My Cat Exposed My Cheating Fiance

For my birthday, my best friend gave me an orange tabby. In the middle of the night, it looked at me, shook its head, and sighed.

"Pretty enough to look at. So why's the head not working? Getting stabbed in the back by your best friend and your boyfriend, and you didn't even notice."

I thought I'd misheard. I pulled the resignation form out of the drawer, ready to quit with no notice and go traveling with my best friend.

"You're busy resigning, while Daphne Summers is busy taking your place and getting promoted to General Manager."

"I have to hand it to your boyfriend—that plan of his is genuinely vicious."

"Shame, really. Word from the other cats is that the company you work at is about to close a ten-figure round of funding. There's a fortune waiting down that road."

The voice came into my head again.

My pen stopped. I tore the resignation form to pieces.

……

I'd just dropped the scraps into the trash when a message came in from Daphne.

【Mila Henson, just put down next Monday as your resignation date!】

She even sent a photo of her own resignation form.

Right after, my boyfriend Ronnie Gilbert messaged too:【Did you fill out the form yet?】

I stared at the screen, still not fully able to accept this thing called "betrayal."

After all, the three of us had grown up together.

Daphne had trailed after me since we were kids, and I'd looked after her like a little sister.

When she couldn't get a job anywhere, I brought her into the company, taught her everything hands-on, handed her my client accounts.

She was always thanking me in front of other people.

Ronnie had been saying he'd marry me since we were children, confessed to me at eighteen, and we'd been together ever since.

Almost seven years, all told.

"That birthday bag Ronnie gave you? It's a castoff Daphne didn't want. There's a mark on the inside."

"He's been in love with Daphne since they were kids."

The cat's voice came through.

I hurried to the closet, dug out the bag, and checked it carefully. Sure enough, scratched into the bottom were the letters:【xww】

Daphne's initials!

In that instant, the last thread of hope in my chest snapped.

So the love and friendship I'd cradled in my hands.

All of it was nothing but empty bubbles……

"But that bag is hiding a three-million-dollar prize."

The cat's voice rose again.

My head whipped around.

It had jumped up onto the windowsill, licking a paw, muttering on to itself: "The big white cat at the shop said the brand ran a serial-number giveaway. The winning number is the one on that bag."

"Ronnie didn't leave a phone number at the shop."

"And there are only three days left before the deadline!"

I pulled myself together and scrolled fast through my chat history with Ronnie until I found the address of the brand's store.

I'd claim the prize tomorrow after work.

Ronnie had said he wanted me to put a million down on a place, and he'd cover the rest of the mortgage.

Now I didn't need him for it. I could pay the whole thing myself!

Then, all at once.

Ronnie called: "Mila, are you asleep? Why aren't you answering my and Daphne's messages?"

"Did you finish the resignation form? Daphne says Hawaii's amazing—I've already booked our tickets for next week, so don't you dare back out."

Listening to Daphne again.

He'd explained it to me himself once: "We're a couple. Daphne's all on her own, so we should take extra care of her, give her some slack."

I'd trusted them both, so I'd never thought twice about any of it.

"All done. I was just in the shower."

I answered offhandedly.

"Good. We can finally make our childhood dream come true and see the world together!"

Ronnie laughed. "Get some sleep. Love you forever! Love you for ten thousand years!"

His voice was as gentle as ever.

Like he was soothing a baby.

Once upon a time, hearing those late-night sweet nothings would have warmed me through and through.

Now it just made me sick to my stomach.

Starting today, I wouldn't waste one more scrap of time or energy on rotten love and rotten friendship!