His Father’s Wife

Monster as a friend

Sean was leaning over the mahogany dining table, his chest bare beneath a linen apron. His hand movements rhythmically wiping the surface of the table. He looked just as she least expected: A devoted, domestic partner.

“Oh, back so soon?” He didn't look up immediately. She saw his hand tremble for a fraction of a second. “I thought you would stay out till late. I was just starting to make dinner.”

Gina didn't offer a smile. She walked past him, her heels clicking sharply against the hardwood as she stormed up the stairs. She threw open the bedroom door, expecting her deepest fear.

There was nothing! Absolutely Nothing!

Instead, the bed was tucked tight, the pillows perfectly plumped, and the air was heavy with the citrus scent of Sean’s expensive cologne. Everything seemed perfect. A little too perfect. As if the room felt staged.

She slowly stepped back, her heart hammering against her ribs.

“What’s wrong, Gina,” Sean said as she descended. He had turned toward her, his expression a mask of soft concern. “You look troubled.”

“I heard a voice on the phone,” she said, setting the contract down on the counter like a trap. “I thought someone was in here with you.”

“What?! No way! It was the TV,” he countered, kissing her softly on her forehead. “You know I’m devoted to you, right. This ‘no-intimacy’ thing is as hard on me as it is on you, but it’s how we build a real foundation, okay?”

Gina felt her anger soften. It was replaced by the familiar guilt he was so good at causing. Sean had been her idol in design school. He was the golden boy of a rival fashion dynasty. His family’s brand, Vanderbilt Luxe. The brand has been one she’s tried to get into. She really wanted to be as good as his father was, but she was poor. Poverty was a damn curse.

Luckily, Sean promised her more than his family’s name. He would help her build her own name.

“The board at Aurelia sent the final draft,” she said, gesturing to the papers on the table. “They want Sarah Finn to lead the launch. I just need your signature as my witness and advisor.”

For a moment, Sean’s face went cold. The "supportive partner" mask slipped, revealing a flicker of something envious.

“Already? That’s… fast,” he muttered, pulling his hand away.

“You’re the one who told me to push for this,” she reminded him, her suspicion returning.

“And I’m glad you did. Just leave it. I’ll review the document and sign it tonight,” he said, his eyes fixed on the wall behind her.

Sean was a strange guy she couldn't navigate. One moment he was her champion; the next, he was a stranger. Needing to feel some connection, she reached out, her fingers trailing down his arm.

“I really do love you, Sean. You know that, right?”

He flinched, catching her wrist and firmly moving it away. “Not now, Gina. We have a promise. Keep your focus on the work and I will focus on helping you.”

Exhaustion settled into her bones. She turned away, her phone buzzing in her pocket. It was a text from Zoey.

“G, I’m sick with a stomach pain. Can you bring some ginger tea? I’m pathetic right now.”

Gina sighed, typed a quick “On my way,” and headed for the door, leaving the silent house behind.

The moment the front door clicked shut, Sean’s posture changed. The domesticity evaporated into the air like puff.

“Nonsense!” He discarded the apron and grabbed his phone, dialing a number he knew by heart.

“Your instinct was right,” he said the moment Zoey picked up. “She came back to the house in a jiffy. That girl is a witch, I am sure.”

At her apartment, Zoey Anna poured a glass of chilled white wine, her "stomach pain" nowhere to be found.

“I told you. Gina is many things, but she isn't blind, Sean. If you slip up again, the whole plan collapses.” She took a slow sip. “I’m still trying to figure out where she hid that her masterpiece. A dress she made then. ‘Midnight Silk’ I think. She hasn't breathed a word about that dress in years.”

“Maybe she burned it,” Sean suggested.

“Burned?! Gina used her whole savings to make that dress. That dress is worth millions. The design is out of this world, Sean. The Gina I know would never destroy beauty. She has plans up her sleeves. I am sure of it. If she brings those designs to Aurelia, she’ll be untouchable. They will employ her and we will be doomed. We need that dress under the Vanderbilt banner before she realizes we’ve been stealing her works.”

“I don’t know, Zoey. It might be too late for that now,” Sean warned, his voice low. “Aurelia already offered her the lead contract today.”

Zoey choked on her wine, the liquid splashing onto the glass coffee table. “What? How? She hasn't even shown them her best work yet!”

“I don’t know. But if she signs, she’s out of our reach.”

“You were supposed to sabotage her, Sean! You were supposed to keep her discouraged so I could be the one Sarah Finn noticed!” Zoey hissed, her face contorting with malice. “I don't know why I trust a man who can’t even keep that pathetic loser under control.”

“A pathetic loser?” a voice echoed from the doorway.

Zoey froze. The wine glass slipped from her hand, shattering against the floor. Gina was leaning against the frame, her eyes cold, her phone in her hand, recording?