Protecting The Heiress

LIA

The weight of the cake and vodka box in my hand feels satisfying as I tuck it onto the passenger seat with a smile. Today is my husband's birthday, and I'm three days early from my week-long trip. I told him I wouldn't be here for his birthday, but that was just me messing with him.

Pulling into the driveway, I steal a glance at the box.

My stomach flips as I remember my husband's grumbled response on the phone when I told him I wouldn't be around for his birthday. How could he possibly believe I'd miss his birthday for a trip? For him to believe that is beyond me. I chuckle to myself.

My life has never been more perfect than it is right now. I feel happy, content, and fulfilled.

Truly, money can't buy happiness.

I lived with having tons of money all my life but I wasn't truly happy. Especially after what happened following my mother's death. The secrets that came out destroyed the relationship between my father and me and for a while, I didn't know what happiness was until I met Karl, the love of my life. He filled me with happiness again and made me find a reason to want to live to my fullness again.

Tears well in my eyes and I quickly wipe them away as I revved my small sedan car into our home garage. Today is a day of joy. I don’t want to make it about me.

Exhaling deeply, I kill the car's engine.

Truly, there is no place like home.

Stepping out with the cake and Karl's favorite vodka, a sense of peace washes over me. My bones and muscles ease out as the homey feeling envelopes me. I can never get tired of the joy that fills my heart whenever I’m home with the love of my life.

My step falters when I catch a glimpse of a familiar red car parked outside. I scrunch my eyes, racking my brain.

I recognize it but, I can't figure out where or how.

When nothing comes to my brain, I shrug it off and continue my walk inside. It’s probably someone from Karl's work. Besides, today is his birthday, and guests are expected. The same fragrance that hit me in the driveway envelops me once again when my feet meet the floor of my matrimonial home.

A smile grazes my lips. Good to see that the house I left four days ago is in the same state. Karl isn’t much of a cleaner so I’m pleasantly surprised.

I don't *quite* deserve Karl. He is so good to me. He takes care of me. He loves me. He cherishes me so much. He was even against me working which didn't matter to me. I am not much on the corporate side of the world. My dream has always been about having a big family and supporting my husband.

His family was against us getting married, especially his mother. That woman despises me. She wanted him to get married to someone else but Karl stood his ground that I was the one he loved and would get married to. So here we are.

My mouth opens to announce myself but I think against it as a mischievous grin spreads across my face. What is better than surprising Karl by walking in on him?

I smile at myself. I can already picture his surprised expression.

His car is in the driveways so catching him off guard is a sure thing.

I tiptoe around as I check the ground floor for Karl. The pool, the game room. Each step fuels me, my excitement climbing as I start to ascend the stairs.

After four days away, the thought of seeing him sends a flutter through my chest. I must admit, I miss him so much.

My steps quicken as I approach our bedroom, anticipation turning my insides into a ball of jelly. My smile stretches so wide, that I fear it might tear my face in two.

Everything is going fine until a feminine laughter pierces the air.

My heart skips an anxious beat as my legs come to an abrupt halt. That can't be right.

I wait, unmoving as I strain my ears for another sound. And it does, this time with a mix of masculine laughter that I recognize as Karl's.

Icy daggers replace the warmth in my veins as my mind races at a frantic pace to make sense of what is happening.

If the feminine laughter was from the living room or perhaps the kitchen, I would have understood it, but the sound is unmistakably from our room, Karl's and I's room, our matrimonial bedroom.

My heart hammers against my ribs.

I falter against the wall as my heart goes on a goose chase. What...is...going on?

Is Karl...

No. Impossible.

I shake my head, disagreeing with the conclusion my mind has arrived.

A capital N-O.

NO.

Karl will never do that to me. He loves me, more than anything. He will never do such to me. He will never hurt me. He will...

Another shake of my head, this time at my delusion.

The next step I take is careful, and slow so that I don't make a sound. When my shoes continue their click-clack, I take them off before inching closer to the bedroom door on my bare feet.

I stay there, silence stretching, heavy and suffocating. No sound comes for a long time

I release a shaky breath.

See! I am making an issue out of nothing–

The same laughter slices through my thoughts, shattering my barely gathered composure.

I freeze and backpedal slowly until my back hits the wall beside the bedroom door. I hold my breath, almost like the calm before the storm, waiting for it to hit me. When it does, it wrecks me completely.

“God, she's such a fool,” a woman's voice mocks.

My heart plummets. I recognize this voice. It's...It's Pen, Karl's secretary and someone who I have grown fond of over the years. Though we are more like an acquaintance, I like to think of her as a friend because she has been a stable constant in me and Karl's life.

Despair claws its way up my throat as a male voice, laced with disdain, replies “I know.” Blood drains from my face. It is his voice. My husband. “Lia is the biggest fool I know.”

The world tilts on its axis, and shatters into a million pieces.