The night my wife went on a business trip, I received a call from the airline.

"Is this Mr. Richard Lambert? Your wife, Mrs. Susan Lambert, has purchased two aviation insurance policies. Please verify the information."

Two? My wife was traveling alone, so why would she have two insurance policies?

Looking at the information from the airline, one policy belonged to my wife, Susan and the other to her intern, Mike Specter.

My eyes stung. I picked up my phone and called Susan, "Are you traveling alone?"

She was breathing heavily on the other end of the line, "Yes, of course I am. What's wrong?"

I looked at the ticket purchase record on my computer, my body swaying for a moment. Then I calmly said, "Nothing. What are you doing?"

"Huh... I'm running. I'm hanging up now. You're home alone, take care of yourself."

Running? I smiled sarcastically. Without you, I could take better care of myself.

——

When did Susan and Mike start dating?

I remembered what happened a week ago. That day, I needed Susan's signature on a document, but I saw Mike coming out of her office.

When Mike saw me, his eyes were visibly flustered, but I didn't notice and asked him, "Is Miss Susan in there?"

He glanced away and pointed at the office, "Yes, Miss Susan is in there."

Then he shouted, "Miss Susan, Mr. Lambert is here."

At the time, I scolded him for yelling in the office, but now I understood he was tipping off Susan to clean up the mess and avoid me getting caught off guard.

The same thing happened three days ago, on Mike's birthday. I saw a watch on his wrist, the latest Patek Philippe model, which he couldn't afford with his salary.

I smiled and asked him, "Is it a gift from your girlfriend?"

His face paled and he lowered his head in confusion, stammering. I thought he was worried I'd despise him for being a gigolo. So I patted his shoulder with a smile and turned to Susan, saying, "Honey, I want a Patek Philippe watch, too."

Susan replied, "Why buy one? It's so expensive! Watches are just for telling time. Just buy something decent."

Well, now I realized she wasn't too bothered by the price; she just didn't want to buy it for me.

In reality, everything had been obvious for a long time, but I didn't think much of it. From the beginning, I had absolute trust in Susan. And yet, she exploited that trust to hurt me again and again.

Tonight's insurance information and phone call made me see her clearly and face reality.

If she didn’t love me, why should I risk getting hurt and forcing her?

After glancing at the insurance information on my phone, I went into the study and opened Susan's computer. I gathered all of the evidence and file for divorce!

The startup prompt asked for a password. I tried my birthday, her birthday and our anniversary, but none of them worked. My eyes darkened for a moment and I picked up my phone and called my programmer friend.

"Do me a favor. Get the computer that requires a password to boot up and retrieve all the chat logs, photos and videos, even those that have been deleted."

"No problem. I'll come to your house after work to get the computer."

"Yes!"

Just one night later, my friend showed up with his computer, angrily declaring, "Divorce. You must divorce her!"

I didn't say anything, but took the computer and examined it.

The first thing I looked at was the chat logs.

[Miss Susan, was it exciting at home yesterday?]

[You're so mean. You kept me on edge the whole time.]

[Hey, didn't you enjoy it too? Miss Susan, when can we do it again?]

[I think you've gone crazy.]

[I'm crazy because I love you, dear Miss Susan. Come on.]

[I'm really obsessed with you. Let's do it the day after tomorrow. He's working overtime and won't be home tonight, so you can sneak over.]

My face expressionless, I scrolled down with the mouse. The ambiguous, explicit chat logs stung my eyes.

Next came the photos.

One showed the two of them lying naked on the bed, making hand gestures.

One showed them kissing on the sofa, face to face.

One showed them feeding each other with a spoon.

Each photo was like a sharp scalpel, slicing into my heart. What was even more unbelievable was that there were videos.

After six years of marriage, Susan and I were so shy about turning on the lights when we were intimate, yet she let Mike film them without a care. In the office, on the bed, on the sofa, in the kitchen, in the bathroom…they were everywhere.

My vision went dark and I had to hold on to the table to keep from falling.

It turned out that betrayal could truly transform a woman beyond recognition.

I slammed the computer shut, leaning against the table, breathing heavily. My friend patted my shoulder and asked, "Do you want me to help you find a lawyer?"

I shook my head, "No!"

I then took out a USB drive and copied all the chat logs, photos and videos onto it. This was painful, but it was also the decisive evidence that would help me win the case.

I saw Susan again a week later. I was in the office working when she burst in with Mike.

"Honey, I'm back. Are you surprised? Are you happy?" Susan opened her arms.

In the past, I would have definitely walked over to her, hugged her, kissed her hair and said, "Thank you for your hard work, welcome back."

But now, I just gave a soft "hmm," looked at her calmly and asked, "What's wrong?"

Susan was stunned by my reaction and asked, puzzled, "Honey, are you feeling unwell today?"

"No, just a little tired."

Susan immediately walked over to me with a worried look on her face, her voice tinged with anxiety, "What's wrong? Did I not take good care of myself while I was away?"

