After My Husband Cheated, I Fell for My Younger Trainer Chapter 02
Ethan started trying to get back on my good side.
He was clumsy about it, and his timing could not have been worse.
At noon that day, he sent me a message.
[Want to have lunch together? I made a reservation at that Japanese restaurant you used to like.]
I glanced at it and replied, [I already have plans with a friend.]
It took him ten minutes to respond.
[I’ll come home early tonight.]
[Okay.]
At five that afternoon, he sent me a photo from a flower shop.
[Which bouquet do you like?]
I did not reply.
I was beginning to understand him.
Having someone you did not like constantly messaging you really was annoying.
I realized I did not love him anymore.
That was a good thing.
At six that evening, Ethan actually came home.
That almost never happened.
He was holding an enormous bouquet of fragrant lilies, with his suit jacket draped over one arm.
He looked exactly like the husband I had once dreamed he would be.
Back then, I always thought that if he ever canceled a business dinner and came home carrying flowers, I would throw myself into his arms.
But I no longer expected anything like that from him.
I walked out of the kitchen, saw the bouquet, and paused for two seconds.
Ethan looked at me with obvious anticipation.
“I passed a flower shop and thought you’d like these.”
I looked at him.
“I’m allergic to lilies. Their scent gives me a headache. I like lisianthus. You don’t remember, do you?”
His expression stiffened.
I took the flowers from him, opened the front door, and placed them outside.
The stems tapped softly against the wall.
Ethan stood beside the empty dining table, his face slowly darkening.
“Erin, I’m the one trying to make peace with you.”
My hand paused on the cap of my water bottle, and I laughed.
“Ethan, do you think trying to make peace with me is some kind of favor?”
For a moment, he had no answer.
The living room fell silent.
Holding back his anger, he said, “I can apologize for what happened last night, but don’t push this too far.”
I took a sip of water.
“Have you apologized?”
His mouth opened, but nothing came out.
“And how exactly am I pushing too far? I haven’t smashed any plates or bowls. I haven’t destroyed the television. I haven’t even accused you of anything. So what exactly have I done to offend you?”
In that moment, the guilt disappeared from his face.
All that remained was unmistakable impatience.
I knew that look too well.
He used to look at me that way every time I asked him for an explanation.
As though I were the one in the wrong.
As though I had ruined his mood simply by being hurt.
He threw his jacket onto the couch.
“Then what do you want me to do? Get on my knees and beg?”
I shook my head.
“No. I just had the floor cleaned.”
Ethan stared at me before letting out an angry laugh.
“Why does everything you say have to be so nasty now?”
I put the water back in the refrigerator.
“You never listened when I spoke nicely, either.”
Over the next few days, his patience clearly began to run out.
He deliberately took calls in front of me.
His voice would become unusually gentle.
“Did you take your medicine? Don’t cry. I’ll come over when I’m done here. Be good, okay?”
There was no need to guess who was on the other end.
Lily Morgan.
She was a newly hired junior employee at Ethan’s company.
Fresh out of college, she had wide eyes, a soft voice, and a habit of blushing before she spoke.
I had met her once at a company dinner.
She stood beside Ethan with a glass of wine in her hand and softly called me, “Mrs. Walker.”
The way she said it sounded both timid and deliberate.
It was as though she wanted to remind me that she knew exactly who I was.
At the time, I had been upset for the entire night.
Looking back, it had been such a waste of sleep.
On Friday evening, Ethan answered another call from Lily right in front of me.
He leaned against the balcony door, but his eyes remained fixed on me.
“Wait for me. I’ll be there soon.”
After hanging up, he grabbed his car keys, making every movement deliberately loud.
I sat on the couch with a face mask on and did not even look up.
“Drive safely.”
He stopped.
“That’s all you have to say?”
I smoothed a crease in my face mask.
“I do.”
He looked at me.
I said seriously, “Don’t drink and drive.”
His expression immediately turned ugly.
The next second, the door slammed shut.
A moment later, I heard him kick a trash can in the hallway.
Good.
The apartment was finally quiet.
I picked up my phone and sent Kyle a message.
[Can we move tomorrow’s lesson an hour earlier?]
He replied almost immediately.
[Why? Miss me?]
I looked at the message and smiled.
[Yes. I miss you.]
He sent me a voice message.
I tapped it open.
The clear voice of a young man came through the speaker, warm with laughter.
“Then you get an extra one-on-one session tomorrow, Ms. Carter.”
The next day, Kyle was already waiting beside the pool when I arrived at the aquatic center.
He was a handsome athlete. He wore black swim trunks and a white T-shirt, with damp hair falling over his forehead.
When he waved at me, he flashed a bright white smile.
He looked unfairly good, and heat rushed to my face.
“Were you good? Did you eat a proper dinner yesterday?”
The moment I reached him, he suddenly reached out and pinched my waist.
Startled, I slapped his hand away.
“Kyle!”
He gave me an innocent smile.
“I was checking whether you’d been eating enough.”
I glared at him.
He leaned closer and lowered his voice.
“Good. You’ve put a little weight back on. As a reward, you can touch my abs today.”
My face grew even hotter.
I was about to scold him when someone behind us suddenly called out.
“Kyle’s girlfriend is here!”
I froze.
Kyle did not look embarrassed in the slightest.
He reached over and lightly tapped the man on the head.
“Why are you shouting? You scared her.”
I turned to him.
“Who’s your girlfriend?”
Kyle bent down until his face was closer to mine, his eyes unusually bright.
“You will be eventually. I’m just letting them get used to it early.”
My heartbeat suddenly quickened.
Then he added, “Erin, when are you going to make this official with me?”
