The day I went to the hospital to collect the test results and settle the bill, I discovered that the 300 thousand dollars in my credit card account was gone. It was money that my husband Nolan Cole and I had spent three years saving for a house. Panic-stricken, I immediately called Nolan. “Did you use the money in our account?” After a long hesitation, he finally admitted the truth under my persistent questioning. “Andrea divorced with nothing. She’s struggling to raise her child alone. I just lent her the money for emergencies.” Andrea Powell was Nolan’s first love, the same woman who had abandoned him at his lowest point to marry a wealthy businessman. Whenever Nolan had mentioned her before, his voice had been filled with anger and bitterness about her betrayal. But now that she was divorced, his attitude had completely changed. I looked down at the test results in my hand and sighed, “Get the money back. We’ll discuss this in detail when I get home tonight.” It was dark by the time I arrived home. I found Nolan sitting on the couch smoking, a fresh bruise at the corner of his mouth. The room reeked of cigarettes. “What happened to your face?” I asked, frowning. He touched his bruised lip, avoiding my eyes. “I fell.” I accepted his explanation without pressing further. Watching him light another cigarette, I said gently, “Why are you smoking again? It’s bad for your health. By the way, did you get the money back?” “Every time I light up, you act like I’m killing you.” Nolan rolled his eyes and sprawled across the couch. “I’m not getting the money back. It’s just 300 thousand dollars. Consider it a good deed.” “What?” I threw my bag onto a chair, trembling with anger. “Nolan, get that money back now! We saved it together—half of it is mine. You had no right to give it to her.” I took a breath, trying to stay calm. “I know what you’re thinking. Do you really believe giving her money will make her want you back?” I tried to soften my approach. “I’m only thinking of what’s best for you. The money is for—” Before I could finish, Nolan leaped up from the couch, jabbing his finger in my face. His outburst seemed fueled by guilty defensiveness. “You used to be so gentle and understanding. When did you become this selfish and petty? Getting worked up over a mere 300 thousand dollars? Andrea has nothing after her divorce and a child to raise. Don’t you have any compassion?” “Selfish and petty?” I laughed bitterly. Nolan and I had met through a blind date. Back then, he had nothing—no job, no house, no car—and Andrea had just left him. I found he was honest and hard-working. With his parents deceased, there would be no complications between his mother and me. Plus, under pressure from my family to marry, I had agreed to marry him. When Nolan was starting his business, I had supported us on my modest salary. Now he dared call me selfish and petty? Realizing he’d gone too far, he fell silent, slumping back onto the couch with a cold expression. It was his typical response to arguments—no communication, no acknowledgment of his mistakes. I’d had enough of his passive attitude. “Listen carefully, Nolan,” I said with a sneer. “If you don’t get that money back within three days, I’ll leave you.”
I moved out and spent the next few days staying with my friend Kaia. On the third day, Nolan called with an arrogant tone. “I gave the money to Andrea. If you want a divorce, fine by me!” “We’re married,” I replied calmly. “Half of that 300 thousand dollars you gave her is mine. Even if we divorce, she needs to return my 150 thousand dollars.” “You want the money back? Impossible!” he roared. “I gave it to Andrea. Don’t even think about getting it back!” I hung up. With only a junior high school degree, it wasn’t surprising he didn’t understand the law. Kaia had been listening, and after thinking for a while, her expression changed. “Selena, doesn’t something seem off about Nolan?” She leaned forward. “No matter how generous he is, would he really give 300 thousand dollars to his first love to help raise someone else’s child? Nolan’s always been so stingy—it just doesn’t add up.” Kaia knew Nolan’s penny-pinching ways all too well. At our wedding, local tradition called for giving nice gifts to the bridesmaids, but Nolan had chosen cheap candleholders instead. The wedding banquet had been all vegetarian dishes—no meat in sight. He’d even transported the guests in a borrowed bus from his rural hometown. The memory of that wedding was still fresh for Kaia and me. Kaia had a point. Nolan was incredibly conceited. Even if he could forgive Andrea’s betrayal and reconcile with her, would he really accept raising another man’s child? Kaia and I locked eyes, mutual surprise dawning as we reached the same conclusion—the child might be Nolan’s. Since our marriage, he’d constantly pressured me to have a baby. I’d refused, focused on my rising career and concerned about my health. He’d berate me every few days about “ending his family line”—until suddenly, the next year, he stopped mentioning it entirely. I’d thought he’d finally accepted my decision and felt relieved. But what if he’d had a son elsewhere? Andrea’s child was two years old now. The timing fit perfectly. “No wonder he was so generous with his first love,” Kaia sneered. “He must have been having an affair with her all along!” Her eyes suddenly brightened. “Selena, if you can prove he cheated, you can divorce him without giving up any property.” I nodded, thinking it through carefully. Nolan had said Andrea left her divorce with nothing—perhaps her husband had discovered the affair. It would explain why Andrea, who had been so materialistic and dumped Nolan for money, would walk away without a penny. Nolan’s infidelity seemed certain. Now I just needed proof.
