Filed to story: When His Wife Can’t Forgive
Shelia didn’t want to bother her any further.
“If you’d like something to eat, please let me know. I can prepare it for you,” she offered.
“There’s no need. I have a maid here,” Lilliana replied.
Shelia wondered if Lilliana was subtly insulting her, implying that she was no more than a servant. Without saying anything else, Shelia turned and left.
Later on, Joshua returned home. He saw the maid carrying out the food container and emptying its contents into the pet dog’s bowl.
He frowned deeply.
Upon taking a closer look, it was indeed the container Shelia had brought earlier.
The maid looked surprised to see him and greeted him awkwardly, “Mr. Yates.”
Joshua maintained a stern expression. “Who instructed you to feed this to the dog?” he demanded.
The maid feared he would blame her. She explained, “Miss Green said she can’t eat greasy food. It would spoil if left out…”
Anger surged within Joshua as he clenched his fists. During the two years of marriage to Alicia, she always went out of her way to cook for Shelia.
Shelia never accepted those gestures, not even once. Now, Lilliana refused the soup from Shelia, and the pet dog was eating it.
His frustration reached a breaking point, and he kicked the dog away.
He pointed at the bowl on the ground. “Drink it yourself,” he commanded.
The maid’s eyes widened in horror. She shook her head frantically. “Mr. Yates, I can’t!”
“Drink it or you’re dismissed,” he demanded. “Make your choice.”
Feeling humiliated by how she was treated, the maid decided to complain directly to Lilliana.
Lilliana listened but showed no interest in the maid’s concerns.
She approached Joshua with a smile. “Is something bothering you? You promised when you proposed that you’d love me even if I’m unreasonable. I didn’t like the soup, so I threw it away. Is that a problem?”
Joshua set the cake down, struggling to control his growing anger.
“My mother put a lot of effort into making that soup,” he said.
“It’s just a bowl of soup,” Lilliana replied dismissively. “If you’re so concerned, I’ll have someone buy another and send it back to her.”
Joshua looked at her, feeling his frustration intensify.
Lilliana’s affection toward Joshua depended entirely on her mood. When pleased, she showed him kindness; when displeased, she viewed him as disposable. Her arrogance stemmed from this capricious behavior.
Joshua stared at her, struggling to control the anger rising within him. He reached out and gently touched her cheek.
“Fine,” he said in a flat voice. “If you don’t want it, I’ll ask my mother not to send anything again.”
Lilliana felt content after that.
Soon after, her agent called with troubling news. “Someone is suppressing the trending topic about Alicia,” the agent informed her.
“Who is doing this?” Lilliana asked, annoyance in her voice.
Alicia had also begun to notice that someone had been quietly helping her from behind the scenes.
Her first instinct was to call Monica.
When Monica answered, she sounded frustrated. “I hired some trolls to tear Lilliana apart online,” she admitted. “But I don’t have the money to censor the trending searches. That stuff costs a fortune, and my dad locked my credit card. Ugh, I’m so done with him!”
Alicia mulled over Monica’s words, and only one other person came to mind: Gerry.
Without delay, she called him, and her suspicions were confirmed.
Feeling a bit uneasy, Alicia said softly, “It’s just gossip, people talking behind my back. It’s not like they’re hurting me physically. You really didn’t need to waste your money on this…”
Gerry, lounging comfortably, put her on speaker but didn’t respond right away. Instead, he glanced over at Caden, who was sitting across from him.
Caden, with his long legs casually crossed, had his eyes glued to his phone, mindlessly scrolling. He showed no signs of joining the conversation.
Unbothered, Gerry turned his attention back to Alicia. “I didn’t spend that much,” he finally replied. “The real help came from another big shot.”
Alicia’s brow furrowed in confusion. “Who’s this mysterious benefactor?”
Once again, Gerry’s gaze flicked toward Caden, but he didn’t reveal the answer right away, choosing instead to tease her.
“Are you free?” he asked, smoothly segueing into another topic. “Come over. We can chat, have a little fun, and I’ll introduce you to this ‘big shot.'”
Alicia caught the implication immediately.
She always had a good working relationship with Gerry, and now that she was in trouble, he was helping her by offering her an opportunity to meet someone powerful. This was how things worked-mutual benefits, carefully cultivated relationships.
“So, what’s this big shot like?” she probed further. “I’d like to give him something.”
