RAGS TO RICHES:EX-WIFE’S BETRAYAL

CHAPTER 3:THE BIRTHDAY CELEBRATION

The Winters family mansion was decorated like a palace. White and gold balloons clustered at every corner, crystal chandeliers sparkled overhead, and a string quartet played classical music in the main hall. Victoria Winters' seventy-fifth birthday celebration was in full swing.

Aaron arrived at six-thirty PM, deliberately late. He had spent the morning at Gerald Sampson's office, signing documents and reviewing the full extent of his inheritance. The numbers were staggering. Whitman Industries alone employed over fifteen thousand people across twelve countries. The real estate holdings included office buildings, shopping centers, and residential complexes in major cities worldwide.

And now it was all his.

But he wasn't ready to reveal that yet. Not until he had dealt with the Winters family properly.

Aaron parked his motorcycle outside the mansion gates, the same motorcycle he'd been using for deliveries. The security guard, Steven, gave him a dismissive look.

"You're late. Mrs. Winters has been asking for you."

"I'm sure she has," Aaron replied, walking past him.

The main hall was crowded with guests—business associates, family friends, distant relatives. Everyone was dressed in expensive suits and designer dresses. Aaron wore jeans and a simple button-down shirt. He had done it deliberately, wanting to see their reactions one last time.

He spotted Isla immediately. She was wearing a red cocktail dress, her hair styled perfectly, laughing with a group of her cousins near the champagne fountain. She saw him and her smile disappeared.

Victoria Winters sat on a throne-like chair at the center of the room, holding court like the queen she believed herself to be. She was a small woman, barely five feet tall, but she commanded attention through the force of her personality. Her grey hair was pulled back in an elegant bun, and she wore a pearl necklace that probably cost more than most people earned in a year.

The moment Aaron entered, the string quartet stopped playing. Conversations died mid-sentence. Everyone turned to look at him.

Victoria's eyes narrowed. "Aaron. How kind of you to finally join us."

Her tone dripped with sarcasm. Aaron walked toward her, aware of every eye tracking his movement.

"Happy birthday, Victoria," he said evenly.

"Mrs. Winters," she corrected coldly. "You may be married to my granddaughter, but you haven't earned the right to address me informally."

Aaron nodded slightly. "Mrs. Winters, then. You wanted to see me?"

"I wanted to see you three hours ago when the celebration began. Where were you?"

"I had business to attend to."

This drew scattered laughter from the guests. Victoria's expression darkened.

"Business? What business could you possibly have that's more important than being present for your wife's family?"

Aaron glanced at Isla, who was watching with her arms crossed. She had positioned herself near a man Aaron recognized from the hotel, the same one she'd been with yesterday. He was tall, athletic, and probably in his early thirties. He had his hand resting possessively on the small of Isla's back.

"I had personal matters to handle," Aaron said, turning back to Victoria.

"Personal matters," Victoria repeated mockingly. She gestured to the room. "Everyone here manages to balance their personal matters with their social obligations. But then again, everyone here has actual careers, actual responsibilities. Not—" she waved dismissively at Aaron "—whatever it is you do."

More laughter. Aaron felt the familiar sting of humiliation, but this time it didn't hurt the same way. This time, he knew it was temporary.

Isla stepped forward. "Grandmother, maybe we should discuss this privately."

"Why?" Victoria demanded. "So Aaron can avoid accountability again? No. If he's going to disrespect this family, he can face the consequences publicly."

She turned her sharp gaze back to Aaron. "Isla told me what happened yesterday. How you made a scene at a hotel, embarrassed her in front of her friend, and then had the audacity to demand a divorce."

"Her friend?" Aaron couldn't help the bitter laugh that escaped. "Is that what she told you?"

"Are you calling my granddaughter a liar?"

"I'm saying she left out some important details."

Isla's face flushed. "Don't you dare—"

"I walked in on her with another man," Aaron said loudly enough for everyone to hear. "In a hotel room. They were together, intimately."

The room erupted in shocked whispers. Victoria held up her hand for silence.

"That's a serious accusation," she said icily.

"It's the truth."

"Isla?" Victoria looked at her granddaughter.

Isla's composure cracked for just a moment before she rebuilt it. "He's twisting what happened. I was meeting with Richard—" she gestured to the man beside her "—to discuss a potential business collaboration. Aaron showed up unannounced, saw us talking, and immediately jumped to conclusions."

"You were in a hotel room," Aaron said flatly. "Alone. With wine. And you told me you were tired of pretending to be happy in our marriage."

"I said I was tired of you embarrassing me with your paranoid jealousy," Isla corrected smoothly. "There's a difference."

The man, Richard stepped forward. "I think we all know what's really happening here. Aaron feels inadequate because his wife is successful and he's not. He's trying to sabotage her by making false accusations."

"False?" Aaron turned to face Richard directly. "You opened the hotel room door. You were there. Are you going to stand here and lie about it?"

Richard smiled condescendingly. "I was there for a business meeting. If your mind went somewhere inappropriate, that says more about you than us."

Victoria stood up, her presence commanding immediate attention. "Enough. I've heard enough." She looked at Aaron with pure contempt. "You come into my home on my birthday and accuse my granddaughter of infidelity with no proof except your own insecurity. You disrespect her, you disrespect me, and you disrespect every member of this family."

"I'm telling the truth," Aaron said quietly.

"Your truth is worthless here," Victoria snapped. "You're a delivery boy who got lucky enough to marry into wealth, and you've spent two years proving you don't deserve it. You contribute nothing. You achieve nothing. You are nothing."

The words hung in the air. Aaron looked around the room at the faces staring back at him—some pitying, some contemptuous, all certain of his insignificance.

One of Isla's cousins, a woman named Jennifer, laughed loudly. "At least when I marry, I'll make sure my husband has actual value. Not like some people who couldn't even keep their man interested."

Isla whirled on her. "Shut your mouth, Jennifer."

"Why? It's true. You're beautiful, successful, from a good family and somehow your husband still isn't satisfied. That's actually impressive in its own pathetic way."

"I said shut up!"

"Both of you, quiet!" Victoria's voice cracked like a whip. She pointed at Aaron. "You want a divorce? Fine. You'll get your divorce. But you'll leave with nothing. No settlement. No references. No mercy. My lawyers will ensure you spend the next decade paying for the privilege of having been married to Isla."

Aaron met her gaze steadily. "We'll see."

"We'll see?" Victoria's eyebrows rose. "You think you can challenge me? You think you have any power here?"

Before Aaron could respond, his phone rang. He pulled it out, Gerald Sampson's number. He answered it right there, in front of everyone.

"Yes?"

"Mr. Whitman, I have the Winters family file pulled up. Should I proceed with the acquisition offer we discussed?"

Aaron glanced at Victoria, who was watching with growing irritation.

"Give me twenty-four hours," Aaron said. "I'll let you know."

He hung up. Victoria's expression had changed from contempt to curiosity.

"Who was that?" she demanded.

Aaron smiled. "Just some business I need to handle."

He turned and walked toward the exit. Behind him, he heard Isla calling his name, he heard the confused murmurs of the guests, and heard Victoria demanding he come back immediately.

But Aaron kept walking.

Tomorrow, he would return. Tomorrow, everything would change.

But tonight, he let them wonder.