Chasing my estranged wife: I want you back

Reina's POV

I sniffed in as low grunts and the sound of skin slapping against skin pierced through my ear, I could feel my heart shredding into tiny bits I knew wouldn't be recoverable as I listened on, squeezing hard on the door knob, I tried all that I could not to let myself immerse in the sea of thoughts that threatened to take me away with it, I kept trying, trying to be strong, but It appeared that I wasn't trying enough, where exactly had I gone wrong in all of this?

Beads of tears cascaded down my face and I bit on my lips until I could feel the metallic taste of blood which was mixed with salt.

" Madam, I told you not to come in but still, you refused to heed my warnings" the secretary admonished me as the moans and grunts got worse, and I was forced to take a step backwards, pulling my hands away from the knob as though I had been scalded by something hot. I loved him far too much to let another woman take him away from me.

I wasn't going to let it happen, although our marriage had been arranged. I had always wanted him, I had loved him when I had seen him walk into the compound and the way his face had lit up with a smile on it when he saw me had melted my heart, making it hitch when our eyes met.

I gulped in, squeezing the paper tightly, the main reason I was here. I blinked away the tears that threatened to drop before flashing a smile at the secretary, who was fidgeting and looked worried.

" Do not let him know I was here" I clenched my fist before turning around on my heels and walking out of the office.

"But...." I glared at her, hoping she would get the message and when she nodded, I sauntered away, trying as hard as I could to stay strong even when my leg almost gave way underneath me until I was in the elevator.

I leaned against the side, letting down all the tears that had brimmed in my eyes, I was heartbroken and tired, I guess this was what I got for being over-excited, for not wanting to keep the news to myself, for thinking that Richard would be excited to know we were finally expecting our kids. After trying so hard for years.

I placed a handkerchief over my mouth when the elevator dinged, my heels clicking on the marble tiles as I made my way out of his company, the same one I had helped him build, the very same one I had given him all of my shares when he was about losing it all, perhaps was this my fate? To keep getting hurt? By the same man I loved?

"Madam" the driver took a step forward but halted when I raised a finger out to him, stopping him from coming forward.

Every one of them at home had the same look on their faces when they saw me, like they were sympathetic. Was I being foolish, holding on to a man who never wanted me? Or was it bad that I loved him that much?

" The cake?" I asked as I placed a foot into the car, watching as he gingerly stepped in, before turning on the ignition.

" A little party is being thrown at a home in honor of you and the chairman has sent a little gift for you"

" The chairman," I chuckled softly before scoffing out,

The one who I had heard banging hard into a stranger? Somehow, I couldn't stop myself from wondering if he had the same look on his face as he had when he was fucking me, or would it be different?

I loosened my grip around the paper I was holding, before dipping it into my bag.

I exhaled deeply when the car rolled into a stop before a magnifying glass house, one that was mine and Richard's and would be the children as well.

I knew what I wanted to do, I would keep shut about this because I did not want anything to happen to the children, I had grown up with both of my parents, and they deserved that also, they needed to know what it felt like to grow up with both parents by their side.

"Reina" Nina shrieked excitedly when I placed my feet out, a wide smile on her face before jumping on my body.

" You have to be careful, Nina, you do not want to hurt me and...." My eyes strayed to my stomach when she yelped out, but I placed a palm on her lips.

" Does that mean I will be a godmother soon? How far gone are you? Gosh, I am so happy for you Reina, I know how hard you have been trying and now, you have your little bundles of joy" she said with teary eyes,

I flashed a smile at her, letting her wrap her hands around mine, as we walked into the house.

" Does Richard know? Have you told him?"

The smile on my face faltered as fast as it came, and I shook my head "I will let him know when he is back from work and...''

"Work...work...work...what exactly is wrong with him? Today is your twenty-fourth birthday and since you both got married, he has never attended any, and..."

I slipped my legs into the flip-flop the maid had placed down, handing her my bag.

" He sends me gifts,Nina, and they tell me how much he wants to be here, but he is occupied with work"

" Gifts aren't his presence Reina, When exactly are you going to talk about that with him? Let him know that he has to buckle up,how much longer are you going to make excuses for him...we both know..."

Her voice trailed to the background as I let my eyes run through the room I was in,

Everything was done already, decorations were everywhere, just like it has been for the last four years, A little tiny cake was left in the middle and his gift, but still, he wasn't here, his presence was missing just like always.

