Then the call ended… but I understood right away.
Maeve’s period. Of course he remembered it. He never remembered mine. But hers? He probably marked it on his calendar.
I went straight to his private library. The third drawer on the right. That’s where he kept her emergency stash. Imported painkillers. Organic pads. Herbal tinctures. He once yelled at a maid for misplacing them.
I didn’t hesitate.
I grabbed everything she might need, slipped on my coat, and headed straight to the garage. His bigbike was still there… black, brutal, purring like a beast even before I turned the key. It was the fastest way to the Hexagon Club. If I left now, I could make it in twenty-five minutes.
The rain started halfway there.
Hard. Violent. Sheets of it like falling glass. The roads turned slick, almost silver, and visibility dropped to almost nothing.
Then it happened... headlights swerved out of nowhere.
A drunk driver, speeding like the devil himself, missed me by inches. My heart leapt to my throat as the bike skidded across the asphalt. I fought the handlebar with all the strength I had, nearly flew off, but managed to steady it just in time.
I didn’t stop. I didn’t even slow down.
By the time I pulled up to the private suite at the club, my legs were shaking. I was soaked, bruised, half-frozen, and two minutes late.
I raised my fist to knock… then froze.
Laughter, soft and intimate, spilled from the other side of the door.
Her laughter.
“Boss, seriously? You made your wife bring this all the way here in this weather? From the house to here’s what—one hour at least?”
“Maeve’s in pain.” Benedict’s voice was calm, indifferent. “She’ll come.”
Someone laughed louder. “Man, everyone knows your wife’s crazy about you. Six years and she’s never complained. Even when you were out every night with someone else.”
Another voice chimed in, jokingly, “But honestly, Boss—she’s beautiful. You really never felt anything for her?”
Silence.
For a moment, no one said anything.
I stood frozen outside the door, soaked and shaking, heart drumming too loudly in my ears.
And then I heard him.
“Whether it’s her or Maeve…I’ll always choose Maeve.”
I waited outside the door until the laughter died down, then knocked.
The moment I stepped into the private room, all their eyes landed on me… some surprised, some smug, most just curious. I looked like a drowned rat, but I still walked in, steady and calm.
“Oh damn, right on the dot!”
“Alodia, you’re soaked.” Benedict stood from the couch, frowning. “Why the hell do you look like that?”
I held out the little package in my hands, still dry despite everything else. “I didn’t want to make you wait, so I used your big bike."
I didn’t tell him I almost met with an accident. He won't believe me anyway.
Something in his expression shifted. He pulled off his suit jacket and draped it over my shoulders. “Put that on.”
Then, nodding toward the bag in my hand, he added, “Take it to the women’s restroom. Maeve’s waiting.”
I nodded, of course. Quiet. Obedient. Like always.
When I knocked on the bathroom door, I heard her voice… sickly sweet and trembling.
“Who is it?”
“Sanitary napkins.”
Silence. Then the door cracked open. I handed the bag through the gap. She didn’t even look at me.
I went home, peeled off my soaked clothes, and took a hot shower. I was about to fall asleep when the bedroom door burst open.
SLAM.
Benedict stormed in like a thunderstorm in a suit, rage boiling in his eyes. He didn’t say a word but just grabbed my wrist and yanked me out of bed.
“GET UP!”
“W-What—what’s going on?” I stammered as he dragged me down the hallway. “Benedict, where are we—”
Before I could finish, he shoved me, hard.
I hit the stairs backwards. My head slammed against the step as I tumbled down. Pain exploded in my skull then I tasted blood.
When I finally stopped at the bottom, everything blurred. My ears rang. My head throbbed.
I blinked through the haze, trying to push myself up. “Why… why are you doing this to me?”
His figure loomed at the top of the stairs, “Did you push Maeve?”
My mind went blank. “W-what?”
“Don’t play innocent with me!” He started walking down, slow and deliberate. “You’ve been playing the good wife for years just to earn my trust… You really think you’re that clever?”
“Benedict, I didn’t—”
“Didn't what? You thought that I finally loved you?” He grabbed my jaw, forcing me to look up at him. “You were never more than a stand-in. Just a pawn in a deal between families. I don’t care what lies you’ve been telling yourself.” His voice dropped lower. “I will never love you. Not now. Not ever.”
I stared at him, blood dripping from my forehead, and for a second… I almost laughed. He didn’t understand. I never wanted his love. I never asked for it. Before I could speak, he yanked me up by the arm.
“Get in the car.”
