Oops! My Ex Wife Is Now My Boss

Chapter Three: The Humiliation

“Don't worry, I will explain,” Louisa's mean voice cut through the tension, and everyone's attention shifted to her.

“I was on my way to this party when an unknown number sent these images to my phone and tried to blackmail me. He asked me to send him the sum of three hundred million dollars, or else he would leak the images to the internet.” She took in a few deep breaths before she continued speaking.

“I was shocked to see those images, and I thought to myself, three hundred million is too much to cover up for a shameless daughter-in-law like Clover, who goes about sleeping with random men. It's better to expose her once and for all instead of covering her evil deeds and paying off some cheap blackmailers,” Loussia explained, a smirk tugging at the side of her lips.

Louisa's revelation attracted side comments and giggles from the guests, hiding their smirks behind their champagne glasses. Clover remained on the floor, her head lowered; shame reddened her cheek, and tears began to stream down her face. Her birthday, the day that was supposed to bring her happiness and good memories, had become her worst nightmare.

Marcus stared down at her, his face marred with pure disgust. “Clover, can you explain exactly what’s going on here? What is Mum talking about? Have you been sleeping around with different men?” he questioned her with an intimidating glare, his voice sharp with anger and frustration.

Clover slowly lifted her head and stared directly at Marcus; his question hit her like a punch in the stomach. It felt like she had been living with a stranger all these years; his eyes were spitting fire.

“No, Marcus, you have to believe me; this is not true. I don't know how it happened. I was framed,” her voice cracked with emotion as more tears rolled down her cheeks.

Lucas let out a humorless chuckle, his eyebrow raising with skepticism. “What do you mean that you were framed? Are you not the one in the picture, and you were clearly enjoying the moment?” he said, his voice dripping with mockery.

Clover sniffed in her tears, trying to keep her voice steady, “Your mom texted me earlier today saying that she had a birthday surprise for me; she sent me the address where I was supposed to get the gift. On getting there, I realized that it was a hotel. I doubted her initially, then I called her to confirm. She asked me to come over to room 306. As soon as I got to the room and rang the doorbell, the door of the room swung open, and I plunged into unconsciousness. I woke up some hours later only to find myself lying half naked on…”

Before she could finish the statement, a hard slap landed on her face; the sound of it echoed in the ballroom, sharp and deafening. Clover's face reddened in an instant, and her vision became blurry as she used her palms to rub her cheeks. She slowly lifted her head and saw Louisa standing before her. Her eyes were shooting with rage, and her teeth were gritted in irritation.

“How dare you accuse me of such a despicable act?” Louisa's sharp voice sliced through the air. “I neither called you nor texted you to meet me anywhere, much less a low-class hotel like the Blue Dreams Hotel. That's an insult to my personality.” She gestured with a grimace, blatantly denying the accusations. Her voice dripped with scorn, and her fist clenched so tightly that her knuckles turned white.

Marcus's eyes narrowed, a knot of confusion tightened his stomach as his mind tried to piece together what was happening.

“Wait a minute, I’m getting more confused. Clover, you said my mother sent you text messages to meet her at the hotel. I believe the messages are still on your phone, right? Can you show them to me?” He gestured, his deep voice cutting through the tension.

“Sure,” Clover said without hesitation as she picked up her phone. Luckily for her, she had not deleted the message because she wanted to show it to Marcus the next day. She scrolled through the messages, and her jaw dropped in disbelief when she realized that all the messages in her inbox had been wiped out. Her face instantly went pale as she was bereft of words.

“What happened to my messages?” she muttered inaudibly, overwhelmed with shock.

“What are you still staring at? Let me see the message on your phone.” Lucas said impatiently as he snatched the phone from her and scrolled through it.

A dry chuckle escaped his lips. “Is this some kind of joke or what? You dare accuse my mother of framing you, and you lack evidence to back up your claims. This is unbelievable,” he growled, feeling a wave of disgust.

He squatted before her and tightened his grip on her jaw as he lifted her face, meeting her with an icy glare. “I have loved and trusted you all these years and even turned against my mother because of you. Only for you to stab me in the back; to say I am disappointed in you is an understatement. You are such a despicable harlot, and nemesis has finally caught up with you,” his voice dripped with hate and disappointment.

