Chapter 15

Raymond spoke while standing nearby. Dominic lowered his gaze, staring at the woman on the screen. Dressed in a black business suit, she looked sharp, confident, and poised, exuding a quiet defiance. He couldn't help but recall the times he had seen her—disheveled, dejected, and utterly broken. And today, she had desperately tried to please, yet she couldn't endure the humiliation and ended up fleeing in defeat. A flicker of irritation crossed his mind. Perhaps he had been too harsh with his words today. … At around 9:00 pm, Vespera woke up and headed to the kitchen to make herself a bowl of pasta. As she stirred the pot, her phone buzzed with a notification. It was a message from Raymond. Since the last time she had asked about Dominic's height, weight, and measurements, he had completely ignored her. Now, out of nowhere, he had sent over a set of numbers. There was also a message. "Mr. Reid said you owe him a suit. To avoid any confusion while shopping, he asked me to provide you with his measurements." Vespera stared at the message, dumbfounded. She thought to herself, "What did he mean by this? Was he changing his mind and giving me another chance?" She immediately dismissed the idea. She couldn't afford to be that self-absorbed. If anything, this was probably his way of making sure she didn't use the suit as an excuse to show up at his door again. He was simply getting ahead of her, a preemptive warning not to play any tricks. If she misread his intentions and foolishly used the suit as an excuse to see him, he would only mock her for it. She wanted this job, but not at the cost of her dignity. With careful consideration, she replied, "Got it, I've noted the measurements. I'll purchase the suit as soon as possible and mail it over." Raymond read the message and relayed it to Dominic. "Ms. Gildon said she's noted the measurements. She'll send the suit by mail." Dominic thought, "Mail it?" Wearing his platinum-rimmed glasses, Dominic sat on the couch reading a book. His gaze flickered slightly, but he remained composed. He let out a soft hum, turning the page with his slender, pale fingers, showing little interest. Raymond hesitated before speaking, "Should I… remind her?" He knew this was Dominic's way of offering Vespera an opportunity. And to be honest, Raymond sympathized with Vespera. Dominic replied flatly, "There's no need. If she's unwilling, there's no point in forcing it." Raymond suppressed a sigh and thought, "How exactly do you know she doesn't want it?" Something about that statement felt odd, but Raymond knew better than to press further. … The next day, Vespera went shopping for the suit. The moment she left her house, a car discreetly followed her from behind. She wandered through several upscale shopping malls in Halewick, meticulously comparing different designs, fabrics, and craftsmanship to find a suit that resembled the charcoal gray one Dominic had worn. Two hours passed, and her legs ached from all the walking, yet she still hadn't found the right one. It wasn't that the charcoal gray suits were hard to find—there were plenty. But his was a custom-made piece, tailored to perfection by a top-tier designer. Even luxury brands couldn't quite match it. She sat on a bench outdoors, imagining the look of disdain and aristocratic indifference he would have when he received the suit. "Ugh, whatever." Whether he liked it or not was none of her concern. After resting for a while, Vespera decisively entered a store she had previously visited and picked out a charcoal gray suit with similar color and fabric. As the sales associate took Dominic's measurements, she couldn't help but comment, "Your husband has a great build. Is he a model?" She thought, "A model?" Vespera couldn't help but scoff. If Dominic heard this, he would probably consider it an insult. She left the store with the suit in hand and immediately sent a message to Raymond, asking for his mailing address. As she focused on typing the message, someone who had been tailing her discreetly snapped a photo and sent it to Luke. At that moment, Luke had just returned to his office after a meeting. The image of the back at the golf course yesterday lingered in his mind—it looked so much like Vespera. The key detail was that there had been another man ahead of her. He could flirt around and stray a little, but she couldn't. If even a single finger of hers was touched by someone else, he would want to rip that person apart. To him, Vespera was his private property. She was meant to be with him forever, to love him, and only have eyes for him. Even when he went into the grave, he wanted her to be there beside him. So, he had people watching her. As soon as he sat down in his chair, he received a photo from the person he had sent out. Vespera had gone out, spent three hours at the mall, and finally bought a men's suit to take home. Luke felt a wave of satisfaction. So, she had gone out to buy him clothes. It seemed like she had finally come to her senses and stopped throwing tantrums. This was how it should be—being a good wife to him was far more important than anything else. … Vespera had originally planned to send the suit by mail right after leaving the mall. However, the message she had sent was met with silence, so she reluctantly decided to bring the bag home instead. She tossed it onto the couch in the living room and headed upstairs for a shower. For the rest of the afternoon, she spent her time packing the last few bits and pieces of her things. There were only eight days left. Looking around the house she had lived in for so many years, she couldn't help but feel a surge of sadness. This home had been designed according to her preferences. She had chosen every piece of furniture and even left room for a cute nursery. They had planned a life together, but now, she was forced to part ways. While packing the study, she opened the bottom drawer that hadn't been touched in years. Inside, she found an old USB drive. Curiously, she plugged it into her computer, only to discover it was filled with photos from the time when she and Luke had been together—photos from high school, and college. Back then, he had been so clean and handsome. She flipped through the nostalgic photos, laughing and crying at the memories as if she had returned to that time. Suddenly, she had the urge to visit her memories. She wanted to say goodbye to the Luke of the past, the one she had once known so well. … In the evening, Luke unexpectedly returned home for dinner. Vespera didn't cook for him. In fact, she didn't even want to cook for him, so she grabbed a box of instant noodles that she had no idea when she had bought, and it seemed to have expired over a year ago, throwing it at him. Luke stared at her, speechless. "Maybe you should go eat outside. You always prefer things from outside—whether it's women, beds, or food, everything from the outside seems more appetizing than what's at home." Luke wondered if she was trying to kick him out now. His good mood from the day quickly evaporated, replaced by a deep sense of frustration. "Other people's wives make hot meals and wait for their husbands to come home, and you're making me eat instant noodles?" Vespera thought to herself, "Not giving you poisoned instant noodles is the last bit of mercy I'll show you." She couldn't be bothered to argue with him and said casually, "It's just a cup of tomato-flavored instant noodles, originally for me, but I'll let you have it." Luke's frustration peaked. "You forgot that I never eat tomatoes." Vespera slapped her forehead in mock surprise. "Oh, I really forgot." With a frozen expression, Luke shot her a cold glare before storming out of the kitchen and heading upstairs. Vespera carried the cup of tomato-flavored instant noodles to the dining room, found a comedy variety show to watch, and ate while enjoying the show. … Meanwhile, Luke was sulking alone in his study. He wondered how she could go from carefully picking out a suit for him three hours earlier in the day to suddenly acting so differently when he returned home. Even if he hadn't told her he was coming home for dinner, she should have at least gone out and bought some ingredients to cook something. And to top it off, she hadn't even remembered his preferences. Luke's mood soured even further. He stood up and walked to the walk-in closet, intending to see the suit she had picked for him. He searched around but didn't find any new suit. Just as he was about to go downstairs to ask her, he paused at the door and turned back. Standing at the entrance, he looked around the room. He couldn't help but wonder how her belongings had suddenly become so few.