Judith’s POV: Obscured Emotions.

"I don't have a mistress. Serena? Are you serious?" He snorted and then rubbed his hands together. "I believe I've lost my appetite. I'm having trouble keeping up with your arguments.

Are you afraid that your words will harm me because I just came back from the surgery? Don't worry; I don't believe anything you say right now will make a difference. The day you dropped me off, Sage and I weren't supposed to go.

Our friends hosted a modest gathering, and I didn't believe it was appropriate to inform you: you wouldn't have approved it, and they did it for me. If that's what's making you think I've got a mistress, then stop thinking that since it was just the two of us."

All I could say to him was, "I think I need to leave." One part of me wanted to believe him, while the other refused to believe him.

"I'm not advising you not to go. Have you not missed me since I returned? You should invite her over if you want to see her," As he stretched his hands towards me, he said.

"No, I'm going to see her at her place," I insisted as I rushed to the door, clutching my bag. I was relieved Mark didn't try to stop me.

****

My sister got taken aback when she saw me standing outside her apartment without my wig.

I was handed my favorite homemade beverage, pineapple with ginger, after exchanging niceties.

"This never gets old," I spoke as I sipped the contents of the glass.

"Yes, and this," she said, motioning her hands in front of me. "Seems to be something new."

"I believe Mark is having an affair with me," I stated flatly.

"What exactly do you mean?" Her laughter reverberated across the room. "Oh, you are serious. Well, I get what you're getting at. That young man is enamored with you. He'd never do something like that."

Peace kept quiet for a while. "So, what makes you believe that?" Her curiosity prompted her to inquire.

So I told her everything, and she just sat there with a passive expression showing on her face, not astonished or unhappy.

"Serena has a fiancé, and your husband doesn't have time for her. I'm not sure why you believe so, but it appeared like the surgery left you feeling overwhelmed and obscured.

Maybe if I were in your place, I might have responded similarly, but since I am not, I find no problem with it. Serena grew up with Mark as well- so it's no surprise they crossed paths," Peace attempted to reason with me.

I was trying to believe he was not guilty, so maybe she was correct. If I'm incorrect, I'll be called an impatient wife and closest friend: For God's sake, he'd just been gone for almost four months, and I treated him like that on his arrival?

"And I'm guessing you didn't allow him to explain himself. Did you ever inquire about it with him? Have you checked the email he sent you?" As my mind wandered, she kept asking, her voice lowered.

I snatched up my phone impatiently. I needed to show my cousin that I was correct. I felt dumb after speaking with her. She had more faith in my spouse than I did. Maybe it was because she had never seen those photos before.

I immediately checked my Mailbox, only to discover that I was logged out, which explained why I hadn't received any notifications.

My heart skipped a beat with delight. As much as I didn't want to appear foolish or like a lousy wife, I also wanted to be that too: I wanted to be that wife, the one who was irritated when her husband returned from surgery because she was stupid.

Instead of being overjoyed to see her spouse after months, a wife decided to dispute with him- oblivious to the fact that he was still healing.

Despite my embarrassment, I managed to log in, and right there, his address got listed alongside others I assumed were the doctor.

'We've just arrived, dear. I've been missing you, and I can't wait to see you again.

12:33 PM EST'

I opened that one first and couldn't force myself to read the others. But I couldn't figure out why everything didn't make sense: Sage could've just contacted me and told me how things were going.

Peace tried to reason with me by saying, "He didn't want to inform you about their get-together, and it just so happened Serena sent the images at that time."

She was a detective, and her instincts were always correct, but what if I was as well- correct?

"I just hope I could wake up and realize this is all a nightmare; it would have been the most tiresome dream I've ever had," I said, still feeling insane.

My fingers had already located Serena's name, and I was eager to learn why she had sent those photos. Was she attempting to separate us?

Oh, she didn't have a fiancé; that man had broken up with her, and she refused to return the engagement ring to him. That wasn't something my cousin was aware of, and it wasn't my story to tell.

"Hey! cousin," she answered cheerfully, and I was about to change her mood.

"Why did you send me those photographs and make me think you were having an affair with him, you red-headed insect? And where did you disappear the same week he left?"

"I went on a hunt. I'm a werewolf, after all, and I need to protect my Alpha Queen, who is making a fool of herself!" There she went with her ridiculous jokes again.

She had grown up playing the Alpha-Beta-Gamma games that Mark and his family played. They referred to themselves as such titles, and anyone who came to see them went along with the joke as well.

When she realized I wasn't going to give any comment on that, she let out a loud sigh. Then-

"Are you kidding me?" she exclaimed, laughing. It was not my fault when you both used each other's pictures for your profile! I didn't double-check the name; all I did was look at his face and send the photos.

Before he went, I wanted to send him some good memories. His friend snapped the photos, so we weren't alone. In addition, I did not depart the same week as he did; I left a month later.

Our organization was putting on high school seminars. We had a successful year in Ghana last year, so we decided to repeat the process in Nigeria. Hopefully, Korea and China will follow suit.

It's a three-month course, so maybe I'll be back next month. What's more, why didn't you join Mark on his trip? Oh! And I went back to black hair, thinking of dyeing it gold."

"Businesswoman!" Our cousin exclaimed, announcing her appearance.

"Peace, return my white dress!" she yelled back, her voice straining. As they went back and forth, I rolled my eyes.

I planned to be honest with him. He deserved to defend himself; Peace was right. Mark wouldn't leave me; he loved me, and I was stupid for thinking he would.