Chapter 1: Is My Sister Your Mistress?

The news of the pregnancy pleased Raymond; however, when he learned it was a high-risk gestation, he decided not to share it with his family until he was sure his wife wouldn’t lose the baby.

Because of Myriam’s condition, he was in a foul mood. On medical advice, they could not have intercourse.

“You look very tense,” commented Noemí, Myriam’s half-sister.

The woman worked as Raymond’s assistant at Myriam’s own request. Despite the terrible relationship between them, Myriam had decided to give her half-sister one last chance.

“Did you bring the report I asked for?” Ray asked, without looking at her.

“Of course,” she replied. She walked over to the desk and, as she placed the folder on the table, she leaned forward, flaunting her deep cleavage. “I’m far more efficient than my little sister,” she muttered resentfully.

Ray’s gaze slid shamelessly over her voluptuous breasts. He arched a brow.

“Interesting,” he murmured, letting his eyes travel down the length of her body.

Noemí was slim, of medium height, and dressed provocatively. Even though Myriam had ordered her to wear the corporate uniform, she refused. She always wore stiletto heels, tight miniskirts, and blouses with open buttons that revealed a generous part of her chest.

Noticing the effect she had on her brother-in-law, she moved behind him and began to massage his neck.

“Seems my sister doesn’t take good care of you,” she whispered, her fingers sliding across his skin. “I could do it better than her,” she insinuated.

Raymond cleared his throat. He felt his body begin to react, but he was a smart man, and he couldn’t allow himself to be caught with his sister-in-law inside the company. After clearing his throat again, he asked Noemí to leave him alone.

She, however, wasn’t ready to give up. She was determined to steal her sister’s husband. Since childhood she had envied her, and she wanted everything Myriam had. That included Raymond Wilson—and his fortune.

****

Myriam was reviewing export guides in her office at the shipping company where she had worked since marrying Raymond. She yawned repeatedly, exhausted.

“You should get some rest,” a colleague suggested when she saw her nodding off at the computer.

Myriam scratched the back of her neck. She hadn’t told anyone about her pregnancy. Covering another yawn with her hand, she conceded, “You’re right.”

It was still early, so she grabbed her coat, her bag, and went straight home.

The moment she turned the key in the lock, she felt the blood drain from her body. Clothes were scattered across the hallway floor. As she walked further in, she heard moans coming from her bedroom.

“This can’t be…” she whispered, her heart racing.

Summoning courage, she flung the door open. She froze at the sight of her sister naked on top of her husband, the two of them writhing and moaning like possessed souls.

“Good afternoon,” Myriam muttered, feeling her world crumble. She looked at them with a mixture of disgust and disappointment before slamming the door on her way out.

Raymond immediately pushed Noemí off, tossing her onto the bed. He pulled on his boxers and ran after his wife, who was leaning against the hallway wall, struggling to breathe.

“Let me explain,” he pleaded, trying to reach her.

“Don’t come near me,” Myriam roared, her face bathed in tears. Her eyes reflected sorrow and guilt. She trembled. What hurt the most wasn’t the betrayal itself… but that it had been with Noemí. “So… my sister is your mistress?” she stammered, devastated.

“No!” he shouted, running his hands through his hair. “She seduced me. You’ve seen how she acts at the office—provoking everyone. I felt lonely. Since you’ve been pregnant we haven’t had physical contact,” he tried to justify, trying to pin the blame on both women.

He grabbed Myriam by the arm.

She looked at him, soul shattered, and yanked herself free.

“I need to sort out my thoughts and emotions,” she said in a low voice. Without letting him speak, she left the house in tears.

Raymond clenched his fists and rubbed his face with both hands, desperate. He couldn’t lose the baby. He needed that child. He had to find a way to win back his wife—at any cost.

Meanwhile, in the bedroom, Noemí smiled in satisfaction. She rolled over the bed, playing with the silk sheets where her sister had once shared her bed with her husband.

****

Myriam burst into her best friend Elsa’s office, and the moment she saw her crying, Elsa jumped to her feet.

“Are you okay?” she asked, steadying her when she nearly collapsed. She led her to a chair. “Say something, please,” she begged.

The woman couldn’t stop crying. She clung to her friend and, after sobbing for a while, finally spoke.

“I want you to get rid of this baby—I don’t want it anymore,” she said, unaware of the weight of her words, blinded by pain and resentment.

Elsa frowned, confused. She had witnessed how much Myriam had fought to conceive.

“I don’t understand. You insisted on trying IVF again even though the past attempts failed,” she reminded her. “An abortion wouldn’t be safe for your health—there are serious risks,” she said tenderly. “What happened?”

Myriam blew her nose into a tissue and looked her friend in the eyes.

“I found Noemí and Raymond having sex in our own bed,” she admitted, her chest burning.

Elsa covered her mouth with a hand. She knew Myriam’s half-sister well but never imagined she would go so far to hurt her.

“They’re despicable,” she refuted, stroking her friend’s hair. “What are you going to do?”

Myriam burst into tears again and shook her head.

“I don’t know,” she murmured. “How can I accuse him when I feel guilty myself?”

Elsa shook her head.

“Your case is different—you didn’t do anything intentionally. You weren’t even conscious. But them…”

Myriam pressed her lips together.

“Be that as it may, if something did happen that night—conscious or not—I betrayed him too,” she cried.

Elsa consoled her and took her back to her apartment so she could calm down and think things through.

****

With heavy dark circles and swollen red eyes, Myriam showed up at her office the next day; she had stayed at Elsa’s apartment all night. When she entered her office, she froze to see her husband waiting.

“What are you doing here?” she whispered, careful that her coworkers wouldn’t overhear.

