His True Identity
1308 Words
With the steamy memories of last night still fresh in Scarlett’s mind, she strutted up to the front door.
Her dress was wrinkled, and her hair had been hastily combed through this morning. She did not have much to worry about, since she could easily use the bar as an excuse for her disheveled appearance.
She opened the door and walked in, only to find Ronan standing in the middle of the living room.
“Oh my goodness, you startled me!” She gasped. “Why are you up this early?!”
He said nothing, carefully taking in her appearance. Her face was flushed and bare of any makeup. One strap of her dress was undone, but she did not seem to notice.
“Are you mute or what?” She was suddenly irritated just by the sight of him. “No good morning? No welcome? What is wrong with you?”
He looked so haggard. Dark bags hung under his blue eyes as he stayed awake the whole night. His face was dull, and his demeanor was that of a deflated balloon.
She crossed her arms, finally noticing the arrangement of the living room. It was designed and decorated specially, to cater to her every taste.
On the dinner table, was an array of her favorite exotic dishes, drinks and desserts. Steamy and sweaty, served straight from the kitchen.
Her lips curled with revulsion.
“What is this?” She stormed to the dinner table, grabbed the rose petals and threw them at Ronan, “Is this all you're good at?! Aren't you ashamed? Instead of going out there, working hard for the both of us, you're here cooking and cleaning?! What kind of man are you?!”
He watched the rose petals run down his chest.
She continued raving, overwhelmed by her utter disgust for the kind of man she had married.
“All you do is try all these damn tricks to please me! But do you even know how to please a woman?! You do that by being a provider! A leader! I don't give a f**k about dinner, get a f**king job! Get some money and be a real man!”
“I want an ambitious husband! A man willing to go out there, through the storm, to be successful!”
She let out a big exhalation and rubbed her forehead. “You know what, Ronan? If you have no use for yourself, I'll give you something to do.”
She settled on the sofa and put her legs up on the table, expectantly.
“Take off my shoes and massage my foot. Hurry.”
He finally met her gaze, and his eyes were hard and full of indifference. Even his voice had gone icy cold.
“Who were you with last night?” He questioned.
Scarlett froze, startled by his sudden line of questioning.
“What the hell do you mean by that? I told you—”
“Stop lying to me!” He thundered, clenching his fists. “The least you could do is tell me the damn truth! Who the hell was that man you were kissing?”
Her mouth fell open. She almost started panicking, but reminded herself to stay composed. After all, Ronan was just a fool who would believe everything she said!
“I can't believe you're accusing your wife of such a vile thing! How dare you!” She yelled.
“Explain this then, woman!” He threw his phone onto her lap.
On the screen, the mysterious picture was on shameless display. Scarlett picked up the phone, her panic mounting. She did not understand how Ronan had come across such a picture. Or who could have sent it to him?
After a moment, she calmly looked back up at him.
“You’re overreacting to nothing, Ronan. This is just a behind-the-scenes shot from a new movie that's still in the works. You know I'm an actress, and it's part of my job. It's completely professional, nothing more.”
That was a lie. He knew it was a lie because he was responsible for every movie role, every career opportunity she had ever gotten. There was no such new role. Her lie was utter bulls**t!
Ronan lowered his head bitterly. There was a terrible pain in his chest, his fists were clenched hard enough to bend iron.
She was lying through her teeth to him. And that filled him with such sorrow that he could never come back from it. Betrayal was something he could never forgive.
“You're an actress, that's right.” His bloodshot eyes met hers, “You are fake on screen, and fake in real life too. You have been deceiving me all this while, haven't you?! Who the hell were you with last night?! Answer me!”
“Don't you dare raise your voice at me, you i***t!” She jumped to her feet, yelling. “You have no right to question what I do! What did you contribute to this marriage?! Nothing! All you do is stay at home and sit on your a*s, being completely useless!”
She got in his face, taking on a mocking tone.
“You should be grateful! You're lucky to even have someone like me as a wife! A real man would shower me every day! I go out there, work hard and make a lot of money, only for you to reap all the benefits! The least you could do is to trust me. How selfish and unreasonable can you be?! Huh?!”
He stared at her coldly, filled with utter disappointment.
How could he have been so blind to her real character? After everything he had done for her, out of love, thinking she felt the same way. But now it was clear that it was all a facade.
She raised her eyebrows in challenge.
“Oh? Now you can't speak? Cat got your tongue?! You must be delusional if you think you can stand there and accuse me, like you're such a saint yourself! Go earn some money to fill your empty pockets before you take that tone with me!”
Ronan Montgomery held absolute power over the entire business world, yet no one knew his true identity. His companies bore a neutral name, so the real founder could not be traced. All he had wanted was a peaceful, married life away from the stress of the everyday world.
So, he had poured all his resources into Scarlett's career. Every single role, every single job she got as an actress, was a well-calculated plan on his part. He paid directors to give her lead roles. He took away opportunities from others and served them to her on a gold platter.
Everything she was, was because of his influence. He made her dreams come true. He flooded her accounts with money, painting her as the provider of the family. He ensured that she got access to places reserved for only the elite of the elite!
And this was how she would repay him?!
“I can't even stand to look at you right now, Scarlett. I can smell him on you.” He was overwhelmed. “Dried sweat. Come. Letting a man that isn't your husband rut you like a dog!”
That ticked her off like a time bomb.
“What did you just say?!” She screeched, lunging forward to hit him.
Ronan caught her hands in one fist, and before he realized what he was doing, tore a slap across her face! The force sent her head sideways, and she crashed to the floor with a shocked scream.
“Scarlett!”
The door suddenly burst open, and Jameson rushed to hold her. His face was twisted with fury when he saw the red marks spreading across her cheek.
- Writer
