Chapter 1
At the stroke of midnight on my birthday, I stared at the gift Jasper had sent me, completely paralyzed.
A lace thong soiled with bodily fluids, and a hotel bedsheet with traces of blood.
I flipped the table right there.
But when I looked up, Jasper was just staring at the mess with a helpless, amused smirk.
"The little girl is throwing a tantrum. Don't mind it. Our wedding is in three days. Don't worry, once we're married, this kind of thing won't happen again."
Staring at the text message I had just received on my phone, all my rage instantly went cold.
I looked at Jasper's indifferent face and gave him a smiling nod.
A grand gift awaits him at our wedding in three days.
Let's see if he can stay this calm and collected then.
Jasper looked a bit surprised by my reaction.
But he merely raised an eyebrow.
Stepping right over the disgusting mess on the floor, he walked toward the door with a chuckle, already dialing his phone.
"You're so bad... don't let me catch you doing that again..."
I kicked aside the cream-smeared rose petals on the floor and laid out the blood-spotted hotel sheet and the soiled thong.
I snapped a few close-ups of the blood and the filth.
Then, I opened my social media and uploaded these photos.
[Caption: Thanks to my fiancé for the birthday gift. I absolutely love it.]
I set a custom audience filter, making it visible only to two exclusive groups: 'Media Contacts' and 'Business Associates.'
And I hit send.
Thirty seconds later, just outside the floor-to-ceiling windows, Jasper—who had been smoking and flirting on the phone—suddenly went pale.
In the blink of an eye, he stormed back inside, roaring.
He snatched the phone right out of my hand and hurled it against the floor.
"Tess, what the hell is this supposed to mean?!"
"Exactly what it says," I replied, my voice steady. "Your little pet bird went through a lot of trouble to prepare this birthday surprise for me. It would be rude not to show my appreciation for her hard work."
Jasper let out an exasperated sigh.
"Tess, she's young. It was her first time. Why are you being so petty? The position of Mrs. Rainer..."
"The position of Mrs. Rainer belongs to me! So I'm supposed to just sit here, nod, and play the docile wife while you sleep around with one, two, or a hundred other women? Jasper, that kind of old-world marriage is dead!"
I thought I could keep my emotions in check.
After all, that text message I had just received gave me all the leverage I needed.
But eight years of love and tolerance for Jasper had been drained dry by this happening once, twice, a million times.
A flash of disgust crossed Jasper's eyes.
"Tess, don't push it. If it weren't for me, you'd still be rotting in that remote rural town, probably abused to death by the drunks in your trailer park!"
He looked down at me from his high horse, as if reminding me that he was the one who lifted me out of the dirt.
I should be grateful.
The metallic taste of blood spread in my mouth from biting my cheek.
I raised my hand and slapped him hard across the face.
Smack.
"You sponsored my education, Jasper. But that split-liver transplant surgery three years ago? I literally gave you a second life! I don't owe you a damn thing!"
Jasper froze.
His chest heaved up and down as he processed the sting on his cheek.
A few minutes later, he forced himself to calm down.
He took a step forward and smoothly tucked a stray strand of hair behind my ear.
"Tess, I didn't mean it like that. The Rainer Group is in the middle of a massive funding round right now. You know what public reputation means to me. I promise you, once we're married, this will never happen again."
"Tomorrow is the Rainer Group's press conference. Regarding what you posted tonight... I need you to go out there and clear it up for me."
His prefume used to make my heart race and my cheeks flush.
Tonight, for the first time, it just made me want to vomit.
I dodged his outstretched hands, took a step back, grabbed my purse, and turned to leave.
As I walked away, Jasper let out a satisfied sigh.
He knew me.
Over the past eight years, things like this had happened too many times.
He assumed my silence meant he had won again.
But this time, he was dead wrong.
"Sir, what should we do with this bedsheet and underwear?" a hotel staff member asked nervously. "Just throw them away?"
"No," Jasper replied. "Fold them up and put them in the trunk of my car."
Jasper was an absolute germaphobe.
Just yesterday, he had politely refused to let me put my freshly dry-cleaned heels in his trunk.
I understood now.
A cheating dog just loves rolling around in the dirtiest trash.
