Her Forbidden Billionaire

Episode 3

The Rumors

It was early evening when Sophia received the message. She was in the bedroom, going through a stack of invitations that her mother had insisted she “absolutely must attend,” when her phone vibrated. She glanced at it, expecting another message from her mother or perhaps her best friend offering moral support. But the notification reads an unknown number.

Curiosity piqued, she opened the message. Her eyes widened as she stared at the photo in front of her, her heart hammered in her chest. The image was grainy, as though taken in a hurry, but there was no mistaking who it was.

Alex.

Her husband stood at the entrance of an upscale hotel, his arm wrapped around a woman who looked up at him with a smile so intimate it made Sophia’s stomach twist. The woman’s dark hair dropped on her back, her dress sleek and fitted, highlighting a body that radiates confidence and charm.

Sophia scrolled down, her fingers trembling as more photos filled her screen. There he is, entering the hotel with her, his hand lightly touching her waist. Another image showed them leaving hours later, a casual arm around her shoulder, as if they were just another couple, blissfully unaware of the world around them.

For a moment, Sophia couldn't breathe. Her vision blurred, and she forced herself to inhale, her mind raced as she stared at the photos in front of her. This can’t be happening. She blinked, hoping the images might change, but they remained, mocking her, making her stomach churn with nausea.

A second message came through, this time with text: “Check the gossip sites.”

With shaking hands, Sophia opened the search browser and typed in her husband’s name. Within seconds, the headlines flashed across her screen:

“Billionaire Alex Carter Spotted with Mystery Woman - Trouble in Paradise?”

“Is Alex Carter’s Marriage Already on the Rocks?”

Sophia clicked on one of the articles, her breath caught up as the words burned into her mind. It was filled with speculative gossip, rumors that painted her husband as a heartless playboy who had already moved on, only weeks after their wedding. The article hinted that this “mystery woman” is someone from Alex’s past, someone he never truly let go of.

The words felt like daggers, each one slicing into her heart. She thought she knew what she was getting into when she married him, but that was too much.

Her phone slipped from her hands, clattering onto the floor. She pressed her hands to her mouth, stifling a cry as her mind raced with questions she had no answers to. Has he been with this woman all along? Was their marriage nothing more than a public mask, a way to protect his reputation while he carried on with someone else in the shadows?

The door creaked open, and she jumped, her head snapped up as Alex stepped inside, his usual unreadable expression firmly in place. For a brief moment, her resolve faltered. She wanted to scream at him, to demand answers, to confront him for the betrayal she felt searing into her heart. But instead, she met his gaze with cold fury.

“You’re home early,” she said, her voice icy, barely disguising the bitterness that penetrated beneath the surface.

He raised an eyebrow, seemingly unfazed by her tone. “I had some work to finish here.”

Sophia’s hands clenched into fists as she took a step forward, every fiber of her being screaming at her to say something, to confront him. She grabbed her phone, shoving it in his direction. “Care to explain this?”

Alex glanced at the screen, his expression giving nothing away as he studied the photo. His eyes shifted back to her, calm and detached. “It’s business.”

“Business?” She repeated, the single word escaped in a tone she barely recognized. Her voice trembled as she tried to keep herself steady, even as her hands shook.

He met her gaze, his expression devoid of any warmth. “Not everything is as it appears, Sophia. You, of all people, should understand that by now.”

The words were like a slap on her face. He spoke to her as though she was naive, foolish for even questioning him. The pain quickly turned to anger, white-hot and consuming. “So am I just supposed to accept this? To ignore the photos, the rumors? How long am I expected to pretend that this marriage isn’t a joke to you?”

A flicker of something passed over his face, a brief c***k in his otherwise emotionless mask. But it’s gone before she can fully register it, and his expression hardened. —“What you think is irrelevant, Sophia. This arrangement was never about emotions.”

His tone was so cold, so detached, that, for a moment, she was left speechless. He moved past her, his footsteps echoing in the empty space between them, as if the very air itself was reluctant to bridge the distance.

Without thinking, she grabbed his arm, her grip tight and desperate. “Is this really it, then? Is this what I signed up for?”

He stopped, his gaze fixed on her hand that gripped his sleeve. There was a faint, almost imperceptible softening in his eyes, a flicker of something she couldn’t quite place. For a moment, she thought he might say something, offer her some scrap of reassurance, some sign that he felt even the smallest shred of loyalty.

But instead, he gently pried her hand from his arm, his gaze once again distant. “You knew what this was from the beginning.”

He turned and walked away, disappearing down the hall, leaving her standing alone with her anger, her pain, and her shattered hope. Sophia stood frozen, the weight of his words pressing down on her like a crushing force.

She retreated to her bedroom, sinking onto the edge of the bed as a fresh wave of tears blurred her vision. The emptiness around her felt suffocating, closing in on her, and for the first time, she wondered if she could bear it. If she can survive in this cold, loveless marriage with a man who views her as nothing more than a pawn.

Her phone buzzed again, and she glanced down, her heart sinking as she saw another message from the unknown number: “There was more to see if you’re interested.”

She hesitated, dread pooling in her stomach as her thumb hovered over the message. Every instinct screamed at her to ignore it, to shut it off, to protect herself from whatever this person was trying to show her.

But curiosity - and perhaps an urgent need for answers-won out. She opened the message, and another series of photos filled her screen. This time, they were more intimate, more damning. In one, Alex and the woman were sitting in a dimly lit restaurant, their faces inches apart, her hand resting on his. In another, they were outside, the woman laughing as he leaned in, murmuring something in her ear.

Sophia’s heart shattered anew, each image another stab of betrayal. She gripped the phone, so tightly her knuckles turned white, her breath coming in shallow, panicked gasps.

How long had this been going on? She wondered, the question looping endlessly in her mind, a relentless, torturous mantra. She thought she knew what she was getting into. She thought she could handle a marriage of convenience, as long as it meant security for her family, as long as there was respect, if not love. But this is too much.

She buried her face in her hands, feeling the weight of everything pressing down on her. The betrayal, the humiliation, the realization that she was trapped in a life that no longer felt like her own. And the worst part is, she was completely alone. There was no one to confide in, no one who would understand the emptiness gnawing away at her.

Later that night, she lay in bed, staring up at the ceiling, the photos burning into her mind, haunting her. Sleep was elusive, each moment dragging on, filled with anger and heartbreak. She turned her face to the pillow, muffling her silent cries, feeling as though she might break under the weight of it all.

But as dawn began to break, something shifted inside her. The heartbreak didn't lessen, but a new feeling stirred - a simmering anger, a fire she hadn’t felt in years. If Alex thought he could humiliate her, disrespect her like that, he was mistaken.

She may be bound to him in name, but she is not a doormat. She’s a Blake, and she won’t be cast aside so easily.

If he wanted a Cold War, he was about to get one, she thought, a fierce determination hardening her resolve.

Sophia sat up in bed, her eyes blazing as she made a silent vow. She was going to find out the truth, even if it meant going head-to-head with her own husband.