30 DAYS TO DIVORCE MY BILLIONAIRE HUSBAND

3

LIAM POV

The antiseptic scent of the private clinic was bothering me, but I maintained my composure while waiting for the doctor to finish evaluating Caitlyn.

She was sitting on the examination table, looking adorably helpless, placing a hand over her still-flat belly with her big blue eyes fixed on me.

"Liam, I'm truly sorry for causing all this trouble," she said in a soft voice, playing with the hem of her dress. "I didn't want you to fight with Fabiana because of me. But it's just... she looked at me with so much hatred. She said I was an intruder and that she would never allow me to bring your heir into this world."

Hearing Fabiana's name sent a sting of irritation across my forehead. I adjusted my suit jacket, crossing my arms.

"Don't worry about her, Caitlyn. Fabiana is resentful because the contract is coming to an end, and she knows this pregnancy changes everything."

"It's just that I'm scared, Liam," Caitlyn continued, lowering her gaze submissively. "She has no one in the world; she's an orphan. I know it must be hard to lose the lifestyle you gave her. Are you sure she won't try to do something to our child?"

"I know exactly who Fabiana is and what she is capable of," I replied. "She is cold and calculating, yes, but she isn't stupid. She knows we are still legally married for this month and that she has to behave. I ask you to have a little more patience, Caitlyn. It's only thirty days. Let me handle the timing of the divorce."

Caitlyn nodded with a smile, although I noticed a flash of dissatisfaction in her eyes.

She didn't like the idea of me spending the month under the same roof as my wife, but she had no choice.

The appearances of my contractual marriage were the only thing keeping my father out of my business, especially now that we were about to close the most important tech bid of the year with Vanguard Group.

An hour later, after dropping Caitlyn off at the luxury hotel downtown, I headed to my private club to meet with Mateo, my best friend and personal lawyer.

The place was exclusive, quiet, ideal for transactions that required absolute discretion.

Mateo was waiting for me in a booth in the back, with two glasses of whisky on the table and a thick leather file.

"You're late, Liam," Mateo said, handing me the glass as soon as I sat down.

"I had a setback with Caitlyn and Fabiana at the mansion," I answered, taking a long sip of the liquor, feeling how it burned my throat. "Things are getting more complicated than expected with the one-month deal."

Mateo arched an eyebrow, opening the file on the table.

"I have the preliminary divorce papers here, just as you asked. The dissolution of the three-year contract is standard. But I saw the compensation clauses you added at the last minute. Are you really leaving her the suburban mansion and a direct wire transfer of 10 million dollars? Liam, the original prenup stipulated just a fraction of that. She agreed to marry you knowing she would receive almost nothing."

"Fabiana is an orphan, Mateo," I said, watching the ice float in my glass with a strange heaviness in my chest. "She has no family, no connections, nor a place to go when this is over. That money and property will guarantee her a comfortable life without having to beg anyone. I consider it fair compensation for efficiently fulfilling her role as a wife for three years. Besides, I don't want the press saying I left her in poverty to go off with Caitlyn."

Mateo closed the file slowly, resting his elbows on the table and staring at me with a intensity that made me deeply uncomfortable.

"I've known you since college. You're a shark in business. You never give away a single cent out of 'pity.' If you're handing over a fortune to a woman you only signed a piece of paper with to fool your father, it's because that woman matters to you more than you're willing to admit. Even knowing about Caitlyn's pregnancy, you keep looking for excuses not to let Fabiana go."

A dry, humorless laugh escaped my lips. I set the whisky glass down on the table with a sharp thud.

"You're reading too many romance novels, Mateo. Fabiana is a suitable wife, nothing more. She fulfilled a contract impeccably, and I am paying for her services generously. My future is with Caitlyn and the child on the way. What I feel for Fabiana is mere civil responsibility."

Mateo raised his hands in surrender, though a skeptical smile remained on his face.

"Whatever you say, Liam. You're the boss. We'll sign the papers next month. I just hope that when you let her go, you're truly sure it's what you want. Because women like Fabiana, when they close a door, they never open it again."

***

FABIANA POV

Seven days passed since Liam moved back into the mansion.

He left before the sun came up and returned after midnight, ignoring my existence or taking secret calls with Caitlyn.

To him, I was a shadow that would soon vanish from his life. But while he focused on his romance and taking care of the alleged pregnancy, I was dismantling his empire from the very top.