I shook my head. It was not the physical exhaustion, it was the mental exhaustion!

At this moment, Mike spoke up, "Miss Susan, since Mr. Lambert isn't feeling well today, let's meet again another day. There's no rush for a permanent position."

Hearing this, I turned to Susan and asked, "Are you here to get him a permanent position?"

"Yes!" Susan nodded matter-of-factly. "Mike has been with the company for almost two weeks now. He's working very hard in every aspect. I think he can definitely get a permanent position sooner."

Working hard in every aspect? Did that mean working hard in the office, at home, on the couch?

I lowered my head, trying not to let Susan see the sarcasm on my lips. He was already been a permanent position in less than two weeks. Was his promotion to department manager the next step?

Susan didn't notice my annoyance and continued, "Because you're the HR manager, I brought Mike to you first. With your approval and my recommendation, Mike's permanent position is a done deal. He'll be able to better assist me in my work."

So I was part of her game, too? My heart ached!

"Okay, I agree!"

Susan wasn't expecting me to agree so readily. She was stunned for a long moment before asking, "Honey, you're not just trying to tease me, are you?"

I smiled. "You came in person, so of course I have to give you face."

"Honey, you're so kind. Here's a reward!" Susan happily hugged me, pouting and kissing me on the cheek.

I ducked! Susan finally realized something was wrong and frowned.

"Honey, what's wrong with you today?"

"Didn't I say I'm a little tired?"

The truth was, I felt dirty. Thinking of the kisses she'd made in the video made me feel sick.

"I'll reward you when we get home tonight," Susan whispered in my ear.

"I'm working overtime tonight, so I won't be back."

As soon as she said that, I clearly saw Mike's eyes light up and he winked at Susan repeatedly.

Susan blushed and glared at him, a flirtatious expression she'd never displayed in front of me before. Watching the two of them flirting so unconcernedly in front of me, my heart ached even more and I quickly pushed Susan away.

"I have work to do."

"Then we won't bother you anymore. Miss Susan, let's go." Mike's face was filled with impatience.

Susan looked at me, hesitated for a moment and finally followed Mike out.

As they left the office, before the door even closed, Mike's hand impatiently rested on Susan's buttocks, followed by a muffled grumble of anger and a chuckle.

The office door slammed shut, blocking my view.

I slumped in my chair, closing my eyes in pain, tears streaming down my cheeks.

Because no intern had ever been hired as a full-time employee within two weeks, the boss had organized a meeting specifically for this purpose, inviting Mike to share his experience. Also in attendance were all the department managers and more than half of the employees.

When the meeting began, I found a seat and watched Mike take the stage. He was wearing a well-tailored suit today, his hair meticulously coiffed and his expression serious, giving him the air of a professional elite.

"First of all, I want to thank Miss Susan Collin for giving me this opportunity to become a full-time employee. Since I joined the company, Miss Susan has taken care of me in every way. It's fair to say that without Miss Susan, I wouldn't be where I am today..." Mike spoke eloquently on the stage.

Below, Susan listened attentively. The light in her eyes as she looked at Mike was something I had never seen before, a light that treated him like a treasure, eager to show him off to the world.

At that moment, my heart ached so much that I could barely breathe. There was a time when I desperately wished Susan would give me the same look; even for a moment, I would have been satisfied. But it was ultimately just a wishful thinking.

After Mike finished, the head boss stood up and applauded, then invited Susan to speak. After all, Mike was her intern. Susan stood up. Tonight, she wasn't wearing her usual business attire, but a stunning evening gown. Her delicate makeup complemented Mike on stage perfectly.

She picked up the microphone, "Mike is the best intern I've ever had, bar none..."

After hearing this, I couldn't bear to listen to the rest of the conversation.

One of them said they wouldn't be where they were today without the other, while the other considered the other the best. They cherished each other, their hearts connected!

What was I? Just another part of their play.

"Finally, I want to thank my husband, Mr. Lambert. His approval of Mike's permanent position gave me confidence."

Susan seemed to finally remember me and smiled as she approached me, "Husband, please say a few words too."

The audience erupted in applause.

I sat motionless in my chair, staring at Susan expressionlessly.

Instantly, the applause ceased and a whisper of conversation and discussion lingered. "What happened?"

"I don't know. Mr. Lambert looks so grim."

"Is it because of Mike?"

Susan frowned at first, then her expression gradually darkened.

"Honey, what are you fussing about?"

Just then, the conference room door opened and a middle-aged man in a suit and tie walked in, walking straight up to Susan.

"Excuse me, Miss Susan Collin?"

Susan frowned. "I'm Susan Collin. Who are you?"

"I'm the lawyer Mr. Richard hired to handle his divorce. My name is Harvey Pearson," the middle-aged man introduced himself, then held out a piece of paper.

"Mr. Richard has filed for divorce. This is the court summons. The hearing is scheduled for next week. Please be there, Miss Susan."