His s*x Tape Exposed, I Leave Him

Chapter 2

Rose's blood turned to ice in her veins. It felt like she'd been plunged straight into a frozen hell, every inch of her body locking up in an instant.

The villa out in the western suburbs? She'd picked it out herself, paid for it upfront in full. It was supposed to be hers and Chris' newlywed home, her wedding gift to the two of them, their fresh start together.

And her only bridesmaid on the big day? It was no one else but Kaye Clinton, her closest and most trusted best friend since they were little kids.

Kaye had been the only light cutting through the endless gloom of Rose's childhood. Back when her parents were never around, she would huddle alone in the corner of the classroom, picking at a cold stale sandwich. It was Kaye who came darting over, laced her hand through Rose's, and pulled her home for dinner. Every single time, she'd slip the tenderest, juiciest piece of meat from her own bowl onto Rose's plate.

Once, the school bully picked on her, heaving a rock straight at her back. Without a single moment of hesitation, Kaye stepped right in front of her, took that rock square on the back. The ugly scar it left still sits there to this day.

That's why Kaye was the person Rose trusted most in the whole world. They were closer than sisters, shared every little secret with each other, no topic was off limits.

After Rose got together with Chris, Kaye even pulled him aside once, face dead serious, and warned him straight to his face, "Rose's my best friend. You'd better treat her right. If you dare let her get hurt even a little, I'll come for you first."

Back then, Chris fired right back, not about to back down. "Rose's the love of my life. Stay out of our business from now on. Don't go corrupting her."

The two of them butted heads every time they met, clashed openly, with tensions so thick you could cut them with a knife. Every single meeting ended in a standoff, and Rose always had to step in between them to smooth things over and calm everyone down.

Back then, all Rose felt was pure, overwhelming joy. Her favorite person and her best friend both cared about her more than anything. Both were determined to protect her.

But right now, the image on her screen, of her one true love tangled up in wild passion with her own best friend, slammed into her like a dozen sharp, ringing slaps right across the face.

The burn seared deep.

Everything clicked into place at last. That's why Kaye never brought up her boyfriend on her own, never let anyone see a photo of him.

Her boyfriend was the same man who was supposed to be Rose's fiancé.

Every little off moment, every strange inconsistency suddenly linked together, weaving into an airtight net that wrapped tight around her, squeezing the breath right out of her lungs.

Soft, panting sounds from the live stream cut through her spiraling thoughts, and the two on the screen were still tangled in their hungry, intimate embrace.

Viewer comments scrolled wildly across the screen as bullet chats, the whole screen overflowing with wild catcalls and rowdy excitement.

A: [Mr. Rabbit has insane stamina! This is his second stream today, and he's still this hyped!]

B: [Rabbit never used to kiss other guests, I thought he had a total severe germaphobia! Turns out he only makes an exception for Fox!]

C: [I ship this so hard I'm locking it forever! This ship is too good, give us more content please!]

Rose's whole body went limp, and she collapsed heavily into her chair. Her heart felt like it was being sliced over and over by a thousand tiny, sharp blades. The ache spread from every pore, deep all the way into her bones.

Her fingers trembling so bad she could barely hold them steady, she pulled out her phone and dialed that long-dormant overseas number.

"That overseas startup project we talked about earlier, I'm taking it. After the wedding, I'll fly out in seven days, no delays."

She hung up, then immediately called a private investigator she'd used before, hired him to dig up every last detail of everything the two of them had been hiding.

Two hours later, a soft click echoed from the entryway. Chris pushed the door open, stepping inside with the crisp bite of late-night chill clinging to his clothes.

He strode straight into the bathroom, scrubbed himself clean, and pulled on a fresh set of lounge wear. When he walked out, he acted completely innocent, strolling into the kitchen to make breakfast for Rose, then leaned down to press a soft, gentle good-morning kiss to her forehead.

Rose stared at his warm, open features, and her chest twisted with a sick, nonsensical confusion.

How could two people who used to snarl at each other like cats and dogs, who couldn't stand being in the same room together, have carried on this twisted, secret affair right under her nose this whole time?

After Chris left for work, Rose invited Kaye out for tea, alone.

The second Kaye sat down, she started complaining nonstop, her voice thick with annoyance. "Rose, I even took a special day off just to hang out with you! You have no idea what your Chris is like at work. He looks all sweet and soft on the surface, but he's a total tyrant in the office. He's always riding me for every little thing, totally overworking me as a low-level staffer. Thank god I had an excuse to sneak out here and catch a break."

Rose's nose twitched. She caught the faint scent clinging to Kaye. It was that exact same woody cologne Chris wore, no difference at all.

Her fingers went ice-cold instantly. She crushed the roiling storm of emotion churning in her chest and kept her voice calm as she said, "I think Chris is cheating on me."

Kaye's eyes blew wide open instantly, shock written all over her face, so genuine, you couldn't spot a single tell of a lie.

"That's impossible! Rose, don't go making up crazy stuff. Chris loves you more than anything. You're all he ever thinks about. There's no way he'd cheat!"

Rose didn't respond. She just lifted her gaze slowly, and pinned Kaye with a hard, unblinking stare, desperate to catch even the flicker of a lie in her eyes.

She pushed the steaming cup of tea across the table toward Kaye, but Kaye just smiled and waved it off.

"No, thanks. I've been feeling under the weather lately, and I'm getting my health back in order. I have to watch what I eat and drink. No alcohol, no cigarettes, no tea, nothing like that."