I'm pursued by superstar after betrayed

Violeta Reynolds had been married to Raiden Evans for two years, and in all that time, she’d never once seen him break his cool in public. But late one night, right there in front of her, he was tangled up with some girl in a dim, grimy alley—locked together, shameless, for anyone to see.

The girl looked fragile, like a soft flower pushing through muck, her legs wrapped tight around his waist while she sobbed into his shoulder. Violeta leaned back against her car seat, her mind going completely blank.

Someone had accidentally shared their location earlier that night. It wasn’t even ten minutes away from the house she and Raiden shared. If he was gonna cheat, you’d think he’d pick somewhere a little more private, right? Raiden was a powerhouse in the business world—old money, three generations of prestige, a man who lived by a strict code of high standards.

Violeta couldn’t square that polished Raiden with the man making out in this dump. The mold-streaked walls were so far beneath what he’d ever tolerate normally. A dry, bitter smile tugged at her lips. What even was she, anyway? Just a wife in name only, watching this whole mess from the sidelines?

Confronting them wouldn’t change anything. A public scandal wasn’t worth the fallout. They’d married two years ago, and Raiden had already been in love with someone else back then. Violeta had been the one stubborn enough to say yes anyway, giving up a thriving career just to be his wife.

In their two years of marriage, she’d tended to every little thing for him perfectly. She knew his stomach was sensitive, so she cooked every single dinner from scratch with extra care. Every detail of his suits, his ties, his shoes—she planned it all, down to the sock. She handled every single thing that mattered to him, never letting anyone else lift a finger.

But here he was, in this filthy alley, like a beast finally yanking off his prim gentleman’s mask. It felt like someone had dumped a bucket of ice water over Violeta’s head—one sharp, searing pain cutting through all her stupid delusions, and suddenly she could see everything clearly.

What came next wasn’t even a question. The marriage was over.

As she pulled away, her headlights swept right over Raiden. He froze, lifting his head to stare after her. A weird, unplaceable unease settled in his chest. He didn’t recognize the car, but he watched it roll straight toward the villa they shared.

"Raiden… I hurt so bad," the girl whimpered against his neck. He snapped back to the moment, straightening his cuff with the same meticulous care he gave everything.

"Let’s call it a night for now. The company’s got a big merger coming up. We can’t afford a divorce scandal getting out right now," he said.

"I get it, baby. I don’t mind waiting," she murmured soft as butter.

Raiden glanced down at her. There was something about that wobbly, vulnerable look that reminded him of Violeta, just for a split second.

Meanwhile, back at the villa, Violeta had just stepped out of the shower when she heard the master bedroom door click open. Raiden stood in the doorway, his suit draped over one arm, one dark brow quirked up. His chiseled jaw always carried that quiet air of superiority, sharpened by his straight high nose and deep-set eyes that tilted ever so slightly up at the corners.

A smudge of pink lipstick stained the collar of his crisp white shirt—the same sticky formula Violeta had always hated. Raiden never seemed to mind, though. Go figure.

Violeta kept toweling her hair, stepping slowly toward the bed. Raiden’s gaze lingered on the soft curve of her waist, peeking through the thin fabric of her nightgown. "When’d you get home?" he asked, letting out a breath he didn’t even know he’d been holding.

Violeta watched him in the reflection of the window across the room as he tossed his tie aside and started unbuttoning his shirt. "Got dirty on the back nine," he said quickly, like that explained the smudges on the fabric. "Played golf with the clients tonight."

"Any hole-in-ones? Sounds impressive," she answered flatly. Raiden’s jaw tightened just a little, that old unease creeping back up his spine.

He reached out, wrapping a big hand around her waist. "You upset, huh? When we got married, I told you straight up I wasn’t in love with you. I already had someone else. This was never supposed to be some fairy tale," he said, trying to sound like he was being honest instead of cruel.

Violeta’s throat felt clamped shut, wrapped tight with rusted wire—every one of his words tearing through her like a blade. She’d met Raiden years ago, when her father Charlie Snyder first introduced her to the family. Her love had grown slow, steady, and this marriage had been the dream she’d chased for years. Now here she was, finally waking up to what it really was.

She nodded, numb, and Raiden huffed a soft laugh, pressing a lazy kiss to her cheek. He didn’t realize, or maybe he just didn’t care, that Violeta had once loved him so fiercely, so completely—she’d never needed his love to validate hers. Not until that moment, anyway.