"Are you okay?" Nina asked immediately as I stood in front of the table.

I pulled her into my arms, hoping that I would get succor from them.

" I am tired, Nina," I confessed to her as tears slipped through my eyes.

My heart seemed to have gone cold, and I was finding it hard to breathe. "Of everything, he is hardly ever around and... I do not want him to go... he is barely even a husband to me, do you think he would love them? Our kids?"

She pushed me away slightly, her hands caressing my stomach gently, "Then get a divorce,"

I wriggled her hands off me, taking a step backward" You are joking,right? Because I do not understand why you would suggest that, you know that..."

" That you love him..."she intercepted me, rolling her eyes to the side,

" I do, but still don't you think it would be better if you got a divorce, You will always have my support"

"Get out" I gestured at the door to her, fuming in anger, this had to be it, how could she think of suggesting something that outrageous to me?

" What? You do not mean that, do you?"

" Get out, Nina, how could you? Of all things, how could you tell me to get a divorce when you know how much I love him? How..." I tried to calm down, I was raising my voice and it wouldn't help.

She shook her head at me, before picking up her bag, taking a last glance at me, "I hope you wouldn't regret your decision,"

" Shit, what have I done?" I ran a hand through my hair, watching her walk away. The sound of the revving engine resonated in my ear before it became distinct.

I crumbled to the ground, as everything seemed to shatter around me, she was gone, wasn't she?

I lifted my head when I heard approaching footsteps, his musky scent drifted into my nostrils.

"Richard...?" I whispered out, as he got closer, my heart flipped with joy as he approached me

Was he really here for my birthday? Finally, was everything going to be alright?

"Reina" he ran his gaze around the room I was in, before fixing them on me.

I waited for him to say the word, to wish me happy birthday, and when he bit on his lips before staring at me, my heart flipped because I knew I had hoped for too much.

" Let's get divorced, Reina" he whispered to me,

Reina's POV

"Ahaha," I chuckled softly, amused with what I have just heard,

" You didn't mean that right?" I blinked severally at him, not wanting to believe what I had just heard.

" Tell me you didn't fucking mean what you have just said, Richard? Tell me you do not want to break me in such a way...tell me you do not want to break my heart just like that...please..." I bellowed, shutting my eyes tightly before opening them.

"Tell me you aren't giving up on us" I pleaded with him, moving closer to touch him, to run my hands on him if it meant him knowing that I was here

" I am tired Reina, of this charade we call marriage, of what we have.... I am tired already" he answered me, his gaze drifting off, he wasn't looking at me, perhaps was that how much he hated me. Did my presence disgust him?

I shook my head, not wanting to accept what I had just heard,

"We can make this work, Richard, you know that we can, don't you? You have always told me that we can do whatever we set our mind to do...remember?" I placed my hands on his arms, arms that had comforted me when we were having sex, hands that I would always want to be in

"We have been trying Reina, for the past four years, we have been putting in effort. I have been putting in the effort but I feel worse with each day that passes. I cannot breathe, you are suffocating me, your love is suffocating me and I want to breathe... I need to breathe and you need to go away from me"

My steps faltered and I took a deep breath to think properly " Please.... Please do not do this to me Richard, you are free to do whatever it is that you want to do...I wouldn't hold you back, just don't leave me... I cannot.... I cannot think straight without you, all I am pleading for is your presence, just that so please...don't leave me"

He scoffed, pulling my hands away from him, " This is one effing reason I do not like you anymore. Can you see how you are lowering yourself just so I can be in your life? Tell me, Reina, aside from your wit, what else do you have? Perhaps are you scared that no one would want your sorry arse anymore, you disgust me"

I flipped my gaze at him,amidst my sobs, amidst the reminder that my heart had been broken earlier, I was determined to make things work, was I asking for too much?

"Tell me, Richard... Why does it have to end this way? I did everything you wanted me to do...you wanted my shares, and I gave them to you, you wanted my body, I gave it to you, and even my love.... you have them all.. so tell me" my voice quivered with anguish as I tried to find the right words to say

It felt like my heart was being yanked out of my body and stomped on, I needed all of this to make sense, I needed to know why I wasn't worth it when I had given my all, why was I being treated like trash?

