"Fine, I admit I lied to you. Yesterday wasn't a business thing.

"Chase got promoted and I was just celebrating with him. Having dinner with a close friend is perfectly normal, isn't it?"

"Then where did this necklace come from?"

"Chase gave me this necklace. We're close friends. Can't he give me a gift?"

"Right. Sleeping with your 'friend' makes you more like his mistress than his buddy."

Scarlett froze, her eyes filled with panic. "What are you saying? I didn't do anything."

Watching her expression, I understood immediately. Chase must have blocked Scarlett from seeing the video he posted last night.

He was deliberately showing off to me.

"Whether you did or didn't doesn't matter anymore."

I turned and went back to my room, slamming the door hard and leaving Scarlett standing alone in the living room.

…

It was a clear night after the rain when Scarlett and I first met. On my way home from work, I passed by a dark alley behind a bar and heard a woman's faint cries for help.

Driven by a sense of justice, I charged straight in. Scarlett was being pinned to the ground at the time, kicking with her bare legs and struggling desperately.

Several punks told me to mind my own business, but I was young and still had a fiery sense of righteousness. I grabbed a brick and rushed at them.

The thugs got what they deserved, but I ended up covered in injuries. An artery in my leg was severed and the bleeding would not stop.

If the ambulance had not arrived in time, I probably would have lost my life that day.

During my recovery, Scarlett came to take care of me whenever she could. As time passed, feelings developed between us.

However, the moment we announced our relationship, Scarlett's mother vehemently opposed it.

That was when I learned that Scarlett was actually the heir to the Hayes Corporation, worth billions. I was just an ordinary office worker. We were not from the same world.

I felt inferior at the time, thinking I was not good enough for Scarlett, but somehow Grandma had a connection with the Hayes family.

Under the combined pressure from Grandma and Scarlett, her mother eventually agreed.

After marriage, I became a live-in son-in-law. Even the Hayes family household staff looked down on me.

Despite the humiliation, I treated Scarlett like a treasure, handling her as if she were made of glass.

As a corporate heiress, Scarlett had plenty of faults. She was demanding, willful, had a serious case of princess syndrome, and needed to control everything around her.

I tolerated everything and obeyed her every word, taking care of her with meticulous attention.

My friends laughed at me, saying even lapdogs were not as servile as I was. Was I even a man?

I did not care. I genuinely wanted to do these things. I wanted to spoil her, love her, care for her, and live happily ever after with her.

All of that was shattered when Chase returned from studying abroad. The two had an extraordinary relationship and were inseparable during their school days.

Although he presented himself as her male best friend, I noticed that their relationship went far beyond friendship.

From what I understood, the two had always stayed in contact and never lost touch. Chase had voluntarily returned to the country, and Scarlett was giddy with excitement that day.

She brought me along to pick him up from the airport. I had never seen her so excited.

The moment they met, they embraced tightly while I felt like a third wheel. However, at the time, I did not think anything of it. I thought it was normal for close friends, especially 'best friends,' to act that way.

When Scarlett introduced me, Chase looked at me strangely, though he politely greeted me out of courtesy.

Thinking back now, his heart must have been full of jealousy and hostility.

The first thing Chase did after returning to the country was join Hayes Corporation. With his connections with Scarlett, he smoothly became a mid-level manager.

I, on the other hand, had started as the lowest-ranking employee. Aside from a few top executives, no one knew I was the CEO's husband.

From that point on, Scarlett and Chase were practically inseparable. They commuted together and he would often drop by our house.

To help maintain Scarlett's image, Grandma became the household cook. Her cooking completely won over Scarlett's taste buds. Whenever she did not have work dinners, she would come home to eat Grandma's meals.

The day before yesterday, Scarlett had a craving for clam chowder.

When Grandma heard about it, she braved the rain to go to the market for fresh ingredients. On the way, she slipped and fell, hitting her head.

Grandma seemed fine at the time and did not want to trouble Scarlett. I was away on a business trip when I got the call, so I immediately phoned Scarlett and asked her to take Grandma to the hospital for a checkup.

Scarlett refused, saying she had an important client meeting with Chase at the time and did not have time to deal with it.

Left with no choice, I called an ambulance myself and asked a neighbor for help getting Grandma to the hospital.

It was because of that delay that after several hours in the operating room, Grandma ultimately did not make it.

Her only thought before closing her eyes was seeing Scarlett one more time to tell her the chowder was ready.

Afterward, I discovered that the hotel Chase and Scarlett had checked into was right next to our house, less than 300 feet away.

If Scarlett had spared even a moment of her time, Grandma might have survived.

I turned off the lights and pulled the covers over me, forcing down my emotions as I tried to fall asleep when Scarlett came in.

She had taken a shower and put on lingerie before habitually lying down beside me. "Still mad at me?"

I curled up on one side, saying nothing. Scarlett reached over, wrapped her arms around me, and gently kissed my back.

"Honey, I admit I was wrong. I shouldn't have lied to you.

"But Chase and I really do have a pure friendship. That necklace doesn't mean anything. Stop overthinking it.

"You're not a child anymore. Why are you throwing a tantrum? Did you really mean what you said about divorce?

"If Grandma found out, she would be so upset."

I spoke coldly. "Don't bring up Grandma. You have no right to."

Scarlett sat up and turned on the light, her temper flaring. "Ron, don't push your luck. Haven't I apologized enough already?

"Grandma treats me like her own granddaughter. Why can't I mention her?

