A flash of surprise crossed his face. Guess he wasn't expecting me to go along with it so easily.

"I'll probably be busy the next few days. Don't overthink it."

"I know."

I nodded like the perfect wife, while laughing inside.

Busy taking your side chick to doctor appointments?

After Nolan left, I drove straight to Horizon Tech.

As a business partner, I had every right to show up.

The receptionist at the front desk was young.

Kelsey.

She looked even younger and prettier in person. Long hair. Clear eyes. An innocent face.

You'd never guess she was sleeping with a married man.

"Hi, who are you here to see?" she asked sweetly.

"I'm here for Nolan Thomson."

I looked her over.

She had on a loose business suit, but I still caught it.

The slight curve of her stomach.

She was already showing.

"Mr. Thomson is in a meeting. Can I get your name?"

"Johanna Jourdain."

Her face changed instantly.

She knew exactly who I was.

Nolan's wife.

"Ms. Jourdain! One second. I'll let Mr. Thomson know right away."

She grabbed the phone so fast she almost fumbled it.

I heard her lower her voice.

"Mr. Thomson... your wife's here."

A minute later, Nolan rushed out with a tight smile. "Babe, what are you doing here?"

His eyes flicked to Kelsey.

"I wanted to see your office. Maybe grab lunch with you." I slipped my arm through his.

"Sure. Let's eat at the restaurant upstairs."

Way too quick.

He was already trying to get me out of there.

In the elevator, I asked casually, "That receptionist is pretty cute. How old is she?"

"Not sure. She's a new intern."

Too fast.

"I don't really pay attention."

"Oh."

I nodded, already filing that under bullshit.

During lunch, I asked if he'd been stressed lately, if he wasn't feeling well.

I kept putting food on his plate.

He looked touched. "You care about me the most. I'm so lucky to have you."

I almost lost my appetite listening to him.

"By the way," I said like I just remembered, "a friend told me about this new neighborhood. Should we start looking at houses too?"

His fork froze.

"Looking at houses? Isn't our place fine?"

"It's kind of small. If we have kids someday, we might need more space."

His face shifted.

"No rush on kids. Things are tight right now."

Tight?

Funny. Money didn't seem tight when he bought his side chick a house.

"You're right. We can wait."

I smiled and played along.

But now I saw him for exactly who he was.

That afternoon, I used the bathroom as an excuse and walked past the front desk on purpose.

Kelsey was chatting with a coworker.

"The doctor said the baby's healthy. Due date's at the end of the year."

"Kelsey, you're seriously so lucky. Your boyfriend spoils you. He bought you a house and treats you like a princess."

"Yeah. He said he'll marry me after the baby's born."

She looked like she was glowing.

Marry her?

I almost laughed.

He hadn't even divorced me yet.

Kelsey looked up and saw me.

The color drained from her face.

"M-Ms. Jourdain."

I walked over and smiled sweetly.

"You're Kelsey, right? You're pregnant? Congrats."

She instinctively covered her stomach.

"Thank you, Ms. Jourdain."

"The baby's father treats you well, right?"

"Yeah."

She wouldn't look at me.

"Good. People should appreciate what they have. And stay away from scumbags."

I held her gaze for a second, then walked away.

Outside the building, I took a slow breath.

'Kelsey, do you really think staying in the background keeps you safe? I'll show you exactly what a wife can do.'

That night, Nolan came home late, smelling like women's perfume.

"Client dinner. Had a few drinks."

He let out a small burp. "I'm gonna shower."

The second he walked into the bathroom, I grabbed his phone.

Kelsey: [Honey, the appointment went great! The doctor said we could find out the gender. It's a boy!]

Nolan: [That's amazing! My son! I'll take you shopping for baby stuff tomorrow.]

[You're the best. I love you!]

[I love you and our baby too. Once he's here, we'll finally be a real family.]

I felt sick reading it.

They already had it all planned out.

Just waiting for me, the wife, to disappear.

Keep dreaming.

I put his phone back and pasted on a sweet smile.

When Nolan came out of the shower, I walked over and started rubbing his shoulders.

"You've been working hard. So many client dinners lately."

