Mistress Romance Short Stories & Family Emotions Novels

It's in our third year of marriage that I first discover Tabitha Palmer is cheating on me. That night, she kneels outside my door in the pouring rain, crying and begging for my forgiveness. Holding my one-month-old daughter, Arlene Wilder, in their arms, my parents also plead Tabitha's case. "Why don't you give Tabitha one more chance? Arlene still needs her." The sight of Arlene, still in her swaddling clothes, makes my heart soften. Over the next five years, Tabitha treats me with the utmost tenderness, as though the betrayal never happens at all. One day, we go home for Thanksgiving. I see my younger brother, Glen Wilder, who has been living abroad for many years, and beside him is a little boy. I freeze for a moment, then turn to ask my mother, Agnes Osborne, "Glen's married? Why didn't I know about it? And he's got a kid that big already?" No sooner have the words left my mouth than the little boy hurls himself into Tabitha's arms. "Mommy, I miss you so much!" A shock runs through me, and I whip my head toward Tabitha. My parents exchange a glance, then break it to me gingerly. "The truth is, Tabitha had been pregnant once before. In fact, it was even earlier than when she had Arlene." With a serene expression and practiced motion, Tabitha picks up the little boy. "Mom and Dad are telling the truth. Glen and I have a son, Clarence Wilder. He's seven years old this year."

On the day of the wedding, I wake up at four in the morning, waiting for the stylist and the cars that are supposed to take me to the venue. But seven o'clock comes, and no one shows up. Panicking, I call my childhood friend, Heath Zeller. His laughter comes through the phone. "Julian, how can you be this careless? We were told last minute that the cars aren't going to pick you up today. Everyone went straight to the hotel instead." I grab my custom-made wedding suit and rush to the hotel. By the time I arrive, drenched in sweat, the place is completely empty. Just then, Heath calls again. "I was just messing with you," he says, barely able to hold back his laughter. "You didn't actually run all the way to the hotel, did you? "Destination weddings are all the rage now. We moved the wedding to Isla Verde ages ago. Everyone's waiting for you at the airport." I drag my heavy garment bag from one terminal to another. But no matter how thoroughly I search the departure hall, I can't find a single one of them. Then Heath sends me a video, laughing so hard he can barely stand. "You're too slow! We've already left. There was never a destination wedding. We just wanted to spend a week on Isla Verde. We'll throw you the wedding when we get back." The camera shifts. My fiancee, Lydia Bennett, is pulling his suitcase for him. My parents stand behind them, grinning even more happily than they did in our family photos. When Mom sees how pale I look, she frowns instead. "It's just a joke. Why are you taking it so seriously? Heath is so much more fun than you. You've always been so dull, even as a kid. You take everything too seriously." Lydia hands Heath his coat before finally turning toward the camera. "Go home and wait for me, okay?" she says. "I'll marry you when I get back." Looking at all those smiling faces on the screen, I suddenly realize that even confronting them is pointless. I'm not angry or heartbroken. I'm simply numb. I pick up my phone and message the wedding planner to cancel everything. From this moment on, I'm done playing along with their lies.

After my husband's first love, Sydney Edwards, used me as a walking blood bank, I died in the run-down rental apartment my billionaire husband, Casper Hawthorne, had tossed me into like it was a blessing for me. Today was the third day since I had died. My six-year-old son, Adam, finally realized something was wrong. He had cut his finger while playing with his toys, yet I did not comfort him. He tore open a packet of crackers and raised one to my mouth to feed me, but I did not stop him. He lay in my arms, clutching my clothes and whispering for me. Still, I did not answer. Lost and panicking, he found my phone and called his father, Casper. "Dad, why is Mom still sleeping?" The man sent back a photo of himself having New Year's Eve dinner with Sydney and said in a cold voice, "She's just sleeping, she's not dead. Today is New Year's Eve. I'm busy. Tell that clueless mom of yours that when she's ready to admit she was wrong, she can come and look for me." After the call ended, Adam stood there frozen for a long time. He picked up the last biscuit in the rental apartment from the trash can, broke it in half, and held one piece to my mouth. "Mom, let's eat too."

My brother calls me his princess and transfers money to me as allowance; his wife-to-be misunderstands and thinks I'm his secret lover. She crashes my new apartment, which I've lovingly decorated, with a group of friends and family. "I can't believe you're someone's secret lover when you're so young! I'll teach you a lesson on your parents' behalf! I'm going to spread your illicit relationship online so your teachers and classmates will all know how shameless you are!" They trash my new apartment and rip my clothes off. Then, they make sure to get my student ID in the scene as they record me getting bullied. My brother rushes over, his eyes red and bloodshot. "Have you guys lost your mind? How dare you bully my sister!"

