Chapter 1 ~ Ruined Surprise

ANAYA

“We've arrived, Mrs. Whitmore!” Anton announced as he parked the car near the entrance of the VIP section. 

“Thank you!” I smiled as I waited in the back seat of our car. 

My husband went on a work trip for two weeks, and I wanted to surprise him. He didn't even know I knew he would return today; it was all thanks to my nosy self that I managed to get his flight schedule. 

Three years married to Nash, and my heart still skipped a beat at the thought of him. Yes, he was cold and distant, but he had always been like that with everyone, and I loved him.

I pulled my window down and glanced toward the sliding doors where the VIP walked out from and began searching for him. 

My eyes continued to search until I spotted his tall and handsome figure, making a smile curve my lips and my eyes brighten in excitement. My husband was a perfect blend of two races, and he was incredibly handsome. His father was Chinese, and his mother was American.

I was about to open the car door, but froze.

Nash wasn't alone, and not only was he smiling, but he was walking out with a blonde woman and a young boy while holding hands.  

They looked like a perfect family of three who had just returned from a perfect holiday break.

My chest tightened as if someone had reached inside and squeezed the breath from my lungs. All my life, Nash had rejected any sort of physical contact, saying it annoyed him, and yet here he was, holding her hand with a smile I had never seen on his face. 

From our wedding photos to every event we had, he rarely even curved his lips for me. 

I felt like I was suffocating, and if I stayed here any minute longer, I'd die. I watched the woman whisper something in his ear, and he laughed with a shake of his head.

Nash laughed!

Watching this scene was a bullet shot straight to my soul because I always thought he never laughed. But sitting here and watching the scene unfold, I realized he did. 

Just not for me. 

He smiled. 

Just not for me.

And he sure as hell didn't hate physical touch. He just didn't like it with me.

A part of me wondered if I was overthinking things, and they just happened to get on the same plane by coincidence. I was sick when he left, saying he had something urgent to handle. Surely, that ‘urgent matter’ wasn't picking up a woman and her son, was it?

I took a deep breath and pulled the window up, trying to hold my shattering soul from breaking into pieces.

“Take me back home,” I instructed Anton.

“Yes, Mrs. Whitmore.” He responded, and I snorted. 

That name felt like a mockery. 

Anton had just started the engine when we heard a tap on the window. When I rolled it down, it was my husband. 

Standing before me, looking as unbothered as ever. Our eyes met, but like every other day, he didn't genuinely smile. He curved his lips into a cold gesture. It felt like my skin was being peeled off painfully because I couldn't help but notice his earlier loving gaze was nowhere in sight. 

“Anaya? What are you doing here, Sweetheart?” Nash pulled me out of the car and hugged me. 

The hug I had been craving for weeks did nothing to soothe the pain I was feeling at the realization that he lied to me to pick up the woman he loved. It was obvious that he loved her. I mean, he flew all the way to France just for her, and yet he couldn't even pick me up from a nearby city whenever I had work.

“I -”

“Did you come to pick us, aunty?” The little boy asked, and I was taken aback. Why would I be picking them up?

“I told you my wife is kind and will welcome you with open arms,” Nash said, turning to the woman beside him.

“Hello, Anaya. My name is Hellen.” The woman stretched out her hand with a smile, “Thank you for everything.”

“What are you talking about?” I pulled away from Nash so I could face him because clearly, there was some sort of misunderstanding. 

“This is Hellen and her son, Adam. I told them that they could stay with us for a while.” He dropped the bomb like he just told me the moon was green. 

I looked at him, and his eyes almost looked apologetic, yet I knew better. He wasn't sorry. He wanted this to happen. 

It was at this point that I realized why her face looked so damn familiar. She was his ex!

I had seen a number of pictures on his I* since I went through each and every one of them. That’s how obsessed I was with Nash. My entire world revolved around him, and this was how he repaid me?

Nash must have noticed my tightened muscles as his hand stayed firm on my arm, and I laughed eternally. Outside of sex, this was the only time he had ever touched me, and it wasn't even because he wanted to. It was for me to accept that he wanted another woman and her son to live with us. 

How could he do this to me?

“They don’t have anywhere else to stay, sweetheart,” he went on when I said nothing,  “Hellen and her son are both kind, and you'll actually enjoy being with them. You always complained about the house being too big, didn't you?”

My brain was having a hard time processing what had just happened. Was he telling me I should bond with- I laughed internally, unable to even finish the sentence because of how stupid it sounded. 

“Maybe this is too sudden. We can find our way round the city, let's not trouble her Nash. Besides, it must be awkward since I'm your ex.” Hellen pouted, and I snorted.

One look and I could tell the bitch was as fake as they came.

No matter how sorry I felt for the small boy, I couldn't live under the same roof with his ex. Nash was rich and had various estates. If she was in desperate need, why couldn't he give her one of those? Why did it have to be our house?

“My wife is kind, Hellen. She wouldn't say no when you're stranded. You go ahead, and Anton will drive you home. I have some things I need to handle since I haven't handled anything work-related for a while.” He said, and my suspicion was confirmed.

He told me he left for work, and I waited for him like a fool!

I watched as he walked away, not bothering to hear my opinion about his new decision. 

“Bye, uncle!” The boy shouted excitedly.

Taking in deep breaths, I turned and was about to walk away when the little boy stopped me and asked,

“Aunty, will you take us home like Uncle said?”

I looked at Hellen, who gave me a smile that dared me to leave them behind, and honestly, I was tempted, but for the sake of the boy, I let them join me as Anton drove us home.

When we arrived, I didn't even bother to speak to her and rushed up to my room, my heart burning with rage as I took out my phone from my purse and dialed my best friend’s number,

“Daisy.” I breathed, “Draft me a divorce agreement!”