CHAPTER ONE

{Thea}

I didn't want to believe what I was hearing, but the unmistakable sounds of her voice, moaning his name, filled my head.

With my heart beating wildly in my chest, I gripped the handle of the door to our room and slowly opened it.

His hands held her slender waist, forcing her down on his rigid cock, while the sweat from their intensity made her glisten.

Her moans were so loud, they hadn't even realized I had walked in.

She had her back to me, straddling Curtis on our bed like her life depended on it while he purred, “good girl.”

“Oh God ,Curtis. Don't stop!” She yelled, throwing her head back in pleasure.

My heart ached at the sight, but I couldn't bring myself to look away.

I had to find out who this homewrecker was.

I stepped further into the light, and my eyes caught Curtis's briefly before locking onto the woman riding him.

“Thea?” His voice trembled slightly, and the woman tensed.

She snapped her head back to look at me, her blonde hair obstructing me from seeing her face.

Suddenly I felt woozy, and my ears started ringing.

“Final boarding call for Flight 237 to San Francisco. First-class passengers, please proceed to Gate 17.”

My eyes snapped open, and I sat up as my eyes fought to adjust to the bright lights.

I looked around and immediately remembered that I was at the airport.

“It was just a dream. It was just a dream.”

I placed a hand on my chest to stop my thundering heart.

The announcement echoed through the airport yet again, and my excitement only grew.

Finally, I was leaving Texas and heading back home. 

Just the thought of escaping from the heaviness of my father's funeral and the craziness that followed felt like a breath of fresh air.

Everything was finally coming together, and in just a few hours, I would be in his arms once again.

The funeral had been a somber affair, sure, but the real drama unfolded afterward, during the reading of my father’s will.

My younger brother, Liam, and I sat at opposite ends of the long mahogany table while the lawyer’s eyes darted nervously between us.

He cleared his throat loudly, trying to ease the tension before addressing us.

“Thea, as per Mr. Leighton’s wishes, you are named the heiress to Leighton Steels, provided your brother Liam is not of age at the time of his passing.”

Liam slammed his fist on the table, his eyes flaring with anger.

“That’s not fair! I’m the rightful heir!”

I had expected his outburst. Liam had always believed Leighton Steels was his birthright.

Under normal circumstances, I might have conceded and let him have his way. But Curtis had been crystal clear—Leighton Steels was the key to his ambitions, and I was his key to the company.

“You’re not eighteen, Liam,” I reminded him calmly, knowing fully well how much it irked him.

“Yeah, but I’m the one who’s been studying under father for years now.” Liam countered, not willing to just give up.

“And yet here we are,” I slowly stood and placed my hands on the table while leaning over. “Leighton Steels is mine by law. Father couldn’t stand to see his company fall into the hands of a child.”

“Watch it, Thea.” Liam’s voice snapped, filled with fury.

I replied with a smile. Liam and I had always had our… little differences. But It didn't exactly fill me with joy to see him so angry. I had no choice. 

At the end of the day, I had secured the ownership shares of Leighton Steels and signed them over to Curtis.

I had to make sure Curtis got what he wanted, it was the only way for him to take his company to the next level.

As he always said, a win for him meant a win for us. 

He was, after all, my husband.

"Mrs Thea Blackwood, your flight to San Francisco is now boarding. Please proceed to Gate 17 at your earliest convenience."

The voice of the airport concierge was calm, but it still made my pulse spike with anticipation.

With the ownership documents safely tucked in my bag, I quickly finished the flute of champagne in my hand and got up from the plush leather of the first-class lounge chair.

As I walked toward the gate, I pulled out my phone and shot a quick text to Curtis: ‘About to board. Can’t wait to see you.’

I switched the phone to airplane mode and boarded the plane, ready to leave Texas behind for good and look toward a better, brighter future with the love of my life.

****

As I came out of the airport, a driver holding a plaque with my name picked me up and drove me to my home, as one would expect of someone of my social standing.

