Chapter 1

In Rhonda Griffin's eyes, my shocked expression looked like guilt, and it only made her bolder. "Not so mouthy now, huh?" she sneered. "Scared, are you? Get out before Paige gets back!"

I ignored her and walked straight to the bedroom. The documents and jewelry that had been on my nightstand were gone.

My temple throbbed. Losing ordinary jewelry wouldn't have mattered much, but the coming-of-age gift my mother had given me was in that pile too.

Rhonda trailed after me, her shrill voice grating in my ears. "Get out of here! Who gave you permission to go in there?!"

She lunged to grab me. Fury boiled up in me, and I shoved her back so hard she hit the floor.

The door banged open. A woman in three-inch heels froze in the doorway and let out a shriek. "Mom!"

She helped Rhonda up, looked me over for a few seconds with open contempt, and coldly spat, "Out."

Ridiculous. This was the wedding home Bradley had bought for us. I was his legal wife. I wasn't the one who needed to leave.

When Rhonda saw I wasn't budging, she pulled out her phone in a huff and started livestreaming. In her thick country accent, she ranted into the camera, "Look at this, everybody! This shameless mistress won't leave my house! I've never seen such shameless trash in my life!"

Comments flooded in instantly.

[Can you believe a mistress this shameless still exists these days? Don't worry, ma'am, we'll dox her right now and humiliate her in front of the whole world!]

[Everyone calm down. Let's actually find out what happened first.]

[Wait, does anyone else think this girl looks familiar? Like I've seen her in the news or something?]

...

My face burned red with anger. In twenty-five years of life, I had never been humiliated like this. Without hesitation, I called Bradley Ford.

We'd known each other for ten years. He'd been my father's star protégé, and after marrying me, he'd gone from a poor scholarship kid to the son-in-law of a wealthy family overnight. And now, we'd only been married a year.

The phone buzzed a few times, then the call disconnected on its own. That's when I remembered he was overseas somewhere in the middle of nowhere for a business trip. There was probably no signal.

When Bradley got back, I was going to have a serious talk with him about this.

I looked at them coldly, forcing down my anger. "This is my house. Bradley and I are legally married, and he bought this house for me. Breaking in like this could get you thrown in jail. Get out now, while I'm still willing to let it go."

For two seconds, the room went silent. Then Paige and Rhonda looked at each other and burst out laughing.

"I know my husband's handsome and loaded. I've seen plenty of women circling around him, but one this desperate? This is a first.

"If you're so married, then where's your marriage certificate? Where's the deed to this house?"