Anya Sawyer and I have been married for eight years.

In that time, she brought 99 men back home.

One day, I found myself looking at the 100th young man she had brought home ever since we got married.

He shot me a taunting look before turning to Anya. "Ms. Sawyer, is this your useless husband?"

Anya leaned into her seat and replied with a lazy yes.

The young man patted my cheek with a grin. "Tonight, I'll show you what a proper man is capable of."

…

That evening, I was forced to sit in the living room and listen to their moans all night long.

The next morning, Anya ordered me to prepare breakfast for her as usual.

I refused.

She seemed to have forgotten our marriage was by contract.

That day just so happened to be the third-to-last day of our contract.

The 100th Lover

Anya Sawyer was surprised by my staunch refusal.

This was the first time in eight years that I've ever refused a request from her. She was so shocked that she started scrutinizing me.

"Shane, are you still out of sorts from last night? Were you so shaken that you lost your marbles?"

I silently stared at her, not responding in any way.

After a while, Anya grew unsettled by my stare. So, she impatiently broke the silence, hissing, "If you won't do it, then fine! Why are you staring at me?"

As she said that, she gestured and called for the butler to get breakfast ready.

Just then, the young man she brought back last night approached me with a grin.

"So, how was my performance last night? Did you touch yourself listening to us?" he drawled.

He was about to say more, but Anya dragged him away. "Stop yapping and get ready for breakfast."

The young man raised his eyebrows at me with his eyes gleaming with overwhelming glee and pride.

Anya and the young man kept flirting at the dining table as they ate.

I did not even raise my head. Instead, I was busy thinking about how I should spend my days in the future.

Time passed. Suddenly, someone patted me on the arm.

When I looked up, I found Anya standing next to me with a dark look on her face.

"What is it?" I shot her a confused look.

She said nothing. Instead, she continued to stare at me with emotions I could not decipher flashing in her eyes. "What were you thinking about so deeply?" she finally inquired.

I blinked at her, somewhat dumbstruck that she would even ask me that. So, I told her the truth. "I'm thinking about my future."

Anya clicked her tongue upon hearing that. "What else can you do besides house chores?"

I wasn't fazed even though those demeaning words slipped from her lips so naturally.

I was already used to it.

In the eight years of our marriage, I'd basically abandoned all personal time in order to take good care of her. My everyday life revolved around her wants and needs.

I'd nearly forgotten what I was like when I still had dreams of my own.

…

Eight years ago, I was in desperate need of cash due to my mother's illness.

I was at the end of my rope when Anya appeared, saying she would offer me five million. However, that money was only up for grabs if I agreed to marry her.

I also had to help her manage her family.

For my mother's sake, I agreed to the deal.

Over the last eight years, I've watched her come home with different men.

Once, Anya stared at me with unusually solemn eyes despite being completely sloshed. "Shane, we belong to two different worlds. Don't fall for me," she slurred.

I always thought Anya was a woman who had no idea what love was supposed to be like.

Then, I found out a year ago that she had a first love who passed away from an illness. The young man Anya brought home last night actually resembled her dead love.

Hence, I was not surprised to see him at breakfast with her.

Regardless, I'd been planning my departure for quite some time now.

Anya noticed my absentmindedness, so she called out my name in annoyance.

Her impatient tone quickly snapped me out of my thoughts.

"I want to get a job," I said, calmly looking into her frustrated eyes.

The Crash

Anya let out a sardonic chuckle.

"With your skills, I suppose you'd do well as a janitor at Sawyer Group. After all, you can't even compare to a fresh graduate like John."

I was just about to reply when John Williams, her newest bedmate, walked out of the bedroom.

"Anya, do I look nice in this?"

He was wearing the outfit Anya bought for her first love every year.

Anya slapped me across the face when I accidentally touched it while cleaning the room.

Right now, there wasn't a single hint of anger on her face. Instead, she was solemnly examining John from head to toe with a satisfied look on her face.

"You do. You're also free to wear any outfit in there."

John posed for her, curling his lips into a smug smile as he turned to me, saying, "Shane, do I look nice?"

I nodded as I tried to think of a sincere compliment.

"You look good."

My response shocked him.

Before he could react, I turned and retreated into my room.

I could leave in three days. It really was about time for me to start packing.

Anya called me not long after I returned to my bedroom.

"John needs to return to his campus. Drive him back."

I couldn't help but frown at her demand.

"Don't you have a driver?"

This was the second time in a row I'd rejected Anya's request. At this point, she could no longer hide how my disobedience was infuriating her.

"Are you going to be this contrary for the entire day?"

Before she could continue with her rant, I agreed to her request.

Anya was immediately mollified as she remarked imperiously, "This argument wouldn't have happened if you'd just agreed in the first place."

When I left the dressing room, I found Anya waiting for me in the courtyard with John.

"Hurry up! John has an exam coming up. Stop dallying."

John turned toward me with a large grin.

"Thank you, Shane."

When John and Anya parted, they took a moment to exchange passionate kisses.

