CHAPTER 1  

DIANA’S POV

I woke up with a throbbing headache. As my eyes slowly opened and met the ceiling, I realized I wasn't in my room.

My heartbeat instantly quickened as I scrambled to sit up on the bed. Shock flashed through me the moment I noticed I was naked.

"What the..." I could only mutter in shock, quickly covering myself up, wondering where I was and why I was out of clothes.

Did my husband, Leonard, make love to me last night? But why was I in a lodge? Confusion gripped me as it dawned on me that Leonard was on a business trip and hadn’t returned yet.

This could only mean one thing: I wasn't with Leonard last night but someone else. But how?

"Oh my God," I cried into my palms as the realization hit. I still couldn't remember what happened or how I ended up in a lodge, but I knew Leonard couldn't find out about this.

I quickly gathered the sheets around myself and hurried to the bathroom. I was supposed to be home before Leonard arrived from his trip today.

"Alcohol?"

Sniffing myself, I realized I smelled like I'd been bathed in alcohol, which made no sense—I’d never drunk alcohol before.

"Oh God, what's happening? I have to get home," I said to myself in a shaky voice.

I knew I couldn't rush home to my in-law smelling this way; I had to take a bath.

Grabbing the bathroom door handle and pulling it open, I froze in shock.

A stranger, a man with a sculpted figure, was standing stark naked under the shower. My heart leapt to my throat in shock and confusion.

"Who are you?!" I screamed in agony, realizing what this man might have done to me while I was unconscious.

Before I could speak again, he slowly turned around and faced me fully.

"Don't worry, I didn't actually touch you. This is just staged. All I'm here for is the money; didn’t even kiss you," he said to me.

I wanted to speak, to ask questions, but my words failed me, not knowing where to start.

"How did I get here? Tell me who you are and what you're doing in the same room with me!" I yelled, but all he did was tie a towel around his waist with a smirk.

"What do you mean this is all staged? Answer me!" I screamed, my fury rising at his indifference.

He wouldn’t speak further, casually walking past me into the bedroom. In that moment, I rushed after him, grabbing him by the towel, wanting to pull him back.

Suddenly, the door to the room flung open, and both the stranger and I turned toward it. My heart leapt to my throat when I saw who was standing at the doorway. My mouth dropped open.

It was him—my husband, Leonard, standing right there, his eyes flashing with rage as he saw me tangled in a bedsheet and standing so close to a naked man, who was now getting dressed. I couldn’t speak or move; all I could do was stand there, frozen.

"So it’s true… it’s true what I heard. I couldn’t believe it. I told myself that you would never cheat on me, but this… this is how you break my trust?!” Leonard said, his eyes filling with tears. His voice was cold, giving me no room to talk.

“L-Leonard, please. This… this is not what it looks like. I don’t know this man, I swear. I… I just woke up here, as confused as you are. You have to believe me, please,” I cried, rushing toward him to grab his arm, but he gave me a cold look and shrugged me off.

The stranger seemed completely unaffected, as if he were oblivious to everything happening. He dressed quickly, indifferent to Leonard’s presence, watching the compromising situation he had put me in.

“Leonard, I don’t know him, I promise. He didn’t even touch me,” I cried, trying to reach for Leonard’s arm again, but he shifted back, as if I were a disease. He looked at me with disgust, and I felt pity for myself. I had no idea what he was accusing me of.

“He didn’t touch you? Yet I found you naked, with him. I was told this is what you do every time I travel on a trip. This time, I decided to try and find out for myself, hoping to prove it wrong. But I failed. You proved it right; you’ve been cheating on me with your lover,” he said, shaking his head at me.

“You disgust me, Diana,” he added, his eyes red with anger. Tears flowed freely down my face as I thought of what to say to make him believe I didn’t know that man or do anything with him. I rushed toward the stranger and slapped him in anger.

“Tell him! Tell my husband you brought me here, and I didn’t even know. Tell him you were paid to set me up!” I yelled, crying and hitting him in the chest. But I was stunned when he frowned at me, his words catching me by surprise.

“Why are you saying this, my love? You’re hurting me. We had the best night of our lives last night because we love each other; don’t make it look like a joke,” the stranger said, and my mouth dropped open as I realized what he was trying to do.

He’d told me earlier that he didn’t touch me, and I knew that, but now he was trying to make Leonard believe the lie. He had been paid to set me up.

“Leonard, please don’t listen to this. It… it isn’t true…” I cried, turning around to explain further to Leonard, but he was gone.

I was stunned to see a stack of papers lying on the floor where he had stood. My hand trembled as I picked them up, and my heart stopped when I recognized them as divorce papers.