After my husband's car accident, I did a checkup and found out he had a malignant brain tumor. Instead of telling him right away, I stuck the report in my bag, planning to wait for the right moment. Guess what? He found it first—and thought I was the one with the tumor. A few days later, I overheard him in his office, laughing with a buddy: "My wife? No looks, no figure, just money—and now she's got a brain tumor. Talk about a win for me. If Rainee hadn't gone abroad, I'd never have married her. Bad luck, huh? At least I dodged the kid bullet. Once she's gone, I get everything." Then he pulled the amnesia card, blamed it on the accident, and started treating Rainee like his wife. He even welcomed her into our house. I smiled and said, "Nathan, let's get a divorce."

The night before the design competition, my husband took my design draft, promising to secure a patent to protect my work. In the intense competition, my work stood out and won first place. During the award ceremony, I walked on stage wearing the necklace that my daughter and I had made together. Suddenly, my seven-year-old daughter rushed up to the stage, screaming, "Mom, how could you steal Veronica's necklace? That's horrible and embarrassing. Just come down and go home with me."

My dormmate has dropped out of college to get married. Before that, she shares a livestream link on the college forum. She claims her husband has cheated on her, and she wants to stream how she punishes the homewrecker. She asks everyone to share the link and hype the situation up. I don't take her words to heart. To my surprise, she barges into my house with a group of people that afternoon. She trashes the place and screams bloody murder at me. It seems she thinks I'm the homewrecker. It's only from her words that I understand her rich and handsome husband is my father. Well, since she's caused such a scene, it looks like her darling is going to lose his job and leave this family without a penny to his name.

At my engagement party, my fiancé and my parents had prepared a table filled with mystery boxes. My younger sister, Elena Hayes, wrapped her arms around my fiancé, Adrian Whitmore, and sweetly pleaded, “There are so many mystery boxes. Madison can’t possibly open them all. Can I pick three too?” Adrian affectionately ruffled Elena’s hair. “You never change. You’ve known your sister and me for so long, yet you still act like a child.” Our parents, Charles and Victoria Hayes, smiled indulgently. “Our Elena has always been lucky. Maybe she’ll win something amazing.” Elena eagerly grabbed three mystery boxes before anyone else could stop her. She opened the first one. “A ten-day honeymoon trip to Valehaven.” The second one. “All the cash gifts from Madison’s wedding.” And the third. “The Whitmore family’s heirloom emerald bracelet.” When I opened my own mystery boxes, every single card contained the same message: “Better luck next time.” Elena draped an arm around my shoulders with a smug smile. “Looks like you’re still as unlucky as ever, Madison. “A bet’s a bet! I’m going to Valehaven with your fiancé instead. “Don’t worry. I’ll keep an eye on him for you. I won’t let some pretty girl from overseas steal him away.” I stood frozen, convinced they were playing some cruel joke on me. Then Adrian spoke. “Madison, a bet’s a bet. “Take off the bracelet Grandma gave you and give it to Elena.”

A blizzard had buried the mountain, turning every road into a death trap. Locals called it Deadman's Pass—seventy-two icy switchbacks with zero room for error. As the only person who had ever made it through without a scratch, I'd just gotten a million-dollar rescue call from beyond the final curve. Ten years ago, I went there once. My seventeen-year-old daughter, Maya, was skydiving with her classmates when a violent air current forced an emergency landing. The rescue came too late. She died there. Later, I learned my husband, Jayden Boone, had ignored Maya's safety. He poured hundreds of thousands of dollars into the rescue effort and redirected every team to save his ex's daughter instead. The girl had only sprained her ankle on a hiking trip. The day Maya died, I walked away from my career as a professor and stayed here, living as a broke driver. I risked my life running Deadman's Pass again and again until I knew every turn by heart. In the ten years since, no one else had died on that road. Today, a friend shoved a million-dollar rescue job in front of me and told me to leave right away. I looked at the face in the photo—the one I could never forget. Then I smiled and tossed my keys onto the table. "I can't take this job."

After we got married, my husband, Mason Callahan, handed over his debit card and told me to treat myself, no limits. Then his mom ended up in the hospital. The second he asked me to transfer the money for her treatment, I told him that there was none left. He flew into a rage. "I give you ten grand a month! How the hell can you have zero dollars left? "I said you could treat yourself, but you actually blew through every cent? You didn't save a dime? God, how did I end up marrying such a wasteful woman?" I didn't bother arguing. I simply asked for a divorce.