He leaned back and enjoyed it, looking way too pleased with himself.

"It's all for our future."

"Oh, right." I kept my voice casual. "I saw your receptionist today. She looks pregnant. Pretty young to be having a baby."

His body went stiff. "Really? I didn't notice."

"She looks at least three or four months along."

"Young people these days don't know how to be careful."

He let out a fake laugh.

I laughed inside but kept smiling.

"I hope her boyfriend's doing the right thing. Otherwise it'd be pretty messed up."

"I'm sure he is."

He was already sweating.

The next day, I had the PI keep following them.

No surprise there.

Nolan took Kelsey to some upscale baby store. The pictures showed them acting like a happy little family.

His arm around her waist. His hand on her stomach.

The way he looked at her—

It was the same look he used to give me when we first got married.

Then it got worse.

They stopped at a jewelry store.

He bought her a twenty-thousand-dollar diamond ring.

Back when we got married, I'd told him I didn't need anything expensive.

He'd looked so touched he almost cried.

Now he could drop twenty grand on his side chick?

I saved every photo.

Future divorce evidence.

That afternoon, I went to the shopping district Kelsey always hung around and pretended to shop.

Didn't take long to find her.

She was sitting in a café with a friend.

I grabbed a seat nearby and listened.

"Kelsey, are you sure about this? He's married."

"So what?" Kelsey looked completely unbothered. "He doesn't even love his wife. He's only still with her because her family's rich.

"He said once I give him a son, he'll find some excuse to divorce her."

"But what if he's lying to you?"

"He's not."

Kelsey lifted her hand and flashed the ring.

"This ring cost twenty grand. He bought me a house too. If he wasn't serious, would he spend that kind of money?"

Her friend still looked unsure. "But what if his wife finds out—"

"So what if she does?" Kelsey rubbed her stomach with a smug smile. "I'm carrying his son. That's my biggest advantage. Guys always want kids with their blood. He's not walking away from us."

She snorted.

"And that old lady? Three years of marriage and no baby. I got pregnant once, and it's a boy. Who do you think he's picking?"

Old lady?

I almost lost it right there.

I was twenty-eight.

Twenty-eight was old now?

I swallowed the anger and kept listening.

"He promised once our son's born, he'll make us official and make me his wife." Her eyes practically sparkled. "Then I'll be living the rich-wife life. I won't have to deal with anybody anymore."

"Does Johanna know about you?"

"Probably not." Kelsey smirked. "Nolan's really good at hiding stuff. Never slips up.

"But even if she finds out, so what? I have a son. She doesn't.

"I win."

Enough.

I'd heard enough.

I got up and walked out of the café.

The second I stepped outside, I called my dad.

"Dad, it's time."

"You sure? Once we do this, there's no going back."

"I'm sure." I stared ahead. "They pushed too far. I want them to know what happens when they betray our family."

"Alright. We start tomorrow."

I hung up and watched the sun drop below the horizon.

Inside me, something was already burning.

***

The third day was Saturday. Nolan said he had a client meeting. Really, he was going to see Kelsey.

I played along and watched him pull out of the driveway.

The second he was gone, I called an emergency board meeting as CEO of Jourdain Corp.

"Everyone, I have an announcement." I stood at the head of the table, cool and composed. "Starting now, Jourdain Corp is cutting all ties with Horizon Tech."

The directors traded looks.

"Johanna, why? Horizon Tech has always been a major partner."

"Because their CEO, Nolan Thomson, has serious character issues. That doesn't match Jourdain Corp's values."

"But ending contracts out of nowhere will trigger penalties."

"I'll pay them." No hesitation. "This is about principle."

The meeting ended, and I immediately reached out to Horizon Tech's biggest clients.

Jourdain Corp had influence. I had connections. Didn't take long for people to start getting nervous.

By that afternoon, Nolan's phone was blowing up.

I sat at home sipping tea while he paced the balcony, taking call after call.

"Mr. Warren, why end things so suddenly? We've always had a good partnership..."

"Mr. Lowell, maybe there's been some misunderstanding? We can work out a new price..."

"Mr. Chase, please reconsider. Our company really needs this project..."

Watching him spiral was putting me in a great mood.