"You don't believe me? I'll call Grandma right now and have her come over to settle this."

"Go ahead." With that, I got up from the bed and left the bedroom for the study.

Scarlett froze for a moment, then slammed the door shut.

The next morning, I came downstairs to see Chase sitting in his Mercedes, smoking a cigarette with a bouquet of flowers on the passenger seat.

When he saw me, he stubbed out his cigarette and waved. "Morning, Ron. Where's Scarlett?"

I let out a cold laugh. "She's upstairs. Go find her yourself."

Just then, Scarlett came down in high heels. She had changed into a new pair of black stockings and put on smoky eye makeup that gave her an icy, seductive look.

Desire flashed in Chase's eyes as he immediately got out of the car to greet her.

"Scarlett, you look absolutely stunning today. Even these flowers pale in comparison to you.

"I ordered these first thing this morning. Happy Valentine's Day."

Scarlett could not resist such sweet talk. She glanced at me casually, accepted the flowers, and thanked him.

I smiled, though my eyes were ice cold.

Chase continued maintaining his image. "Ron, don't read too much into this. Scarlett and I made a little pact back in the day about flowers on Valentine's Day.

"I was studying abroad before and didn't have time, so now that I'm back I want to make up for it."

Scarlett glanced at me and climbed into the passenger seat with an air of superiority. "Let's go. There’s no point explaining too much to this blockhead."

Chase pretended to be surprised. "What happened? Did you two have a fight?"

"As if he would dare. He just brought up divorce with me." Scarlett still had that spoiled heiress attitude. "Just because you gave me a necklace."

Chase wanted to laugh but held it back. He looked at me with undisguised contempt.

"Oh come on, Ron. I thought it was something serious. That necklace was actually meant for my mom."

"But my mom doesn't like wearing this kind of thing, so I thought it would be a waste. That's why I gave it to Scarlett instead."

"I know Ron well enough. He definitely won't mind."

Everything Chase said felt like manipulation. I gave him a cold look and turned to leave.

"Hey, wait. Ron, don't overthink this. It's all a misunderstanding!"

"Forget it, Chase. He's just stubborn. Let him do whatever he wants. Let's go."

…

Over the next few days, Scarlett treated me like I was invisible. She deliberately avoided me and gave me no chance to speak.

Whenever I brought up divorce, she played deaf and dumb.

In our seven years of marriage, we had argued a few times before. When Grandma was around, she would comfort me, persuade me, then cook all of Scarlett's favorite dishes to please her and play peacemaker.

From Grandma's perspective, marriage was not easy, but any fight could be resolved before the night was over.

This time, Grandma was gone, and I had woken up. I knew that being a lapdog would leave me with nothing in the end. I was determined to get divorced.

One afternoon while I was busy with work, my supervisor Derek Palmer came over and told me to help a certain Mr. Morrison replace a few water cooler bottles.

The Mr. Morrison in question was naturally Chase. After that night at the hotel, he had become the general manager. His new office was right across from Scarlett's.

Derek had been brought in by Chase and was a classic bootlicker, a loyal dog at Chase's beck and call. During work hours, I had endured plenty of grief from this lapdog.

Today, I refused. I had been injured before and could not lift heavy objects. Derek's expression darkened instantly.

"Ron, if you still want to work here, get moving. This is an order. It's not up for discussion.

"You're a grown man, yet can't even carry a few bottles of water. Aren't you embarrassed?

"I think you're just trying to slack off."

His voice was already loud, and when he spoke, everyone in the office heard him. They all stared at me and whispered among themselves.

"What's gotten into Ron today? How dare he defy his supervisor?"

"Maybe he's in a bad mood."

"With the job market this bad, isn't he afraid of getting fired?"

"He's been at the company for seven years. He's an old hand. Of course he's not afraid."

Derek's pride took a hit and his expression grew darker.

"Ron, you've got some nerve. Think you can ignore me? Keep this up and you can kiss your performance bonus goodbye."

"Dock whatever you want. Fire me if you have the guts!"

"You think I won't dare?"

I looked at him with contempt, kicked my chair aside, grabbed my bag, and walked away.

Derek froze for a moment. When he came to his senses, his face burned with humiliation. He shoved me.

Caught off guard, my body hit the corner of a desk, exactly where my old injury was. The piercing pain nearly made me pass out.

Just then, Scarlett and Chase walked by together.

"What's all this commotion? Don't any of you have work to do?"

Scarlett stood with her hands on her hips as she said this. From start to finish, she did not glance at me once.

Derek immediately put on a groveling smile and explained apologetically.

"Ms. Hayes, Ron refused to follow orders and disrupted office operations. It's my fault for not managing him properly. I'll make sure to discipline him."

Bootlickers like him just never knew when to quit.

Chase perked up and asked with false concern. "What did you ask him to do that made him so resistant?"

"I only asked him to carry a few water bottles. He refused, and when I called him out on it, he threw a fit."

Scarlett finally looked at me. She asked coldly. "Ron, you argued with your supervisor over something this small?"

I was still enduring the pain and had not yet opened my mouth when Chase jumped in.

"Ms. Hayes, please calm down. Ron probably has his reasons for refusing his supervisor's work assignment."

"There's no need for you to speak up for him. The company has rules and regulations. It's not like we don't pay him. Why shouldn't he follow his supervisor's work arrangements?"

Scarlett's gaze turned ice cold. "I think he's deliberately being disruptive."