Strategically, it was the right move. Lucas had only met Nathan once; he assumed I was the one cheating and had no idea the man he'd seen was a high-powered lawyer.

I wasn't about to let a scumbag ruin the rest of my life.

Hearing the resolve in my voice, Nathan let out a resigned sigh. "Alright. But promise me—if anything happens, you call me immediately."

Early the next morning, after settling matters at my shop, I drove back to Riverdale.

I had lived in that house for ten years, yet standing before it now, a wave of nausea washed over me. It didn't feel like a home; it felt like a crime scene.

But my mindset had shifted.

If enduring a little disgust was the price for permanently ridding myself of that man, then so be it.

I knocked. A moment later, a nanny I didn't recognize answered.

"Hello, Miss. Who are you looking for?"

From the entryway, the sharp wail of an infant drifted down the hall.

My jaw tightened. Sure enough, the moment I left, Lucas had moved Yolanda right in. He hadn't even waited for the ink to dry.

"Call Lucas," I said, my voice ice-cold. "Tell him I'm here to serve his mistress during her postpartum confinement."

The nanny's eyes widened. She froze, mouth opening and closing, unsure how to handle the sudden appearance of the actual lady of the house.

Before she could stammer out a reply, Yolanda came running from the master bedroom.

"Lexi! You're here!" She beamed, her face a mask of feigned innocence. "Why didn't you give me a heads-up? I would have had Lucas pick you up. This makes me look like a terrible sister."

I watched her descend the stairs, remembering the first time I met her—a timid intern under Lucas's supervision.

I didn't know if she'd ever been made a permanent doctor, but she had certainly succeeded in other areas. Relying on her abilities, she had climbed into her mentor's bed and secured her position with a pregnancy.

Truly capable.

And Lucas, the fool, had fallen for it hook, line, and sinker.

Looking at Yolanda's fawning, hypocritical face, I felt a dark laugh bubbling in my chest. I wondered if she could actually cross the threshold as a legitimate wife once I was gone.

"Save it," I said, brushing past her. "I'm going to my room to rest. Oh, and my fee is one hundred thousand dollars a month."

Yolanda froze. "One hundred thousand?"

I stopped and turned, fixing her with a bored stare.