Chapter 2

Chapter 2

I hung up immediately. The other end didn’t call back.

Just thinking about Ethan and Luna being alone together made my chest ache. How much did he care about her?

Curiosity gnawed at me. The next morning, I drove to the company as usual. Ethan didn’t rush in until noon, right before lunch—wearing the same clothes as yesterday, with a bright red lipstick stain on his white shirt.

"I’m... late today."

I flipped through documents, ignoring him.

"Sophia, I..." Ethan looked guilty, trailing off when I didn’t respond. "Sophia, I really had an emergency last night."

I glanced up at the glaring lipstick stain as I turned a page. I’d be lying if I said I hadn’t felt a flash of anger at the sight of another woman’s mark on him—but then I realized it wasn’t worth it.

"Ethan Wilson, I hope you remember—you’re a married man."

My message was clear: I wanted him to keep his distance from Luna. It was the first time I’d addressed their entanglement.

Ethan’s expression changed. He strode to my desk and slammed his fist down. "Sophia Carter, what are you implying?"

"What do you think you’re doing?" I snapped, standing up. In all our years of marriage, he’d never raised his voice at me like this.

Seeing my anger, Ethan deflated, running a hand through his hair in frustration. "Fine—you just don’t trust me!"

"Luna’s a vulnerable woman, raising a kid alone. She’s bound to run into problems she can’t solve. Is it so wrong for me to help her?" He flushed, looking indignant—as if I’d wronged him.

In that moment, I finally understood how repulsive a man’s bluster could be. But right then, that revulsion felt like a wake-up call.

I stepped closer, straightening his askew tie. My fingers brushed the lipstick stain. "Next time, check your clothes before going out. This isn’t my shade of lipstick."

Ethan froze, then tried to protest—until he glanced down at his collar. He stammered for a moment, unable to form a complete sentence.

Humiliated, he yanked his tie loose. "Don’t overthink it! Luna just accidentally brushed against me when she helped me fix my tie this morning."

"Oh, I see." I feigned realization, sitting back down.

My time was limited, and I had more important things to handle. I didn’t care right now what was really going on between Ethan and Luna—but that didn’t mean they could walk all over me.

"Sophia Carter, after all these years of marriage, I can’t believe you don’t trust me!" Ethan stormed out, slamming the door.

He’d grown so used to being called "Boss" that he’d forgotten who actually owned the company...

Ethan Wilson—now that I’m dying, why don’t you make a choice?