from me," I snapped."That's not true…" he tried to explain."Enough. Let's get a divorce."A storm of emotions churned in Rafael's eyes as he stared at me. In the end, he said, "I don't a

  • Survival by Infidelity   Chapter 10

    "Did you decide to use me to provoke Evelyn when you found out she was back?" I texted.In my mind, I'd already spun an entire love-hate drama between her and Xavier."That's not it… Can we meet and talk in person?" he replied.Seeing how things between Rafael and Evelyn seemed to be going fairly well, I gave it a moment of thought before agreeing.Half an hour later, I met Xavier at a quiet bar. The white shirt and jeans he wore gave him a clean, fresh look.For a split second, his eyes lit up the moment he saw me, before they quickly dimmed. He got straight to the point. "I'm sorry I lied to you."Taken aback, I asked, "What are you talking about?""The truth is, I'm not the poor student you thought I was. I'm actually the heir to Dawson Group," he confessed.I nodded in response. "Oh, that. I already knew."My words clearly caught him off guard. "You did?""Didn't one of your friends call you a scion at the banquet? I've got pretty good hearing, you know."I took a sip of

  • Survival by Infidelity   Chapter 9

    Shawn thanked Rafael profusely, and just like that, the incident came to an end.Rafael didn't say a word on the way back. I sat in the passenger seat and watched as the night view flashed past the window."You were very gracious today," he suddenly said.I turned to look at him. "Was I?""After everything Ms. Lloyd said, you still stepped in to cover for her." He glanced over at me before continuing, "Why did you do that?"I shrugged in response. "She wasn't wrong. It's true that I don't really like her."My words seemed to have caught him off guard."But just because I don't like Evelyn doesn't mean I have to kick her when she's down. Besides, I don't think she did it on purpose. She probably just slipped, that's all," I added.I knew perfectly well she'd done it on purpose. Still, there was no reason for me to expose her.A brief silence followed before he spoke again. "You've changed a lot, Irene."My heart flew into my mouth. Had he realized that I wasn't the original

  • Survival by Infidelity   Chapter 8

    I leaned forward to take a closer look. All of a sudden, Evelyn let out a startled cry and pitched backward.I instinctively reached out to catch her, but she'd already crashed into a nearby sculpture by "accident".The sculpture wobbled violently before shattering into pieces with a deafening crash. The loud sound immediately drew everyone's attention.Evelyn fell to the ground. Blood seeped out of the scratches on her arms where the fragments had cut into her skin. Tears welled in her eyes as she choked out, "Ms. Houston… why did you push me?"The entire place instantly erupted into an uproar.Rafael rushed over at the sound of the commotion. A frown crossed his face when he took in the scene. "What happened?" he asked."It's not Ms. Houston's fault. I'm sure she didn't mean it. It's my fault for losing balance…" she said through tears.What a clever move. With just a few words, she'd managed to push all the blame onto me.I was met with looks of contempt from everyone. I

  • Survival by Infidelity   Chapter 7

    "This is actually a reverse harem novel. There are two romance routes in this story—one where Evelyn finds herself with Rafael, and another where she ends up with Xavier. You're the shared female antagonist in both routes," the system explained.I was at a complete loss for words."Bet you didn't see that coming, didn't you?"I took a deep breath, then another."System," I said."Yes, I'm here.""Can I request to blow up this godforsaken world right now?" I gritted out."I'm sorry, but that function isn't available yet," the system chimed cheerfully. That night, I had a dream.In the dream, I stood between them—Rafael's hand in my left and Xavier's in my right. Both of them clamored for me to choose them while Evelyn watched from afar with tears brimming in her eyes. All of a sudden, they turned to Evelyn and declared in unison, "You're the one I truly love!"The three of them clutched each other and burst into tears while I was reduced to nothing but ash.…From that da

  • Survival by Infidelity   Chapter 6

    In a moment of panic, I shoved Xavier toward the back door."Hurry, get out of here!" I whispered.Then, I smoothed my skirt and made a show of admiring the night view. Footsteps drew closer as Rafael and Evelyn came into sight.Evelyn covered her mouth in surprise. "Why did I see you hugging a man just now?" she exclaimed.A frown crossed Rafael's face at her words. I glanced away nervously. Xavier had his back against them, so it shouldn't count as a meeting, right?I tried to brush it off. "You must be mistaken."She remained silent. Instead, her gaze drifted to the back of Xavier's collar. I followed her line of sight, only to spot a lipstick stain on it. It was the exact same shade as the one on my lips."You, over there. Turn around," Rafael said coldly."Quick, you have to stop them! If you don't, I'm going to get wiped out along with you!" The system was practically on the verge of tears in my head.Panic surged as I racked my brain for a way out.Just then, Xav

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