Chapter 1

The first day after I died, my wife brought her high school golden boy back to our house.

They made out in our bedroom, ate the prime ribeye steaks I had bought for her, used my computer, and spent my money online.

When he asked, "Where’s your husband?"

My wife replied, her voice cold and dismissive, "Always working. He's on some stupid business trip. I don't even know where he is."

She had no idea I was dead.

I had been rushing back from a business trip, driving through the night to surprise Clara for her birthday.

Then came the headlights. The crash. I died instantly.

Maybe it was my sheer obsession with seeing Clara one last time that bound my soul to her side.

But when I opened my ghostly eyes, I saw her walking through our front door with Julian Ward—the guy she used to obsess over in high school.

This was the first time I had ever seen Clara dress so provocatively. Around me, she barely wore makeup unless it was for a corporate dinner.

But right now, she looked like a rose in full bloom, sultry and radiant.

They were wrapped around each other. Clara leaned gently against his shoulder as they walked into the living room.

Her eyes were filled with a tenderness she had never shown me. She helped him onto the sofa, her voice dripping with affection. "Let me make you some lunch, babe. Just rest here. The sofa is super comfortable."

Julian nodded. As Clara reached out to cup his face, he took her hand and kissed her palm. "Thanks, beautiful. Anything you make is heaven to me."

Clara smiled, looking completely drunk on his words. She walked into the kitchen, pulled out the prime ribeyes I had bought for her from the fridge, and seared them on the stove.

She even opened my bottle of vintage Cabernet Sauvignon, setting the table beautifully. Together, they enjoyed a perfect, romantic lunch.

After sharing the bottle of wine, both of their faces flushed. Their eyes grew hazy with desire.

Leaving the steaks half-eaten, Julian pulled Clara onto his lap. He gently brushed a stray lock of hair behind her ear.

"Clare, you are the most gorgeous, intoxicating woman in the world. You’re the only one who can make me lose control like this."

Clara melted into his arms, soaking in his flattery, responding to his every touch.

The sight broke something inside me. Around me, she was always a cold queen. I never knew she had such a passionate, wild, and tender side.

Watching them touch, even though I thought I was emotionally numb, a sharp pain stabbed through my ghostly chest.

I remembered how, after Julian’s recent divorce, Clara had repeatedly insisted on "comforting" him. She would go out to drink with him, coming home half-drunk in the middle of the night.

We had screamed at each other because of it.

"When I graduated college, I had no place to live and no money! Julian was the one who helped me!" she had yelled at me. "Now that his life is falling apart, I can't just abandon him! I have a conscience!"

My hands had been shaking with rage.

"And because of that 'conscience,' you’ve been staying out with another man until midnight for days? Do you even care about me? Do you care about this marriage?"

"Are you even a man, Ethan? Why are you so insecure? There is nothing going on between us. Stop overthinking!"

I had lost my mind. "Don't think I'm stupid just because I'm quiet, Clara! Julian got divorced because he was caught cheating! Now you’re rushing to play his savior? Anyone would think you were the one he cheated with!"

"Don't you dare accuse me of that, Ethan! I have never cheated on you!"

I had let out a cold laugh, leaning in close. "I might be a nice guy, Clara, but I'm not an idiot. You want to play nursemaid to another man? Over my dead body."

After that massive fight, I had volunteered for the business trip just to get some space.

But I still loved her. I worried about her, and today was her birthday. That was why I had rushed back.

I just didn't expect that it would actually be over my dead body.