I took a deep breath and clenched my fist, forcing myself to stay calm. “What’s the meaning of this?”

Seeing my anger, Camilla immediately shrank behind Asher, her expression like a frightened kitten.

“Ash, I told you Avery would be upset. What should I do? It’s all my fault. Maybe I should just move out...” she croaked.

Asher gave her a comforting look and instinctively shielded her, frowning slightly as he turned to me.

“Avery, Camilla needs to stay in the master bedroom. There's nowhere to put your things, so just pile them up here temporarily.”

I laughed in disbelief.

If they wanted to play out their little fantasy, they could at least leave me out of it, right?

Shaking my head in frustration, I picked up my things to take them back to the master bedroom. “She can stay, but in the guest room.”

I’d barely taken two steps before Asher blocked my path.

“The guest room’s cluttered with storage items; it’ll take time to clear it out. Besides, Camilla isn’t in good health and needs a room with better light. She’ll just use the master bedroom for a few days; you can sleep in the study for now.”

His tone was so matter-of-fact that I stared at him, stunned. This was the man I’d been married to for six years, the one who had knelt in front of my parents and promised to protect me forever. I thought I already knew him, yet he repeatedly refreshed my knowledge.

We had three bedrooms in the house—one master and two guest rooms. Since my pregnancy, Asher had moved to one of the guest rooms to ensure I had a peaceful night’s rest. The other guest room was filled with storage and unused items.

Looking at my personal belongings piled haphazardly by the door, I couldn’t help but laugh bitterly. “You had time to move my things, but not to clear out the guest room?”

Squinting my eyes, I spat sarcastically, “Asher, you knew the guest room wasn’t ready—why did you bring her here?”

“Can’t she stay at a hotel? How can you tell your wife to sleep in the study?”

Asher stood like a protector, keeping Camilla safely behind him. Seeing my fury, he frowned and said, “Hotels aren’t clean, and Camilla’s always been sensitive. She can’t sleep well in unfamiliar places.”

“Avery, you know how fragile Camilla’s health has been since we were kids. Anyway, it’s just for a few days.” He then sighed, as if making a generous compromise. “I know this is hard on you, so how about you sleep in the guest room, and I’ll take the study.”

He looked at me with the earnest belief that he was offering a fair and reasonable solution. But all he’d done was make me lose all faith in him.

I turned my gaze to Camilla’s innocent-looking face, my voice dripping with sarcasm. “Can’t sleep well in unfamiliar places? But somehow you’re fine with my bed?”

“Well, Ms. Brooks, since you’re so fond of taking other people’s things, consider it yours.”

I let my things drop, then dialed a moving company.

Camilla, playing the victim, clutched my sleeve and apologized softly. “I’m sorry, Avery. I didn’t realize you’d be this upset about me staying here. It’s all my fault. I’ll move out right away.”

But she made no move to leave. Instead, with tears shimmering in her eyes, she continued, “Ash, please don’t ruin your marriage because of me. It’s my fault this time. Please, go and comfort Avery...”

Asher looked at her, filled with sympathy and affection. The more she lowered herself, the more protective he became.

“You don’t have to leave,” he said, patting her shoulder. “It’s just the master bedroom—I still get to decide who stays in it.”

Then he turned to me with a cold glare.

"Avery, I bought this house. It's up to me who uses it," Asher said, his tone cold. "It’s just Camilla borrowing a room for a few days. Is it really necessary for you to be this unreasonable?"

I stared at him, speechless.

It was true he bought this house, but he seemed to forget that I used to own one too. When his company was on the verge of financial ruin, he held me from behind, pleading desperately, “Honey, let’s sell your place. I’ll buy it back for you as soon as the company is back on its feet.”

At first, I refused outright. "Isn’t there any other way?" I asked him, shaking my head. "That place is part of my family's legacy—it was my parents’ gift before we got married. I don’t want to sell it.”

But he was determined, and for two weeks, he tried everything to convince me. Seeing him—a grown man of six feet—cry helplessly, clutching his knees in despair, broke my heart. So, I finally agreed.

After the crisis passed, I waited for him to buy it back, but every time I asked, he brushed me off with vague excuses.

“It’s not a good time to buy property now; we’d lose a lot on it,” he said. “And besides, isn’t this place our home? I’d never kick you out.”

Now, I could only laugh at that idea of "our home."

I sat quietly on the sofa, waiting. Asher seemed to think I’d come to my senses and exhaled in relief. But a moment later, there was a knock at the door, and I got up to answer it—but Asher was one step faster than me..

“I’ll get it!”

At the door were movers in work uniforms, glancing between us, confused. “Hello, we’re from the moving company. Which items are we packing up?”

Asher froze. “You must have the wrong address. No one here is moving.”

I got up and cut him off. “Actually, I am. Come on in.”

Stunned, Asher looked back at me. His face grew tense as he saw me avoiding his gaze altogether. “What are you doing? This is the only place you have. Where would you even go?”

Ah, so he knew this was my only home. “So you were counting on the fact I had nowhere else to go to treat me like this?”

He faltered, but then his expression turned icy again. “Avery, what is going on in your head? Camilla’s only here for a few days. She’s not trying to claim the master bedroom permanently. Can’t you just stop making a scene?”

"I'm not making a scene," I replied, calmly packing my belongings with the movers, not even sparing him a glance.

Frustrated, he kicked one of my boxes, breaking it open, as if to force me to stop. I just looked at him coolly, letting the movers seal it up again.

"Asher," I said, watching him with calm disdain, "this only makes me more disappointed in you."

A flash of panic crossed his eyes. He took a step closer, trying to hold me. "Avery..."

Behind him, Camilla suddenly burst into tears. "It’s all my fault, Asher! If it weren’t for me wanting to stay, you wouldn’t be in this situation, and Avery wouldn’t be so upset.”

Asher's hands stopped in mid-air as he let go of me, turning instead to comfort his little “soulmate.”