From Neglected Wife to CEO’s Obsession novel Chapter 25

His face was so white he looked almost see-through, panic written all over his eyes. His hands were flapping around, completely out of control, and his voice sounded rough and broken as he tried to get the words out. “Avery, I—I…”

But the truth was right in front of me. I’d seen everything with my own eyes.

No explanation could change that now.

The moment he turned around, I caught the raw hunger in his eyes. The kind of look I’d never once seen in all five years of our marriage. Not even when things were good between us.

If I hadn’t walked in just now, I knew exactly what would have happened. The two of them, in some corner of this house, tangled up in each other, not caring about anything else.

So, it was never about him not wanting anyone. He just never wanted me.

There was nothing left to say. In the face of the truth, every excuse was just empty noise.

Remy rushed around the bookshelf, desperate to reach me, stumbling over his words, tossing out apologies that meant nothing at all.

His dark eyes were full of guilt and fear, like he was genuinely terrified of losing me.

Whatever desire he’d had faded away in an instant, replaced by a bleak kind of clarity. But he didn’t even notice the lipstick smeared at the corner of his mouth.

Julia was in the house in the middle of the night, wearing silk pajamas and a full face of makeup. Her intentions couldn’t have been more obvious. Remy was no idiot—I refused to believe he didn’t see right through her.

The Thompson family was barely holding on with Marissa at the helm.

Six years ago, Remy was searching for Julia, looking after Cindy, and fighting tooth and nail to keep Thompson Corporation alive. In just four years, he turned things around, took the company public, and made it the crown jewel of Georgia Bay’s business world. He was smart, emotionally sharp—there was no way he could be tricked by a simple act like this.

He wanted this. He’d been waiting for it, and the second he had the chance, he fell for her trap.

A reckless woman and a shameless man. Honestly, they were a match made in heaven.

Marrying Remy was the biggest mistake I’d ever made.

He knew how unforgivable this was. He knew that being caught like this wasn’t something I could just get over.

No woman could.

He tried to reach for me, to comfort me, but the look in my eyes stopped him in his tracks. He took a step closer, but I backed away, moving until my back was pressed against the wall and I couldn’t go any further. I stared at him, my voice shaking. “Remy, please. Don’t touch me. I’m begging you.”

I was never going to win a fight against him, not physically. All I could do was ask, as calmly as I could, for him to stay away.

Remy’s tall, lean body swayed slightly. He wiped a hand across his face, looking frustrated and lost. His eyes were full of misery as he stared at me.

I moved past him and sat down on the edge of the couch, looking up at him. “Remy, we’re married. We owe each other honesty. Just tell me the truth. All of it.”

He let out a bitter, empty laugh, lit a cigarette, and turned away, leaning his back against the couch and blowing smoke rings into the air.

Each ring floated up, one after another, like a tangled net trapping the three of us in this ridiculous mess.

“She’s Julia. Cindy’s birth mother. A few weeks ago, she found me, begging to see Cindy. She said she’s terminal, has maybe six months left, and all she wants is to be a mother before she goes. I felt sorry for her, so I let her see Cindy a few times in secret.”

Suddenly, it clicked. That woman I saw at the fireworks by the river, standing next to Remy—that was Julia.

No wonder I recognized her earrings. I’d seen them on a video call.

So, even back then, the three of them had already found each other. I was the world’s biggest fool.

“I messed up, Avery. I don’t know what came over me. I must be losing my mind. I love you, I do. I have no idea how I ended up kissing her. I must be insane.”

Remy’s voice was low and broken, a weird smile twitching at his lips—bitterness, sadness, regret, guilt, and something I couldn’t even name.

Even now, he still claimed to love me. How ridiculous.

“So, Remy, your version of love is sneaking around with your ex, letting your daughter meet her behind my back, bringing her into my home, letting Cindy call her ‘Mom.’ Even after I’d gone to bed, you still had to kiss her, touch her, slide your hand up her dress. If that’s your love, Remy, I don’t want it. You’re disgusting. Don’t ever say you love me again. I won’t love you, either.”