When my younger sister, Paige Nielson, was three months pregnant, she was struck by a car, killing her and her unborn baby on the spot. My CEO wife, Christina Ashmore, vowed vengeance on the driver; that he shall pay the price with his own life. But when she found out that the accused is actually Roland Burstyn, her first love who had disappeared for the past seven years, she decided to sign the letter of forgiveness on my behalf. Afraid that I might secretly sue Roland once again, Christina had me admitted into a psychiatric hospital. Throughout the next three years, I had six ribs broken by others, not to mention I lost an eye as well. When the psychiatric hospital is found to not have all legal credentials that can keep it running, I'm finally released from its confines. When Christina and I meet again, she pats me off-handedly on the shoulder. "I'm only able to reunite with Roland after so long, so I can't handle the pain of losing him again. Anyway, I already bought Paige the best graveyard plot one can afford. Roland doesn't owe you anything now. As long as you don't target him, I can keep supporting you financially." I don't respond to Christina at all. Instead, I text my dad, whom I've cut ties with for a decade. "I can forgive you, but it comes with a condition. You need to avenge me."

Three years after my release from prison, I ran into my ex-wife in the presidential suite of the most exclusive hotel in Bayshore. It had been years since I last saw her. She was draped in a silk robe, radiating wealth. When she recognized me, something unreadable passed through Cecily Monroe's eyes. "On the day you got out, why didn't you wait for me to come pick you up?" I said nothing and handed over the takeout. Her gaze dropped to the scar on my wrist, and her breath caught. "I went too far with that. But you've always been tougher than Adrian. You can always get back on your feet." She was talking about what happened six years ago, when Adrian Burke was involved in a catastrophic medical malpractice incident. She fabricated evidence to pin the blame on me and sent me to prison. I stepped away from Cecily. Over 1,000 days and nights of hard labor behind bars had ground away every last trace of whatever I once felt for her.

My husband, Jake Langford, gets poisoned with the toxic aphrodisiac in order to save me. Apparently, he needs to sleep with 99 virgins in order to get cured. Every time he's done with a session, Jake looks at me with red-rimmed eyes. "You mustn't think badly of me, Lily!" Whenever he says that, the jealousy and resentment I feel get drowned out by guilt immediately. I count the days, thinking that things between Jake and me will go back to how they were like before once we've gone through 99 days of hell. That is, until I discover the second phone hiding inside our closet. Only then do I realize that there's no such thing as 99 virgins. It turns out that Jake has been sleeping with the same woman every night this whole time.

On my wedding day, the groom, Robert Jensen, is nowhere to be seen. All that's left of him is a letter and a baby who's born with a heart disease. "I love you, Winona, but I've also fallen in love with Claire. Since I can't give her a proper title at all, I decided to go on a world trip with her in order to make it up to her. "I'll also give you a chance to raise my and Claire's baby. While we're enjoying our trip, you can spend some quality time with our baby." The thing is, I don't have any blood relations with this baby. Why the hell should I raise Robert and Claire's baby, to begin with? Six years later, I take my son, Anson Jensen, to the airport so that we can see my husband, Joshua Jensen, off to his business trip. When I turn around, I spot Robert, who's pushing his suitcase toward me. As he stares at Anson in my arms, he exclaims in surprise, "Winona, is this my and Claire's child? You raised him well! "Unfortunately, we're already married overseas, so I can no longer marry you. But don't worry, Winona. To me, you're already my wife." As I look at Robert's face, which is rather similar to Anson's features, I let out a soft chuckle. "Don't go around mistaking other people's children for your own, Robert. Anyway, this is your younger cousin."

My husband had a bizarre obsession with role-playing. In every scenario he invented, I was always the devoted wife he eventually cast aside. One day, he became the ruthless CEO who fell for the nanny; the next, he turned into a respected professor who could not resist his students. Each time he handed me a divorce agreement, watched me sign it through tears, and then tore the papers to shreds the following morning with a satisfied grin. "It's just a game, babe." That changed when my mom was in a catastrophic car accident and needed 200,000 dollars for emergency surgery. Deep in character as a penniless failure, he said, "I'm flat broke. Where am I supposed to get that kind of money for your mom?" I watched my mother take her last breath because we couldn't pay the bill. On the day of her funeral, he arrived with a pretty college student on his arm. "I've fallen in love with one of my students. It's time we get divorced." He pulled a folder from his briefcase and handed me the agreement. This time, I didn't wait for him to rip it up.