I took my phone off airplane mode, and it buzzed with a message: ‘Call me when you land, my love.’

My heart swelled instantly, and I fought the urge to call him. I would rather surprise him at home.

A few minutes later, I arrived at our beautiful home. It was a small mansion by the edge of town made of cream-colored brick and elegantly tall windows.

As I reached the front door of my house, I noticed a keypad by the door.

I frowned, “That wasn’t there before.”

At first, I thought of putting in some random combination of numbers just to see. 

Like my birthday—Denied.

Okay, Curtis’ birthday—Denied.

Alright, then maybe our wedding anniversary—Denied yet again.

The system suddenly began flashing red, and the alarm was tripped off. I could hear it from the inside.

I muttered a curse, frustrated at the new development.

Why would Curtis install a new security system and not tell me about it?

Confused, I finally decided to call Curtis, but as the phone rang, the alarm stopped, and the door clicked open.

My heart leaped in anticipation of seeing my husband after being away for over a week, but my excitement was short-lived when I realized it wasn’t Curtis but a strange woman I’d never seen before.

The perfect word to describe her was—stunning. And in an unnervingly perfect way.

She had the figure of a Victoria Secret model, eyes the color of emeralds, and skin that glowed even on dim evenings such as this one.

She was wearing a fitted blouse and blue jeans. “Definitely not the look of someone who was just a guest.”

But the one thing that caught my eye was her long, beautiful, blonde hair.

“Could it be?”

I blinked, taken aback by her sudden appearance. “Who are you?”

“Who am I?” The woman’s expression darkened as she looked me over. She crossed her arms before replying, “Who are you, and why are you trying to break into my home?”

“Your home?” I repeated.

What the hell was she talking about?

“Sorry, but this is my home. My husband and I have lived here for the past two years.”

She shook her head to ridicule me and let out a short, humorless laugh. Then she looked back at me with what could only be described as pity in her eyes. 

“You must be mistaken. I bought this house a few days ago. We’re still in the middle of renovations.”

It was then I noticed the strange white van with the logo of a construction company and the number of overstuffed garbage bags filled with debris from the renovation. 

Was this some sort of prank? 

“I-I don’t understand. My husband would never…” I trailed off weakly, before looking back at the woman. 

“Maybe you should call your husband and ask for directions. You might have hit your head or something, because the man who sold me this house told me he wasn’t married.” She said with a small smirk. “There definitely wasn’t a ring on his finger, believe me I checked.” 

My eyes widened, “Impossible!” I practically yelled.

The woman’s brows narrowed, “Look, I don’t have time for this. I’m going back inside, I suggest you leave before I call the cops.”

She turned to head back inside, but I couldn’t just let it end there. There was so much I still didn’t understand.

“Can I at least see the deed to this house?”

She looked over her shoulder. “And why would I do that?”

“Please,” I lowered my voice, “I-I just need proof.”

She rolled her eyes, obviously annoyed, but after a moment, she sighed and nodded. 

“Wait here.” And with that, she disappeared into the house.

As I stood there, waiting for her to come back out, my heart raced with different possibilities.

Had I somehow come to the wrong house? 

Did I really hit my head somewhere, and I couldn’t remember where I lived anymore?

And most importantly… Where was Curtis?

When the woman returned, she held a folder which she opened and handed to me. “There you go.”

My hands trembled as I slowly scanned the document.

It took a while, but my eyes finally found it. There it was, staring back at me in bold ink—his signature on the dotted line.

“Curtis.”

I gave the woman the folder, afraid it would fall out of my hands.

“Look, I can tell there’s a lot going on that you clearly don’t understand, so I’ll tell you something I think you need to know.” 

The look of pity on her face irked me terribly, but I didn't say a single word and just let her speak.

She took a step closer and whispered a single sentence. 

It caused me to flinch, I couldn’t for the life of me comprehend why she would say such a thing.

The words that tumbled out of her lips were…