Love Fades Without a Trace

Elena's lashes fluttered. She pursed her lips and didn't say anything.

Aaron didn't seem to notice her odd behavior. He approached her and wrapped an arm around her shoulder. "I'm guessing that you missed me too much if you were willing to brave the sun instead of relaxing at home. Did you want to have lunch with me?"

Two years ago, she'd fainted due to low blood sugar. Since then, he'd forbidden her from going to work, fearing it would tire her out. He'd fed her the best food money could buy. He'd also installed surveillance cameras everywhere in their home so that he could see if anything had happened to her.

The surveillance cameras still worked perfectly, but it was clear his attention was no longer on her. Why else would he not have checked the cameras the whole morning? If he had, he would've realized that she'd left the house early that morning.

Well, it wasn't important anymore. Elena had already decided to leave this world, so it no longer mattered whether he still had her in his heart.

She caught a faint scent of roses on him and knew very well it didn't come from any of her perfumes. Turning her head away, she tried her best to hold her breath. "I wanted to go to one of the restaurants near here."

"Let's go, then. You can come to my office and nap with me afterward." Aaron smiled and held her tighter. "You know I can only sleep well with you by my side. If I weren't worried about you tiring yourself out from running around all day, I'd keep you with me at all times."

Did he want to keep her by his side so she could see how he fully utilized every second of his day? He had to run a company, keep her happy, and sneak away to be someone else's perfect husband and father, after all.

Elena smiled mockingly as she followed Aaron to the parking lot. They drove to a nearby restaurant for lunch before returning to Reed Tower.

She'd sat on the toilet bowl for a long time and hadn't slept a wink after learning the truth last night, so she napped for a long time.

It was almost 5:00 pm when she woke up. Aaron sat behind his computer as he attended to work, looking focused. But the moment he heard her footsteps, he immediately looked up. He grabbed some fruits and dessert from the mini fridge in the room.

"You must be hungry after napping for so long. I'm guessing you didn't sleep well last night, so I'll get off work early today and have dinner with you. Then, we can go home and rest together. What do you think?" he asked.

He was the one who'd suggested spending more time together, yet he went back on his word a mere 30 minutes later. His phone pinged, and his expression turned conflicted after reading the message. "I'm sorry, Elena, but there's an emergency with one of our projects.

"I have to deal with the situation in person, so I can't be with you tonight. How about you go to a restaurant you like and take a stroll after that? Buy whatever you want—think of it as me making it up to you."

Elena knew she should've been considerate. After all, she was alone, but Mia had a child with her. Aaron had already spent so many hours with her—it was understandable that he wanted to switch things up and be with his lover and child.

Still, she was pissed. She wanted to make things hard for him. "What could possibly be urgent enough for someone to go straight to you without getting through John first? Don't they know you're busy with work right now?"

Aaron's eyes darkened. Elena understood what that meant and continued indifferently, "Still, this is work. There's no point in me getting mad, nor will I ever get mad at you. It's tough enough for you to run such a huge company alone.

"I'm your wife, but I can't bear this burden with you. The least I can do is be more understanding when it comes to your work."

He relaxed, evidently relieved. "You're the best, darling."

"You wouldn't like me if I weren't, right?" She pulled her hand out of his and glanced at his phone. She saw a conversation on the screen. It was short, but there was a photo among the sentences.

It was too far for her to get a clear look at the photo, but she soon received the image on her phone. It was a selfie Mia had taken of herself in a black lace nightgown.

The angle was perfect, and her expression was saucy enough to make any man hard. She was alluring and pretty—it was definitely more seductive than someone as plain as Elena could ever be. She supposed it made sense that Aaron would choose to abandon her to be with Mia.

Then again, perhaps he'd been so busy having a family with Mia that he'd forgotten how crazy he'd been for Elena when they were newlyweds. They would do the deed four or five times a night before continuing the following morning.

However, he'd started controlling himself after a pregnancy scare. Her period had been a week late once, and he'd stopped going wild over her, even with protection.

He claimed he had to restrain himself because he didn't want her to get pregnant. He didn't want a child to come into the picture.

Now, Elena knew the truth. Aaron's restraint hadn't been due to his fear of getting her pregnant—he'd only been saving his energy for Mia.

She lowered her lashes, concealing the mockery in her eyes. Then, she grabbed her bag and left Reed Tower.

She got into her car and circled the building. However, instead of leaving, she parked her car elsewhere before taking a cab back to Reed Tower.

Before she got close, she saw Aaron hurrying to a mixed-use office complex opposite Reed Tower. He looked like he was in a rush.

Elena's expression shifted. She suddenly remembered that he had an apartment unit there. He'd bought it when they were still dating—it was for them to rest there after lunch because he was worried the office wouldn't be conducive for a nap.

In hindsight, Aaron had probably lied about leaving Reed Tower to pick her up because he'd heard his employees mentioning that they'd seen her. In truth, he'd been heading to the complex across the road for a date with Mia. He'd had no choice but to delay his plans because Elena had suddenly shown up.

Now that she was gone, he could head over there to be with Mia. He was truly in a rush.

Despite already making up her mind about leaving, Elena still felt horrible. She clutched her chest with her right hand, and the blood drained from her face. She almost broke out in a cold sweat.

"Are you okay, miss? Do you feel unwell? Should I take you to the hospital?" the cab driver asked anxiously.

The hospital? Yes, she should head to the hospital since she was feeling ill, and she needed someone to be with her.

She took a deep breath to calm down before pulling out her phone and calling Aaron. "My chest suddenly hurts, Aaron. I feel sick. Can you come home and take me to the hospital?"