Chapter 1

It was my fifth year married to Preston Rowe when a lively, bold secretary suddenly appeared by his side.

When the secretary, Molly Mullen, slipped off her coat and stood before him, Preston frowned.

He ordered the cleaning crew to scrub the office thoroughly, as if her presence had contaminated the place.

"Don't let yourself or your coat dirty my office," Preston said, his tone icy.

Molly, refusing to back down, pointed at me and asked, "Mr. Rowe, do you really prefer your blind wife? Aren't I more your type than her?"

Preston gave her a mocking look. "You think you can even compare to Kendra?"

Molly kept taunting me, as if she owned the place, like she was Mrs. Rowe herself.

Preston docked her pay, scolded her, and tried every trick in the book to punish her, but he never sent her away.

When Molly provoked me again, Preston scolded her, right on cue.

But the very next second, out of nowhere, he kissed her.

He typed a line on his phone and showed it to her. [You really are more my type than she is.]

But I never told Preston that I wasn't blind anymore.

*****

I looked down at Preston's WhatsApp profile picture.

It was just a simple photo, but I knew it was a couple's profile picture.

His pinned message on WhatsApp read: [She's the best in the world.]

We'd always just sent voice messages before, but today, for the first time, I typed out a message: [Preston, I can see now.]

But being able to see hurt so much more than not seeing ever did.

My vision blurred, and my fingers trembled as I deleted the words from the chat box.

"Kendra, what are you doing here all alone?" Preston burst into the office, hurried over, and crouched down to take my hand.

He said softly, "Why didn't you have Lisa come with you? What if something happened? You really shouldn't be wandering around alone when you can't see..."

I looked up through a haze of tears and saw Molly standing behind Preston.

She was playfully twirling the edge of Preston's jacket.

Without betraying any emotion, I slipped my hand out of Preston's and said nothing.

Preston's brows furrowed as he looked over his shoulder at Molly, slipping the hem of his jacket out of her hand.

The very next moment, Molly caught his fingers.

Preston playfully tapped Molly on the forehead, slipped his hand free, and said to me, "Kendra, I docked Molly's pay for half a month because of what happened last time. Now, she's here to apologize to you."

Molly gave a little pout, stepped forward, and said, "Sorry, Ms. Johnston."

She never called me Mrs. Rowe, only Ms. Johnston.

Maybe, in her eyes, I was never really Preston's wife.

I'd heard the same old apology from her more times than I could count.

If I hadn't seen it for myself today, I would've really thought Preston had punished her.

I lowered my eyes, and for the first time, I minded. "I'm Preston's wife. Isn't it inappropriate for you to address me like that?"

Preston had never seen me make a fuss about how someone addressed me, but he still turned to Molly and barked, "Change how you address her and apologize properly."

Molly stomped her foot in frustration. "She's blind! What makes her so special? Why should I..."

"Molly!" Preston cut her off, his eyes narrowing. "Kendra is my wife. Apologize to her, now!"

Molly clenched her jaw, clearly reluctant, and spat out an apology in my direction. "Mrs. Rowe, I'm sorry."

I watched Molly whip out her phone, type a quick message, and flash it at Preston: [I did what you wanted, so what do I get for it?]

Preston shot me a glance, still saying nothing, and then tapped out a reply. [That's my girl. Tonight, you get me.]

I looked at Preston and honestly thought he was just the worst.

Almost without thinking, my fingers brushed over my eyes.

Preston and I grew up together. Our families had us engaged since we were kids.

But when I turned eighteen, the Rowe family fell apart.

I cried myself blind and refused treatment, just so my parents would finally let me marry Preston and give him the chance to start over.

He was on his knees, crying as he touched my eyes. "Kendra, from now on, I'll be your eyes."

But as I looked at Preston now, then at Molly, the vow he once made felt almost cruelly ironic.

Tears filled my eyes, but I raised my head defiantly. "I don't accept her apology."

Preston turned to look at me, taken aback.

"I want you to fire her. And never let her set foot in Rowe Group again," I said, keeping my voice steady.

Inside, I thought, if Preston just sent her away, I'd move on, like nothing ever happened.

But Preston disappointed me in the end.