If I Knew I Loved You

In the fifth year of our bland marriage, I receive a message that my husband has booked a hotel room with a woman.

Within the next second, seductive pictures of me show up in the work group chat. In the pictures, I seduced my husband but failed.

My colleagues in the group chat mock me by saying, "She gave Mr. Reed an ultimatum and forced him to marry her. He was forced to break up with the woman he loves."

"Mr. Reed put up with her for five years. It only makes sense that he could no longer resist and decide to reunite with his lover."

My sick father dies out of shock, yet my husband does not show up to his funeral.

That night, I inform Belinda that I wish to divorce her son.

"Back then, you told me that I'm Caleb's blessing in life. You said that he'd have endless success if we were to marry.

"As long as I married Caleb for five years, you promised to pay for my father's medical fees. Now that the time is up, you should let me go too."

Belinda Green, Caleb Reed's mother, looked extremely helpless.

"Many years ago, I asked a fortune teller to do a reading for Caleb. If he gets together with Julie, it would lead to disaster. He would lose everything.

"You've been secretly in love with Caleb for so many years. It just so happens that you're fated to bring success to your husband.

"I knew you could ensure a smooth sailing life for Caleb. That's why I decided to tempt you with paying off your father's medical fees to force you into marrying Caleb. I never imagined that he would be so opposed to you, and outsiders would end up misunderstanding you."

"All these years, it's been difficult on you. Since Caleb's fated to suffer, we should let him be." Belinda nodded.

I got up, intending to return to my room. Then, my phone buzzed nonstop. Julie Upton had sent me a barrage of messages.

I tapped into her messages and was greeted with one shocking photo after another.

The usual aloof and reserved Caleb seemed to be in a daze. His eyes seemed to be full of devotion as he kissed the top of Julie's foot.

On our wedding night, Caleb showed me the rosary beads on his wrist and explained that he had renounced all earthly desires. His detached behavior back then was nothing like his expression in the pictures.

Julie was practically gloating through the screen.

"Natasha, so what if you had Caleb all these years? The only woman in his heart has always been me. If I wave my hand, he'll come back to me."

My disappointment toward Caleb had reached its peak on the day of Dad's funeral. Right now, I was numb to Julie's gloating.

I took a deep breath and typed calmly. "Tell me. Who would show off stealing someone else's husband?"

She never responded again.

Julie was probably curled up in Caleb's arms, sobbing while complaining about how arrogant I was. After all, she was excellent at sowing discord and twisting the truth.

I stared at Dad's urn and reminded myself not to make the same mistake. Dad's last words kept ringing in my ears.

"Natasha, I was the one who dragged you down. Once I'm gone, you should live the life you've always wanted."

I dug my nails into my palms. Back then, I was desperate to gather funds for Dad's medical bills. I had given up the chance to study abroad and chose to marry Caleb.

Now, I was no longer bound to Caleb. I gave a call to my advisor, feeling terribly nervous.

"I happen to have a project. You're the best candidate." The adviser did not ask why I had changed my mind and chose to assign me the project right away.

Within the next second, someone suddenly kicked open the door. Caleb and Julie had arrived to settle the score with me.

Although Caleb looked furious, he held back his temper and said, "Apologize to Julie."

She stood behind him, sobbing her heart out. But I noticed the menacing glint in her eyes.

"I just feel that she shouldn't ruin someone else's relationship just because she wasn't loved. But she called me a homewrecker for stealing someone's husband. Caleb, was I really wrong?"

Julie's tears fell onto Caleb's rosary beads on his wrist. His expression grew more pained.

"Natasha! If you hadn't colluded with my mom and forced me to marry you, we wouldn't have ended up this way.

"This is all on you. You should suffer the consequences. Apologize to Julie, and I'll forgive you for being rude."

Caleb sounded condescending. It was as if he had given me the greatest gift on Earth.

He wanted me to apologize to Julie, his mistress. It was ridiculous yet amusing that something like this had happened to me.

I stared calmly at Caleb and said, "Since you love her so much, let's file for a divorce."

Caleb was taken aback. He stood rooted to the same spot and stared at me in a daze.

"Aren't you deeply in love with Julie? I don't mind getting a divorce so you two can be together. Are you satisfied with this arrangement?"

Joy was written all over Julie's face. She held onto Caleb's arm and cheered. "This is amazing, Caleb! Now, we can—"

"Are you trying to play hard to get now?" Caleb snapped at me, cutting Julie off. His gaze wavered, and he finally said, "You want others to call Julie a homewrecker? What would others think of her?"

Caleb seemed to have found a proper excuse to justify himself and said again, "I'll never divorce you. I want you to suffer the consequences and be in pain forever."

Upon hearing the words "I'll never divorce you", Julie's smile froze. She looked extremely paranoid as hatred flashed across her face.

Without giving me a chance to answer, Caleb grabbed Julie's hand and quickly left, leaving me behind in a mess.