CHAPTER 2: THE PERFECT WIFE’S MASK SHATTERS
The moment I stepped onto the patio, everything froze.
Champagne glasses paused mid-air. Conversations died mid-sentence.
Vanessa turned slowly, her smile already forming—until she saw Leo in my arms.
Her face drained of color.
“Mark… you’re home early—”
I didn’t let her finish.
“What. Did. You. Do.”
Each word dropped like a hammer.
A few of her friends shifted uncomfortably. One of them actually laughed nervously.
“Oh come on,” Vanessa said lightly, trying to recover. “He’s just being dramatic. It was a harmless timeout—”
“A harmless timeout?” I stepped closer, my voice rising. “You locked my son in a dog kennel. Overnight.”
Silence.
Pure, suffocating silence.
Someone set their glass down with a shaking hand.
Vanessa’s jaw tightened. “He needs discipline. You’re never here, Mark. You don’t understand—”
“I understand perfectly.”
I turned slightly, revealing Leo’s dirt-covered clothes, his tear-streaked face.
“You called him an animal.”
She didn’t deny it.
That was all I needed.
“Get out.”
Her eyes widened. “Excuse me?”
“Get. Out. Of. My. House.”
The words echoed across the pristine patio like gunfire.
“This is my home too—”
“No,” I cut in, my voice deadly calm. “This was my mistake.”
For the first time, her composure cracked.
“You can’t do this in front of everyone—”
“I should’ve done it sooner.”
I turned to the guests.
“Leave. Now.”
May you like
No one argued.
Within minutes, the patio was empty.
