Five years of marriage and two kids. My belly was covered with flab, my skin loose. Unsurprisingly, my CEO husband cheated on me. A twenty-something assistant. They were seen together everywhere. He didn’t even bother to hide it. Heartbroken and furious, I ran to my wealthy mother to pour out my woes. She took a drag of her cigarette, her face full of disdain. “He keeps a girl? Why don’t you get a man? I sponsor over a dozen poor college boys. Just pick one you like.” Me: “??? Mom, are you telling me to cheat?” My mother shook her head. “No. I’m teaching you to love yourself.” I found out about Caleb’s affair while driving the kids to school. Amidst the frustrating, noisy traffic, my own frantic heartbeat pounded in my ears. I turned off my phone screen. Hiding that picture of an embrace and a kiss. My hands on the steering wheel were shaking. My eldest said, “Mom, please hurry up. I’m going to be late.” He was so much like Caleb. Polite, restrained, and not particularly affectionate toward me. I used to be proud of that, thinking I’d raised an excellent son. But now, looking into those indifferent eyes so similar to his father’s, I felt an inexplicable fear. I asked him. “Noah, if your dad and I split up, who would you choose?” Noah glanced at me coolly and said nothing. When the car reached the school entrance, he got up slowly. He looked at me and said, “Mom, you don’t have a job, and you’re estranged from Grandma.” “So if you split up, I’d choose Dad.” My younger son, Leo, always followed his brother’s lead. Hearing this, he immediately chimed in. “Dad! I want Dad too.” I felt like I’d plunged into an ice bath. After dropping Leo off at kindergarten, I found a deserted neighborhood park before daring to open that picture again. The text was from an unknown number. I couldn’t find any of her social media. She wrote: “Mrs. Caleb, you’re so virtuous. I didn’t want you to remain in the dark.” She said a lot. An intern joined the company this summer, cute and capable. She started as a front desk assistant, but somehow Caleb noticed her and promoted her directly to his personal executive assistant. “Mrs. Caleb, stop being a foolish housewife. Think about yourself.” “If this goes on, that girl might just take your place.” “In two days, Mr. Caleb is going on a business trip.” “He specifically requested to bring her and had someone book a honeymoon suite and flowers.” A honeymoon suite. Flowers. Things that only existed during Caleb’s and my passionate early days. Now to be given to another girl. My palms were icy. I clenched and unclenched my fists until deep nail marks were left behind. I knew I wasn’t the sharpest tool in the shed and had no talent for scheming. After thinking it over and over, I finally called my mother’s assistant.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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