I was deeply hurt by what I saw.

I knew instantly she was Victoria. Apparently, a phone call wasn't enough; she had to show up at our door and embraced my husband right in front of me.

Nicholas slowly unwound her arms, glancing back at me. He even moved to block Victoria from my point of view, like protecting her from my gaze.

The bitterness in me grew. Did she need such protection that I couldn't even look at her?

He leaned in and spoke with unprecedented gentleness, "What's wrong? Are you feeling unwell again?"

I'd never heard him use such a tender tone before. So he was capable of such softness after all.

He whispered something to her, then came back to grab his coat even without looking at me. Clearly, he was heading out.

The panic made me grab his arm. "Who is she?" I asked, pretending not to know.

His eyes were ice cold. He didn't answer.

"It's late. Where are you going?"

I felt pathetic, like a desperate wife trying to stop her husband from straying.

His voice, so different from the warmth he'd shown Victoria, was as cold as frost, "Since when do I need your permission?"

No wife would want her husband going out late with an ex-girlfriend.

With my hands still holding his arm, I tried another approach, "Grandpa wants us to return to the Old Mansion tomorrow. We should..."

Nicholas yanked his arm free. "Talk tomorrow." he said, walking away without looking back.

He slammed the door, making my heart shudder.

Through the window, I watched him tenderly holding Victoria into his car before driving away without hesitation.

Lying in bed and knowing he wouldn't return tonight, I cried unconsciously until my pillow was soaked wet. I couldn’t get any sleep that night.

The next morning, I put on some makeup to cover my dark circles and headed to work.

At the office, I quickly dealt with yesterday's backlog before heading to the break room for coffee.

Only Alan, Nicholas's executive assistant, knew I was both Nicholas's secretary and wife.

Office gossip was continuous, but today was different.

"Did you see the gorgeous woman in Mr. Evans's office? She came in with him this morning. What's their deal?"

"You don't know? That's Victoria Clifford, his ex-girlfriend! She just returned to Crystal City. Looks like they're back together."

"Poor Mindy, she must be furious!"

"She's just a secretary who made her way into Mr. Evans's bed. Now that his real girlfriend's back, the sidepiece better hide."

I smiled bitterly. I was Nicholas's legal wife, yet when Victoria was gone, people called me his mistress. Now that Victoria's back, I'm labeled “his sidepiece.”

I walked in with my head high. The chatter stopped immediately when they saw me.

I approached the woman who'd said that and slapped her without hesitation.

The sharp sound echoed through the break room, stunning everyone into silence.

The woman I'd slapped was from the secretarial pool who'd tried to seduce Nicholas. Because I stopped her from reaching his office, her resentment toward me was obvious.

She couldn’t believe what just happened, "Mindy, how you dare slap me?"

"Why wouldn't I? I'm your superior," I said coldly, wielding my position before turning to the others with a mocking smile. "Who cares if I'm a mistress or the sidepiece? Do you really think you could get where I am?"

Another female coworker snorted, "Bragging about fucking your way up? Have you no shame, Mindy?"

I smiled at her and immediately slapped her too.

She was stunned and tried to hit back, but others held her back. "Who do you think you are, Mindy? You don't own this place!"

"No, I don't own it, but unfortunately for you, I outrank everyone here. You badmouthed me behind my back, I heard it, so I felt like slapping you and I did. Feel free to file a report with Mr. Evans if you dare."

Their anger disappeared instantly after mentioning that name.

As I got my coffee, I turned around with one last warning, "Next time you gossip about me, think about whether your pretty faces can handle other slaps."

After this incident, I couldn't focus on work. I used to ignore these rumors, but today I snapped.

I couldn't stop thinking about Victoria being in Nicholas's office.

She'd been in there for so long.

What were they doing? Hugging? Kissing? Maybe something worse?

I couldn't sit still anymore. Like something had taken hold of me, I grabbed some documents as an excuse to get Nicholas's signature.

Alan wasn't at his usual post outside. I thought it was strange since he rarely left his desk.

I figured they wanted privacy for their romantic reunion, so I couldn’t resist the chance to eavesdrop.

Just as I reached the door, I heard Victoria's voice, "Nick, when are you going to tell Mindy about the divorce?"

My heart clenched, and the documents slipped from my hands.

Before I could hear Nicholas's answer, the door opened.

Nicholas looked surprised to see me, "What are you doing here?"