Chapter 7: A Sudden Visit

"May I know your name?" I already turned my back at him when I heard him ask that, causing me to face him again.

"By the way, I'm Dylan. I am a new investor here at Rodriguez company," he extended his right hand while introducing himself to me.

"Oh, so you are one of my husband's new co-worker then. I am her wife, Dianna," I also introduced myself with a soft smile, shaking his hand lightly.

"Wow! I am a bit disappointed. I thought you were my soulmate already." My lips parted for a moment, but later I just laughed at what he said.

"Just kidding! It's really good to meet the beautiful wife of our Mr. Rodriguez." He flashed me another charming smile which made me blush slightly.

"Thank you, I must admit, you are quite handsome yourself." He let go off my hand and chuckled.

"Well, I have to thank you for the compliment. I mean, I have always heard that you're quite the beauty. You know, I also know your father. He's an amazing CEO of one of your companies somewhere in New York, right?" I nodded and then looked at the watch I was wearing, and then I realized the real reason why I was here.

"I am sorry, Dylan Rios. But I need to go on my husband's office. The truth is that I am here because I want to surprise him, since it's my birthday and I want to celebrate that day with him." His left eyebrow raised, as if there was something wrong with what I said.

"Hmm, sounds ironic, huh? It's your birthday but you are the one surprising him." The smile on my lips slowly faded as I realized that he was right.

"Alright, I won't waste any more of your time. It's also obvious that you're in a hurry. I hope to see you again, Mrs. Rodriguez?" he said politely. He seems so kind and friendly.

"Same to you, Mr. Rios." After bidding goodbye, I headed towards Lucas' office. But before I could enter, his secretary signed me not to.

"Sorry, Ma'am. Wait for a while, I'll just call Sir. Lucas and ask him if he can receive visitors."

"But I am her wife, why would you need to do that first?" I asked her curiously, there was irritation in the tone of my voice.

"I-I know, Ma'am. But Sir. Lucas told me before, not to let anyone except them—" My brows furrowed in confusion.

"Wait, what did you say? Is anyone else with Lucas? Does he have a meeting?"

"I mean, him... My apologies, Ma'am. I'm just nervous." I stared at her as she picked her phone now and called Lucas.

"Ma'am, you can come in now." Before I stepped to my feet I glanced at him again. When I entered Lucas's office, I found him focused again in front of his laptop while frowning.

"Hi honey! Surprised! Even though you know I'm here. As your secretary, you didn't let me in right away. Maybe I'm new here, I don't think I'm your wife." I put down the food I brought.

"Dianna, what are you doing here?" he asked, before he could speak again I gave him a kiss on the lips.

"Considering how busy you are at work, I thought we could celebrate a bit here." He seemed hesitant when I pulled away from him, looking into his eyes while biting my lower lips nervously.

"C-Can we, please?" I added quickly seeing his hesitation.

"If you don't want, it's fine. Don't force yourself. I-"

"No, come on. Let's eat." When he said this, a smile grew on my lips. He didn't hesitate to get up and then help me arrange the food.

I thought I would feel better by doing this, but I was unable to avoid but notice that Lucas seemed distracted and distant when we sat down to dine. My shoulders slumped because he seemed to prefer facing the pile of documents on his desk than me.

"Mm, is it good?" I tried to ask him with a tone of hopefulness in hopes of cheering him up.

"Yeah..." He didn't even look up at me, instead just looking at his plate, like I am just a display here.

My excitement turned to despair as the minutes went by. I had expected an event to remember with my husband, but it felt more like an unwanted interruption in his hectic day.

I tried to hide my disappointment, but despite my efforts not to feel the dread and distrust that had been building in my heart for the past few weeks deepened. I don't know if everything is really normal for us or if this is the beginning of the destruction of our marriage.

"You seemed not happy that I am here, Lucas," I stated with a matter of fact. I wasn't planning to say all those things out loud. But once it escaped my mouth, there was no turning back.

"I'm just really surprised that you are going here, Dianna. You didn't even call me that you were coming here. What if I'm in an important meeting? What, you're going to embarrass me?" The way he emphasized 'important meeting' made it sound like it was more important than me coming over.

"But you're just here, Lucas. Typing on your laptop. I just...want your little time to spend with me," I muttered softly. I couldn't even look him in the eyes, because I was afraid to see his reaction. After a few seconds of silence, he spoke again.

"Fine. But next time I hope that you'll tell me about it beforehand, alright?" I nodded and then forced a smile.

I had expected a happy birthday celebration, but it had become an anxious one, leaving me with more questions than answers concerning the condition of our marriage. I could tell that something wasn't right, and as I left him in his office, I couldn't help but worry whether our relationship was losing some of the joy we had once experienced together.

After thinking about it for an hour, a notification from one of my social media accounts pop-up on my phone. It's a friend request from Dylan Rios. I accepted it at the same time a message from him appeared on my phone's screen.

"I forgot, greeting you directly. Happy birthday, Mrs. Rodriguez!" I read his message and a sad smile drew my lips.