When I went to pick Diana Grant up, she just tossed the car keys toward me. Dangling from the silver ring was a plush white bear pendant. I paused, knowing that she had never kept a keychain or a decorative charm on her keys. Once I slid into the driver's seat, the entire alignment felt off. The seat had clearly been adjusted. "Did you let someone else drive your car?" I asked, keeping my voice casual. Dazed from the alcohol, she offered a dismissive shrug. "Yeah. I lent it to an employee for a quick business trip." I didn't press further. The next morning, the chime of the doorbell broke the silence of the house. When I pulled the door open, a shy, clean-cut young guy was standing on the porch. He blinked, then forced a sheepish smile and handed over a cup of coffee. "Hi," he stammered. "I'm just here to drop off a fresh coffee for Ms. Grant." But my attention wasn't on the coffee. My gaze dropped to his left hand. Twirling lazily around his index finger was a set of keys, and swinging from the metal loop was the same white bear pendant. I took the coffee cup from his hand and quietly closed the door. In the room, Diana's phone lit up on the table. A new notification flashed across the lock screen. It was a message that read: [Diana, I just met your husband. He looks kind of scary. Coffee was delivered safely anyway. Try to drink less alcohol next time, okay?] I picked up the phone and pulled up the video camera. With the recording running, I held the coffee cup over the kitchen sink and slowly poured the warm liquid down the drain. Then I uploaded the recorded video to Diana's social media, broadcasting it to her entire social circle. The caption read: [Thanks for the concern, but she doesn't drink coffee.]

My sister gets into an accident and needs an emergency blood transfusion when I'm six months pregnant. After a round of tests, my blood is the only suitable one. I'm exhausted and too skinny after being tormented by morning sickness. I have to say no. However, my family forces me to do it. I have no strength to resist; I can only beg my husband for help. To my devastation, he stands by and watches me coldly. "It's fine for you to donate some blood since you're so healthy. Queenie isn't the same as you—she has a bright future ahead, so we can't let anything affect that." I pass out after the blood donation. The first thing I do when I wake up is make an appointment for an abortion.

After their son died, Shiloh quit every habit Manuel hated. No more blowing up his phone. No more crying when he stayed out all night. No more scenes. Even after a car crash, when the doctor told her to call family, she only said, "I'm an orphan. I don't have anyone."

When my mother asked me who I wanted to marry, this time, I chose none of them. Instead, I decided to go to the Northwest and serve my country. In my previous life, both my childhood friend, once a captain, and my educated fiancé courted me. I had feelings for both. But while I was still struggling to decide who I wanted as my husband, both accidentally ingested something. In a dazed state, I spent a chaotic night. After that, my parents asked one of the men to marry me. On the wedding day, the first love in both their hearts, the woman they had always truly loved, found out the truth. Out of spite, she accepted a local thug’s proposal. After marrying him, she was forced to give birth to ten children, one after another, until she died tragically. After her death, both men grabbed me by the throat and asked, “Why did she have to die such a miserable death, while you’re still alive and well?” They strangled me to death. When I opened my eyes again, I was back to the day when my childhood friend and my fiancé had been drugged.

In my fifth year of climbing the mountains to search for my wife's remains, I fell into an ice crevasse by accident. As the cold dragged me toward unconsciousness, I opened my phone to Maddie Paisley's silent, years-untouched messenger thread, meaning to record a final goodbye. Instead, a wedding invitation popped up on the screen. [Ten years of devotion, and at last we've found our happy ending. We warmly invite our friends and family to join us as we marry!] [Groom: Jace Lowe] [Bride: Maddie Paisley] The background photo was a wedding portrait. My foster brother held her against his chest, his smile bright and tender. After I was pulled off the mountain, I ignored my frostbitten legs and sprinted for the hotel like a madman. The moment I pushed through the doors, I froze in place. My sister, Ashlyn Lowe, who had begged me with red eyes just the night before to give up the search, was cheering as she pulled the cord on a confetti cannon. "Jace, you finally won Maddie over. If you ever wrong her, I swear I won't let you off easy!" Below the stage, my parents sat in their formal wear, eyes brimming with proud tears. A voice spoke up behind me. "What are you doing here?" I turned and saw my childhood friend. My hand trembled as I reached toward him, ready to pour out how absurd all of this was. Instead, he just sighed. "Ronnie, go home. Everyone's tired of playing along with this. "Maddie faked her death just to get away from you. Jace waited five years for her, and that wasn't easy either. "It's their wedding today. Don't force your way in and play the homewrecker. You'll only embarrass everyone." With that, he walked past me, smiling as he crossed to the stage and handed the newlyweds a huge bouquet of flowers. "Jace, Maddie, congratulations!" Streamers rained down over my head. As I listened to the emcee up on stage shout for the groom to kiss the bride, my tears fell without a sound. So this was it. During the five years I had spent desperately searching for Maddie, she had been in love with another man the whole time. Everyone had known. They had all just chosen to hide it from me.