Chapter 2

The next morning, Sophia Gonzaga woke up earlier than usual but it wasn't because she had slept well. It was the exact opposite. She had barely slept all night. The words she had said to Adrian kept replaying in her mind.

"Loving you is exhausting."

It was probably the most honest thing she had said in the past year and the painful part was that even though it was true, she still loved her husband. It wasn't easy to forget him. It wasn't easy to erase what she felt. She still loved him deeply despite everything he had done to her. That was why it hurt so much because this wasn't how everything had started.

In the beginning, Adrian had been the kind of man every woman dreamed of. He was sweet, caring, loving, and always put his wife first but as his company grew, he slowly changed.

Until one day, Sophia woke up and realized she no longer recognized the man sleeping beside her. She let out a sigh as she prepared a cup of coffee. The house felt unusually quiet.

Adrian was gone again. That wasn't surprising anymore. He often left without even telling her. She closed her eyes for a moment. Before, she would follow him. She would ask where he was going and when he would be home. But now? She no longer had the strength to ask.

Suddenly, her phone rang. The caller ID showed the name of her best friend.

Mia.

She answered immediately.

"Hello?"

"Soph..."

She instantly noticed something strange in Mia's voice. It sounded like she wanted to say something but was hesitant.

"What is it?" Sophia asked.

There was a brief silence.

"Where are you?"

"At home."

"Alone?"

Sophia frowned. "Yes. Why?"

Mia fell silent again and that was when Sophia started to feel nervous.

"Mia."

"Promise me you'll stay calm, okay?"

Her heart immediately began to race. She didn't know why but something felt wrong. Terribly wrong. And whatever it was, she had no idea.

"Mia, just tell me."

She heard her friend take a deep breath.

"Soph... I saw Adrian last night."

Sophia froze. It felt like someone had poured ice-cold water over her entire body. That alone wasn't unusual. Many people had seen Adrian in different places before but there was something in Mia's voice. And Sophia knew that wasn't all she wanted to say.

"Where?" she asked softly.

"At the Grand Meridian Hotel."

She swallowed hard. It was one of the most famous luxury hotels in the city. And not once had Adrian ever taken her there.

"What was he doing there?"

Mia fell silent again and Sophia's stomach sank because deep down, she already knew the answer. She just didn't want to hear it.

"He was with someone."

Something tightened painfully around her chest. So tight that it became hard to breathe. She couldn't speak, she could hear her own breathing, she could hear her heart pounding and she could hear the broken part of herself desperately hoping she was wrong.

"Who?" she whispered.

"I don't know her."

Sophia closed her eyes but that wasn't enough to lessen the pain. She needed to know. She needed to see. She needed to be sure. Maybe it was a misunderstanding. Maybe it was a business meeting. Maybe it was just an employee.

Maybe—

"They were holding hands, Soph."

And in an instant, every excuse she had been trying to build inside her head shattered.A tear  slipped down her cheek before she could stop it.

Then another and another. Until she lost count. Her face was soaked with tears before she even realized it.

"Soph..."

She didn't answer. She couldn't bear to hear anything else. Every word felt like a knife pressing deeper into her heart. It felt like her entire world was slowly collapsing. Because no matter how many times she had suspected Adrian, it was different when someone else confirmed it.

It was different when it became real.

"I'm sorry."

But those words meant nothing now. Not today and maybe not ever. After the call ended, Sophia remained seated in the kitchen for a long time. She simply stared into space. No emotion showed on her face. Sometimes, when the pain becomes too much, you stop crying.

You just shake and that was exactly how she felt. Then suddenly, she remembered something. Slowly, she stood and walked toward Adrian's home office.

She had avoided entering that room for a long time. Somehow, it felt like she no longer belonged there. As if there were parts of her husband's life that were no longer meant for her but today, she didn't care.

She slowly opened the door. The office was quiet, clean, and perfectly organized. Just like the man who owned it. She walked toward the desk and that was when she noticed a phone lying on top of it.

It wasn't Adrian's usual phone. It was an older model. As if he had accidentally left it behind. Sophia frowned and picked it up. When the screen lit up, her eyes widened.

The phone wasn't locked and right there on the screen was a notification. A message from a woman saved as:

Ava ❤️

The world seemed to stop. She couldn't breathe and she couldn't move. Her trembling fingers tapped the screen and then she saw the messages she wished she had never read.

"I miss you already."

"Last night was perfect."

"When are you telling your wife?"

Sophia felt as if someone had grabbed her heart and squeezed it mercilessly. Again and again. Until nothing was left. A tear fell onto the screen before she noticed it.

She couldn't stop crying because the truth she had feared for so long was finally right in front of her. It wasn't a suspicion anymore nor was it a gut feeling. It wasn't gossip and it was the truth.

Her husband had another woman and what hurt even more was that it seemed to have been going on for a long time. She covered her mouth to stop herself from sobbing but she failed.

Slowly, she sank to the floor. Wrapping her arms around herself, she cried. And somewhere else in the city, Adrian had no idea that his wife had discovered the secret he had hidden for so long.

Nor did he know that on that day, a heart had finally shattered because of him.