The Heiress He Rejected

"Alexander..." Lily's soft voice came from inside the bedroom. Alexander's voice followed, low and confident. "Don't worry, Emma won't find out." My heart froze. Is my husband cheating on me? I stood outside our bedroom door, unable to move. For a few seconds, I couldn't even breathe. My fingers tightened around the tray I was carrying as I stared at the closed door. No. It couldn't be. Not Alexander. Not my husband. The man I'd loved for five years. The man I'd trusted more than anyone in this world. Maybe I had heard wrong. Maybe there was an explanation. Then Lily's voice floated through the door again. "Are you sure?" Alexander chuckled softly. "Yes, Lily. I know my wife." My stomach dropped. He knew me. He knew I hated surprises. He knew I came home early whenever I missed him. He knew I always brought him something whenever I went out. He knew I loved him. He knew I trusted him. And apparently, he knew I would never imagine that he could betray me. I took a shaky breath. My hand reached for the doorknob. I didn't want to open it. A tiny voice inside my head begged me to walk away. But another part of me needed the truth. I turned the handle. The door opened. And my entire world stopped. Alexander stood beside our bed. His white shirt was unbuttoned. His hair was disheveled. And behind him was Lily. Our maid. My eyes moved between them. For a moment, I couldn't understand what I was seeing. Then the truth hit me. He's cheating with Lily. Our maid? The tray slipped from my hands. It crashed onto the marble floor. Alexander's head snapped toward me. "Emma." His face changed instantly. Shock. Guilt. Fear. All three flashed across his eyes. Lily pulled the sheet higher around herself. My vision blurred. I looked at the bed. Our bed. The bed where Alexander and I had spent countless nights together. The bed where I had held him when his father died. The bed where I had cried against his chest when his company nearly collapsed. And now Lily was sitting there. My maid. The woman I'd trusted enough to leave alone in my home. "How long?" My voice barely sounded like mine. Alexander took a step toward me. "Emma, let me explain." "How long?" He stopped. I looked into his eyes. "How long have you been sleeping with her?" Silence. That silence answered me before his lips did. "Three months." Three months. I felt something inside me c***k. "Three months?" "Emma—" "You've been sleeping with her for three months?" "It wasn't serious." I laughed. I couldn't help it. The sound was empty. "Not serious?" Alexander ran a hand through his hair. "I made a mistake." I stared at him. "A mistake?" "Yes." I pointed at Lily. "You made a three-month-long mistake?" Lily lowered her eyes. "I'm sorry, Mrs. Hale." I turned toward her. "Don't call me that." She looked up. "What should I call you?" I swallowed the lump in my throat. "Nothing." Alexander stepped between us. "Emma, this isn't Lily's fault." I stared at him. "You're defending her?" "I'm trying to explain." "No." I shook my head. "You've already explained everything." He reached for my hand. I pulled away. "Don't touch me." His expression hardened. "You're overreacting." Those words hurt more than the betrayal. I stared at him. "Overreacting?" "You walked into a situation without knowing the whole story." "What part of the story am I missing, Alexander?" He looked away. "Things between us haven't been good for a while." My heart sank. "So this is my fault?" "That's not what I'm saying." "But that's what you're implying." I looked at him through my tears. "I spent five years trying to be a good wife." "You were." "Then why wasn't I enough?" He had no answer. That silence broke me. I looked around the room. Our photographs covered the walls. Our wedding picture sat on the bedside table. In it, Alexander was smiling at me as though I was the only woman in the world. How could the man in that photograph become this man? I slowly removed my wedding ring. Alexander's eyes widened. "Emma." I placed it on the table. "You chose her." He shook his head. "No." "You did." "Emma, please." "You told her I wouldn't find out." His face went pale. "I heard you." He swallowed. I continued. "You told her you knew your wife." I smiled sadly. "Well, you were wrong." I picked up my handbag. "Where are you going?" "Leaving." "Emma, don't do this." I looked at him one last time. "Why?" He stared at me. "Because you're angry." "No." I shook my head. "Because I'm finally thinking clearly." I walked toward the door. "Emma!" I stopped but didn't turn around. His voice softened. "Please." That one word almost broke me. Almost. Then I remembered Lily sitting on our bed. I remembered his words. Don't worry. Emma won't find out. I closed my eyes. "You should have worried." Then I walked away. Behind me, Alexander remained silent. He didn't chase me. He didn't beg. Perhaps he still believed I'd come back. Perhaps he still believed that five years of marriage meant I could never truly leave him. He was wrong. Because that night, as I walked out of the Hale mansion with tears streaming down my face, I made myself a promise. I would never again beg a man to choose me. Especially a man who had already chosen someone else. I stepped outside the mansion, the cold night air hitting my tear-stained face. I had no idea where I was going. I only knew I couldn't stay. My phone suddenly vibrated. I stopped walking. A message from an unknown number appeared on the screen. You think Lily is the reason your marriage is ending? My brows furrowed. Another message came immediately. She's not. My heart began pounding. I stared at the screen. Who was this? Before I could reply, another message appeared. If you want to know why your husband really married you, check your father's old study. I froze. My father? What did my dead father have to do with Alexander's betrayal? My fingers trembled as I typed. Who are you? The message was read. No response came. Instead, one final message appeared. Ask Alexander about the inheritance he stole from you. My blood ran cold. Inheritance? What inheritance? I looked back at the enormous Hale mansion. Behind one of those windows was the man I had loved for five years. The man who had just destroyed my marriage. But suddenly, I wasn't sure that cheating was his biggest betrayal. I tightened my grip around my phone. If the stranger was telling the truth... Then Alexander Hale hadn't just been hiding another woman from me. He had been hiding something about me. And whatever it was... He had been keeping it from me for five years.