Chapter 1The Sweetness of Revenge

My husband, Liam, recently took in a young woman who wasn't very well-behaved.

He spoiled her so much she forgot her place and actually came causing trouble right in front of me.

The girl's eyes were bright, and she stubbornly refused to call me "Mrs. Sterling": "Miss Reed, in love, the one who isn't loved is the real third wheel."

I smiled, reached out a slender finger, and forcefully yanked the pearl earring from her ear. Drops of blood instantly bloomed on her earlobe.

Behind us, Liam appeared, his jaw tight.

Chloe just stood there with red eyes: "Mr. Sterling, please don't be angry. Miss Reed probably didn't mean it."

Liam just took my hand, blowing on it gently: "Abby, does your hand hurt?"

Chloe stared at him in disbelief as a large tear rolled down her cheek.

And I just offered a faint smile.

* * *

Chloe was taken away by Liam's secretary. She seemed to have a thousand things to say, probably not understanding how the man who had been somewhat gentle with her yesterday could turn like this today.

Liam's affection for me wasn't entirely fake. He noticed a faint, barely visible mark on my finger and kissed it repeatedly.

"Abby, a woman like that isn't worth dirtying your own hands," he said, a hint of disapproval in his dark eyes.

I looked at Liam, my expression normal. I wasn't surprised by his actions.

We were childhood sweethearts, growing up together. By nature, he wasn't a particularly docile person, yet he was always tolerant and considerate of me.

In prominent, old-money families like ours, rotting marriages are everywhere. But he was the one I had actively chosen.

Even when we got married, my best friend, Serena, was endlessly envious. After all, when people reach a certain status, they view basic moral constraints with cold indifference.

Liam was genuine toward me.

Serena said that in elite families, fidelity is often viewed as a weakness.

When wealth expands to a certain level, expecting a man to remain forever faithful is truly rare. For many arranged marriages between powerful families, maintaining a facade of peace is already an achievement.

But Serena had seen how Liam served me food, seen how he unknowingly smiled just at the mention of me. He truly cared for me.

But his care wasn't one hundred percent.

In his position, not having beautiful women swarming around him would be abnormal. The few "understanding companions" Liam occasionally kept were nothing in Serena's eyes.

It was just too common.

It seems that when corruption becomes the norm, innocence becomes the anomaly.