My Husband's Secret Woman

In the car, on her way home, Tatiana opened the gossip feed that the wealthy ladies in her social circle had created years ago. She liked to think of it as their “digital tea party,” except that it had more guests, some of whom hadn't even been invited.

Scrolling through the gossip that had accumulated overnight was part of her usual morning routine.

If she wanted to excel in her position, she needed to stay informed about what was happening in their social circle.

Today was no different. She scrolled through the messages until she finally found the news she had been dreading since she woke up. Word about Gilbert Fletcher's new “friend” had already spread.

‘I should have expected this... Even if my friends hadn't leaked the news, there are eyes and ears everywhere. I'm actually surprised it hasn't reached the media yet and is still confined to this private feed.’

Tatiana felt a wave of annoyance. Most people had largely stopped caring about the love affairs of the wealthy, but the wives of rich men were another matter. They still enjoyed making each other's lives miserable over such scandals. It would have been foolish of Tatiana to expect them to leave her alone this time.

Her car finally came to a stop at the mansion's main entrance. As she stepped out, Mrs. Caldwell cast a brief glance at the imposing building before her.

For years, nothing about the mansion had ever seemed to change. Yet today, for some inexplicable reason, it looked strangely unfamiliar to her.

The driver opened the door, and Tatiana made her way inside. The moment she entered, she spotted a woman she had never seen before.

The stranger had a white cast on her left leg and leaned on a pair of white plastic crutches as she made her way toward Tatiana.

“Hi!” The woman greeted her cheerfully, a bright smile spreading across her face.

Tatiana froze.

For a moment, she could only stare at the unfamiliar woman, completely caught off guard by the unexpected greeting.

She took a moment to scrutinize the stranger's appearance. She looked exactly as her assistant described it to her the day before: she had straight dark brown hair that barely went past her shoulders; her skin was fair but still had an olive undertone about it; thanks to her young age, her features were delicate and fresh while her big brown eyes were sparkling with curiosity.

She was slightly taller than Tatiana but their build was about the same. She wore simple baggy off-brand jean shorts and a plain black t-shirt.

It was obvious that she was not coming from the same background as Gilbert.

'Well, she does look cute,' Tatiana admitted quietly, ‘there is an air of innocence about her. I guess a lot of men are drawn to such women because they prompt them to feel protective of them.’

Finally, her eyes fixed on the white cast on the woman's leg, 'I wonder what happened...'

As she caught herself genuinely wondering about this woman's circumstances, Tatiana quickly rid herself of these useless thoughts.

'Now that I've seen her, I don't see why we should continue interacting.'

Tatiana offered the woman a light nod and started walking towards the stairs when she heard her voice again, "Wait a second, Tiana!"

Mrs. Caldwell froze once again, a slight shiver running through her entire body.

Even though she was clearly more than six years older than the woman, and found it extremely inappropriate, Tatiana could have overlooked the informal address. But to call her "Tiana"? Only those very close to her were allowed to use that nickname. The fact that this woman even knew it made her really angry.

Taming her rising irritation, Tatiana finally turned around and raised her brow. "Excuse me?"

Her cold tone clearly scared the new woman. She averted her eyes for a moment and fidgeted with a lock of her hair. Then, as if nothing had happened, she smiled again and said,

"Oh, I'm sorry. I should have introduced myself first. My name is Emilia Marlowe. I am a friend of your husband back from university. You can call me Mila though, that's what everyone calls me anyway."

"Well... Nice to meet you." For some reason, Tatiana couldn't bring herself to say the woman's name. She observed her appearance once again.

'A friend from university? Although we were in different departments, I know that Gilbert was surrounded by friends when we were students, but she looks too young to be one of them.'

Tatiana nodded at her again and turned around. 'That should be enough. If Gilbert has even an ounce of decency left in him, he won't make me run into her again unless absolutely necessary.'

Mrs. Caldwell attempted to walk away, but the woman refused to end the conversation just yet.

"Wait a minute!" She grabbed Tatiana by the arm, and the latter instantly pulled it away as if burned by boiling water. Her reaction made the woman recoil, her face turning somewhat scared.

Tatiana arched her eyebrows again. She found the woman's behavior not only strange but also fake. It felt as if she was acting.

"Is there anything else?" Tatiana looked the woman straight in the eyes, demanding a response.

Emilia answered timidly, "Well, I wanted to say thank you for letting me stay here. I am very grateful."

"I did not let you stay here. My husband did. Express your gratitude to him. I'm sure you'll find a way." Tatiana didn't mean to sound so bitter, but she couldn't help it.

The woman seemed to have ignored that bitterness completely. "Yes, well... but it is still nice to get acquainted. We will be seeing each other often, after all."

Mrs. Caldwell gripped the handles of her handbag tightly, her irritation reaching its peak.

'See each other often?'

Emilia continued cheerfully, "Anyway, can I call you Tiana when I see you? You can call me Mila. Everybody does."

Tatiana closed her eyes in an attempt to compose herself. She hated the mere idea of her husband's mistress calling her Tiana. She hated the idea of her addressing her at all.

Finally, she released a subtle exhale and replied, "You will call me Mrs. Caldwell, and I will call you Miss Marlowe. That should do it."

Unwilling to prolong this unpleasant encounter any longer, Tatiana tried to walk away again when Emilia called out, "Gilbert!"