"I never asked for anything," he shrugged, walking past me,

"All of this, I never wanted it and you knew that, you gave me your heart because you thought I warranted it, you gave it all because you knew no one else wanted you"

I placed a hand on my chest when his words pierced through, like tiny needles, they broke me, shattered me into tiny pieces, pieces I knew wouldn't be recoverable but still I wanted him, I wanted him to know that I was finally having his children, that he was going to be a father, would it make any difference?

"And that is what you think is right? Or perhaps is it because of who you had in your office?"

He gazed at me,mouth agape" You were in my office?"

" Yes" I nodded, " I was in your office and I heard them all, the moans, the grunts, the fact that she kept urging you on, I stood out there, and even when they kept resonating in my ear, even when.." I squeezed my eyes tightly, trying as hard as I could not to recall what had happened before flicking them open

I let out sniffled noises when he stared at me shocked, "I listened as my husband banged into another woman who wasn't me, as he fucked someone who wasn't me and I came back here, waiting for you, waiting to talk to you..."

" I do not want a divorce," I shook my head, objecting to what he had said earlier

" I don't, I do not want one, all I am asking is you by my side, and we can start afresh so please...don't do this to me...your company still needs me, please..."

He stared at the ceiling, before glancing at me, his eyes, olive brown, danced when they came in contact with the lightning in the room. I could tell he was having a hard choice, he needed me, he needed me in his life.

" Ariana is back..."

I stumbled backward, my hands gripping the hardwood in front of me,

" Ariana?" I wanted to be sure of what I had heard,

I fidgeted with my hands while gulping down the lump that was stuck in my throat, "Was she the one...the same person you had in your office?"

The silence that followed gave me the answer I needed, I flicked my head to the table, where the documents lay.

" Divorce papers" were written boldly on it and all it would take was my signature and whatever we had would be annulled but I didn't want to let him go, not to Ariana, a childhood friend of mine who had always wanted everything I wanted.

" Sign those Reina, and get out of my life, I am expecting a child with Ariana soon and I have promised to stay by her side, so get out of my life" My gaze followed his slender legs as he walked up the stairs and my legs moved as fast as they could toward him.

Wrapping a hand around his wrist, I flipped him around, smiling wryly at him, " I have something to tell you also, I went to the doctor today and...."

" Get. Out. Of. My. Life" he shoved me aside, spitting harshly to my face. I gasped out in shock as I felt my legs give way, before stumbling backward, I stretched out a hand at him, hoping that he would hold me, but when a grin appeared on his face, I knew I was done for,

I wrapped my hand firmly around my stomach protectively as I rolled down the stairs, a tear slipped through my eyes before I slumped on the marble tiles.

Reina's POV

I gasped out with sweat running down my face, and my chest heaving heavily, I flipped my gaze around taking in sight of the room I was in when I saw Nina, seated on the long couch, how long had she been sitting there?

A wave of pain shot through my body, numbing me for seconds, and I reclined against the wall, squeezing my eyes tight as memories from what had happened came back just like a running train would have.

Did he hate me that much already? I could remember vividly well that I had stretched out a hand to him, hoping that he would hold me but he had flashed a grin at me before stepping back.

"My babies" I gasped out, running a hand on my stomach, were they gone?

"Reina..?" Nina's voice came through and I flicked my eyes open,

"My babies....." I whispered with dread filling my voice, that shallow feeling in my stomach seemed to have worsened,

"Don't tell me I lost them?" She averted her gaze to the ground and my heart flipped, my hands lay limp by my side and I could feel life snuffing out of me with each moment that passed. Does it mean I have lost everything? My children also?

I clasped a hand over my mouth as I tried as hard as I could not to let out the muffled cries, I couldn't do that. The bed dipped when she sat beside me, before taking my hands in hers.

"Your babies Reina" She tilted my head to face her, placing a finger underneath my chin. "Are fine"

I sighed in relief, pulling my hands from hers before caressing them, and cooing gently to them. "I thought that I had lost them.... I did...when I slipped down and hit my head on the tile...I thought" Tears cascaded down my face and I let them down as my body convulsed, Nina pulled me close, patting me gently on the back

"Why do you keep making excuses for him when he doesn't deserve them? Why...."

" I didn't" I shrugged, but I knew it was all a lie.

