Chapter 2

I felt my hands tremble uncontrollably as I stared at the text on my phone.

My vision blurred as tears spilled over, dripping onto the screen. I couldn’t tear my eyes away from the images of Jess and Maximus. How she was all over Max, kissing him, and caressing his bare chest was like a punch to my guts.

It explained exactly why Maximus hadn’t been sleeping home. He had always been with Jess, as opposed to the trips and meetings I always thought he was on.

“Maximus is mine now. You were never really part of his life. Move on.” Were the words Jess had attached to the picture, and my heart shattered even more when I read it.

I stared at my reflection in the rearview mirror, my eyes puffy and red from crying. All those late nights waiting up for him, all the times I smiled through his excuses and empty promises - it had all been for nothing? My throat tightened, and I choked back a sob, my chest heaving with each shaky breath.

Anger and despair bubbled within me as I tossed the phone into my bag and started the car. Maximus had made it clear he wanted me out of his life, and that was exactly what I was going to do.

I drove to our mansion but was shocked to find my luggages scattered outside. What was going on?

Opening the car door, I took a shaky step towards the mansion, only to be blocked by the security guard.

“Ma’am, there’s been an order for you to leave and never set foot in this mansion again,” said the tall, muscular security guard, leaving me staring in disbelief. Had he forgotten who I was?

“W-What do you mean? Let me in right now,” I insisted, trying to push past him, but the guard’s grip on my wrist was tight and painful.

“It’s best you adhere to the order, ma’am,” he said calmly, while I struggled to catch my breath, feeling like a cornered animal. Could Maximus really do this to me? In denial, I asked with a trembling voice,

“Did Maximus order you to do this?”

I waited for a response, but instead, I heard a mocking laugh that wasn’t from the guard. Raising my head, I saw a tall woman walking out of the building, her blonde hair swaying slightly, and a smirk playing on her lips.

It was Jess, my stepsister. The last time I saw her was three years ago.

Jess’s voice was laced with disdain, “Just go. Do you think Maximus ever loved you?. You’re nothing to him, Selene.” Her words cut deep, leaving me numb.

"He doesn’t even love me. I was just a distraction until Jess returned," I thought to myself, feeling frozen in place. I should have seen this coming.

The security guard approached me to assist with my luggage, but he stopped abruptly at Jess' command.

“Leave her be, unless you want to get fired,” Jess snapped at the guard, her voice dripping with contempt. She turned to me, a sneer curling her lips. “I’m sure you can handle it yourself, Selene. After all, you’ve managed to weasel your way into this family, haven’t you?”

I struggled to breathe, sweat running down my forehead as I hurriedly packed my luggage into the car. Despite deciding not to stress myself for the sake of my baby, I had no choice now.

Nothing had gone as planned; I was divorced before I could even share the news with Maximus. How pathetic! Jess watched, tapping her foot impatiently, waiting for me to finish packing and leave. It was clear my presence disgusted her.

With a heavy heart, I dragged the last box forward, only for Jess to move inches closer to me.

“Selene Norman...” Jess sneered, scrunching her face in disgust. “ You disgust me so much! I never want to see you here again, you thief and gold digger!”

“You ran away, didn’t you? You thought Maximus’ company was going bankrupt and he was going to be broke, that was why you left..” I knitted my eyebrows in confusion, now understanding exactly why she had left. I could see her cheeks heat up in anger. I was definitely right.

“Uh, Jess? Why then did-” before I completed my statement , she flung bundles of money at my face, leaving me gasping in shock.

"You know nothing, so shut the hell up!" She yelled, clenching her fists as she tried to steady her breathing.

Anger surged through me and before I could second-guess myself, my hand flew out, striking Jess across the cheek. She stumbled, her eyes wide with shock, as a flush of red spread across her face.

Her face contorted from shock to anger in an instant.

“You bitch!”

Before I could react, she grabbed my hair, and I cried out in pain.

"What the hell is going on?"

It took us just two minutes before we suddenly turned around, only to find Maximus and his mother standing there, jaws dropped in disbelief. We had been so consumed by our fight that we hadn't noticed Maximus drive in and approach us.

“Selene? What have you done to Jess?”

Maximus's voice was filled with anger, his eyes blazing as he looked between Jess and I before finally fixing his gaze on me. I fell silent, my heart heavy, knowing there was nothing I could say to make him believe me.

Wasn’t this the same Maximus who had once loved me, who had promised me everything just three years ago? His expression now showed only disgust. His love for me was dead!

I saw Jess’s face contort from feigned innocence to smug satisfaction as she rushed to Maximus, wrapping her arms around him.

“Selene went crazy, Max,” Her voice trembled just enough to sound sincere. “I tried to calm her down, to make her stay, but she just… lost it. I didn’t want her to go, she’s my sister,” she added, her eyes shining with crocodile tears. “Please, tell her to stay.”

I looked away from Maximus, unable to bear his piercing gaze, and laughed bitterly. It hurt deeply that Maximus believed all of Jess’s lies, and even more unbelievably, the man who once loved me now refused to listen to anything I had to say.

“Let the bitch go! She’s a piece of shit who only married my son for his money. She couldn’t even give him a child!” Cecilia exclaimed angrily, standing with her hands on her hips. I waited for Maximus to respond, hoping he would defend me, but my heart sank when he stayed silent.

Jess chuckled bitterly, and Maximus’s expression turned even more disgusted at the mention of a child. Should I tell him I was pregnant with his child? Hell, Would that make him remember the Maximus who once loved me and whom I loved back?

“It’s okay, mom.”

“Maximus, I—” I started to speak, hoping to share the best news he could ever hear, but my words faltered as he walked away from me, leaving me standing there, feeling utterly invisible.

“Maximus, please, just listen!” My voice cracked as tears streamed down my face. My vision blurred, and I wiped my eyes with the back of my hand, my stomach churning.

He kept walking, his shoulders tense, as if my words were just noise, not even worth acknowledging. I swallowed the lump in my throat, my fingers digging into my palms. Was this really the same man who once held me close? The man who now turned his back on me without a second glance?

Now, I had nowhere to go. I had no one to turn to. Everyone hated and despised me, even my own family. My mother had passed away when I was just 12, and life had been a struggle ever since.

I spent the next few hours on the floor, crying uncontrollably, until I was eventually thrown out by the guards on Cecilia's orders.

Summoning all the courage I had left, I decided to visit my parents. Even though my biological mother had passed away, I still considered my stepmother as a parent, despite all that she’d done to me.

My heart pounded as I knocked on the door, the sound echoing in the silence. When the door slowly creaked open, I was met with a face I never expected to see.

“Selene? W-what happened to you?”