John turned to shoot me a mocking look as he got into the car.

"Sorry, Shane. Anya was a little too passionate. Does she always treat you like that?"

John's grin sharpened when I did not bother responding.

"Why would a woman like her fall for a man like you? You're so old and dull," he said snidely.

Soon, he fell silent. It was likely that he'd grown bored talking to a wall.

Just as we were about to arrive at his school, a car going the opposite way lost control and came screeching toward us.

I hastily swerved to the other side.

Despite my quick reflexes, we were still hit.

After the car crash, I felt an intense pain throbbing in my chest and leg.

Then, I heard John's groans coming from the rubble.

When I turned to look at him, I saw that he was completely fine aside from a tiny gash on his hand.

Still, I worried that he might be injured in places I could not see.

The ambulance soon arrived and rescued us.

I suffered a small fracture in my left leg.

Meanwhile, the only wound on John was a gash on his hand.

Once the doctor was done dressing my wound, Anya arrived at the scene.

She practically ran over to John's side to ask how he was holding up.

John lapped up her attention, whining about his hand hurting.

That prompted Anya to bark at the driver to rush John to the hospital.

She passed by me twice, but not once did her eyes ever glance at me.

My lips stretched wide into a grin.

The pain in my leg covered up the pain radiating from a certain part of me I did not want to think of.

When I was wheeled into the hospital, I heard some nurses talking.

"Anya is so sweet to her boyfriend. He only had a small gash on his hand, but she's insisting that the top experts had to treat him right away."

"She's so caring and rich. That's so rare for a woman of her station. The man who'll marry her will be very happy."

Leaving Anya

I nearly rolled my eyes as I thought dryly, 'The man who married Anya is far from a happy camper.'

When the doctors wheeled me over to the operating theatre, I saw Anya walking over with John.

"What's with you?"

She frowned at me.

"Why can't you concentrate when you're driving? Fortunately, John's alright."

John immediately donned a piteous look on his face, complete with wide, teary eyes..

"It's all my fault. I wanted Shane to drive me to my campus. That's why all this happened."

Anya hastily turned to calm him down, saying reassuringly, "It's not your fault. You're hurt too. There, there. Let's head out for some supper."

That was when the doctor came over, informing me that they were ready for my operation.

Anya glanced at me in shock.

However, she was soon distracted by John's response.

The operation went well.

Afterward, a nurse asked if I had notified my family yet.

It took me a few seconds before I responded, "There's no need. I have no family."

When I was hospitalized, I hired a personal caretaker to take care of me.

Meanwhile, Anya was busy fooling around with John.

He would send me photos of the places they'd been every single day.

They went to the beach. They snorkeled and went stargazing.

Each picture showed them intertwined in a passionate embrace.

However, I felt nothing when I scrolled through those photos.

After all, I was busy getting the logistics down with my friend on the new research laboratory we're planning on starting up.

In the eight years I'd been married, I would help my friend with the research and development of various products in my free time.

He kept pushing for me to start a company with him, but I never said yes.

Many of my friends said I'd wasted eight years of my life just for a mere contract.

Still, I never regretted one moment of it.

At that time, nothing was more important to me than my mother.

Now that the contract between Anya and me was over, I was free.

What I didn't see coming was that Anya would call me when I was discharged from the hospital.

"When are you coming home? Everything's a mess here. Are you still hospitalized?" she demanded.

I chuckled and shot back with a mocking lilt in my voice. "Are the servants you hired useless?"

She grumbled in annoyance, "You know that I don't like it when other people move my stuff. I also need you to organize some of the company documents."

I glanced at the time. Just as I was about to tell her I was busy, a nurse stopped by to tell me I could head down to pay and get discharged.

Anya happened to overhear the nurse and began urging me to hurry up.

I ignored her. After my discharge, I got into my friend's car.

Jerome Mullen, my friend, turned to ask me if I was finally free.

There was a faint smile on my lips as I told him everything about my current situation.

"Everything's over. I'm leaving the second the divorce is finalized."

Jerome was even more excited about that prospect than I was. "Let's go! After we sign the deal, let's celebrate with a feast!"

I nodded with a grin.

Anya called me when Jerome and I were discussing the specifics of our new enterprise.

I glanced at my phone before turning it off to focus on my discussion with Jerome.

He let out a whistle at my audacity. "You really don't love her anymore, do you?"

Jerome was the only person in the world who knew I actually had feelings for Anya.

However, all of the love I once felt had been reduced to nothing when Anya hurt me time after time.

My eyes turned distant as I stared at my phone. After a while, I finally replied, "We're too different."

He nodded in agreement.

After the agreement was signed, we headed to the restaurant we'd always gone to when we ate together.

The first juicy bite of that spicy beef made me tear up.

Jerome laughed at me, joking that I was crying from how delicious the food was.

I merely smiled in response.

He wasn't exactly wrong because I hadn't been able to consume anything that was cooked with even the slightest hint of spice ever since I started living with Anya.