"You did Reina, you didn't slip and I know it...the doctor said you were pushed," she palmed her forehead, a hand on her waist.

"Tell me how exactly did it happen? What did you do wrong that Richard had to treat you in such a way? Not minding the fact that you were pregnant, with his child"

" He doesn't know that I am pregnant" I whispered under my breath, but the look on her face told me she heard what I had said perfectly well.

She squinted her eyes at me, a dumbfounded look on her face," You said you were going to tell him, so why didn't you?"

I gazed up at the ceiling, fixing my gaze on the one hole in it, the one that seemed to pull me in the longer I stared at it.

"Ariana is back"

The silence that ensued was deafening and I could tell she was going to have a hard time also

" He is leaving you for Ariana? Isn't he? That's good for nothing man, the same person who you shouldn't have given an effing chance is leaving you for his ex-girlfriend?"

I nodded my head at her

" That jerk who you had given it all to, your shares, Reina, gosh" she palmed her head, stalking toward the door.

My body shook when I remembered all that I had done for him, I remember how he kept calling me his helper when I had stormed the company, just to vote for him, my family had the highest share after his and he had been glad when I had handed it all to him, wasn't I foolish? Thinking he wouldn't leave?

" I. Told. You. I. Warned. You but you didn't listen, you told me that he wouldn't hurt you and that he had promised never to leave you now this"

" Is this all you get in return, for your years of helping him, like how....tell me how...does this even make sense?"

" Nina, please stop" I fiddled with my hands while staring at her with glossy eyes, remembering how I had chased her away only to know that she was the only one who had been here,

" Let me tell you what you are supposed to know, Richard hasn't been here for over two weeks, two weeks Reina" she raised two of her fingers, pointing them at me.

"And this..." she picked up a piece of documents, one that I could recognize even at first glimpse, she threw them at me. " He gave instructions that you should sign them whenever you are awake" I picked up the documents that were thrown at me.

"Don't you think I should talk to him? Please hand over the phone...I need to place a call to him...I need him to know that I am awake and I want to tell him that we are having babies...please Nina," I placed both of my palms together, rubbing them.

"Just this once...this once and I promise not to look back...let me talk things out with him and I will make a decision"

She sighed heavily and dipped her hands into the bag by her side before stretching the phone to me.

I fidgeted as I tried to type in Richard's number and when it finally went through, I placed a hand on my chest when it hit the voicemail.

"Hmmm..'' I gulped in, trying it countless times,

"He isn't picking, is he?" I continued, not wanting to listen to whatever it is that Nina was saying.

"Come on...please pick up" I pleaded as I tried again, and relief washed over me when he finally answered.

" Richard.. this is Reina and I am calling to let you know that I am fine now and that I am expecting our babies, not just one but two of them... you know you always talked about twins...I am finally pregnant..can you have a change of heart?" I fiddled with my fingers as I waited for him to give me an answer

" Richard isn't here, and he would never know about your babies, I will make sure of that Reina, so get rid of them"

The phone slipped through my hands, hitting the bed I was on as my chest tightened, everything seemed to be working against me, why? My eyes glistened with tears on them as I stared at Nina who had picked up the phone, flipping it in the air.

"He didn't pick up," I said amidst tears, "Richard didn't pick up, he had given Ariana the phone, or maybe...he isn't there...yes," I nodded,

" That is the only reason why Ariana would pick up because I do not understand why this is happening"

Nina walked closer to me, cupping my cheek, before forcing me to stare at her. " You look just like a mess" she whispered to me, while caressing my face gently.

" And you do not look like the Reina I had grown up with, get a hold of yourself and do the needful"

I shook my head, there was no way I could, " I cannot let him go, Nina, not Richard, I cannot do that and..."

" He has let you go!" Her voice was cold, and it penetrated through my heart, numbing me for a second

"And you should too"

" Do you think it is for the best? What if.." I shrugged but I couldn't find the right word to say anymore, I knew I had kept making up excuses for him

" Do it, Reina..." Nina fixed her eyes on the documents, " Do it and let's get away from this place together, away from him and let's start life anew"

" With you?" She nodded before flashing a smile at me.

I let out an exasperated sigh, before taking the documents,skimming through them, life with Nina didn't seem so bad. I took the pen I was handed, scrambling gently on the paper

" I think it is time I let him go, Nina"