Chapter 2

I sit motionless on the edge of the bed, my head bowed as I watch the footage streaming from the car's surveillance camera on my phone.

Damien has his young assistant pinned against the back seat, eagerly stripping off her clothes:

"Let me see exactly where you didn't wash properly, you little temptress. Did you deliberately leave it unwashed to lure me back?"

The assistant wraps her arms around him, giggling flirtatiously:

"Of course I couldn't bear to wash off your artwork, darling. What do you think about getting today's masterpiece tattooed on me?"

Damien responds with an even more passionate and urgent kiss.

When they break apart, the assistant asks breathlessly:

"Did she find out?"

"Why bring her up? You're the only one I react to now."

I turn off the surveillance feed and send the final payment to the hacker.

Tears silently slide down my cheeks.

Truth is, I'd sensed Damien's feelings for me fading for a while now.

I just assumed it was because we'd been together so long, and our personalities had matured with age.

Turns out he hadn't lost his passion - I was simply no longer its target.

Damien's location stops in a very familiar neighborhood.

Our marital home, the one we bought when we got married, is here.

Damien had told me he'd rented out our old place.

In reality, it was never rented out at all, but used as a love nest for his mistress.I start to doubt what I've truly meant to him all these years.

How much of his proclaimed love was ever real?

The next day, Damien returned home carrying a bag of breakfast.

He reheated the already cold sandwich in the microwave for a moment before handing it to me.

"Aria, why didn't you sleep in? Did I wake you?"

Looking at Damien acting as if nothing happened, I shook my head.

"No need, I'll eat out."

Damien froze, quickly asking:

"Aria, what's wrong? Don't you like this sandwich?"

"I'm just tired of always eating at home."

Back when I happily moved into this new house with Damien after he made a name for himself, I never imagined there'd come a day when I couldn't stand to be here for even a second.

Damien hurriedly went to the bedroom to change:

"Aria, wait a moment. I'll make a reservation at your favorite restaurant. After we eat, we can go see that art exhibit."

Watching him busily preparing to go out, I felt a moment of bewilderment.

When Damien and I first got together, all my family and friends were against it.

They all advised me to think it through carefully, not to stake the rest of my life on this poor boy.But I didn't care if he could give me a life of luxury, only whether he could achieve his dreams.

To allow him to continue painting, I worked overtime and took on extra projects like mad, nearly ruining my health in the process.

Damien didn't let my efforts go to waste though. After he became famous, he spoiled me rotten.

He said being able to make me happy was his greatest honor.

As a talented young artist worth millions, he naturally had no shortage of admirers.

But he always kept his distance from them, never giving me any reason to let my imagination run wild.

If it weren't for the appearance of that little assistant, we really would have been the perfect couple, just like everyone said.

But Damien showed me through his actions.

His deep affection was something he could fake.