Chapter One The Affair

Rebecca’s POV

“Yes, baby, I f**king love how you ride me.” These were the shocking words I heard as I stood at the door.

Today was Gabriel’s birthday, and I had purchased a gift for him to surprise him at his office. He wasn’t expecting me, but I went anyway. After all, I was his wife. I shouldn’t be restricted from visiting my own husband, right?

Standing at his office door, a wave of unease washed over me. Was I at the wrong door? “You’re the best, babe. I f**king love this,” I heard again, this time mixed with moans. My heart plummeted.

There was no mistaking Gabriel's voice. Even in the dead of night or blindfolded, I could pick it out from a thousand others. I knew that voice.

That’s why I barged in.

My stomach churned as I threw the door open, praying I was wrong, hoping this was some horrible misunderstanding. But it wasn’t.

There he was—Gabriel, my husband of five years. His pants were around his ankles, a woman straddling him with her skirt pushed up, revealing her bare backside. Her breasts spilled out of her shirt as she clung to him, utterly absorbed in their act.

I froze, rooted to the spot as my heart shattered into a thousand pieces. Gabriel—my Gabriel—had his hands on her hips, guiding her like I didn’t exist. Like we didn’t exist.

My breath hitched, the betrayal flooding through me in waves. For five years, I’d thought Gabriel was a loyal man. For five years, I’d been his wife, and this was the reward—watching him with another woman on his birthday.

How long has this been going on? I wondered, as the world spun around me. The weight of disbelief pressed down on my chest.

The woman… she was in a blue suit, her blonde hair cascading over her shoulders. I recognized her. The face from the portrait in Gabriel’s home office. She was the secretary, the one he always talked about. The one he told me they were going on a business trip together this time last year.

When I barged in, the woman froze, shock written across her face as she hurriedly adjusted herself. She slid off him, pulling her skirt down. I thought that would be the end of it. But then Gabriel yanked her back to the table, pushing himself inside her again. Right in front of me.

My breath caught. I couldn’t believe it.

“Don’t mind her,” Gabriel muttered to the woman, his eyes cold and focused on her. “I’m done with her anyway.” And just like that, he ignored me.

The room filled with their moans again, louder than before, as if I weren’t even there. My heart shattered, breaking into pieces I didn’t know existed. If someone had told me Gabriel would ever betray me like this, I would’ve called it a lie. This can’t be real.

But there it was. He had no remorse. No guilt. He didn’t care that I had caught him. I was nothing to him now.

I closed the door gently behind me, my legs heavy as I walked out, numb from head to toe. It was over—whatever we had, whatever I thought we were.

When I got home, I waited, foolishly clinging to the faint hope that Gabriel would return, that he’d realize what he had done and apologize. Maybe it was a mistake. Maybe he’d tell me it was just a moment of weakness, that it didn’t mean anything.

Two hours later, the front door clicked open. Gabriel stepped in, his face hard, his eyes cold. The man I had loved for years was gone. He said nothing, his silence more painful than words could ever be. Instead, he tossed an envelope onto the table, his jaw clenched.

“I don’t need you in my life anymore,” he said flatly, not even looking at me. “Pack your things and get out. I don’t want to see you when I get back.”

He turned and left, his footsteps fading into the distance.

My hands shook as I opened the envelope. Inside were the divorce papers. 

The word swam in front of my eyes as tears blurred my vision. My mind couldn’t process it. I had been discarded like a broken toy, like I was nothing. Everything that had once made sense was now meaningless.

I didn’t know what to do. My world had just collapsed around me, and the one person I could turn to was the one I had turned my back on years ago—my mother. The same mother I had stopped speaking to because of Gabriel.

With trembling hands, I dialed her number.

“It finally happened, huh?” my mother’s voice was calm on the other end, as if she had expected this.

Six years ago, when I had introduced Gabriel to her, she had warned me. She had told me not to marry him. She’d seen something in him I hadn’t. She knew. She said he was using me to boost his company’s credibility, that he wasn’t the man he pretended to be. But I didn’t listen.

I eloped with him, believing love would conquer everything. Believing Gabriel was everything I needed.

I was wrong.

“Yes, Mom. You were right,” I whispered, the truth bitter in my throat.

“And I guess he didn’t know who you really are, did he?” My mother’s voice was steady, confident. “If he did, he wouldn’t have dared to leave.”

Six years ago, when I ran away with Gabriel, my mother had sent me an email, warning me not to reveal my true identity to him. At the time, I didn’t believe it mattered, but somehow, I kept that part of me hidden.

Gabriel had no idea who I really was. He had no idea that my mother was the president of the largest conglomerate in Mandena City, or that I was the heir to it all.

“No, Mom. I didn’t tell him,” I said quietly.

“Good,” she replied. “Come home, Rebecca. Come home and take your place as the heir you were meant to be. I’ll make sure Gabriel pays for what he’s done to you.”

I didn’t hesitate. I packed my bags and left Gabriel’s house, stepping into the car. But even as I drove away, my heart ached. It felt like my world had crumbled, and no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t stop the tears from falling.

I started the car and reversed out of the driveway, heading toward the road. But as I drove, I suddenly saw Gabriel’s car speeding toward me. His face was twisted in anger, his hands gripping the steering wheel.

In the blink of an eye, his car crashed into mine, sending me hurtling into a streetlight pole. The impact was brutal. My head slammed into the steering wheel, and I felt blood trickling down my face. My vision blurred as the world around me began to fade. My hands went numb.

At that moment, everything went black.