During a game of Truth or Dare at a company gathering, my wife, Whitney Stuart, picks dare. She has to share a passionate kiss with a man for 30 seconds while holding a sheet of tissue between their lips.

Even though I, her lawfully wedded husband, am right there with her, she doesn't hesitate to choose her assistant, Zach Green, instead.

Once the 30 seconds run over, the two of them reluctantly part, the tissue now drenched with their saliva.

During the second round, I end up getting chosen.

Chuckling, I say, "I pick dare."

I turn to the side and kiss the female intern sitting next to me.

A stiff silence fell over the room. Just seconds ago, it had been full of jeering laughter and the gloating faces of everyone busy adding to the drama by stirring the pot. Now, it was so quiet that one could hear a pin drop.

Three whole seconds passed.

"Holy crap!"

"What the heck did I just see? Am I too drunk?"

"Simon, are you out of your mind?"

"Who did he kiss? The intern?"

After the silence came even more chaos than before. Every single person in the room was whipped into a frenzy. The screams and shouts were interspersed with the sounds of people slamming their hands on the table and glasses shattering.

It all came together in a deafening roar.

My wife, Whitney Stuart, shoved Zach Green, her assistant, away hard. Her face turned deathly pale for a split second before turning red with fury. She pointed at me, her finger trembling.

"Simon Lockwood! What the hell do you think you're doing? How dare you cheat on me right to my face? Let go of her! Let her go right now!"

Zach looked just as shocked and infuriated. Yet, deep within his eyes, there was a flicker of annoyance at the fact that I'd ruined his fun, along with smug delight.

I slowly lifted my head and released Cindy Hurst, the intern I'd just kissed. Like a startled deer, she stumbled back a step, covering her mouth. Her cheeks were so red that they looked like apples.

Without looking at her, I slowly wiped the corners of my lips with my thumb before turning to Whitney. In an eerily calm voice, I asked, "Aren't we playing Truth or Dare, Ms. Stuart? I chose dare, so I picked someone to carry out the dare with. What's wrong with that?"

"Why, you…" Whitney trembled hard, so outraged that she could barely speak. "How dare you choose to accept that dare? What gives you the audacity? You could've just accepted the punishment instead! Who the hell do you think you are?"

"Hm?" I raised a brow, my tone mocking. "So you do know the rules of this game, then? Which means you could've conceded earlier and taken three penalty shots instead. So why did you choose to go ahead with the dare? Are the rules of the game different when it comes to you?"

"I…"

Whitney couldn't find the words to retort, her expression growing even uglier before she snapped at me again.

"If you're drunk, Simon, get your ass back to the house. Stop embarrassing me! Just wait until we get home—I'll make you pay for this!"

"I'm not drunk," I replied with a shrug, my expression innocent.

"I'm just following your example," I reminded Whitney. "If you can accept the dare and choose to kiss Mr. Green, then why can't I do the same and choose to kiss this young woman… Cindy Hurst, was it?

"Do you get to dictate the rules of this game, Whitney? Are you saying that you're the only one who gets to do whatever you want, while everyone else must do what you tell them to?"

"Don't give me that crap!"

Whitney completely lost it. She grabbed a wine glass off the table and hurled it straight at me.

"You've lost your mind, Simon! You did this on purpose just to disgust me, didn't you? You're the one who's leeching off my family, staying in our house, and using our money! Who the hell do you think you are to challenge me, huh? What makes you think you can even touch another woman?"

The glass flew past my ear and smashed against the wall behind me, shattering into pieces. The wine splashed everywhere.

The room instantly fell quiet. Everyone was startled by Whitney's violent fit.

I remained where I was without even flinching. Eyeing her coldly, I declared, "You need to get a few things straight, Whitney. First of all, I have never spent a single cent of the Stuart family's money. And secondly…"

My gaze swept past her to Zach's ashen face before settling back on her. In a crystal clear voice, I said, "I'm free to touch whoever I want, just like how you're free to kiss whoever you want. I only did the same thing you did."

"The same thing I did?"

Whitney looked like she'd just heard the biggest joke in the world. She jabbed a finger at Cindy and me, her voice shrill as she shrieked, "You're comparing that random bitch to me? Sounds like you need to learn your place, Simon.

"You're just a dog that my family, the Stuarts, took in—a lowly beast living off the crumbs from our table! If I tell you to jump, the only thing you can do is ask me how high! And if I tell you to get on your knees, you can't get up until I say so! How dare you bark at your master like that, huh?"

The surrounding coworkers and company executives all wore different expressions. There was a mix of disdain, sympathy, and excitement as they watched the spectacle unfolding before them.

"Ms. Stuart's right! You've crossed the line, Simon!"

Zach finally got his opportunity to put on a show.

With his arm around the trembling Whitney to support her, he righteously berated me, "Ms. Stuart has been nothing but generous to you, but instead of being grateful, you do something this disgusting in public! Not only did you humiliate her, but you're even taking advantage of an intern! How can you be such a monster?"

"Exactly! He's so shameless!"

"Where does a freeloading man like him, who lives off his wife's family, even get the nerve?"

"Call the police, Ms. Stuart! Report him for sexual harassment!"

"That's right! Take him to court and have him thrown in prison!"

I looked at the crowd of self-righteous "defenders of justice" in front of me. I also took in the livid expression on Whitney's face and the smug satisfaction written all over Zach's. It all seemed like such a ridiculous farce to me.

I slowly approached Cindy and asked calmly, "Ms. Hurst, did my earlier actions count as sexual harassment against you? Do you need an apology from me? Or do you want to call the police?"

Cindy froze. She looked at me before glancing at the beady-eyed people around us—especially Whitney's murderous gaze. Her lips quivered, and she found it impossible to speak.

"Cindy! Don't be scared! Ms. Stuart will stand up for you!" Zach fanned the flames. "We mustn't let a scumbag like him get away with this!"

Whitney also snarled sharply, "Go on, Cindy! Tell us whether he forced himself on you! As long as you testify against him, I guarantee the company will give you a full-time position and the best resources as well! But if you don't tell the truth, you can forget about continuing with your internship!"

She was blatantly resorting to both the carrot and the stick.

Cindy paled, and her entire body trembled even harder. Looking at her, I spoke up again.

"Don't be scared. Just tell the truth. I'm here. I won't let anyone force you into doing anything you don't want to do."

Perhaps my calm, steady manner gave her a little courage. Or maybe it was her own defiant streak, buried deep within her, that had finally been awakened.

After taking a deep breath, she said, her voice soft and somewhat nasally yet impossibly clear, "H-He didn't force himself on me… H-He asked me for permission first…"

Even though her voice was barely above a whisper, in the silence of the room, everyone heard her.

"What did you just say?" Whitney couldn't believe what she just heard. "Cindy Hurst! I dare you to say that again!"

Zach got antsy as well. "Cindy! Did he traumatize you? Are you intimidated by him? Don't be afraid! Ms. Stuart is right here!"

Tears clung to Cindy's face, but there was now a trace of determination in her eyes.

"Ms. Stuart, Mr. Green, Mr. Lockwood was just following the rules of the game… and… he really did ask me first..."

Even though her voice kept getting softer, it was clear what she said.

"Why, you ungrateful little bitch!"

Whitney was so furious that she nearly fainted on the spot. She had never expected a lowly intern to dare defy her.

"You're fired, Cindy!"

Cindy instantly went pale, and she hurriedly waved her hands in panic.