He hung up the phone.
He turned to look at Zoe.
"Are you still getting checked?" he asked, looking down at her. His tone was piercingly cold.
Zoe’s shock hadn’t subsided, but she clearly understood how bizarre and terrifying the current situation was. "No need, I’m perfectly healthy. Since you’re back, I want to keep you company..."
"I have a regular meeting to attend. There’s no need to catch up." Simon checked his watch. "It’s on the top floor."
Zoe couldn’t wait for him to leave and get busy. Maintaining a normal expression, she nodded. "Alright, then I won’t bother you. Goodbye."
Zoe slipped away incredibly fast.
Simon watched her slender figure rushing into the elevator, his cold eyes narrowing.
During the day, she was dull and uninteresting, not even daring to breathe loudly around him, as if he were some kind of terrifying beast. Yet at night, she dared to throw herself at a stranger, playing the seductress like it was second nature.
Which one was an act?
He wanted to see exactly what kind of tricks Zoe was going to play.
Back at her apartment, Zoe still hadn’t calmed down.
The day after stepping out on her husband, she had been caught red-handed by him. How unlucky could she be?
It was true that Simon didn’t love her, but she had let a man drive her to lose all reason, casually giving herself to a stranger and ending up in this mess.
Zoe ruffled her hair. "Quit drinking, you lightweight."
A furry head rubbed against her calf.
Zoe looked down to see her dog, Cheater, continuously rubbing against her, seemingly trying to comfort her. Responding to the affection, she held up her phone, pointing at a photo of Simon. "Next time you see this man, remember to bite him hard."
The little dog’s wet eyes were filled with confusion.
Not caring whether it understood, she opened her phone and texted her best friend, Crystal. "I had a moment of madness today and went to the hospital to book a pregnancy test."
Crystal replied instantly: "?"
"And then I ran into Simon."
Crystal: "???"
Even though it was working hours, Crystal sneaked a moment to call her immediately. "No way, no way," she said. "Don’t tell me someone already got caught?"
Zoe collapsed onto the sofa. "I’m not sure. Simon has always been smart and sharp, so it’s hard to say right now. But we still have one year left on our three-year marriage contract. He probably won’t make a big deal out of it yet."
Crystal sneered. "How can you be so naive? This is Simon we’re talking about! Even if he has no feelings for you, he’s still a man. Men are inherently driven by their male ego. Even if he doesn’t love you, your infidelity will still bruise his pride and make him bite back. If he really found out, I think...
"The one billion he promised to give you upon divorce is probably out the window."
Zoe’s heart skipped a beat, and she suddenly felt an unprecedented wave of anxiety.
Crystal clicked her tongue. "Besides, you haven’t checked X yet, have you? That woman Stella knows exactly what she’s doing, openly playing the role of the other woman. She’s practically beating drums and clashing cymbals to announce her deep relationship with Simon."
Zoe’s fingertips went numb. Bracing herself, she took a deep breath and opened X.
Stella Joyce V: *I can never get enough of the person I want to see. Goodnight.*
Below was an attached photo. The lighting was dim, showing several bottles of tequila on a table. In the bottom right corner of the frame, a hand reached in—slender, with well-defined knuckles and prominent veins on the back. It wore a silver-gray wristwatch and was holding an engraved crystal glass.
Zoe’s breath instantly caught in her throat.
Having harbored a secret crush on Simon for so many years, she naturally recognized whose hand that was. So, Simon had returned to the country yesterday. And he had gone to see Stella right away. Meanwhile, she, his legitimate wife, had to rely on a chance encounter at the hospital just to catch a glimpse of the bastard!
The comments under the post had also recognized the man’s identity. They were full of teasing and blessings.
— [OMG, my ship is sailing! That’s the business tycoon, Mr. Hawthorne, right?]
— [It really is true love! Even though she didn’t explicitly announce it, this post is way too sweet!!!]
— [Stella is so lucky!]
— [I heard she and Mr. Hawthorne are childhood sweethearts, and their families are a perfect match. I even saw Stella wearing a diamond ring a while ago. Are we hearing wedding bells soon?]
Stella was an A-list actress, and Simon was the eldest grandson of the century-old Hawthorne family, as well as its most legitimate future heir. With two such figures standing side by side, netizens had practically confirmed their romantic relationship.
And Stella never denied it.
The more Zoe scrolled, the more her eyes stung, yet she couldn’t help but keep scrolling down.
She had fallen in love at first sight with Simon at twenty after just a single passing glance. It had been four years since then—married for two, and neglected for two. Her feelings seemed to have gradually stopped boiling, but facing Stella’s repeated, passive-aggressive displays of affection, she still felt like she was being sliced apart by an invisible knife.
She remained silent for a long time.
Crystal was still venting indignantly. "Hasn’t Stella been subtly provoking you time and time again? Why don’t you find a way to sleep with Simon, take a picture, and post it on X to fire back? She’s the one dating someone else’s husband, while you’d be sleeping with your own. We’ll see how mad she gets then."
Zoe helplessly stated the facts. "...But Simon has absolutely no sexual interest in me."
On the night they got their marriage certificate, she and Simon had been arranged to share a room by the Hawthorne family’s matriarch. Being young and having never been in a relationship, it was her first time sharing a bed with the man she had a crush on. She went all out and bought a sexy nightgown.
What she got in return was a cold, venomous remark from the bastard:
"Miss Lancaster, showing off a flat figure isn’t pure and seductive; it’s a complete turn-off."
"What?!" Crystal erupted in a scream. "You, flat? You’re a solid D-cup! Is Simon out of his mind?"
Zoe’s figure was flat?
Ever since high school, she had blossomed as if she were on hormones, famous for her amazing curves. Back then, if she so much as glanced at their male classmates, they would be completely reeled in. They couldn’t even walk straight when they saw her. Paired with her face—innocent without being fake, alluring without being trashy—wasn’t she a lethal weapon against any man?
Simon needed to see an eye doctor! Oh, wait, no! He needed to see a urologist too!
If his equipment didn’t work, fine, but if his mouth was harder than his equipment, he definitely needed fixing!
"So what are you going to do, Zoe?" After exploding, Crystal started worrying for her friend. "Your mom’s health is poor, and the Lancaster family is unreliable. If Simon doesn’t honor his promise, you probably won’t be able to sustain yourself after you actually divorce."
Hearing this, Zoe was drenched in an icy chill. She had no way out.
She immediately sobered up. If only for her mother’s sake, she couldn’t just hand over the divorce settlement that rightfully belonged to her.
"I’ve made up my mind."
"Huh?" Crystal asked in confusion.