“You disgust me!!” he yelled and spat hatefully before storming out of the hall.

Clover felt Marcus' words burn into her heart like a red-hot knife, shattering it into pieces. She never imagined that a day like that would come when Marcus would turn against her and publicly humiliate her instead of protecting her. Hot tears ran down her face as she avoided the heavy stares of the guests directed at her.

The guests slowly resumed their murmurs and side talks after watching what felt like a movie from the cinemas. They gradually started taking their leave one after the other, each one of them throwing scornful looks and barbed comments at Clover as they walked past her.

Louisa walked up to Clover and squatted before her, a twisted smirk playing on her lips. “Clover, why did you decide to ruin our family reputation in this manner? My son picked you up from the gutters; he gave you a name and turned your life around by marrying you, and this is how you decide to pay him back. How pathetic. You are such an ingrate.” She scoffed, her voice filled with disdain. She kicked her on the butt and walked past her.

Clover remained on the floor, feeling dread and humiliation wash through her. Her heart sank further as she felt like someone was pricking her with needles. She shivered as her pained cry echoed through the hall.

“Get a grip on yourself, Clover; it's not the end of the world,” Helen said sympathetically as she helped her up and put her on a seat.

“Helen, I was framed by my mother-in-law just to look bad in front of Marcus and everybody else. I am innocent, and nobody wants to believe me,” her voice quivered as she ejected the bitterness in her heart.

Helen placed a comforting hand on her shoulders. “I believe you, Clover. I am your best friend, and I know that you can never do such a thing to Marcus. You are a virtuous woman who values family and relationships,” she said in a calm and soothing voice.

Helen's words earned a soft smile from Clover, and she sniffed in her tears. “Thank you so much, Helen, for believing in me; your words have melted the burden in my heart.”

“You are welcome, Clover. Come on, let me take you home.” She gripped Clover's hand and gestured towards the exit.

Clover pulled from Helen's grip. “No, Helen, I can't go back to that house tonight. Not after what had just happened. I don't have the courage to face Marcus right now,” she said, her voice a mixture of anger and anxiety.

“Don't worry, Clover, you can spend the night at my house till we figure out what to do next. Let’s go,” Helen suggested.

“Thanks, Helen.”

Helen and Clover got into a cab and drove to Helen's house.

******************************************

Clover woke up to the sweet smell of coffee wafting into her nostril. “Wakey wakey,” Helen’s soft voice reached her ears as she sat at the edge of the bed holding a cup of hot coffee.

Clover sat up on the bed, and the event from the previous night clouded her mind like a dark storm. “I don’t want to take anything,” she said, hissing through her teeth.

Helen crimped her lips in disapproval. “Why not? Do you want to starve because Mark decided to believe his mother instead of you, his wife? Cheer up, girl, it’s not the end of the world.” Her voice was soft and comforting.

“If he doesn't trust what you say as his wife, it's better you just divorce him and have your peace,” Helen said with a huff, her expression cloudy.

Clover's jaw dropped, the words taking a moment to sink in. “Divorce? I can't go that far. It's just a misunderstanding between husband and wife that will be resolved with time. I totally understand that you mean well for me, but I have to go home and sort things out with Marcus,” she remarked with an air of certainty in her voice.

“Alright, if you say so,” Helen shrugged. I will always support any decision that you make. But you have to take your coffee before you go.” she said insistently.

“Sure,” Clover nodded and lifted the cup of coffee. She slowly slipped it in until she finished it.

Helen took the cup from her and headed to the kitchen while Clover got into the bathroom to take a quick shower before heading back to her house.

She got to the roadside and was about to flag down a cab when she realized that she had forgotten her wedding ring at Helen's house. She headed back to Helen's house since she had not gone far.

She got to her doorpost and was about to open the door when she heard muffled voices coming from inside the house.

“Does Helen have a visitor? And why does the person’s voice sound so familiar?” She squinted her eyes in suspicion and walked towards the window. She peeked from the window, and her eyes widened in surprise at who she saw.

“Louisa? What the heck is Louisa doing in Helen's house?”