The next day when Lucian returned, I asked him who he was with last night hysterically. I asked him if he remembered what day it was yesterday. Probably realized that I knew, he not only didn't feel guilty but also accused me, claiming I was being irrational.
“What are you so worked up about?” He asked me with his eyebrows knitted together. “Esther was just accompanying me. You’re being irrational. You don't know anything about business, so you can't possibly understand what I was going through! Even if I were to explain it, you wouldn't understand. Don't you forget Olivia that we are not in the same boat.”
Lucian's chest heaved, reflecting the anger simmering within him. He composed himself, then spoke to me again, this time in a softer tone. “You don't need to worry about Esther. We're just friends.”
Just friends? Who the hell did he think I was? Did he think that I would buy his nonsense? I lost my grip and went rage, shouting at him as a madman could ever be.
Finally, he left, slamming the door behind him. Before that, he said to me, “You're a real nutcase. It's my worst luck to be married to you.”
I thought he would be a little more restrained when I exposed him, but instead, it brought about even more reckless behavior from him. Yet, he cared deeply about his reputation. He couldn't accept anyone accusing him of cheating in his marriage or suggesting that Esther was the misstress he kept. He arranged women as his secretaries and carried on with those disgraceful affairs without a shred of guilt.
He pretended too well, so well that no one believed he was cheating. They turned to me, saying I was insecure. They claimed I was lucky to have such a good husband, a man so rare that there was only one in a thousand in this world, and urged me to reflect on myself.
The more I listened to what people said, the more I thought. Maybe he did love me after all, maybe it was true that there was nothing between him and Esther, and besides, no one is perfect. I started thinking that he just made a mistake and waited for him to come back and mend his ways.
I waited for him and remained patient. But what did I get? He grew increasingly blatant with his women, disrespecting me over time, even daring to shout at me in front of my mother. He treated us as if we were disposable, and tragically, it reached its peak when my mother lost her life.