Married to a Man Who Loved Someone Else

Chapter 7

When Hazel woke the next morning, two pieces of news greeted her in quick succession.

The first: the divorce papers was now just two days away from becoming official.

The second: a premier racing team from Aminia had extended an offer.

Despite the doping scandal that had whipped up a storm online, they still recognized the track record of an internationally renowned racer.

For Hazel, it felt like a lifeline.

They'd even booked her flight, for the very next day.

She climbed out of bed, tidied herself quickly, and decided it was time to leave the hospital.

But the moment she stood up, a familiar figure appeared in the doorway.

Liora strode toward her without a word and raised her hand to slap Hazel across the face.

Hazel's gaze sharpened. In one swift motion, she caught Liora's wrist mid-swing.

Liora let out a yelp of pain but kept hurling venomous words.

"Hazel! Don't play innocent! You kissed Christian right in front of me yesterday on purpose, didn't you?"

Hazel had no patience for theatrics. Her voice was ice. "Glad you caught on. So you're not completely clueless after all."

But Liora wasn't finished. Her expression twisted into something smug.

"What difference does it make if you cling to him? Think about it, has Christian so much as touched you since I came back?"

She leaned closer, her voice dripping with triumph. "I came back to steal him from you, plain and simple. Christian told me himself, he only married you for family obligation. From the very beginning, I'm the one he's always loved."

Another step forward. "Face it, Hazel. In his eyes, you're nothing but a status symbol. The woman he actually cares about is me. So if you know what's good for you, step aside."

Hazel listened to the twisted accusations, then closed the distance between them, her presence suddenly overwhelming.

"Step aside?" She tilted her head, voice silken and cold. "Let's be clear, the woman in the spotlight is the real wife. What do you call someone who lurks in the shadows? Need me to spell it out?"

She didn't wait for an answer. She brushed past Liora, hailed a taxi outside the hospital, and headed straight for the villa.

The first thing she did when she got home was gather every gift Christian had ever given her.

She packed them all, without exception, and handed them out to the maids, the chauffeur, the butler. Whatever they wanted, they could have.

She was in the middle of clearing out a drawer when a deep voice spoke behind her.

"What are you doing?"

Hazel went still. She didn't turn around.

"What's this? Too busy with your side piece to give me the time of day, but suddenly curious about what I'm up to?"

Christian frowned at her rigid back and stepped closer. "You've got it wrong. Liora and I... it's not what you think. I know I've been distant lately."

He hesitated, then produced an elegant gift box from behind him, holding it out to her.

"It's your birthday today. I got you something. I hope you like it."

Her heart gave a small, treacherous lurch.

"You said you didn't want a big celebration," he continued, his voice quieter now. "So I booked that restaurant by the shore, the one you mentioned before. Get ready. We'll go together."

For a moment, Hazel couldn't move.

He'd remembered.

Before she could respond, Christian opened the box, lifted out a delicate bracelet, and fastened it around her wrist himself.

But whatever fragile warmth had begun to k****e in her chest guttered out an instant later.

Her phone rang. Elena. Her voice was shaking with rage.

"Hazel! Get on Twitter right now. They're absolutely dragging you through the mud!"

Her stomach plummeted. She yanked out her phone.

The number one trending video was titled:

#ExposingtheTruthAboutChampion RacerHazel'sPrivateLife

The footage showed carefully cropped images of her at a bar, alongside heavily edited conversation snippets.

The insinuations were vile, painting her as morally bankrupt, accusing her of infidelity.

The comments were a bloodbath.

A: [Wait, isn't this that racer who got caught doping?]

B: [Racing world's a dumpster fire, apparently.]

C: [Pretty face, trash character.]

She recognized the profile picture of the uploader instantly.

Liora.

This was a calculated hit job, designed to destroy what was left of her career.

Blood roared in Hazel's ears. Her hands trembled with fury.

She clenched her jaw, spun on her heel, and headed for the door.

She was going to find Liora and give her a piece of her mind.