Chapter 1

When I dragged my suitcase through the door, my phone’s screen was still on Moms Unite’s homepage.

Ten minutes ago, Selena uploaded a photo to the group.

In the photo was Dolce. She wore a clean night dress and sat in front of a picture book with a bright smile.

The caption read: I read together with Dolce today again. It might be tiring bringing up a kid, but mothers need to be part of their children’s growth.

The mothers praised her.

[You’re so disciplined.]

[You raised Dolce up so well.]

[Your husband is lucky to have you as his wife.]

When I read those words, I felt a little regretful.

I was supposed to be away for five days because of my business trip, but the project wrapped up earlier, so I changed my flight ticket back so that I could come back sooner to keep Selena and Dolce company. However, the moment I opened the door, the stench that filled my nostrils nearly made me hurl.

The living room was covered in takeout boxes. Some of the soup had spilled on the floor and dried up until it formed a sticky, dark stain. The couch was covered in wrinkled clothes, and there were empty beer cans on the tea table. The trash can was overflowing, and flies were buzzing above it.

Reading together with Dolce? Really?

My heart sank.

“Dolce?”

I put my suitcase down and walked around the couch.

In the next second, I froze.

My three-year-old daughter was sitting on the carpet. Her face was dirty, and her hair was a mess. She held a filthy doll in one hand and a partially eaten, cold piece of fried chicken in the other.

When she saw me, she immediately perked up.

“Daddy!”

She stumbled over to me, and I squatted down to pick her up. I was immediately assaulted by the smell of sweat, something rotten, and rancid cooking oil.

Who knew how long it had been since she last took a shower?

I felt as if someone had seized my throat. “Dolce, where’s Mommy?”

Dolce pouted and pointed at the master bedroom sadly. “Mommy is in the bedroom with Howard. They’re playing and won’t let me go in.”

I clenched my fists.

Howard. That was my childhood best friend.

His father passed away when he was young, and his mother brought him up alone.

When he was a kid, he often came over to my house for food. My parents had hearts of gold and always said that he was a pitiful boy, so they asked me to take care of him. Later on, after he graduated, he could not find a job, so I pulled strings and arranged an interview for him.

Then, he said that he had no place to stay since he had just come to the city, so I also let him stay in my house’s guest room for the time being.

I always treated him like a brother, but it only took a few days of me being away on a business trip for him to “take care” of my wife and kid this way?

While squashing down my anger, I asked Dolce, “You’ve been playing in the living room alone over the past few days?”

Dolce nodded. “Mommy said she’s busy, and Howard told me that if I behaved, he’d order takeout for me.”

She added in a whisper, “But sometimes, the food is so hot. I can’t eat it.”

Anger exploded in my chest.

Selena, Howard, what on earth did you two do?