Chapter 2

By the time Carter finished his shower and came out, I was already lying in bed.

He waited until his body warmed up under the sheets before pulling me into his arms.

For three years of marriage, he had always been like this.

Patient, detailed, gentle, and incredibly attentive.

I never could have imagined that a man who seemed to love me with his entire soul could do something so cheap behind my back.

Feeling his hands wrap around my waist and slide under my shirt, I forced my body to relax, but I gave absolutely no response.

Carter’s hand stopped. "Asleep?" he whispered.

I closed my eyes and let out an annoyed grunt, turning away from him.

He pulled his hand back and gently patted my head.

"Alright, go to sleep. I won't bother you."

I still didn't answer.

Only when I heard his breathing turn deep and even did I slowly open my eyes.

Then, I pushed his arm off my waist.

Actually, I had recognized the voice today.

It was Chloe Bennett, Carter's medical assistant at the hospital.

On Chloe's very first day as his assistant, Carter had voluntarily brought it up to me.

Before I could even show any jealousy, he had said:

"I'm going to talk to the chief resident and swap her out for a male assistant. I want you to feel completely secure."

He had always kept clean boundaries and behaved like a perfect gentleman.

I trusted him implicitly anyway, and seeing him take the initiative made me smile. I told him: "It's fine, Carter. It's just work. I trust you!"

Looking back now, I finally saw the truth.

He used this reverse psychology trick every single time.

Like when they pulled overnight shifts together.

Or when they traveled out of town for medical exchange programs.

But I had made my boundary clear to Carter from the very beginning.

If you love me, cherish me. If you don't, just say it and leave.

Don't whisper sweet nothings in my ear while stabbing me in the back with another woman.

Tears silently slipped down the side of my face. My chest ached with a sharp, suffocating pain.

I didn't know when he and Chloe had started their little affair.

All I knew was that the moment I heard her voice, this marriage was dead.

But the next morning, Carter didn't even give me a chance to bring up divorce.

At 5:00 AM, my phone buzzed with a Snapchat from him.

He said the hospital had called an emergency medical outreach program to offer free clinics in a remote town.

I knew their hospital did charity work like this.

But I remembered clearly that this outreach program always happened in May.

It was September.

It was nothing but a lazy lie.

I bit my lip, a wave of bitterness washing over me, followed quickly by pure mockery.

They couldn't even handle being apart for one night before he had to run off to find her.

Fine. Since he was so desperate, I should do him a favor and vacate the position.

Save him the trouble of waking up before dawn to make up stupid excuses.

I called a divorce lawyer and drove straight to their office.

When I stepped out of the law firm with the paperwork in my bag, my phone vibrated in my hand.

I opened it. It was a Snapchat from Chloe.

It was a couple of photos of Carter checking a patient's pulse, followed by a short video.

The caption read: *[Sophia, don't worry! There are only old ladies in this remote town. Dr. Sterling is perfectly safe! 😉]*

I wasn't surprised by her message.

In fact, the only reason I had recognized her voice so quickly yesterday was because of her frequent messages.

I couldn't even remember when we had added each other on Snapchat.

I only remembered how she had slide into my DMs, acting all familiar, calling me "Sophia" and laughing:

"Don't worry, Sophia. I'm going to be the guardian angel of your marriage!"

And she kept her word. From then on, she constantly sent me updates on Carter’s schedule.

Even when I told her politely that she didn't need to do that, that it made me feel like I was spying on my own husband.

But when Carter found out, he just smiled and said:

"It's fine. If it gives you peace of mind, I don't mind you having eyes on me."

Carter had never taken photos during his previous outreach trips.

But I remembered vividly that during the last trip, he wore the exact shirt shown in her photo today.

But he wasn't wearing that shirt when he left this morning.

After three years of marriage, I bought almost all of his clothes.

With one glance at his closet, I knew exactly what he was wearing on any given day.

I had always assumed Chloe was the annoying third wheel trying to get close to us.

Now I realized I was the actual outsider.

I was just a fool.

A complete idiot played by the two of them.