The next day, I returned home. Nolan was out. Opening Instagram, I found his latest update: [I’ve met many people, but in the end, I realized you’re the one I love most.] The post included a photo of a woman in a blue dress. Quite romantic. Without hesitation, I liked the post and commented: [Some dogs eat plenty of meat, but in the end, they still prefer eating garbage.] We shared many mutual friends on Instagram. They initially assumed the woman in the photo was me, commenting things like “Nolan and Selena, so sweet!” When they saw my response, however, they quickly realized their mistake and deleted their comments, leaving mine as the sole, glaring reply. Satisfied, I set down my phone and headed to his study to access his computer. I used to respect his privacy religiously—never entering his study, checking his phone, or using his computer. I’d given him complete trust, only to receive betrayal in return. Laughing bitterly at my own naivety, I tried Andrea’s birthday as his computer password. It worked perfectly. He hadn’t logged out of WhatsApp. Opening it, I found his chat history with Andrea—all voice messages. Rather than listen to each one, I converted them to text. Andrea said: [My husband discovered our affair. He wants to divorce me and leave me with nothing.] Nolan replied: [How could this happen? Don’t worry, honey, I’ll take care of you.] Andrea responded with an aggrieved expression. [Our son and I were thrown out. We have nowhere to go.] [I can handle hardship, but how can our son live like this?] Nolan arrogantly transferred our joint savings—300 thousand dollars—to her, replying grandly: [Honey, go buy a house. Use this as the down payment. Put it in your name, and I’ll handle the monthly payments.] After accepting the transfer, Andrea replied with hypocrisy: [Won’t your wife be angry?] Nolan replied: [She wouldn’t dare. She’s completely submissive.] Andrea replied: [Sweetie, when will you divorce her? We can’t let our son remain illegitimate.] My anger was boiling over as I read their exchange. Now I understood why Nolan had agreed to divorce so readily—he was eager to be with Andrea and their son. Checking his transaction history, I discovered regular transfers to Andrea beyond the 300 thousand dollars. I photographed everything as evidence. To prevent claims of fabrication, I recorded a video that included their voice messages. Satisfied with my collected proof, I left. The moment I got into a taxi, Nolan called. “Have you lost your mind?” he shouted. “Delete that ridiculous comment from my Instagram now!” “Ridiculous?” I laughed. “I just want everyone to know the truth.” I heard a woman’s soft sobbing in the background. Of course—he was yelling at me because Andrea was crying to him. “What truth? You just hate her because I gave Andrea money!” he barked. His words left me speechless. I owned half of that 300 thousand dollars she received. Why shouldn’t I dislike her? What woman would approve of her husband’s mistress? Too tired to argue, I offered one final piece of advice out of basic human decency. “Nolan, you’d better get that money back. Otherwise—” He cut me off impatiently. “I’ve told you Andrea’s struggling to raise a child. Where’s your compassion? “The money’s hers now. If you can’t accept that, divorce me!” He hung up before I could respond. I nearly laughed out loud. Fine, let him be generous and kind. After all, he was the one with lung cancer, not me.
🌟 Continue the story here 👉🏻 📲 Download the “MyFiction” app 🔍 search for “397671”, and watch the full series ✨! #MyFiction #B×G
Leave a Reply