Tristan Moore, the low-income student whom my wife, Yvonne Zeller, has been sponsoring, tells her that he wishes to repay her for her benevolence. So, they end up spending long hours of passion in my laboratory. Because of that, the fluids they've left behind have tainted my experimental samples.

On top of that, Tristan specifically texts me and makes me witness everything. I waste no time in barging into the laboratory.

"Oh? Are you that poor that you can't afford a hotel room anymore, Ms. Zeller? Is that why you brought your side piece to my lab?"

Yvonne wraps her top around her chest, her expression devoid of any guilt.

"Get out. I'm the one who has invested in this lab, so I'm free to use it however I see fit. A leech like you don't get a say in this matter."

I turn on my heel and walk away. That night, I hand over my new patent to Yvonne's older brother, Joshua Zeller.

I'd like to see how Yvonne, who's still in the middle of fighting for the position as the heir, will still be able to stay calm after finding out about this.

As soon as Joshua Zeller signed the patent licensing contract, he went to my wife, Yvonne Zeller, to show it off.

Yvonne was supposed to be busy getting to know Tristan Moore, the scholarship student, but she started calling me repeatedly.

I ignored her calls.

That was how she always acted when she was mad at me.

She was so angry that she ran every red light on her way home and threw her handbag at me the moment she entered the house.

"How could you do this, Shane? You know Joshua and I are bitter rivals who would love nothing more than to destroy each other, yet you went and granted him the patent anyway!

"Are you trying to push me into a corner just because Tristan wanted to repay me and used your lab?"

Her hair was a mess as she tried to catch her breath. Her usual elegance as the Zeller family's heiress was long gone, and it was all because of another man.

I dodged the bag she threw at me and looked disappointedly at Yvonne. Her eyes were bloodshot as she was on the verge of a breakdown. "I still have plenty of patents. I'm giving you just half an hour. You know what to do."

Less than 20 minutes later, Yvonne sent me a video.

My lab was spotless. Someone was even reinstalling all the expensive equipment there.

I immediately called my patent agent. "Grant Yvonne licenses for two more patents."

Then, I sent her a video of my own.

The project proposal she thought was a sure win had been thrown into a shredder and reduced to scraps. Important company files had been deleted so thoroughly that they couldn't even be recovered from the recycle bin.

"This is just a taste of your own medicine, Yvonne," I spat. "Don't think I'm some useless freeloader. Here's a warning—don't push it too far, or you'll find out what regret really means."

Yvonne didn't reply, but I was certain that she was throwing things in anger somewhere.

She deserved this.

Back then, when she had nowhere left to turn, she came to me and told me that she needed my patents to fight her brother for the inheritance. In return, she would invest in my lab.

But I didn't need her investment. Her determination moved me, so I agreed.

Later, we fell in love and got married. I licensed all my patents to her for free, helping her go from someone who wasn't even allowed a seat at the table to someone who could overpower her Joshua.

At the time, she had hugged my neck and said, "Honey, you're the best thing that's ever happened to me. I love you more than anything."

She gave birth to our precious daughter, Kelly Zeller, and devoted herself to our family. I accepted it all willingly.

I thought this was the beginning of happiness, and that our family of three would stay peaceful forever.

But what she and Tristan did that night felt like a slap in the face. It completely shattered that illusion.

The only thing that didn't belong to her was my warning.

…

Yvonne hadn't come home for two days. It was the first time she had stayed out overnight despite not being on a business trip.

I knew this was her way of telling me she didn't think she was in the wrong and that she was forced to compromise about what happened in the lab.

I went straight to the Zeller Group building and took the elevator up to her office on the top floor.

The moment her secretary saw me, she panicked and dropped the files in her hands.

"Mr. Carter, Mrs. Carter isn't available right now!"

"Yvonne's busy? I'll be the judge of that," I thought.

I brushed past Yvonne's secretary and pushed open her office door.

Yvonne was sprawled on the couch in nothing but a bikini as Tristan massaged her back with essential oils.

Yvonne let out a satisfied moan, praising Tristan's technique.

She had once promised me that nothing would ever come between our relationship.

She never let any men other than me into her office. Even her work contacts were all women.

Seeing her openly allow Tristan into her space felt like a knife twisting straight into my chest.

What shocked me even more was Tristan's name on the published paper on his laptop.

I had pulled all-nighters to produce that paper for Yvonne so she could land a major partnership.

A PhD bought through backdoors and favors could never produce results like that.

I strode in.

Tristan quickly stood. He looked panicked, but his tone was provocative as he questioned, "Mr. Carter, why do you have access to Zeller Group's executive floor?"

"If a kept man like you can get in, why can't I? After all, I'm Mrs. Carter's legal husband," I spat. "Is the security department here doing its job? Why did they let just anyone wander freely onto the executive floor?"

Tristan turned pitifully toward Yvonne. Yvonne patted his arm gently, then stood up and threw on her clothes.

"Say what you need to say. Don't pick on a younger guy."

She probably thought that I had come here to apologize.

Tristan stood beside her, looking smug.

I closed my eyes briefly, then pointed at the laptop on the desk. My tone left no room for argument. "Delete that published paper."