At this, Gerry’s eyes gleamed with mischief. “He’s… well, let’s just say he’s not as strong as he used to be. Maybe you could get him some Viagra.”
Alicia was momentarily speechless, then shot back with dry humor, “Mr. Hopkins, are you running some shady side business by any chance?”
Gerry couldn’t help but burst into hearty laughter. “If you two ever manage to strike a deal, it’ll be nothing short of a miracle.”
A glint of realization flashed in Alicia’s eyes.
This big shot Gerry was hinting at, could it be…?
After ending the call, Gerry couldn’t help but lick his lips and grin. “I’m genuinely curious, Caden. Why’d you suddenly decide to help Alicia this time?”
Caden paused, his eyes never leaving the screen. After a few quiet seconds, he replied loftily, “It’s not helping. Think of it as a down payment.”
Gerry’s brow lifted in intrigue. “What do you mean by that?”
Caden didn’t answer, his expression unreadable. Just then, a light knock on the door interrupted their conversation.
The manager entered with a warm smile and announced, “Mr. Ward, Mr. Hopkins, your drinks have arrived.” Behind him, a few strikingly attractive women followed, each scantily clad.
They sauntered in and served the drinks, but they didn’t leave right away. Instead, they gracefully slid into the seats beside Caden and Gerry.
Gerry, wasting no time, wrapped his arm around the waist of the girl beside him, pulling her close as she giggled, feeding him a sip of his drink. He leaned back in his chair, obviously enjoying the attention.
Caden, however, didn’t so much as acknowledge the girl who sat beside him.
His gaze lingered on her for a moment-cold, distant, as if he were studying her rather than savoring the moment. The girl, unaccustomed to such an aloof reception, flushed under his icy stare.
“Mr. Ward,” she said with a soft, hopeful tone, “is there anything you want to eat? I can feed you.”
Caden’s expression hardened, his eyes darkening with irritation. “No need,” he said flatly, turning his head away as if her presence disgusted him. “And keep your distance.”
The girl’s smile faltered, clearly caught off guard by his sudden shift in mood.
But she wasn’t ready to give up so easily. Patrons as wealthy as Caden didn’t come along every day, and she wasn’t about to let him slip away.
“Mr. Ward, don’t be so cruel,” she coaxed, leaning closer despite his rejection. “Tell me what you enjoy-I can do anything to please you.”
Caden’s gaze flicked back to her, an unsettling edge in his voice. “Anything?”
The girl’s eyes lit up with eager anticipation, nodding quickly, certain that her persistence was paying off.
Moments later, the door creaked open again, and Alicia entered. The air in the private room shifted as she took in the scene before her.
The women were filing out, one of them particularly distraught, wiping at her eyes with trembling hands as she let out quiet sobs.
Alicia’s curiosity was piqued, her eyes sweeping over the girl before settling on Gerry and Caden.
“Did you two bully her?” she asked, her lips curving into a subtle smile.
Gerry laughed, clearly entertained. “Not me! It was Caden. He’s the one who bullied her and made her cry!”
Alicia’s eyes naturally drifted to Caden.
He was dressed in his signature black shirt that clung to his sculpted torso, making even the most mundane color seem dangerously appealing.
His devilishly handsome face bore no emotion, but his very presence radiated an allure that was hard to resist. Despite his cold demeanor, he had an inexplicable magnetism that drew people in.
Memories of the surveillance footage flashed through Alicia’s mind-those intimate moments where Caden’s touch had seemed so practiced, so devastatingly skilled. A strange emotion stirred inside her as a thought crossed her mind.
Did… did he use those same deft hands on other women, too?
She blinked away the thought, a mischievous glint flickering in her eyes as she took her seat.
“I see,” she said lightly, a teasing lilt in her voice. “Men who are impotent usually overcompensate by getting a little… creative, don’t they?”
Caden’s head snapped up, his gaze locking onto hers, eyes flashing dangerously.
Before the tension could thicken, Gerry’s boisterous laughter broke the silence. “That’s exactly what happened! That girl tried her best to seduce him, and what did Caden do? He made her stay and give a PowerPoint presentation instead!”
Alicia’s eyes nearly popped out of her head.
The corner of her mouth twitched, and she grumbled, “That’s… really perverse.”
Caden’s voice cut through the moment with a calm, unsettling edge. “There are things far more perverse, Miss Bennett. Perhaps next time, I’ll show you.”