Caleb Galen was a pro at teasing women. Soon, he led me into ecstasy.

Right when we were about to hit the home run, Liam's face flashed across my mind. I couldn't bring myself to cheat on the man I would marry soon.

With that in mind, I bit my lower lip, sending pain coursing through my head. I sobered up and gathered my energy to throw Caleb off the bed. Grabbing a facial tool from the side, I aimed it at him and croaked, "Do not come any closer!"

Shocked by my sudden response, he put on a cold look. Then, he announced somberly, "Daphne, you can always say no. We're an entertainment establishment, but we won't do things against your will."

I fought my way out of my dizziness and grabbed a blanket to cover up. Gritting my teeth, I hissed at him, "I was here for a facial. I had no idea you had these unscrupulous dealings behind the business. Let's forget everything that happened today. You will put this behind you as well."

Grabbing my bag, I took out a few hundred dollar bills and tossed them onto the bed. Panting, I gasped, "This is payment for your silence. If Tanya asks about it, tell her nothing happened between us. Got it?"

Caleb leisurely put on the bathrobe. He went back to his indifferent, gentlemanly self, as though he didn't just go down on me.

I was in no mood to think further. My mind was a mess, and all I wanted was to leave this place as soon as possible.

I put on my clothes in a hurry before taking my bag and leaving the room.

Right as I emerged from the room, Liam called. "Darling, are you and Tanya done with the facial?"

His question brought me back to the scene in the room with Caleb. Guilt washed over me. Forcing a smile, I whispered, "I'm done, but Tanya's still in there. Can you pick me up first?"

After a long silence, he said to me, "Sure."

I sent my geolocation to Liam, and he arrived soon. He parked his car near the salon entrance, and I ran toward it. As I opened the door to the front passenger seat, I was surprised to see Tanya seated in what was supposed to be my seat.

Tanya, taken aback, composed herself and explained, "Daph, I ran into Liam when I was done with my facial. What took you so long?"

I pursed my lips and said nothing. In my silence, she left Liam's car and placed a hand on my neck. Rolling out my collar, she gasped in shock, "Daph, what's this on your neck!"

Following her exclamation, Liam fixed his scrutinizing gaze on me. I paused in shock as memories came back to me.

Caleb seemed to have left a hickey on my neck when we were being intimate. We practically did everything to each other except for intercourse.

My heart sank, and my eyes flickered. I whispered, "I guess it's some allergic reaction. I'm tired. Let's go home now."

"Sure. Let's grab something to eat."

I nodded at Tanya, who pulled me to sit with her in the backseat. I rolled up my collar and avoided Liam's eyes. Even though Caleb and I didn't have sex, we saw each other's naked bodies.

Liam was a possessive and conservative man. Knowing him, he'd go crazy if he learned about what happened between me and Caleb.

My listlessness continued throughout the meal. Liam sent Tanya home before dropping me off at mine.

The first thing I did at home was take a shower. I felt troubled after the shower, wondering if Tanya knew whether or not the salon was an entertainment establishment. It would be very wicked of her if she knowingly brought me there.

Besides, I was upset to find her in the front passenger seat of Liam's car and chatting merrily with him. I was reluctant to suspect my best friend, whom I grew up with. However, a woman's sixth sense was a force to be reckoned with.

After the shower, I called Tanya. She must have been busy because it took her a while to pick up.

Sounding hoarse, she said while panting, "What's wrong, darling? Do you miss me? But we've just parted!"

Tanya had always been rather bold and reckless. I could make out the sound of a guy panting heavily in the background.

Frowning, I confronted her, "Tanya, did you know that you brought me to a sex shop today?"

"And what's wrong with that? Daph, you're getting married soon. You should take the chance to have some fun!"

So, Tanya knew. I angrily barked, "Tanya, I'm different from you. You knew I was getting married to a conservative guy, but you still lied to me and brought me to a salon. Did you know I almost—"

My words piqued her interest. "Go on! I heard the new guy in room 208 was a virgin…"

"Nothing happened between us! Don't ever bring me to that kind of place. Forget about this visit. If you do this to me again, I'll drop you as a friend!"

Tanya was flustered by my furious response. She immediately promised, "I'm sorry, Daph. I wanted you to relax because you were stressed out by work."

She added, "Anyway, you didn't cheat on Liam, so you shouldn't worry about it. Who knows? Maybe Liam is having fun elsewhere too. I promise never to bring you to that place."

"That's impossible! Liam will never cheat on me. You should stop frequenting those places too. You never know how many women those guys had slept with; they might have STDs!"

With that, I hung up on Tanya.

…

The next morning, I went to work at my dad's company as usual. He founded a tech company, where Liam and I worked after we graduated college.

Three years after graduation, I had worked my way up to the role of a project manager, while Liam was made sales manager. We were dubbed the perfect couple in the company.

The thought of our wedding next month made me dizzy with happiness.

Just as I settled down and was about to start my laptop, I received a follow request on Instagram. The person even sent me a private message, "Daphne, accept my request. This is Caleb. You left something behind yesterday."

The message spooked me out. How did Caleb get my Instagram handle?

Suppressing my fears, I accepted his request. I wanted him to throw away whatever it was that I left behind, but he had already called me in the app.

I took his call. He began, "Daphne, you left your lipstick behind."

"I don't want it anymore. Throw it out."

"I wouldn't want to throw out anything that belongs to you, Daphne. I'm at the entrance of your workplace to drop off the lipstick."

"W-What did you say? You're at the entrance of my office? How do you know which company I work for?"

"I ran into you at your company's project launch event. Hurry up, or I'll go up to meet with you."

Caleb might come across as a gentleman, yet he was a slick man. I should have known better when he forced me into getting intimate yesterday.

He cornered me. I was helpless. The last thing I wanted was for Caleb to come for me. What if he bumped into Liam or one of my colleagues? I would have a hard time explaining myself.

When I hesitated, I heard him speaking to the security. "Hello, I'm here for Daphne—"

"Hey, do not come up. I'll get down right now. Wait for me at the café next to the office building. I'll be there in a minute."

After that, I begrudgingly rushed to the café next to the office.

Dressed in a white hoodie and a pair of denim jeans, Caleb exuded a casual, almost boyish charm. If I hadn't witnessed his sexual prowess in that room, I would have mistaken him for just another fresh graduate.

He arched an eyebrow in amusement when I approached him. Smirking, he said in a hoarse voice, "Daph, you're here."

Many of my colleagues frequented the café. They shot us curious looks when Caleb called me by my nickname.

"Daphne, your brother is really handsome," one of them commented.

"He's got to be a fresh graduate—he looks so young," another chimed in.

Brushing off their comments as best I could, I grabbed Caleb's hand and dragged him toward a private booth. Once inside, I spoke through gritted teeth, "I don't want the lipstick. Do not look for me again. Got it?"

"Daph, you're such a heartless woman. Aren't you afraid your boyfriend might find out about what happened yesterday?"