Raymond rose to his feet. He was much taller than her—elegant, handsome, blond-haired, blue-eyed. A millionaire. A man women desired.

“We need to talk,” he said firmly. “I spoke to your boss and he gave you the day off.” He grabbed her arm and pulled her out of the office.

Myriam didn’t protest. She didn’t want her colleagues to know her marriage was falling apart. They envied her for having a husband like Raymond because she pretended he was faithful, affectionate, thoughtful… when in truth, he was the opposite.

They rode in silence, as always, until they reached the apartment. Everything was immaculate, no trace of betrayal. Then she noticed a stranger in the room.

“There’s a problem with the blinds. The gentleman is helping me,” Raymond explained. The worker immediately headed to the bedroom. “Sit down,” he ordered. He went to the bar, poured himself a drink, and then sat across from his wife. He looked her straight in the eyes. “I don’t like your tantrums,” he scoffed. “A slip-up is normal in marriages with problems,” he said cynically, caressing her cheek.

Myriam frowned. She didn’t remember the blinds being broken, but that wasn’t what mattered. She snorted and shook her head.

“That’s no justification. If I were the one cheating, would you see it the same way?” she challenged, desperate to know his answer, for she felt sooner or later she’d confess about the bar. “Why with my sister?” she demanded, her voice breaking. “With so many women in the world, why her?” She wiped her tears with the back of her hand.

Raymond downed his drink in one gulp.

“You look exhausted. I think you should sleep a while, then we’ll talk. These emotions aren’t good for the baby,” he said softly.

Myriam couldn’t understand his act of the devoted husband. But it was true: she felt weak, tired, suddenly very sleepy. Almost immediately, she drifted off.

Two hours later, she woke up in their bedroom, dazed. She quickly got out of bed. She didn’t want to be in the same place as her husband and her sister. As she walked into the living room, she found Raymond.

“We still have something to discuss,” Myriam said, remembering she hadn’t gotten her answer. “Why Noemí?” she asked, her voice trembling.

Ray cleared his throat and downed another drink.

“Your sister excites me. I won’t deny it. She’s different from you, more adventurous in bed,” he stated bluntly.

Myriam moved closer, feeling the blood boil in her veins at his words. She tried to slap him, but he caught her hand firmly.

“I’ll never allow this,” Myriam growled.

“I want a submissive wife, someone who obeys me. If you’re not willing, we should divorce,” he proposed coldly.

For Myriam, it was like standing before a stranger. The man she had fallen in love with, the one who had promised her eternal love, was gone. It hurt so much, but she wasn’t going to play his game.

“Divorce sounds like a good option. But I doubt my sister would go through IVF to give you an heir. She treasures her figure too much, and babies aren’t in her plans,” she said, lifting her chin. “Any woman who marries you will have to learn about your little problem…” She grabbed her bag and walked out of the apartment.

Raymond hurled his glass against the wall, panting, and then an idea struck him. He took a few more drinks and left for his parents’ house. When he arrived, he mussed his hair and walked in.

“Hello, darling. What a surprise,” said Kendra, his mother.

Ray hugged his mom tightly.

“Mother, I’m devastated,” he said, pretending to sob.

Her blue eyes widened.

“Problems with the company?” she asked.

Raymond shook his head.

“It’s Myriam, Mom. That woman’s been cheating on me this whole time. I found her with another man in our apartment, and she’s pregnant with his child.” He pulled out his phone and showed photos of his wife in bed with another man.

“She’s a whore!” Kendra spat. “How dare she?” she shouted, glaring at the images with disgust.

Hearing the commotion, Raymond’s father appeared in the living room and learned what had happened.

“We must destroy that woman. You need to divorce her and leave her with nothing,” he proposed, already calling the lawyers.

Kendra, however, didn’t sit idly by. She wasn’t going to let any woman deceive her only son. The next day, she ordered the driver to take her to Myriam’s workplace.

She didn’t announce herself. She barged straight into her daughter-in-law’s office and, without a word, slapped her hard on both cheeks.

Myriam gasped and touched her burning face.

“What’s wrong with you, Mrs. Kendra?” she asked, feeling the sting.

“You’re a slut. You cheated on Raymond with another man,” she shouted furiously. “That bastard you’re carrying will never bear the Wilson name. Opportunist!” she bellowed, breathing heavily.

Myriam’s chin quivered at her words, feeling as though stakes were driven into her heart. From her office, she could see her colleagues whispering.

“That’s not true. Where are you getting this from?” she asked, her voice trembling.

“Raymond is devastated. He caught you with your lover in your apartment. We saw the photos, you in bed with him,” Kendra raged. “Stay away from my son, you wicked woman.”

Myriam shivered at her words. She tried to explain to her mother-in-law that it wasn’t true, but Kendra gave her no chance. When she left, Myriam collapsed into her chair.

“No… I didn’t cheat. Not the way they think,” she whispered through her tears. Then she shuddered, remembering she had woken up in a hotel one morning. She scratched her head, trying to recall something, but nothing came.

She rose and paced in her office. Meanwhile, her mother-in-law’s words echoed in her mind:

He found you with your lover in the apartment you share with my son.

Myriam frowned. Then her heart felt a dagger.

“Now I understand… You made me come to the apartment just to set a trap. You told your parents I was unfaithful,” she growled, clenching her fists. “Damn you, Raymond Wilson!”

“I spent years enduring painful treatments just to give you what you wanted. Every time I went to the fertility clinic, you never came—you claimed you had work. When I told you how painful it was, the injections in my stomach, the side effects… you never showed a shred of concern.” Tears streamed down her face. “And you repay me by sleeping with my sister. It’s not fair.”

“You’re shameless!” she roared. “But I’ll find proof of my innocence, and I’ll show everyone that you are the unfaithful one,” she vowed firmly.