The Truth She Couldn't Hide

Silence fell over the private room.

Gwen, who had been dead drunk just moments ago, sobered up by half. She stared at me in utter disbelief.

Our former class representative hurried to smooth things over. "Lucien, you've had too much to drink. You can't joke about something like that."

"Exactly. Gwen was only joking about what she said earlier. You can't get back at her by making up something like this. It'll only hurt your marriage."

The classmates around me chuckled awkwardly and patted me on the shoulder, doing their best to lighten the suffocating atmosphere.

I raised my glass, drained it in one gulp, and leaned back lazily in my chair as I drawled. "I wasn't joking. For the past seven years of our marriage, Gwen would call out Nikolas' name whenever she's hammered. She moaned his name every single time we slept together.

"Even the virtual pet chicken in her game was named NikkiBoo. We've been sharing a bed while dreaming of different people for seven years. So, was it really that outrageous for me to have raised a son outside our marriage?"

I'd dropped so many bombshells in such a short amount of time that everyone was left stunned.

Nikolas and Gwen exchanged glances, their expressions darkening almost instantly. However, Gwen had always cared about keeping up appearances more than anything in the world. So, she certainly wasn't going to let me expose her like this without paying the price.

She slammed her hand against the table and bellowed, "Lucien Elwood, go home if you're drunk! Don't make a scene here! I only admitted one regret from my past. Just because you're jealous doesn't mean you get to retaliate like this!"

Jealous? I'd had my fill of jealousy over the past seven years. If she still couldn't let Nikolas go after all this time, then I'd gladly let those two have each other.

I fixed my eyes on Gwen's breathtakingly beautiful face and felt nothing but disgust.

"I'm doing this to retaliate against you? Then, by all means, correct me if I'm wrong or whether my truth bomb has only scratched the surface of how deeply in love you are with Nikolas. Why don't you share with the class? I dare you, confess."

My relentless questioning drove the already tense atmosphere to the breaking point.

Nikolas immediately grabbed a glass of wine and approached me the second he noticed that things were spiraling out of control. "Luc, we're all old classmates. This reunion was only meant to reminisce about the old days. Why are you getting so angry?

"Besides, Gwen and I ended things years ago. I've been living overseas for years and have scarcely made any trips back to the country. She only said what she said to cheer me up. I'll drink to you as an apology. Don't let me come between you two."

I shoved his hand away before the glass even reached me.

Gwen shot to her feet. She wiped the wine splashed across her face, her eyes blazing with fury. "I never got over Nikolas, have I? Fine. I admit it. But what about you? Are you really some honorable husband? You cheated on me behind my back and even had a child!

"You said I wouldn't dare confess just what's between Nikolas and me. Fine, I'll talk. Since we're already playing Truth or Dare, let's turn this into a full confession. Whoever can't take it and walks out loses everything in the divorce. They leave with nothing. Will you take this bet?"

A faint smile tugged at the corner of my lips. "I'd be more than happy to."

I'd known for a long time that Gwen and Nikolas had never truly cut ties. I'd already decided that I would divorce her after New Year's. Even so, I still wanted to hear the truth from her own lips.

I wasn't doing this because I expected anything to change. I only wanted to put a proper end to the seven years I'd spent loving her.

Hence, I would see this confession game through to the very bitter end.