CHAPTER FOUR

004

JOANA’S POV

I caught sight of the bone of contention and pushed her aside, stomping towards him.

“Clinton! You asked me to keep our divorce a secret while you already…” I didn't finish my words before I heard Louisa's soft yelp.

My hand which was holding his arm, as I tried to turn Clinton around, slipped off, and wine splashed all over my body, same time I lost my footing and crashed to the floor.

I blinked in shock; my surprise overshadowed the pain I felt at colliding with the hard floor. Clinton had caught Louisa and was fervently wiping off the little smudge of wine from her gown, totally ignoring me.

“Clinton,” I whispered, my voice filled with pain and disbelief.

“You bitch! You can't wait a day without causing trouble, is that it? Apologize to Louisa immediately!” Clinton growled, giving me a deadly stare.

I caught sight of Louisa's smug smile and immediately realized what happened. She noticed that I wanted to confront Clinton about the things she told me and rushed to turn the table on me. Once again, she managed to prove that she was the one in Clinton's heart while I was nothing.

I forced myself to my feet, ignoring the sharp pain in my waist. The wine had discolored my beautiful silver gown, but that was the least of my worries at the moment.

“Apologize to your mistress? Why don't you make me? What? Are you going to beat me because of her?” I screamed in my loudest voice, making everyone's attention turn to us. Since they wanted to humiliate me, I will rub off that same shit on them, let's be embarrassed together.

“Joanna, have you lost it?” Clinton whispered, clutching my arm in a painful grasp. His nails dug into my skin, his eyes full of threat. I pushed him away with all my strength and took a few steps back, pointing at them.

“She's the reason I signed those divorce papers, isn't it? And now, you want to humiliate me to please your lover? Did a dog eat your conscience? You couldn't even wait for the divorce to be processed officially before you shamelessly flaunt her before me.”

“Joanna!”

I ignored the warning in his voice and continued.

“Is it fun? I have to listen to her tell me about the things you do together in bed. I could ignore her telling me about how you couldn't stop sucking her pu*sy, I could ignore her showing me the hickeys you left on her body, I could ignore her telling me she will throw me out of your house naked when she comes to take her place as Mrs. Gates, I could even ignore her splashing wine on me and pushing me to the floor. But now, you want me to grovel before her and make her happy?”

“Mrs Gates, you misunderstood,” Louisa whispered, mortified. She didn't expect someone of my status to act shamelessly and expose all she did. But she was in for a rude awakening. Since she wanted to mock me, I will let everyone hear it and revel in their mockery.

I shifted her hair away without warning, exposing her hickeys.

“When you showed me the hickeys he left on your body, I also thought it was a misunderstanding. Until he proved your words right with his actions. In your words Clinton, I was only a tool to help your company. Now, I finally understand everything. And no, I won't wait for your mistress to come throw me out, I will leave on my own.” I shouted and removed the wedding ring.

Clinton looked at her in anger, and I saw her cower for a while, giving me a strange sense of satisfaction. I threw the ring at him and ran out of the banquet hall, leaving the stunned audience behind me.

A car stopped before me the moment I got to the entrance.

“Joanna, hop in, I will drop you off at your parent's house.” The soft baritone whispered. It was Caleb, Clinton’s cousin, and my childhood best friend.

The doors of the Lamborghini Aventador slid open, and I got in. Soon the paparazzi will be here because of the drama I created, and I don't want to be entangled in them. Clinton and Louisa are better suited to enjoy their camera flashes.

“Annie, are you alright?” He whispered, wiping my tears off with his free hand while he drove with the other.

“I'm so sorry if I knew that he was treating you badly, I would have taken you away from him.” He whispered as he watched me. However, I didn't give much thought to his words and nodded, looking out the window. In a few hours, some piece of dirty news will hit the internet. Clinton and I would be the topic. Or rather, the Gates and Henshaws.

*****

The moment Caleb parked the car before the portico at Henshaw mansion and opened the door, tears rushed to my eyes. I felt like the prodigal daughter returning home as I wondered if all the strings I pulled to marry Clinton were worth it.

I ran inside and met two of my brothers pacing in the sitting room, the last one was abroad. Otherwise, he would also be there with them. They must have seen the tabloids and rushed home.

“Big brother!” I wailed, making them turn around.

“Anna.” My first brother Justin, the CEO of Henshaw Group shouted and opened his arms.

“Jo baby,” Michael whispered, watching as I approached them with tears streaming down my face.

The moment Justin pulled me into his arms, I broke down, bawling loudly.

“Don't cry baby, I will deal with him. I will make him kneel before you and apologize.” Michael the CEO of M-tech whispered, caressing my back.

“Just leave him, it's useless. He… he… waaaah!” I found myself bawling again before I could finish my sentence.

“Don't cry baby, don't cry. We are here now.” They whispered together. I could feel their barely restrained anger as they comforted me. As the last child of the Henshaw family with three older brothers, I have never felt so wrong. Only Clinton has ever bullied me to such a point.

After fifteen minutes of crying, with my two brothers, Caleb, and my parents around, I began to recount my tale of woes.

“He never came home, he's always outside, making me think it's work. Who knew he was cheating on me? He even divorced me and told me to keep it a secret to avoid upsetting Grandma, but he still told his mistress about it.”

“That bastard!” Michael growled, punching the sofa in anger.

“I'm going to kill him,” Justin muttered.

“There will be no need for that. The elders in his family have given him a good scolding before everyone at the party, in addition to slaps from your father. The negative news will also have some effects on the Gates group, killing him is not required. Just let it go, alright? It's good that our baby girl is back home.” My mom said, with a deep sigh.

“Mom! You don't understand! I'm pregnant! What am I going to do with a baby? Becoming a single mother at my age…”

“You're what?” Caleb whispered wide-eyed, making more tears roll down my cheeks.