Chapter 2

Ethan worked at a firm owned by my dad’s old army buddy. His base salary was $10,000 a month, with a year-end bonus of around $30,000. An annual income of $150,000 made him upper-middle class.

But that was only because we had no mortgage, no car payments, our daughter was smart enough not to need expensive private tutoring, and I had my own high-paying job.

All of his $150,000 went entirely to his own comfort.

I pulled my thoughts back as Ethan walked out of the bathroom. I smiled at him. "You’re home?"

"Yeah. I visited my parents today. They told me there’s a luxury brownstone in the West Village up for sale. You know how rare it is for properties to open up there."

"I want to buy it and put it under Emma’s name. What do you think?"

"Emma is only in elementary school. Isn't it too early to buy her a house?"

I handed him the property portfolio I had prepared. "It’s a 1,500-square-foot place. Move-in ready and beautifully maintained. Even if Emma doesn't want it later, we can use it for retirement."

"More importantly, Mr. Sterling’s father-in-law lives right next door. If we move there, you can get closer to him. It’ll help your career."

Hearing this, his eyes lit up instantly. "Honey, you’ve worked so hard!"

"It’s fine. We’re family. It’s just that I’m a bit short on cash, and taking out a loan isn't smart right now."

"I’ll find a way to get the money," Ethan said quickly.

See? He wasn't stingy. He was just transactional. Mr. Sterling was the boss he had been trying to suck up to for years. The bait I threw was too good for him to refuse.

Ethan had been at the firm for eight years, relying on my family’s connections to climb the ladder.

He had always wanted to shed the label of "the guy who married into money." He was trying to find his own way out.

Before, I thought he was just ambitious. Now I realized he was preparing to cut ties with me completely.

So, he didn't doubt my suggestion for a second.

But what Ethan didn't know was that Mr. Sterling and his wife had been separated for years. Mr. Sterling despised men who cheated. He had built his wealth through his wife's family but still wanted to keep a mistress on the side, which made him a hypocrite.

If Ethan tried to use this to get closer to him, he was playing with fire.

The next day, Ethan handed me a black card. "This has all my bonuses from the past few years. There’s about $300,000 in it. It’s all yours."

I was slightly surprised. Ethan was generous, and he was richer than I thought.

But something felt off. I took the card, bought the condo, and used the remaining cash for renovations.

At the same time, I started digging into Ethan’s actual income.

When I got the detailed reports, I was shocked. Ethan’s annual package had already reached $400,000. Yet, he was still playing poor with me. Over the years, he had secretly amassed over $1.5 million in savings that I knew absolutely nothing about.

Then I remembered that Ashley had bought a $40,000 Hermès Birkin bag last month.

She told me she bought it as a treat for herself. But with her salary, there was no way she could afford it.

Ethan must have bought it for her. What a joke. On the day she showed it off to me, Ethan had come back from a "business trip" and gifted me a $1,000 designer wallet.

He used gifts to define our status in his life.

Ethan, don't blame me. You brought this on yourself.

I hired a lawyer and began gathering evidence of his asset hiding.

Once everything was ready, I posted the house contract on my Instagram.

"A little gift for my daughter's future!"

My friends instantly flooded the comment section with congratulations.

These comments drove Ashley insane with jealousy.

"Stop bragging! Ethan is so generous to you!" she texted me.

I replied: "Of course he is. Otherwise, some outsider might try to steal it!"

She didn't reply. I smiled. She couldn't even handle this?