Chapter 278

Evelyn's POV

I called the hospital to request a personal day off.

"Dr. Reynolds, your patients are already being prepped," the head nurse said, concern evident in her voice.

"Please reschedule them. It's a family emergency," I lied, my stomach already in knots. "I wouldn't ask if it weren't important."

"Of course, doctor. Take care."

I stared at the address on my phone, my finger hovering over the rideshare app. Golden Hills Estates. It was one of those neighborhoods where people with money and secrets lived. The kind of place where someone like Dorian would keep a mistress.

Or a sister-in-law.

I couldn't believe I was even entertaining this possibility. But Sage's message had been clear. She'd sent me an address with no explanation, just an implied promise that I'd find something interesting there. Something about Dorian.

As the car navigated through the city streets, I pulled out my phone again. I'd give him one last chance to be honest with me. One final opportunity to prove me wrong. I dialed his number, my heart hammering against my ribs.

He picked up after three rings. "Evelyn? Everything alright?"

"Where are you?" I asked directly, trying to keep my voice steady.

"In a meeting at Blackwood Group. Why? Is something wrong?"

His voice sounded normal. Casual. Like he wasn't currently in an apartment with my sister.

"Just checking in on you," I said, forcing a lightness I didn't feel. "Checking up on my husband."

"Checking up on me? What for?" His tone sharpened slightly.

"Let's start with honesty, shall we? Who knows what you're really doing out there every day."

A pause. Then: "What's this about, Evelyn?"

"Nothing. I just want to see you. Send me a video right now, and your location."

"Where did you learn that trick?" He sounded almost amused, but there was an edge to his voice now.

"The nurses were talking at lunch. One of them caught her cheating husband that way." I made my voice bright, teasing. "Just a fun little game, right?"

"I'm in the middle of a meeting. Everyone's staring at me."

And there it was. The lie.

"Fine. I'll talk to you later."

"I'll come pick you up from the hospital tonight."

"Don't bother," I said, ending the call before he could hear the thickness in my voice.

The car pulled up to a sleek high-rise. I paid the driver and stepped out, my legs feeling like they might give way beneath me. The doorman nodded me through without question – these buildings always had lax security if you looked like you belonged.

I found the elevator and pressed the button for the top floor. With each floor the elevator climbed, my hope diminished a little more. I wanted so badly to be wrong.

When I reached the apartment number Sage had sent, I hesitated. Then I leaned close to the door, pressing my ear against the cool surface.

And I heard him. Dorian's voice, unmistakable, that deep baritone that used to make my heart flutter. Now it made my stomach turn.

"Are you finished with your performance?" I heard him say, his voice cold and cutting.

"It's not a performance!" That was definitely Sage, her voice shrill with emotion. "You think I wanted any of this? You think I—"

Rage, hurt, and betrayal surged through me. Before I could stop myself, I pounded hard on the door, my fist connecting with the expensive wood loud enough to echo down the hallway.

I waited, my heart pounding, wanting to see their faces when they realized they'd been caught. But after a moment, I regained my senses. What was I doing? Did I really want to confront them like this?

I turned and fled toward the elevator, hearing the apartment door beginning to open behind me as I rounded the corner. I caught a glimpse of James, Dorian's ever-present assistant, looking out in confusion before the elevator doors closed.

---

I returned to Blackwood Estate in a daze, barely remembering the car ride home. Once inside, I went straight to my drawer and pulled out the USB drive Marcus had given me. Then I grabbed a giant bowl of popcorn from the kitchen and headed to the media room.

I set up the movie He's Just Not That Into You and collapsed onto the couch. I didn't even care about the USB drive right now. I just needed to feel something other than this crushing pain in my chest.

As I watched the characters navigate their messy relationships, tears began streaming down my face. I buried my face in a pillow and sobbed uncontrollably.

"So it was all fake?" I cried out to the empty room, my voice breaking. "The dessert house was fake? His love and regret for the three years without me—was that fake too? Why did he bring me back? Why pretend to love me so much? You big jerk!"

