Chapter 1

Sarah scrolled through an online forum, the kind where people ask if they're the bad guy. She usually found them a silly distraction.

A stay-at-home mom now, she missed the buzz of her old marketing career. Lily, her four-year-old, was napping. The house was quiet.

Then a post caught her eye.

Anonymous.

"AITA for wanting to trick my nagging wife into a temporary legal separation?"

Sarah read on. The man detailed a plan. He'd claim a big overseas job required him to be single on paper.

All so he could leave with his mistress.

Sarah felt a chill. It was a nasty, elaborate lie.

The next morning, Mark, her husband, sat her down.

He looked excited, a little too bright.

"Honey, I have amazing news," he began.

He described a lucrative job opportunity overseas, a two-year contract.

"There's just one thing," he said, fiddling with his coffee cup. "For legal reasons, for the visa, I need to be technically single. It' s just a formality, a temporary separation on paper."

His words were almost identical to the forum post.

Sarah' s stomach twisted. This couldn't be happening.

She looked at Mark, her husband of seven years, the father of her child.

He was a mid-level corporate guy, usually predictable, sometimes dull, but she never thought him cruel.

"It's a huge step for my career, for us," he pressed, his voice earnest.

Sarah felt sick, but her face showed nothing. Years in marketing had taught her how to wear a mask.

"Wow, Mark," she said, forcing a smile. "That sounds... incredible."

She needed to think.

"Of course, I support your career," she added, the words tasting like ash.

He beamed, relief washing over his face. "I knew you'd understand!"

He hugged her, a little too tight.

Sarah' s mind raced. The forum post. His exact words.

It was him. Her Mark.