He Hid His Mistress, I Exposed Him

Chapter 3

The lips of the man who once swore to love me for a lifetime are pressed with utter tenderness against another woman's belly.

The curtain in the background is the very one I bought after searching every furniture shop in the city, spending nearly an entire month's salary on it.

A few seconds later, I took a deep breath, saved the photo, and deleted the message.

It was not the right time to lose control or confront him just yet.

The next afternoon, I left work early and waited near the entrance of Vincent's office building.

When he drove out, I hailed a cab and followed him at a careful distance.

His car did not head back to the office or to our marital home. Instead, he drove toward the underground parking lot of a large shopping center.

I told the driver to stop a little way off, put on a hat and face mask, and followed him inside.

Vincent walked quickly, heading straight for the jewelry counter on the ground floor.

Without even hesitating, he pointed to a sparkling diamond ring in the display case, paid with his card, and had it wrapped up. His movements were smooth and practiced.

It was no small ring. Even from where I stood far away, its glint was sharp enough to sting my eyes.

Carrying the small gift bag, he did not waste a single moment. He walked straight to the supermarket in the basement, took a cart, and easily picked out imported fruit and premium health supplements from the fresh produce section. Then he reached for prenatal milk and special nut mixes.

I stood at the far end of the aisle, watching coldly as the items in his cart grew higher and higher.

These were all things he had never once bothered to get for me when I was pregnant.

Once he was done shopping, he walked right back toward the parking lot.

I hurried back to the cab before he noticed me and said, "Driver, keep following that car please."

Just as I expected, Vincent's car finally pulled up outside that same old apartment complex again.

He stepped out carrying bags of all sizes and hurried into the building.

Minutes later, the familiar window on the third floor lit up.

I sat in the cab like something carved from ice, staring at the warm glow spilling faintly through those curtains.

Roughly two hours later, Vincent appeared again at the building entrance.

His hands were empty. All the carefully chosen food and gifts had clearly been left behind inside.

He got back into his car, started the engine, and drove away.

This time he headed toward our home.

I arrived a little after Vincent did.

When I opened the door, he was busy in the kitchen wearing the cartoon apron I had bought him. Soup simmered on the stove, and the rich scent filled the whole room.

"You're home, babe?" He turned around with a smile so soft it felt almost ridiculous. "I left work early just to make you chicken soup. You've been working so hard lately." He came toward me, ready to pull me into his arms.

I stepped aside gently to avoid him, taking off my coat. "I smell like the subway. I'm going to take a shower first."

He paused for a moment, then recovered smoothly. "Sure thing. The soup will be ready any second. You can have it as soon as you get out."

I walked into the bathroom and turned on the tap, letting the sound of running water drown out everything else.

His used clothes were tossed loosely into the laundry basket beside the sink.

I picked up his shirt.

The collar was clean, no lipstick marks or strange perfume scent. But when I lifted his suit pants, a small stiff slip of paper fell out of the pocket.

It was a warranty card from the jewelry store.

Printed clearly on it were the style number and price of that diamond ring: ten thousand dollars.

The date was today.

I gripped the paper tight. The cold of it seemed to spread from my fingertips all the way down into my stomach.

'Vincent, you really do spare no expense... don't you?'