Chapter 4

Could it be that Chloe always secretly sneaked out at night to mess around with young guys, but she was worried I’d wake up in the middle of the night and notice she was gone? So she found her best friend Hailey to lie next to me instead.

After all, they both had similar figures. That way, even if I woke up in the middle of the night, I wouldn’t be able to clearly see who was lying next to me in the dark, and I naturally wouldn’t disturb my supposedly sleeping wife.

That means the two times I heard the door open before weren’t a burglar breaking in. It was my wife letting Hailey lie next to me, then secretly slipping out to fool around.

Thinking about this, everything clicked into place: why I suddenly noticed my wife’s voice was off, why she felt stiff and rigid when I touched her, like she was touched by a stranger. Because it wasn’t my wife, Chloe, at all; it was Hailey.

I finally understood why she always had a faint smell of alcohol on her in the mornings, and why she was wearing formal clothes that night I saw her with Hailey. Hailey must have realized she couldn’t keep the deception going and called Chloe from the bathroom, telling her to hurry back.

That’s why Hailey didn’t dare look me in the eye that day, constantly avoiding my gaze.

At this thought, I collapsed onto the bed. I laughed self-deprecatingly. I never thought such a flawed trick would go completely unnoticed by me. If I hadn’t suddenly woken up today and overheard their conversation, I’d probably still be playing the clown.

I suddenly got up, ready to yank open the bedroom door. But in the end, I calmed down. Even if I rushed out now and tore Chloe apart, it wouldn’t change anything. A heart that has strayed is like spilled water—you can’t un-ring that bell.

I wanted to see what else she would do to keep me from finding out.

With that thought, I slowly returned to bed and lay down, ignoring the voices outside.

It was already midnight. I just lay there silently.

About half an hour passed, and the room fell completely silent. Then, a faint closing sound came from outside again. Compared to the previous two times, this door closing was much softer.

If I had been asleep, I wouldn’t have heard it at all.

That single sound of the door closing completely shattered my heart. Perhaps our marriage was a mistake from the very beginning.

Another half an hour passed. The lock on the bedroom door clicked, barely making a sound, pulling me back from my complicated thoughts. It must be Hailey coming in.

In the dark, I squinted, unable to see clearly. I could only make out a silhouette entering the room, carefully closing the door, then tiptoeing to my bedside.

It was undoubtedly Hailey.

Every move she made was like walking on eggshells, extremely cautious, as if she feared I might suddenly wake up.

After reaching the bedside, she paused for a long time. Finally, she gently pulled back the covers and slowly lay down.

Honestly, my emotions right now were incredibly complex. There was the pain and anger of my wife’s betrayal, but surprisingly, there was also a strange mix of excitement and tension from her personally delivering her best friend to my bed.

After Hailey lay down beside me, even her breathing was barely audible. I knew she was incredibly nervous right now too.

I laughed at myself again, bitterly.

My wife, just to go out and fool around at night, actually sent her beautiful best friend to my bed. This was something even movies wouldn’t dare to portray, yet it was happening to me.

I thought to myself, *Chloe, Chloe, I genuinely believe I never did anything to wrong you. Ever since we got married, I tried my best to give you everything you wanted, and this is what it’s come to. I hate it so much!*

Recalling all the past events, my anger soared. In an instant, an extremely bold idea surged into my mind.

Fine, Chloe, you forced my hand. Since you sent Hailey to my bed to impersonate you, then it’s perfectly fine for me to be intimate with my ‘wife’ now, isn’t it? I’ll just pretend that the person lying next to me is Chloe. I want to see how you’re going to clean up this mess.

Thinking this, my head began to heat up. A strong desire for revenge filled my mind. I stopped pretending to sleep and slowly got up, feigning a trip to the bathroom.