Chapter 1

Christmas was coming up, and my husband, Andrew Taylor, said we'd go back to our own families again this year.

Five years of marriage, and every single year, it was always like this.

Andrew said, "Your parents only have you. They'll definitely want to see you for Christmas.

"You should go spend time with them. My parents totally understand."

Every time I heard those words, my heart felt so warm.

This morning, I watched him drive off.

After he left, I scrolled through Instagram for a bit and stumbled upon a photo.

The photo showed a woman's feet resting on the passenger side dashboard.

A diamond anklet glinted around her ankle.

The caption read: [Hubby's driving me home!]

I froze when I saw the charm dangling in the car.

I sewed that lucky charm for Andrew. There was only one like it in the world.

*****

I stared at that red lucky charm.

Five years ago, when Andrew first bought his car, we were both so happy.

I spent an entire afternoon hand-stitching that charm for him.

The tassel was a bit crooked. Andrew had pulled it by accident when he first hung it up.

I remembered it clearly.

So there was no doubt; this was Andrew's car.

I checked out the woman's profile. She posted a lot.

On Valentine's Day, she posted a pic from the jewelry counter. The caption said: [Hubby bought me a diamond, do you like it?]

It was the anklet on her foot.

It was super shiny.

I spotted a pair of black leather shoes in the corner of the photo.

It was the pair Andrew wore every single day.

My hands started trembling when I saw this.

Her profile had a selfie—a woman with shoulder-length hair and glasses.

I looked at her twice, and she looked really familiar.

Then it clicked. She was Andrew's coworker, Samantha Harris.

Back when we were still dating, Andrew told me about a new female coworker, Samantha, who had joined his company. She was always playing the damsel, constantly flirting and making the guys do her work for her.

Andrew said he really hated that type.

After we got married, he rarely brought Samantha up anymore.

I thought Samantha had left the company a long time ago.

But apparently, she hadn't.

Turned out, not only did Samantha never leave, but she was riding in Andrew's car, going home with him.

Five years straight, she was right there in his passenger seat.

And she even called him hubby.

I gave Andrew a call.

He picked up after just two rings.

I asked, "Where are you?"

"Still on the road. Should be there in two or three hours," he replied.

Andrew sounded relaxed, and I could hear music playing softly in the background.

"Is the traffic bad?" I asked.

"It's alright, not really jammed," Andrew said, then paused. "How about you? When are you heading out?"

"I'm leaving tonight, haven't headed out yet," I replied.

"Okay, take care on the way. Let me know when you arrive," Andrew said.

I paused for a couple of seconds, holding my phone.

"Honey," I blurted out, "how about buying me a diamond?"

Andrew was caught off guard for a second.

"Diamond?" Andrew echoed, a hint of confusion in his voice.

"Yeah. We never got diamonds when we got married, and now I really want one," I said.

There was a brief silence on the other end.

Then Andrew said, "You know our financial situation. Things are pretty tight this year. Maybe next year, okay? I'll do my best and see if I can get you one then."

I kept silent.

I suddenly caught a faint laugh coming from the other end of the line.

That was a woman's laugh.

It was so quick. I couldn't tell if she just couldn't hold it in, or if she wanted me to hear it on purpose.

Andrew said, "Alright, I'll let you go for now. I'm still driving, so it's not convenient to talk. I'll hang up."

Before hanging up, he added, just like he always did, "I love you, honey."