Flora’s POV
“Caleb?” I called softly, setting my purse down the moment I got into the sitting room.
The fireplace was lit up, giving me relief from the chilly evening air outside. Today’s weather had been damp and sticky, clinging to my skin from when I stepped down the cab ride and up the porch. I had been so careful not to spill the small anniversary cake, so I had eliminated the first part of my surprise; knock on the door and present the cake to Caleb as a pizza delivery guy. Only sexier.
My hands trembled slightly, anticipating Caleb's reaction making my chest tight. I’d spent the whole day preparing for this—his favorite dinner ordered, a cake from the bakery he loved, everything to make our wedding anniversary and my birthday night special.
The house was quiet, the lights dimmed in the hallway. I smiled. It was just the way I wanted. Caleb must have beaten me to do something special already. His car was in the driveway, so I knew he was home. He must be waiting upstairs, and maybe he has a surprise of his own.
I adjusted my grip on the cake and started up the stairs, the faint hum of the air conditioning filling the silence. But gradually as I neared the bedroom, it wasn’t just the air conditioning filling the silence. There was something more—a rhythmic noise—impossible to ignore and very obvious. It wasn’t the sound of music. No, it was… something else. The kind of sound only Caleb would make me produce.
A moan. A woman’s moan.
“Fuck me harder, baby,”
“Yeah, you like it?” a man's voice grunted after.
“I love it,” the woman managed to say between rasped gasps. “I love how your cock moves in me, baby,”
My fingers gripped the cake box tightly as I stood outside the bedroom door, my pulse roaring in my ears.
I tried to convince myself it was nothing. Maybe he was watching a movie with the volume up. Maybe—
My feet moved on their own, pushing the door open before my brain could catch up.
The cake fell first, the box hitting the hardwood floor with a dull thud. The sound broke through the silence of my disbelief, yanking me back into the moment.
There they were. Caleb and a woman I vaguely recognized, tangled together on our bed—the bed we’d shared for two years.
I couldn’t move. I couldn’t think. My eyes were glued to the sight of his bare back, the woman’s nails raking over his shoulders as they writhed together. My throat tightened painfully, but no sound came out.
The woman’s moans stopped instantly following the noise from the door and Caleb turned his head, his eyes locking on mine.
“Flora,” he said flatly, untangling himself from the sheets.
His expression wasn’t one of guilt, surprise, or shame. No, it was annoyance, as if I were an interruption to his evening—an irritation.
My voice cracked as I forced the words out. “What… what is this?”
The woman beside him smirked, casually covering herself with the sheet. Caleb stretched lazily, his indifference like a slap to the face.
“It’s exactly what it looks like,” he said, pulling on a pair of sweatpants. “Why are you even here?”
“Why am I here?” My voice broke, the anger building in my chest. “This is my home! My birthday! Our wedding anniversary, Caleb!”
He sighed, running a hand through his messy hair. “Don’t be so dramatic, Flora. I mean, you are causing a scene here already like you didn’t know? Like you knew this was coming.”
The audacity of his words left me stunned. “What the hell are you talking about?”
He turned to face me fully, his tone cold and dismissive. “Look at yourself. You’ve been so wrapped up in playing housewife—cooking, cleaning, running around like some damn maid. You’ve let yourself go, Flora.”
My hands curled into fists, my nails biting into my palms. “You’re blaming me? After meeting you with a woman on our ceremonial bed?”
“Our ceremonial bed you say?” He laughed bitterly. “What have you done on this bed but bore me for months? Do you even remember the last time we had sex? Because I don’t.”
Tears burned my eyes, but they didn’t fall. Fury was stronger and hotter, and it surged through me. “You son of a bitch!” Before I could stop myself, my legs moved and my hand followed, the crack of the slap echoing in the room.
Caleb’s head snapped to the side, his cheek reddening, but when he turned back to me, the rage in his eyes was chilling.
His hand struck my face, the force sending me staggering.
“You shouldn’t have done that,” he said, his voice low and dangerous.
Pain painted my cheek, but before I could recover, he grabbed my arm, pushed me out the door, and shoved me hard. My feet slipped, and I tumbled backward, the stairs rushing up to meet me.
The world blurred in seconds as I hit the bottom step, my body crumpling against the floor. My head spun, and the sharp ache in my side made it hard to breathe.
The front door burst open, and a familiar voice called out. “Flora!”
Marcus.
Through the haze, I saw him rushing toward me, his dark eyes wide with panic. He knelt beside me, his hands gentle as they steadied me.
“What happened?” he asked, his voice tight with concern.
Before I could answer, Caleb appeared at the top of the stairs, his face twisted with anger.
“Perfect timing,” Caleb sneered. “Come to check on your mistress, little brother?”
Marcus stiffened, his jaw clenching. “What the hell are you talking about?”
Caleb descended the stairs, his voice dripping with venom. “Don’t act innocent. I’ve seen the way you look at her. Don’t think I didn’t notice you coming around more often. What were you planning? To screw her behind my back? Perhaps you did already”
“Are you out of your mind?” Marcus snapped, his voice rising.
“Out of my mind? All the years you’ve been together with her, feigning yourself as a classmate, doing her bidding and pretending it was all that but deep down, behind doors, you fuck her like a slut. An unfaithful slut she is. Now who’s out of his mind?”
“Enough of this rubbish” I shouted, my voice breaking. Both of them fell silent, their eyes turning to me.
I was furious at Caleb, more humiliated at the words he had just vomited and most of all I was in pain. I pushed myself upright, ignoring the pain coursing through my body. “You don’t get to twist this, Caleb. You don’t get to turn your betrayal into my fault. I won’t have it. I’m done, Caleb,”
His sneer deepened. “Get out of my house, Flora. Take him with you. You’re both pathetic.”
My chest tightened painfully as his words sank in. This house wasn’t even his—it had been my parents’ gift before their deaths. Everything I had, everything I was, had been poured into this life, this marriage, this man. And now he was throwing it all away.
But as I looked at him—this cruel, empty man—I realized I didn’t want any of it anymore.
“You can have your house,” I said quietly, my voice trembling but steady. “But you’ll never have me again.”
The look in his eyes shifted for just a moment, but I didn’t want to sit here and see what it meant. I wanted to pick myself up to the door when his next words weakened my bones.
“Have you? You think I wanted to have you?” He chuckled. “I see you don’t remember anything; the drink you had with me, the sex after, and days later, all you could think was me?”
I froze, the words unable to come out. “I don’t understand. What are you trying to say, Caleb?” I asked, my eyes filling with new tears.
“Sad. Two years and counting and you are just realizing our marriage was a farce; a creation of blackmail.”