He Outbid Me, I Ruined His Plan

Just as I was about to transfer nine million dollars to my husband, who was overseas negotiating international business, the one-of-a-kind luxury watch I had my eye on at the auction was suddenly 'lit into the sky' by someone else. Furious and unwilling to back down, I kept raising my paddle until the bid hit one million and five hundred thousand dollars, when suddenly, an arrogant female assistant barged into the private booth. "I'd advise you to know your place and back off now! Steal our boss' most coveted item, and you won't even live long enough to regret it!" Everyone around me looked frozen with fear, too scared to make a sound. I couldn't help but wonder when some new big shot I'd never heard of had popped up in Florida. I glanced over at the big shot's private box, and who did I see? None other than my husband Henry Walton, the man who was supposed to be overseas on a business trip! Just the day before, he'd sounded so guilty that he couldn't make it home for our wedding anniversary. Now he was kissing the female college student I'd been sponsoring, his voice soft and sugary. "It's your birthday present. Do you like it?" Behind me, the female assistant's voice cut through the air like nails on a chalkboard. "Standing bid! Our boss says no matter what anyone else bids, he'll go five hundred thousand dollars higher!" I let out a cold laugh and raised my paddle without hesitation. "I'll match it!" I'd love to see if he could scrape together a single cent without my money backing him up! I'd just gotten back to my upper-level VIP seat when my phone pinged with a new message. Henry: Wifey, I just got to the hotel. I'm so tired and sleepy, I miss you like crazy! I tore my eyes away from the screen and looked down at the box below. Henry had just set his phone down, leaning into Shane Miller's arms and murmuring something I couldn't hear. The next second, they were locked in a sloppy, passionate kiss, clinging to each other like they couldn't get enough. Staring at that offensively brazen sight, all those constant little check-ins I'd once found so sweet curdled in my stomach and made me want to gag. I wasn't just furious at Henry for stabbing me in the back, I was seething at Shane, that ungrateful little backstabber I'd lifted out of nothing! I'd picked her out myself to sponsor. I'd covered every last one of her expenses, letting her live up to my own standard of living. Her quality of life was better than most actual rich girls'! But I'd never in a million years guessed that the sweet, well-behaved girl who'd called me "Sis" every other second would sink so low as to sleep with my husband! My auction advisor spoke up carefully, his voice tentative. "Miss Paula, the other side placed a standing bid. How much should we bid this time?" The corner of my mouth tugged up in an icy sneer. "Two million and five hundred thousand dollars." Oh, he wants to throw five hundred thousand dollars around for a little romance? Fine, I'll play along with their little game. As soon as the auctioneer called out my bid, Henry's face darkened so fast you could practically see the storm clouds rolling over it. The crowd below burst into shocked murmurs, craning their necks this way and that to see who had the guts to go head-to-head with the head of the Walton family! No one in the business world puts up with malicious bid hiking like this. Hearing that absurdly high number, even a total i***t could taste the hostility rolling off me. In the opposite box, Shane's eyes immediately welled up with tears. She clung to Henry, looking all wounded and guilty. "Henry, that's just malicious bid hiking, isn't it? It's all my fault. If you weren't here trying to get me a birthday present, you never would have run into this awful mess! I don't even want the watch anymore. Can we just leave, please?" Her little act of perfect, selfless consideration only made Henry feel even guiltier. He was dead set on winning that watch for her, no matter the cost. He flicked his hand dismissively, and his obliging female assistant immediately lifted the bidder paddle, her voice ringing loud and clear across the auction hall. "We're lighting the sky lantern! Add five hundred thousand dollars, that's three million in total!" The crowd let out a collective hiss, then burst into gasping, admiring exclamations. "Mr. Walton is so damn loaded! Just to keep his mistress happy, he'd light a sky lantern no questions asked!" "Who's that i***t from out of town going toe to toe with Mr. Walton? They've got a death wish, for sure!" "After we watch this sky lantern show, we might even get front-row seats to some poor schmuck groveling on the floor begging for their life." I watched those people sneer and jeer, then took a slow, calm sip of tea. "Four million and five hundred thousand." The second my bid rang out, Henry's face turned so dark it looked like a storm cloud was about to burst over his head. Shane had to simper and cajole him for ages before he calmed down even a little. He snapped out an immediate five hundred thousand increase, then called one of his men over, leaned in, and murmured a few orders under his breath, his face thunderous. We'd been married seven years. I could read every single one of his microexpressions like a book, and I could tell he was properly furious this time. I just smiled, couldn't have cared less. We're barely getting started here. The real fun won't kick off until it's time to show proof of funds for the bid! When I heard Henry's side call out five million, I rested my chin on one hand, paused to think for a beat, and coolly tossed out a number. "Five million and four hundred thousand."