In that moment, I swallowed the bitterness rising in my throat.
A woman's intuition is rarely wrong.
Sometimes all it takes is a single glance to know exactly what two people are to each other.
And in that instant, I knew.
Maud Matthews was the one Alfred loved.
And sure enough, over the eight years that followed, he proved that suspicion right more times than I could count.
"Maria?"
Alfred frowned and waved a hand in front of my face, pulling me out of my thoughts.
"What's wrong with you? You're white as a sheet."
He reached out and took my ice-cold hand.
"Did something happen?"
I forced the corners of my lips upward and slipped my hand free of his without making a scene.
"It's nothing. I think my period just started. I'm not feeling great."
Alfred relaxed. He pulled out his phone and tapped the screen a few times.
"I ordered some delivery for you. Pads, some hot cocoa, things like that. Hopefully it'll help."
With that, he left my apartment.
I watched his retreating figure. He never once looked back.
The bitterness crept in again, slow and familiar.
How easy it was to fool him.
If Alfred truly cared about me, he would have noticed that my period had already come and gone last week.