Once the bedroom door closed, I let go of Mervyn and straightened up.
My expression settled back to normal.
Mervyn shook his head with a resigned sigh.
"Ellie, you went through all that trouble putting on a show. What's the point?"
I looked down at the glass of water in my hand.
The truth was, I hadn't slipped anything into it at all. I'd just stuffed a few effervescent tablets into an aphrodisiac packet to sell the illusion.
I hadn't expected Brian to actually buy it.
But it didn't matter.
I could already picture Joan throwing a fit because he hadn't shown up that night, screaming at him, tearing into him.
The thought alone was deeply satisfying.
Three days later, I was going through our accounts as usual when I noticed ten million dollars missing.
I called Brian without hesitation.
"Why is there ten million missing from the bank account?"
He was quiet for a few seconds.
"It's Joanie. She's... pregnant."
"I promised her I'd give her and the baby a proper home. So I used the money to buy her a villa."
My heart dropped like a stone.
Pregnant.
After the aphrodisiac stunt that night, Brian had stormed out first thing the next morning and hadn't come home for three straight days.