“Fine… I’ll buy it for you. But this is the only time! As for divorce, I’ll take it as you just venting. If you bring it up again, I won’t let it slide…”

“Don’t forget, you’re just a housewife now. Without me, what could you possibly do? You’d be useless. Take a look at my friends’ wives—see how sensible they are?”

He must have forgotten… If it weren’t for him kneeling before me five years ago, begging me to stay and support his startup, I would never have given up my promotion, never have lost myself.

After graduating from college with excellent grades, I had been accepted by a Federal Contracting Firm.

But him? He sent out countless résumés, went through endless interviews, and only managed to get hired by a small private company that paid less than half my salary.

A year later, he decided to start his own business. He knelt before me, begging me to give him all my savings.

I agreed. And he succeeded.

Now, hearing him belittle me with those cruel words, a sharp pain tore through my chest. So this was the end of love—not growing old together, but erasing the good memories.

“Ryan Hayes, I’m not being unreasonable… If you won’t agree to a peaceful divorce, fine. I’ll file for legal separation right away.”

The moment I finished, Ryan’s face darkened. But then, his spare phone buzzed in his pocket.

He glanced at me, answered the call, and walked toward the window.

I couldn’t hear the conversation, but I saw the warmth in his expression… and the faint shadow of someone standing outside.

Seeing that scene, my emotions broke free. Tears streamed down my face.

I snatched the phone from his hand and hurled it to the ground.

“Tell that woman to get out! Don’t come here to disgust me.”

The sound of a slap rang out in the living room.

Clutching my burning cheek, I stared at him in disbelief. He spoke coldly:

“Stop being ridiculous. Sophia had a fight with her family and got kicked out. She has nowhere else to go. The company’s about to go public—do you really expect me to let my assistant suffer on the street?”

With that, he went to open the door. Sophia stumbled in, tears streaming down her face.

“I’m sorry, Evelyn. I know I shouldn’t be here bothering Ryan, but I truly had nowhere to go. My parents used all my savings for my brother. Otherwise, I would never—”

But Sophia wasn’t just his assistant. She was also his White Moonlight—the one he could never forget.

They had been college sweethearts. If not for his family’s disapproval, Ryan would never have given her up to marry me.

I had always known about her existence. I thought if I ignored it, maybe I could warm his heart. But I forgot… How could a stand-in ever compete with the one that got away?

When I stayed silent, Ryan’s voice thundered again:

“Evelyn Lane, I paid for this house. Since when does Sophia need your permission to be here? If you don’t like it, get out. Who do you think you’re giving that attitude to?”

Before he could say more, Sophia grabbed his arm and choked out,

“I’m sorry, Ryan. I forgot it’s your tenth anniversary today. I’ll leave now. I won’t bother you again…”

As she turned to go, I picked up the gift box on the table and shoved it into her hands.

“Assistant Reed, with your habit of forgetting things, how can you possibly be qualified to work as the CEO’s assistant? Forgetting a dress is nothing. But if you forgot something more… intimate, wouldn’t people say you were seducing your boss?”

Both of their faces flushed with embarrassment. With one look from Sophia, Ryan grabbed my wrist roughly, forcing me to apologize.

“Stop talking nonsense! It’s bad enough you’re unreasonable with me—now you insult Sophia’s character? You owe her an apology. Otherwise, how is a young woman supposed to face the world?”

“And that dress is one of a kind. How could Sophia afford it?”

Of course she couldn’t. But Ryan could. Otherwise, how else could he have secretly kept her for nine years?

I ignored them and turned upstairs, desperate to pack my things and leave that filthy house.

The air froze. Sophia rushed forward, clutching my hand and falling to her knees.

“Evelyn, it’s my fault… I just wanted to see how I’d look in the dress. It had nothing to do with Ryan. Please don’t be angry with him, okay?”

Ryan let out a sigh of relief and pulled me into his arms with a smile.

“Evelyn, I swear on everything—I haven’t betrayed you. Now that we’ve cleared it up, and Sophia has admitted her mistake, how about I dock her bonus to make it up to you?”

I laughed coldly, staring into his eyes filled with fake tenderness. Then I pulled free of his embrace, snatched up the dress, and tossed it at Sophia.

“Why don’t you explain the bloodstains and the white residue on this dress? Or should I just take it to the hospital lab for testing?”

Ryan froze for a moment, then his voice turned impatient.

“She was on her period. The blood is nothing. She’s just a naïve young girl. Do you really have to be so harsh? Can’t you show some grace as the boss’s wife?”

“Oh—so should I be thanking Sophia for also helping my husband with his other ‘needs’?”

“Enough! I promised to buy you the rings, I gave you the gifts—what more do you want?”

I lifted my head, met his sharp, cold eyes, and spoke each word clearly:

“What do I want? Forget the rings. I want my merger proposal back. How else could Hayes Corporation possibly reach IPO status if not for me, the housewife who stayed up writing it?”

His face turned dark instantly. He flung my hand away, and I stumbled, slamming my abdomen into the table’s edge.

Pain shot through me, but I bit down on it, tears spilling uncontrollably.

“Evelyn Lane… how dare you even mention your so-called proposal? Because of that, Sophia almost died at a business dinner. If I hadn’t arrived in time, you’d be her murderer!”

“If it weren’t for Sophia begging me to let you stay, you wouldn’t even still be here as Mrs. Hayes. And you dare to ask for your plan back? You really don’t know your place.”

Every word was like a nail driven into my chest.

So in his eyes, I wasn’t just worthless—I was a jealous, malicious woman.

Clutching the table, I tried to move, only to see the pale tiles beneath me bloom with red.

The sight stole my breath. I curled up on the floor, the pain in my stomach unbearable.

My face went ghostly pale. I clutched Ryan’s pant leg, my dignity gone, my pride shattered. All I wanted was for him to save me, to save our child.

“Ryan, I’m pregnant. Please… take me to the hospital.”

But before I could finish, he cut me off, frowning, eyes flickering with doubt.

“Evelyn, do you even hear yourself? I was away on business all last month. How could you possibly be pregnant with my child?”