In my private sanctuary on the second floor, the screens of three monitors illuminated my face.

In front of me were the control panels of Aura Digital, my secret technology and software development firm.

For three years, Liam assumed I spent my days buying clothes or waiting for him. He never suspected that the rival company starting to strip key clients away from his was run by the very same woman whose dresses he paid for.

The sound of the doorbell shattered my concentration. I walked down the stairs with a firm step.

Upon opening the door, my brother Sebastián stood on the threshold, flanked by his head of security and his personal assistant.

"Hello, little one," Sebastián smiled, entering the mansion with the posture of a monarch.

"Sebastián!" I hugged him briefly, feeling the warmth of my true blood. "I see you arrived right on time."

We sat down in the main living room. Sebastián looked around the place with coldness.

"Valeria kept me informed about the little trick of the fake pregnancy and the fall on the stairs," my brother said, adjusting his gold cufflinks. "Liam is so blinded by that woman that he can't see what's right in front of him. It's time to tighten the noose, Fabiana."

"That's precisely why I called you," I replied, unfolding my tablet on the table. "Liam's corporation depends on signing the contract with the Vanguard Group this Friday. It represents sixty percent of his growth projections for this year."

Sebastián's assistant opened his briefcase and placed a signed dossier on the table.

"It is ready, Miss Fabiana," the assistant chimed in. "With the capital injection your family approved, we have submitted a direct counter-offer to Vanguard."

Sebastián leaned forward, looking at me with absolute pride.

"The president of Vanguard has already signed the letter of intent with Aura Digital, Faby. You just took the biggest deal of his life away from your husband without even leaving this room."

A cold, calculating smile formed on my lips.

"Liam thinks he's doing me a favor by leaving me ten million dollars out of pity," I whispered, closing the tablet. "He has no idea that on Friday, at the very same gala dinner where he wants to display me as his ornament, he will find out that Aura Digital left him bankrupt... and that the owner of that company is the 'poor orphan' he looked down on."

"That's my sister," Sebastián said, raising his glass of water in a silent toast. "Thirty days, Fabiana. Make him drop to his knees before you come back home."

At ten at night, the sound of the front door announced Liam's arrival.

I walked down the stairs slowly, looking impeccable, just as he entered the main hall loosening his tie with an exhausted look on his face.

"You're home early," I commented in a level voice, crossing my arms.

Liam looked at me, frowning, as if trying to decipher the overwhelming calmness emanating from me.

"I had a tough day," he said in a weary tone. "But it will all be worth it. Tomorrow we close the deal with Vanguard. It's the transaction that will secure the future of my company and my child."

At that exact moment, Liam's phone vibrated violently in his hand.

He looked at the screen and his face instantly turned pale. He answered immediately, pressing the phone to his ear.

"What happened, Mateo?... What do you mean they canceled?... Who the hell is Aura Digital?"

I held Liam's gaze as panic overtook his eyes, keeping a sweet, harmless smile on my lips.

"Bad news, darling?" I asked softly, taking a step toward him. "It seems the business world is quite tough, don't you think?"

Liam merely glanced at me sideways and went upstairs to the guest room.

The next day

It was eight in the evening when I heard the engine of Liam's car stop at the driveway.

I forced myself to take a deep breath before going down to the dining room. An impeccable dinner had been prepared by the kitchen staff.

When I walked in, Liam was already there, unbuttoning the top buttons of his shirt with an exhausted gesture. He had his phone pressed to his face.

"Yes, Caitlyn, I already talked to the hotel obstetrician," he was saying, in that deep voice that used to melt me. "Don't worry, the doctor said rest is just a precaution for the baby. I'll call you in a bit."

Liam hung up and looked at me.

I suppressed the disgust, swallowed the bitter taste of his betrayal, and gave him a smile fit for a queen.

"Good evening, Liam. Dinner is served."

Liam observed me with a mix of annoyance and suspicion. He didn't move.

"Do you spend all day cooped up in this house, Fabiana?" he commented in a sharp tone. "You're wasting your time. You should focus on your personal growth, have ambitions. Caitlyn, for instance, is organizing a charity art auction despite her condition. You should look for a hobby that gives you some value, instead of acting like a bored housewife."

The comment was a low blow, but I kept my indestructible facade intact.

I smiled even wider, hiding the fact that my secret company had just snatched the deal of his life away from him that very afternoon.