THE HOUSEWIFE’S SECRET RETURN

Chapter 3: Hidden Hints

POV: GENEVIEVE

By Thursday afternoon, the uneasy feeling from Chloe’s visit still lingered in the back of my mind. Needing a break, I arranged to meet my best friend, Maya, at a quiet cafe overlooking the harbor.

Maya and I had been friends for a long time. I lost count when we hit fifteen years of being friends. She was there when Sterling Enterprise was built from scratch. Though my focus had shifted to my family after Lily was born, Maya remained my closest confidante.

"You look distant, Gen," Maya said gently, setting her coffee cup down and studying my face across the small marble table. "Is everything okay at home?"

My mind immediately flashed to the dashcam video, the lingering doubts, and how exhausting Chloe had been when she stormed into our home demanding Charles's credit card. But I forced a smile and kept those dark thoughts locked away.

"I'm fine, just tired," I replied smoothly. "Lily was a handful while Charles was away out of town, and managing everything on my own took a toll."

"Out of town?" Maya frowned slightly, her brow knotting. "Where did he say he went?"

"Chicago," I said. "For a three-day corporate briefing."

Maya sat back, her posture stiffening. "Gen... I saw Charles three days ago."

My heart hammered against my ribs. Three days ago was the exact day Charles was supposed to have boarded his early morning flight.

"What do you mean?" I asked, keeping my voice steady. "Where did you see him?"

"I was downtown near the financial district, leaving a client meeting," Maya said, leaning in closer. "He was getting out of a black….."

"Excuse me, ladies!"

A cheerful voice cut her off as a young waiter stepped beside our table, balance tray in hand. "Are we ready to order lunch, or do you need a few more minutes with the beverage menu?"

The sudden intrusion shattered the moment. I blinked, pulled abruptly out of the rising panic.

"Just two waters and five more minutes, please," I said quickly, waving the waiter away.

As the waiter stepped back, I turned to her urgently. "Maya, go on. Where was he getting out of the sedan? Who was with hior were you traveling to Chicago too?"

Maya opened her mouth, but a sudden blanket of hesitation settled over her eyes. She rubbed her temples with a heavy sigh, staring down at her coffee cup.

"Honestly, Gen... now that I think about it, I can't even be sure it was him," Maya muttered, shaking her head. "It was pouring rain, traffic was terrible, and I only caught a two-second glance from across four lanes. I shouldn't have brought it up and worked you into a panic."

"Maya, a second ago you sounded completely sure," I pressed, my fingers tightening on the edge of the table.

Maya let out a sharp breath, her gaze shifting away from mine. "Look at you, Genevieve. You're jumping at shadows because your entire world revolves around Charles now."

The sudden turn in her tone caught me completely off guard.

"You are no longer the ambitious, capable woman I used to know," Maya said, her voice dropping into a harsh, guarded register. "You used to run boardrooms. Now you sit at home, managing his life, taking every word he says as gospel. Do you even truly know the man your husband has become?"

Her words stung, but as I looked at her, a cold prickle of suspicion ran down my spine.

Why had she been so eager to tell me she saw him, only to back off the moment she was interrupted? Was she genuinely a concerned friend trying to drop a subtle warning? Or... was she the woman meeting him downtown, testing how much I already knew?

Between Chloe’s possessive, boundary-crossing behavior and Maya’s sudden, evasive sharp words, I felt surrounded by shadows.

That evening, dinner at home was quiet. Charles sat across from me, casually cutting his steak, looking relaxed and affectionate.

"Oh, by the way," Charles mentioned offhandedly, wiping his mouth with a napkin. "I ran into the quarterly audit for Maya’s firm today. It made me realize... I haven't seen Maya in a really long time. How is she doing?"

I froze, my fork hovering mid-air.

He delivered the question with complete, unbothered innocence. But sitting across from him, looking into his calm, dark eyes, the room felt dangerously cold.

Was he simply making conversation, or was he probing to see if Maya had confessed what happened downtown? And if Maya was hiding something... was Charles in on it with her?

And Chloe’s actions yesterday came spiralling through my head plus Maya’s words today sounded so suspicious.

I stared at Charles across the dinner table.

Maya had seen him three days ago.

Yet Charles had just told me he hadn’t seen her in a long time.

One of them was lying.

And for the first time, I wasn’t sure which one I should fear more.