로그인Iris always knew her marriage was on thin ice, but she’d expected it to pass like a phase. Until her husband divorced her and went for her stepsister instead. At the same time, her company is snatched from her grasp. Betrayal. Heartbreak. Dejection. Iris makes a friend of this pain…until him. Orchard Hector. He offers her a four-year marriage contract and a new purpose, being on common grounds. “You’re only my ex-husband, Dave,” Iris replied darkly. “And whatever plan you have to get me back, they won’t succeed.”
더 보기Sheila's POV
"Sheila, go to table five and take their orders. It's been very busy today, and you've been standing around doing nothing. Sheila, are you even listening to me?" "Sheila!" I was startled when I heard someone shout my name. I didn't realize I was being called. I was just lost in my own world, drowning in sadness. "Are you alright?" Diana, my coworker, asked. I quickly wiped away the tears that had slipped from my eyes and forced a smile, "Yes, I'm fine. What did you say?" She glanced at me for a moment and shrugged, "Well, you need to fix your face and go take the order for Table five." "Okay, I'll do that right away. Thanks." I went to the restroom, and when I looked at myself in the mirror, I started crying again at the sight of my sad reflection. How could he do this to me? What did I do to deserve this kind of betrayal? I took out my engagement ring from my pocket and stared at it, mumbling, "Why is life so unfair to me?” and my mind wandered back to what had happened yesterday; the worst day of my life. ************************************ I had left work quite early yesterday after taking permission from Jake, my manager, to plan a surprise birthday for Alan, my boyfriend. Because of him, I even agreed to switch shifts, take up extra shifts, and save every penny of my tips in order to afford a customized expensive cake, his favorite wine and a Rolex wristwatch he had always wanted. All because I loved him. I got home and used the spare key with me to open the front door since I was sure Alan wouldn't be home at this time of day. I opened the door and was about to head to the bedroom when I noticed the state of the living room. "What was going on here?" I wondered as I saw a shirt, top, scarf, belt and clothes scattered on the floor extending all the way to the bedroom.These were definitely not here when I left for work. I was about to head to the bedroom when I stepped on something soft. Looking down, I saw it was a red, padded lace bra and a matching g-string. What was a woman's underwear doing on the floor of my living room? So many thoughts rushed through my head, but I shook them off, trying hard to think straight. Could it be that Alan was at home with another... No! Definitely not! Alan wasn't that kind of person! He wouldn't do that! Besides, I didn't see his car in the driveway, so there was absolutely no way! I shook my head again, trying to clear the myriad of thoughts attacking my brain as I walked closer to the bedroom. Maybe one of Alan's friends came by with his girlfriend, and Alan gave him the key to our house. Yes! That must be it! It wouldn't be the first time Alan had done that, even though I had expressed my displeasure about it so many times. Alas, I was only deceiving myself when I suddenly heard Alan's voice coming from our bedroom. “Yes, baby! Oh my! I've missed you so much! You know exactly how I want it!” I kept hearing noises and Alan's groans coming from the bedroom. My heart pounded, and my fingers trembled as I clenched them tightly, my nails digging into my flesh, not wanting to believe it was Alan's voice. "If you've missed me so much, why then are you still with that dirty slut, Sheila?" a female voice asked. I froze immediately I heard my name. "I only use her to pass time, babe. Her brains are still quite useful to me; the presentations and seminars she has been helping me with, got me a raise at the office. My boss loves her work and has promised me another promotion by the end of the year. Other than that, she's absolutely useless to me." I held the doorknob tightly, unable to believe what I had just heard. I was just a tool for him to get a raise and promotion at the office? I thought he loved me! I thought we had a strong connection! Hot tears flowed down my cheeks as I stood there, unable to move an inch. I gripped the doorknob so tightly, breathing erratically as I tried to control the myriad of emotions overwhelming me. What had I done to deserve this? "When will you get rid of her? I want you all to myself, Alan. There are a lot of bad things I've learned that I would love to show you," the female voice said seductively, and the next thing I heard was Alan groaning wildly. That voice! It sounded familiar... too familiar! I took a deep breath, used my other hand to wipe away my tears, and braced myself to open the door. It was now or never! But what I saw was something I never expected to see. I saw Alan sleeping with Phoebe, my step sister!OrchardIris made the most adorable pregnant woman ever. Maybe it was just my sentiment—I would