Then Elena appeared at the doorway. No bags, no boxes, not even a receipt sticking out of a pocket. Nothing. Just a small wrinkled envelope she held as if it contained something dangerous… or precious.

A shiver ran down Raymond’s spine. The other women had returned loaded like walking storefronts. But Elena… did not.

She stepped forward, placed the envelope in front of him, then stepped back, hands clasped as if she feared his reaction.

Silence filled the room.

Raymond picked up the envelope. It was light — too light. And yet he immediately felt that whatever was inside weighed more than all the luxury bags he had seen that day.

What his housekeeper had bought… would shatter everything he thought he knew. And when he finally discovered what she had done with the card… he was left utterly, completely speechless.

The rest?

This is where the story shifts.