I ran to the mini-fridge and grabbed several bottles of cocktails. I twisted one open and took a long swig, the sweet alcohol burning down my throat.

"I survived leukemia for this?" I whispered, tears flowing freely. "I fought so hard to live, endured all that pain, all those treatments, just to come back to more betrayal?"

I sank to the floor, hugging my knees to my chest.

"I can still feel the needles," I sobbed. "The chemotherapy burning through my veins. I remember praying to survive, thinking I had something worth living for. What a joke."

I kept drinking, the alcohol mingling with my tears. "They told me I had a twenty percent chance of survival. I beat those odds. For what? To find out my husband is sleeping with my sister?"

I threw one of the empty bottles across the room, watching it crash against the wall.

"I'm such an idiot," I muttered to myself between gulps. "Always so willing to be deceived by him. I came back for revenge, but somehow I let myself fall for him again."

I curled up on the floor, my body wracked with sobs. "I should have died in that hospital. At least then I wouldn't have to feel this pain."

---

By dinnertime, I'd pulled myself together enough to sit across from him at the table. My eyes were swollen, but I'd splashed enough cold water on my face to reduce the redness. I picked at my food in silence, the salmon and asparagus turning to ash in my mouth.

Dorian reached over and placed a piece of fish on my plate. I wanted to throw it at him, to scream and reveal everything I knew. But I held back. This was now a battle of performances, and whoever could convince the other first would win.

I forced myself to eat the bite he'd given me, swallowing past the lump in my throat.

"What's wrong? Have you been crying?" Dorian asked, leaning forward with concern etched on his handsome face. "Who upset you? I'll make them pay."

"No one," I answered flatly.

He placed another piece of fish on my plate. "Eat. You need your strength."

"You eat it." The words came out harsher than I intended.

"I like seeing you enjoy your food," he replied, his eyes never leaving my face. "It makes me happy."

I stabbed at the fish with my fork, hating how easily he could lie to my face.

---

After dinner, I found Dorian in the living room, spread out on the couch with documents for the Sunset Ridge Estates project laid out on the coffee table.

"That project still isn't finished?" I asked casually, pretending I didn't know about the meeting he'd claimed to be in earlier.

"It hasn't even started yet," he replied, not looking up from the papers.

I sat beside him, careful to maintain some distance. "When does it begin?"

"The fifteenth. You'll come with me that day."

"Why would I go?" I asked, genuinely curious despite myself.

"To see the building I'm creating for you with your own eyes. To watch me win this project."

He reached for my hand, his warm fingers encircling my cold ones. "Why are your hands so cold?"

"I should let you work," I said, trying to pull away.

Dorian pulled me closer instead. "When the building is completed, we'll be able to go to work together."

I couldn't help but scoff. "Dorian, from groundbreaking to completion will take years. And what if things fall through? You have so many competitors."

"I'm not worried, so you shouldn't be either."

"Is Marcus competing with you?" I asked, knowing the answer.

"For a piece of meat that juicy? Of course he won't let it go."

I glanced at the documents on the table. "Are you confident you'll win?"

A smirk crossed Dorian's face. "It's just a matter of who's willing to play dirtier."

"What does that mean?"

Instead of answering, Dorian picked up his phone and showed me a video. On the screen was Marcus, locked in an intimate embrace with a woman I recognized from our visit to his home.

"Isn't that the girl we saw at his house?" I asked, feigning surprise.

Dorian's eyes gleamed with predatory satisfaction. "She's his weakness. His bottom line. Most people don't know about her, but if he's this affectionate with her on camera, imagine what happens behind closed doors. He's protected her so carefully... if I were to make this public..."

I stared at the video, my insides turning cold. This was the man I had married. A man who would blackmail his own cousin without hesitation. A man who would sleep with his wife's sister and then lie about it.

And I was done with him.