Tristan's eyes widened. He grabbed the laptop in a panic and clutched it to his chest, pleading with Yvonne for help.

I held back my anger and asked Yvonne, "Don't you owe me an explanation? Why is something I worked day and night on now published under someone else's name? All the lab records and raw data are still there."

Yvonne slipped on her coat and spoke as if it didn't matter at all.

"He's a scholarship student that I personally support. Naturally, I have to take responsibility for him. Since you insisted on being so petty about what happened in the lab, people have been talking about him at school. I had no choice but to use this method to clear his name."

She tilted her head slightly. "Don't you let your students put their names on your research papers, too?"

"That's because I supervise my students' experiments. Those are their results, too. It's a given that they get credited," I scoffed. "What has Tristan ever done to deserve acknowledgement on this paper? Pleasing you in bed?"

I looked directly at Yvonne, enunciating each word with icy contempt and sarcasm.

Yvonne shot up from the couch. "That's enough! It's just one research paper! I'll fund another lab for you. You can redo the experiments and publish another paper. What's the big deal?"

I smiled. I felt like I was talking to a clown.

"Even if you gave the paper to him, he couldn't live up to it. People who steal from others only dig their own graves, Yvonne!"

I took a step forward and demanded, "As my wife, building connections in academic circles is a piece of cake for you. People even respect you.

"But if you're just Ms. Zeller, you wouldn't even qualify to touch the door to that world, let alone walk through it."

Yvonne was completely enraged. She screamed, "Get out! Do you think the whole world revolves around you? Tristan just never had the right opportunities. If he did, he could've landed that partnership just the same!"

I felt a chill as I realized how unfamiliar Yvonne was to me.

I stared at her for a moment, then quietly said, "Fine. I guess we'll find out just how capable that talent you value so highly really is."

With a scream, Yvonne swept everything off her desk. Then, she shot Tristan an arrogant glance before striding out of the office.

"What are you waiting for? Follow me."

Tristan lifted his chin and flashed me a smug grin.

I watched as the two of them disappeared. Then, I called my assistant. "Tell Mr. Jackson I'm tied up and won't be able to make it today."

Without sparing the trashed office another glance, I left.

If Yvonne insisted on taking things this far, then she couldn't blame me for what came next.

The moment my car pulled out of the company garage, Yvonne called. I deliberately waited until I was stopped at a red light before answering.

Yvonne exploded, her voice shrill with rage.

"Did you do this on purpose just to humiliate me? Mr. Jackson got off the plane and immediately flew back overseas. He even called Tristan a homewrecker who steals other people's wives and work. He said that just looking at him was an insult to his eyes.

"He mocked me, too! He said that without you, I wasn't even worth mentioning to him and that I've been thinking too highly of myself!"

I glanced at the countdown on the traffic light and chuckled. "You said you didn't need me, so I gave you exactly what you wanted and stayed out of it. Shouldn't you be happy? What's there to be angry about?

"Besides, didn't you say that Tristan could handle it just as well? Why can't he now? You can't force an incompetent man to perform miracles."

My words pushed Yvonne closer to the edge.

"I've never met such a petty guy before," she screamed hysterically. "You disgust me! Tristan has been crying out of guilt! The partnership's gone! Are you happy now?"

"Happy? Of course I am. After all, I've finally seen just how useless the talent you value so highly really is," I replied lazily.

Right before the call disconnected, I heard a loud crash. I figured that Yvonne had probably thrown her phone.

The smile faded from my face. Truthfully, I wasn't that happy.

There were no winners when a relationship fell apart.

Even so, I hadn't truly gone after Yvonne. I'd only wanted to teach her a lesson.

As long as she came to her senses, abandoned her reckless ideas, and returned to her family, I was willing to pretend none of this had happened.

What I hadn't expected was that she had no intention of appreciating the chance I had given her.

…

That day was Family Day at Kelly's preschool. She was excited about it.

I accompanied her to the event.

Yvonne kept checking the time. She started getting restless and stood up to leave.

Kelly grabbed her hand and asked, "Mom, can you stay and do an activity with me this time?"

Faced with Kelly's sparkling eyes, Yvonne's heart softened. She bent down and picked Kelly up.

"Of course, sweetheart. What do you want to do?"

Kelly's smile grew brighter. That was exactly why I kept giving Yvonne second chances.

Unfortunately, the warmth didn't last. Shortly after, Yvonne's phone rang.

Tristan's shaky voice came through the speaker. "Mrs. Carter, I can't take this anymore. My phone is flooded with abuse. People keep smashing my windows. I don't even have the guts to leave my house anymore.

"Please tell Mr. Carter that he can stop worrying. I won't bother you two again. I'm just sorry I never got the chance to repay you for everything you've done for me over the years. This building is 21 stories high. It probably won't hurt for long."

I took Kelly from Yvonne's arms and distracted her.

I knew the pressure Tristan was under because I was the one who had set things in motion. He was in a difficult situation, but it was nowhere near bad enough to drive him to suicide.

This was nothing more than another way for him to manipulate Yvonne.

Yvonne, however, was in a state of frantic panic. She raised her hand and swung at me.

I caught her wrist before she could slap me, but Kelly was still terrified. Tears welled in her eyes as her face twisted with fear.