always believe that. Maybe it was still my sentiment to want her to have another baby just because she made the most adorable pregnant woman ever. And perhaps those sentiments couldn’t be shared with her. But when it always came down to the delivery room, I found myself pacing. "It’s a normal reaction," the nurses said. "It’s normal," they said eventually. "Why don’t you come hold her hand?" the half-face-covered nurse stretched out a hand. "Are you okay?" I whispered in her ear. "Oh yeah, I’m amazing," she mumbled. "But sure, if we want to make this mountain out of a molehill, we can. Besides, I already requested an epidural," she rolled her eyes at me. "Maybe you’re just being dramatic," she waved me off. Maybe I was. Maybe I was just shy. After all, it wasn’t every day a man got to witness this perfect being born. "Okay, I feel something," she gripped my hand. The secon
Orchard Nothing, except the mild silence of the humidifier beside my bed, the steady beeping of the heart monitor, and, of course, the gentle hum of the air conditioner, filled the room. Aside from having to convince my wife—well, I wasn’t sure what we were now, but we surely were something—convincing her to go home, take a shower, get dressed, and look prettier the day after was more than enough. The same could apply to Mom. Partly, it was because of the text message I had received from Dad. “Is it all right if I come see you?” he had texted earlier. “Me telling you no isn’t going to change your mind, so why bother?” I texted back. And, as they say, speak of the devil, and he shall appear. An hour later, Dad walked into my hospital room as though he owned the place—which was mildly accurate. He was one of those with the largest holdings in the hospital. Or, well, he had some of the largest holdings in the hospital. While he didn’t own it specifically, neither did I, but he d
IrisHarold couldn’t be fast enough. Or maybe it was the fact that the speed limit was simply too slow, and Harold was dancing just at the edge. Either way, I kept pounding my heel against the floor of the car while biting my lips, and it seemed the buildings were moving apart too slowly. “I’m going as fast as I can, Mrs. Hector,” Harold said, and turned towards the rearview mirror, his eyes darting towards me. “I’m driving as fast as I can,” he said again, his eyes meeting mine this time. “We’ll be there soon.” His eyes crinkled at the edges, smiling at me. He offered little comfort, I thought to myself, as my face strangely cracked into a small smile. “Thank you,” I said, letting out a huff of air and pulling my fingers together, trying to calm them from the shaking earlier. Who’d have thought talking to the stepmother who effectively bullied you your whole life would cause some form of shakiness? Eventually, we reached the hospital in one piece—mostly. I bolted straight u
IrisPerhaps it was not just me but the entire court, but everyone seemed to let out a breath of relief. I caught sight of Karen sitting somewhere at the back of the room.Simply, I got sight of her because I was jittery, my eyes darting all over the place.Perhaps I was so eager to keep my eyes off Dave that I simply couldn’t look at the person—the wicked person—he had become. He was so unrecognizable.He was not the man I had known all my life; he was not the man I had fallen in love with. No. Buried far from those things were the sweet smiles he had given me when I was younger and the messages of conviction. *"You’re the only woman I could ever marry,"* he had said. Well, perhaps that part was true. I was the only one he married—but probably not the only one he could love. No. His love went to other places; his love had a knack for doing that, going to various places. But none of that mattered for the children. At least that chapter was closed. I raised my eyes to the prose
Iris.“O—Orchard” I gasped as my gaze met his. “What are you doing here?”Orchard stood in the doorway, with only a towel wrapped around his waist. His hair was slightly messy and the hairs on his chest sprawled as his chest heaved.I gasped, unable to stop myself from staring. Orchard looked like a go
Iris’s Pov.My mind probably never played tricks on me, so I doubted it was truly Dave standing not so far behind me."Isn't this interesting," he smiled, playing with something in his hand and his pocket, shifting his weight from one foot to the other. "So the rumors were true. You really are like th
Iris.The hairs on my skin stood still as her ever irritating voice scarred the walls of my eardrum. I could immediately feel bile rising to my throat, sucking all the air from my throat.My eyes darted to Macy and she stared back, shaking apologetically. Showing that she had no idea Tiffany was comin
Iris's POVI sighed, liking the ease in the tension I felt as my aching muscles were massaged by the hot water in the tub. It had been nothing short of a roller coaster coming back home from the fundraiser. The fundraiser was a capital disappointment. Aside from the couple of unpleasant faces and no
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