Wendy lay beside me, groaning in pain.

"Layla, come over here and rub my back.

"Can I sue our mother for fraud? How is her son emotionally distant? He is clearly trying to kill me with this torture..."

The mother she referred to was none other than our mother-in-law, Cora.

As I massaged her waist, I couldn't help but feel sorry for her.

In the first two months after she married, Simeon really was emotionally distant. He barely looked at his new wife and often didn't come home at night.

But Wendy was not someone to be underestimated.

Wendy always prided herself on the fact that no man could escape from beneath her skirts. Not even the ones who swung the other way. She could straighten them out, she liked to say.

For the sake of that 100 million dollars, she pulled out all the stops to seduce him.

Two months later, even though we didn't live on the same floor, I often heard... indescribable sounds coming from downstairs.

Once, Wendy even complained to me that Simeon had broken the bed.

I was about to say something to comfort her when suddenly, a deep male voice came from outside the door.

"Wendy, I know you're in there.

"Come out and come back to our room with me."

Wendy jolted in fright, but in the end, under both threats and coaxing, she was dragged away by him.

Just as I was about to lie down and continue watching my show, I remembered that I still hadn't wiped down my comatose husband's body.

With a sigh, I threw on a nightgown, grabbed a towel, and headed toward the bedroom inside our suite.

Holding the warm towel in my hand, I began to wipe Leopold's smooth skin, one stroke at a time.

Even though I'd been doing this for six months now, I still couldn't help but feel a little flutter in my heart.

"What a shame." I muttered to myself, unbuttoning his shirt. "If he weren't in a coma, he'd have women swooning over him left and right."

As his shirt opened, a set of chiseled pecs was revealed.

I suddenly had a wicked thought.

"If I secretly touched his abs, he wouldn't know, right?"

Two voices started having a conversation in my head.

"Layla, he's your husband. His body belongs to you anyway. What harm is there in touching it?"

Gathering my courage, I stretched out my hand and greedily stroked his sculpted abs a few times.

"The sensation was incredible!

Wait a minute. Why did Leopold's face seem a little flushed?

Ah, who cares? As long as he wasn't objecting, I'd take that as silent consent." I thought.

For the next few days, it felt like I had opened the door to a whole new world.

Every time I wiped Leopold's body, I had to sneak a few touches. It was the only way to satisfy my urges.

Each time I stroked those abs, Leopold's face turned as red as a boiled shrimp.

At first, I felt awkward about it. But now, I was utterly shameless and even boldly said to him,

"You owe me this!

"Just look at how wild Simeon is! I've already made enough sacrifices by marrying you. What's the harm in a few extra touches?"

One afternoon, after finishing lunch, I quickly sent the nanny away, locked the door, and got ready to stroke those abs. Uh...wipe down Leopold's body.

Suddenly, Wendy showed up at my door in an extravagant dress.

"Layla! I'm planning to run away!

"I can't take another day in this place!"

I opened the door to see her hair in a tangled mess, and her dress was splattered with something that looked like red wine.

Shocked, I rolled up my sleeves. "Who bullied you?"

Whoever dared to mess with my best friend had made a powerful enemy. I'd definitely back her up.

Wendy huffed angrily. "Mia Vega, Simeon's precious first love, is back! She deliberately spilled wine on me at the party and then acted all innocent. That conniving bitch!"

I froze.

"Simeon was sexually frigid. Since when did he have a first love?" I thought.

The more Wendy thought about it, the angrier she got. She punched one of the decorations on my door and smashed it to pieces.

"Simeon? Sexually frigid, my ass! He's been faithful to Mia this whole time!

"And now that Mia's back, not only is he letting her bully me, he even made me apologize to her! I can't take it anymore!

"So, what? Was I just a stand-in for Mia these past months? I swear, I'm leaving today! I'm getting a divorce!"

I listened in growing fury, silently cursing Simeon for being such a jerk.

Wendy grabbed my hand. "Are you coming with me or not?"

I glanced back at Leopold's still-comatose body, my mind lingering on those abs I hadn't touched yet today. I swallowed hard.

But when I saw the determination in Wendy's eyes, I made up my mind. "We're best friends. If you're running, I'm running with you. You divorce today, I'll divorce tomorrow."

We immediately agreed on our escape plan.

"Although." Wendy added, "I've only saved up fifty million dollars so far. It's not enough to cover us both."

Wendy waved off my concern. "Don't worry! Simeon, that cheating jerk, gave me a Bayview Villa just to get rid of me. I'll sell it, and we'll split the money. Half for you, half for me."

That sounded like a solid plan to me.

So, we started plotting our escape and divorce.

It was said that after the party, Simeon didn't come home; he went to see Mia instead.

Wendy called him right in front of me.

In an instant, she switched to a sorrowful tone, her eyes red with tears. "Simeon, let's get a divorce."

There was silence on the other end for a long moment.

"Wendy, I was only giving Mia a ride home. Why are you making a scene again?

"She threw wine on you because you deserved it. From now on, you'll live alone in the Bayview Villa to reflect on your behavior.

"I'm bringing Mia back to the Lake Manor. After tomorrow, I don't want to see you ever again."

Before Wendy could say anything, Simeon hung up the phone.

Wendy shrugged. "Plan A failed. Time to start Plan B."

Her Plan B was to fake her death and disappear.

Wendy quickly sold Bayview Villa, transferred all her assets, and even bought herself a grave.

On the day she faked her death in a staged car accident, I followed Wendy's instructions and called Simeon.

When he picked up, there was a surprise in his voice. "Layla?"

I spoke in a voice choked with tears.

"Simeon, Wendy...she's been in a serious car accident. She's asking to see you one last time. Could you come to the hospital?"

He let out a sneering laugh. "Does she think I'm an idiot? This is just another one of her tricks because I haven't been home in days.

"Layla, tell her if she wants to die, she should go ahead and die, but not in front of me."

I smiled and gave Wendy the signal.

She took off with my money.

I'd follow her soon after.

But to make sure Simeon believed Wendy was genuinely dead, I had one last scene to play out.

Three days later, I was in my bedroom rehearsing the scenario when Simeon burst in, his eyes red with fury.

"Layla, where's Wendy?!"

I shed a few tears and stared at him blankly.

"She's dead."

Simeon's body stiffened, and his face went pale.

"That's impossible!"

I showed him a doctored video of the car accident, but before he could get a clear look, I quickly pulled it back and took him to see Wendy's grave.

"She wanted to see you one last time, but you didn't come. In the end, she died all alone."

Simeon stared at the name on the tombstone, looking utterly devastated.

"How could this happen?"

He clutched the tombstone tightly, his knuckles turning white.

Finally, he muttered, "Dead...she's better off dead."

I felt a chill run through me.

"People were right. Marrying into a wealthy family was never a good idea. They never treated women like human beings."