Dear Husband, Don't Lie To Me

It was my 30th birthday.

On that day, my six-year-old son, Trevin Clarke, kept asking for cake.

I cut a small piece for him and got him to eat it. After getting tired from playing, he fell asleep on the sofa.

I carried him to the bedroom carefully and laid him down on the bed.

I waited until the cake had collapsed and the cream had melted, but Jaidyn Clarke still hadn't come home.

The phone calls I made were all showing as busy.

A few days ago, I had stressed repeatedly that I wanted him to spend my birthday with me, and he had agreed.

But it almost approached midnight at the moment.

I was getting anxious. Just as I was about to call him again, the door suddenly opened.

He walked in, dressed in trendy sportswear, changing his shoes at the entrance.

Seeing me, he was momentarily stunned. Then slapped his forehead and quickly explained, "Sorry, dear. I have so much work to do at the company that I forgot today was your birthday.

"Let me just take a quick shower, and I'll celebrate with you."

He went into the bathroom.

His phone was left on the sofa.

I usually never checked his phone, but at that moment, I had a strange sense.

There was a force urging me to pick it up.

As I was torn, his phone rang.

It was a notification of a message.

I picked it up and saw a voice message: [Thank you for today's cake. It was delicious! By the way, happy 69-day anniversary!]

It was said in a playful and vivid manner.

I knew who she was.

Her name was Lucille Oliver, his new apprentice. She was only 21 years old, in the prime of her youth.

Her face radiated with youthful energy.

As for me, no matter how expensive the skincare products and masks were, they couldn't tighten my loose skin.

Any expression I made revealed the signs of aging around my eyes and brows.

While I was distracted by the phone, Jaidyn came out of the bathroom, drying his hair with a towel.

His gaze lingered on the phone for a second, and his expression became somewhat unnatural.

"That young girl, she's quite lively. Actually, we just worked overtime together, and I ordered a small cake for her as a treat. She said it was our 69-day anniversary, so I went along with it. If she's happy, she can help with a lot of work, and I can have more time to spend with you and Trevin.

"Are you annoyed, honey? This is just a workplace tactic, a way to manipulate new employees into working hard."

He took my hand and led me to the dining table.

Then he cut a large piece of cake and placed it on my plate.

He gazed into my eyes with his usual deep affection. "Happy birthday, my love. May you always be happy!

"If I've done something wrong today, you can punish me however you want.

"Or maybe I should clear your shopping cart? How about that?" he asked gently.

I was a bit annoyed and, in a fit of pique, handed him my phone. "Go ahead, clear it."

He took my phone, logged in to the shopping application, and found that my shopping cart was empty, looking somewhat embarrassed.

"Jaidyn, who taught you that clearing the shopping cart would make your wife happy?" I asked with a light smile.

He was taken aback and looked flustered. "No one taught me. Isn't it popular online? To make a woman happy, you can clear her shopping cart. I'm sorry, Delaney. I've been so shallow. I forgot that you're frugal and have no interest in that kind of thing."

When we first got married, our financial situation wasn't good, so I developed a habit of being thrifty.

Apart from necessities, I hardly had any consumption needs.

After years of self-restraint, it became a deep-seated habit. Even when conditions improved, it was hard to change.

In an era of widespread deliveries, I became an old-fashioned woman.

My spending desire was even less than that of elderly people.

And he knew this well.

I felt increasingly annoyed, but I also knew that without concrete evidence, it wasn't appropriate to pursue the matter further.

Losing interest in the cake, I turned and went to wash up.

Jaidyn called after me, "Honey, don't be upset. I'll make it up to you this weekend."