Chapter 2

Madeline answered in a soft, almost playful voice. "I missed you badly, so I wanted to come see you."

"You've seen me. Now leave. We agreed we were breaking up after last night." Oliver's words were dismissive, but his voice was thick with seduction. "You're getting married tomorrow. I don't want Flynn to notice anything.

"You know how he is. He's been afraid of betrayal since he was a kid, so he tends to overthink everyone's intentions. He even asked me just now if he knows my girlfriend."

Madeline let out a quiet laugh. "So you knew he was afraid of betrayal too."

A brief silence followed, then the faint sound of clothing rubbing against the door came from inside.

"Ollie, I crossed the line last night."

"So?"

"I have to marry Flynn. I failed him."

Oliver's breathing became uneven. "Do you love him?"

"I do." She didn't hesitate. "I chose him back in college. We bought our marital home together. From now on, I'll be a good wife and mother to his children. I'll give him two healthy babies."

"What am I, then?"

"I'm sorry. Blame it on me losing control. Blame it on the fact that I couldn't pull myself away." Madeline's voice lowered. "All these years, I'd gotten used to you constantly calling me Queen and trying to please me.

"Flynn is always so busy with work that he doesn't have time to keep me company. Whenever he hurt my feelings, I could only come to you. Last night, when you cried and said we'd never see each other again, I couldn't hold myself back and started stripping your shirt."

Oliver wrapped an arm around her lower back and pulled her firmly against him. "If you love him that much, why are you still coming to me?"

"I miss you."

Three simple words fell like a sigh, yet they shattered every bit of trust I had placed in her over the past seven years.

I gripped the doorknob, my heart turning cold.

As it turned out, someone could love me with all her heart while longing for another man just as completely.

She had treated loyalty like an expensive gift, preparing to present it to me at our wedding. Yet before it was time to hand it over, she had already unwrapped it and let Oliver try it on first.

"Madeline, are we really going to end this after you get married?"

"Yes."

"Can you bear it?"

"Whether I can or not, I have to. Flynn can't tolerate even the slightest hint of betrayal. If he finds out, he'll never forgive me."

"He loves you deeply. He'll never leave you."

Madeline gave a quiet laugh. "Of course he won't."

Her certainty disgusted me even more than the betrayal itself.

"He's spent half a year preparing for this wedding, and our new home is all set. Both families will be here tomorrow. He cares more than anything about his mother's pride. Even if he finds out, he'll still choose to deal with it after the wedding for the sake of everyone involved. He'll never make a public spectacle out of being cheated on."

"What about me?" Oliver asked in a choked voice. "Did you ever think about me? We love each other, yet I still have to stand beside him as his best man and watch him marry you."

Oliver began to fake a few sobs. Madeline spent a long time soothing him before finally saying, "The smart lock password for the new house is his birthday. Go there and wait for me. I promise I'll make it up to you properly tonight."

"Are you crazy? That's your marital home."

"But after tomorrow, you'll never be able to hold me like this again."

"What if he finds out?"

"He's staying at a hotel with the guys tonight so it'll be easier for him to pick me up tomorrow morning. He won't go to the marital home."

I heard the brief sound of a kiss before Madeline said in a low, husky voice, "Wait for me."

Then, footsteps approached, and I slipped into the stall beside me.

…

Half an hour later, I sat alone in my car in the hotel's underground parking garage when a smart-lock notification from the living room of our new home appeared on my phone.

We had bought the marital home together with a mortgage. After the renovations were completed, I installed a camera in the living room to prevent break-ins.

I simply hadn't gotten around to telling Madeline about it.

On the cloud surveillance feed, Oliver showed no trace of hesitation. He went straight to the shoe cabinet, pulled out a pair of men's slippers, and then opened the liquor cabinet as though he knew the place by heart.

Twenty minutes later, Madeline entered. Oliver immediately went over and wrapped an arm around her.

"It's our last night. Don't bring up Flynn tonight."

"Puppy, don't be difficult."

"You can't even promise me that much?"

Madeline hugged him from behind. "Fine. We won't talk about him tonight."

They lingered together from the living room all the way down the hallway until the feed finally stopped at the doorway of the master bedroom.