I laughed coldly to myself.
None of them knew that this company was just a subsidiary under my group.
So who was really supporting whom here?
Long before I married Eve, I'd already built my own business empire. Back then, I'd wanted to inspect the subsidiary's operations firsthand, so I entered the newly established branch under the guise of a low-level employee. It was at a meeting there that I first met Eve.
I noticed she had real drive, a fierce ambition for her career. So I took on a mentoring approach, gradually sharing my management experience with her while quietly having corporate HR promote her step by step until she became president of the subsidiary.
I just never revealed my identity. I didn't want to undermine her confidence.
Over time, I developed feelings for her, and I told her how I felt.
Not long after we got together, she proposed splitting all expenses fifty-fifty. She said it would keep the pressure on both of us to keep striving, so neither would fall behind the other.
I agreed without hesitation. That arrangement had continued ever since.
I never expected that the very rule she'd put in place would be what led me to discover her betrayal.
Before long, Eve came home.
Normally, I'd drop everything the moment she walked in. I'd massage her shoulders, rub her back, have dessert waiting. But this time, I didn't even glance up. I just kept replying to a client's messages.
Eve frowned at the sight and stormed over.
"Lowell, are you seriously still going on about this? It was just a box of condoms I forgot to split with you. Is that really worth giving me attitude?"
I said nothing. Kept typing.
"Are you deaf?!" She slammed her purse down and marched into the bathroom.
Through the door, I could faintly hear her on the phone.
"Gabriel, the company just landed a few big clients. If I start a fight with him right now, it'll leave a bad impression on them."
"Don't be upset. You know you're the most important person to me. Tomorrow I'll get your promotion and raise pushed through, and I've already got a birthday present ready for you."
A few minutes later, she came out in a loose bathrobe. There, just above her collarbone, sat an unmistakable hickey.
She caught me looking and quickly tugged the robe higher, irritation flashing across her face.
"Lowell, enough already!"
"I work myself to the bone every single day, and you're sitting here throwing a tantrum, accusing me of cheating!"
"Instead of figuring out how to bring in clients, all you do is obsess over this petty nonsense. You're worse than a nagging housewife!"
I scoffed and held up my phone, showing her the screenshot of Gabriel's social media post.
"Then how do you explain this? I thought you were meeting with clients."
She froze. A flicker of guilt crossed her face.
The words slipped out before she could stop them: "Gabriel deleted that already..."
The second they left her mouth, she realized what she'd just admitted.
But in the next breath, she doubled down.
"Lowell, you always jump to conclusions! The only reason Gabriel and I were doing that is because the client wanted to go dancing. He insisted we join him or he wouldn't sign the contract!"
"You didn't even bother to get the full picture before coming at me with accusations?!"
"I'm warning you, drop this useless nonsense. Your numbers are below target this month. If you don't start pulling your weight, don't blame me when I dock your entire paycheck!"
"And don't forget, we split everything fifty-fifty. If you can't afford to carry your own weight, I'm under no obligation to support you!"
"When that day comes, you could get on your knees and beg, and I still wouldn't forgive you!"
Three threats in a row. Impressive.
I was the one who'd taught her how to manage a company. I was the one who'd shown her how to negotiate with clients. When she first proposed splitting everything down the middle, she'd dressed it up in all sorts of pretty words about equality and mutual growth. Now here she was, wielding it like a weapon.
I let out a cold laugh. "Eve, I could beg for change on a street corner and I still wouldn't take a single cent from you."
"Besides, you've already lost the right to make me bow my head."
