Chapter 1

Edward Grant, who had always kept his distance from women, actually brought back a shirt printed with lipstick marks when he returned home from a business trip.

After seeing that, I wisely handed him a divorce agreement.

The five years of marriage should come to an end now.

*****

Edward was a man with an extremely strong sense of boundaries. Even after five years of marriage and sharing the same roof, he always kept a distance from me.

He never put his personal items in my space. He never touched my things either. But on our fifth wedding anniversary, when he got back from his business trip, he did something rare—he asked me to help him unpack his suitcase.

I thought he'd hidden a gift in there, planning to surprise me. But when I opened the suitcase, all I saw was a shirt stained with lipstick.

I froze for a second. The lipstick on the shirt was a bright, bold rose red—a shade I'd never worn in my life.

There was no doubt about it—Edward had cheated on me during that one-month business trip.

I was just about to ask Edward what was going on when the doorbell suddenly rang.

I opened the door, and standing outside was a beautiful girl in her early twenties. "You must be Mr. Grant's wife, right?" she said, giving me a smile. Even I couldn't help but feel a little fond of her charming smile.

"I'm Mr. Grant's new secretary. I left some documents in his suitcase during our business trip," she explained, stating her purpose.

Edward's family was the richest in the local area. This year, he'd taken over the family company. He hadn't gotten along with the secretary the family had assigned to him, so he'd asked the HR department to recruit five postgraduates from top universities.

After a three-month probation period, only this girl—Natalie Levenson—had stayed. And she was Edward's first love from college.

Back in college, Edward lived frugally, so Natalie had mistakenly thought he came from a poor family.

She'd dumped him for someone with a better background, and that was when Edward had agreed to go on a blind date with me and marry me, as his family had suggested.

I'd never met Natalie before. Whenever Edward mentioned her, he only ever said she was extremely efficient at her job.

He'd never told me how beautiful and likable she was—especially her big eyes, which fit Edward's taste perfectly.

I stepped aside to let Natalie into my house.

In the living room, Edward's suitcase hadn't been closed. Natalie spotted the lipstick-stained shirt the second she walked in, then feigned surprise. "I'm too late," she said. "You've already seen the shirt."

She lifted a hand to cover her mouth, but left a tiny gap that was just wide enough for me to see the lipstick on her lips. It was the exact same shade as the stain on the shirt.

"I was drunk at the cocktail party last night," Natalie explained, though her tone was as intimate as if she were describing a lover. "When Mr. Grant helped me back to the hotel, I accidentally got lipstick on his collar."

"I was packing his suitcase this morning and slipped this shirt in by mistake," she went on. "Mrs. Grant, I know I traveled with Mr. Grant for the entire month, but it was all for work. I hope this shirt didn't make you misunderstand."

Obviously, Natalie hadn't come to pick up documents. She'd come to piss me off.

But her tactic was so clumsy, it didn't stir a single emotion in me. I smiled calmly at her. "Ms. Levenson, you're here too early. I haven't even had a chance to misunderstand yet."

"Misunderstand what?" Edward's voice came from the bedroom.

He'd just gotten out of the shower, wearing only a towel around his waist. His upper body—with its sharp, defined abs—was bare, and even though there was a stranger in the house, he didn't bother covering up at all.

Edward walked over and, right in front of me, asked Natalie, "Nat, what are you doing here?"

Natalie tilted her chin, gesturing to the lipstick on the shirt. "I was afraid your wife might misunderstand the lipstick on your shirt, so I came to explain. But it looks like I worried for nothing."

She turned to me. "Mrs. Grant, I've heard you come from an educated family, and that you're gentle, generous, and understanding. No wonder Mr. Grant is so devoted to you."

She smiled softly, but her words were laced with obvious malice. Edward, though, didn't react—not to defend me, nor to stop Natalie. He just said calmly, "Charlotte's always been sensible."

Natalie gave me a meaningful look. "As long as there's no misunderstanding, that's all that matters. I'll leave now—I won't disturb your time alone."

The second she was gone, the smile faded from my face. "Edward," I said, "you never told me Natalie was with you on this business trip."