Slapped on Our Anniversary - Chapter 1: Chapter 1

On our seventh wedding anniversary, Ethan humiliated me in front of everyone—with a sharp, stinging slap across my face.
"It's Olivia's birthday. How dare you show up and ruin it?" His voice dripped with contempt.
The mocking glint in his eyes told me everything. He hadn't just invited me here—he'd orchestrated this entire scene to break me.
Inside the buzzing karaoke room, I was reduced to a servant—fetching drinks, picking songs, while my own husband locked lips with Olivia right in front of me.
Later, a drunken Ethan cornered me outside.
"Who told you to vanish for seven days without my permission? This is your punishment. Do it again, and you're out of the Evans family for good."
"Keep pushing me, and you'll spend another seven years serving me—without a single cent to show for it."
My breath hitched. The words I wanted to say died in my throat.
My fingers tightened around the crumpled hospital notice in my palm. For a fleeting second, I considered showing him—but I swallowed the urge.
"What, realized you're too old and washed-up to land another rich husband? Had to come crawling back?" Ethan sneered from the passenger seat as I drove us home. "Rachel Wilson. You left me for money, and now that I'm successful, you think you can slither your way back in? I've been waiting for this."
My knuckles whitened around the steering wheel. A bitter laugh escaped me.
"Yeah. I deserve this."
Seven years of marriage. Seven years of Ethan parading women through our home, flaunting them in my face, reveling in my suffering.
But I still didn't understand.
I wasn't just his wife—I was his maid, his secretary, his chauffeur. He never paid me a dime. The girl he'd married—young, vibrant—had withered away for him.
Why couldn't he believe I'd never wanted his money?
I tilted my head back, blinking hard against the sting in my eyes.
Ethan's voice cut through the silence. "So? Where were you those seven days I couldn't reach you?"
"The hospital."
"Hospital?" He barked a laugh. "What, scouting out some new doctor to sink your claws into? Think those educated types are as easy to manipulate as I was?"
His fingers dug into my chin, forcing my gaze up. His smirk was cruel. "Face it, sweetheart. You're not seducing anyone anymore."
I bit down on my lip until I tasted blood. But the tears came anyway.
My heart—already shattered—split open all over again.
Ethan's smile widened, satisfied. He tossed something at me. A necklace.
"Here. Your anniversary gift."
For seven years, I'd endured every insult, every degradation without a word. But this—this broke me. My hands shook violently.
"What is this? You're scared I'll finally walk away, so you dangle a little hope to keep me trapped?" My voice cracked. "Ethan Evans, it's been seven years. Haven't you had your fill of revenge?"
For a heartbeat, I thought I saw something flicker in his eyes—pain? Regret?
But it vanished as fast as it came, replaced by ice.
"Don't flatter yourself."
"For a gold-digger like you—someone who'll stick around no matter how badly I treat her—why would I bother giving you anything?"
I had no words left.
The moment Ethan first dragged another woman into our bed, right in front of me, explanations became pointless.
I just had to endure. Repay my debt. Then—freedom.
Back home, Ethan shoved me onto the bed.
This is the last time, I told myself silently, squeezing my eyes shut.
I let him take me—rough, emotionless, like an act of punishment.
And as he whispered Olivia's name against my skin, I didn't make a sound.