His Ex-wife secret: Sinclair

PROLOGUE

I don't want to get married now. I am not ready. I love someone else, Dylan. Help me beg Father; he listens to what you say, D. Mia was desperately pleading with her older brother to plead her case to her father.

"It's beyond my power, Mia. Our father has made his mind up, and you know how scary he can be if he doesn't have things done his way," Dylan said.

"Who am I getting married to, D? At least you can tell me that." D is usually what Mia calls her older brother; it's the pet name given by her to Dylan.

"XAVIER SINCLAIR. Does the name ring a bell?" Dylan asked Mia based on her shocked reaction.

"Who doesn't know the Sinclair family? They are a billionaire conglomerate family in the country."

But most of all, Mia was shocked because she never expected her high school and college crush to be who she was marrying.

She read so well to be accepted into the same college as Xavier, just Princeton, just because of her one-sided crush she has for him, and he never noticed her, and now that is who she is getting married to.

"I agree; I am going to marry him," Mia exclaimed with excitement.

The marriage is not a love marriage; it's more like a business deal between two rich families. Mia's father's business was on the brink of bankruptcy, and he needed the alliance with the Sinclairs to save his company, but Mia had a different reason for agreeing to the union. Xavier had always been her crush since high school, but she never approached him until the marriage decision.

Xavier is a playboy and never wanted to be tied down to one woman. It wasn't Mia's wish to just cause turmoil in his life.

In the early days of their marriage, he didn't even look at her, talk to her, or touch her.

On their wedding night, he left her in the room, only for him to come back drunk with female lipstick on his shirt. But slowly, things began changing between them. The sexual frustration between the two of them got loose after one night of passion when he was at his lowest. He lost his lover and girlfriend.

He was depressed and down and needed comfort, and as if fate played a trick on them, Mia was not feeling good herself and needed friendly comfort, and he was just the right person at the time.

The comfort from each other turned into a night of passion.

The look in his eyes changed from just lust to total admiration upon finding out that he was Mia's first.

3 YEARS AFTER

Mia woke up early today to prepare a special meal for her husband before he left for work. Today was special to her, as it's their third anniversary as a married couple.

She looked to her side to see the man she had given her heart to soundly asleep. He looked so peaceful and handsome at the same time. A blush crept on her face.

His lips looked so tempting that all she wanted to do was kiss them. Unable to resist, she moved closer, hoping to steal a tender kiss, but as she leaned in, his eyes opened, catching her in the act, and it held no emotion.

"Good morning, love." She greeted him with a smile.

"Good morning". He just replied plainly when he stood up from the bed, went to the bathroom to get his bath, and got ready for work.

They make love literally every day, yet it lacks passion and affection, more like an obligation to Xavier.

He no longer found pleasure with her; it felt forced for him to think they used to be madly in love.

He blames her for what happened two years ago, and honestly, she don't blame him. The guilt she feel is immeasurable;

"If only I had listened to him," Mia agonized, as the guilt of that fateful incident, that transformed their love into something unrecognizable.

Mia went downstairs to prepare his favorite breakfast omelet and also made sure to make his coffee for him black, just as he liked it, with the help of Mrs. Adams, their maid.

Xavier came down while adjusting his Rolex watch, looking sexy in his black tuxedo suit.

He just went straight for the door, ignoring the food on the table.

"Are you not going to eat your breakfast?" Mia asked him. He stopped to look at her; his face stayed calm and expressionless. There were no obvious smiles or frowns, just a composed demeanor.

"Do I report to you why I am not eating? I am not just hungry, he said" with a cold voice, hoping she would not disturb him any further.

As usual, it didn't bother her that he treated her this way. She knows that lately he has been stressed about a deal that is not going through. And that has made him a little distant with her, but that was just an excuse.

She was just happy to see his face every day, happy to be called his wife, and happy to be able to love him freely.

His chauffeur was waiting for him, and he was in a hurry to get outside. Without hesitation, Mia followed him and held him back to stop him.

"Come home soon," she told him, more like pleading with him. He just nodded.

She stood on her tiptoes to give him a kiss on the lips and whispered, I love you, to him. Still the same response; he just nodded and left with his driver in his Range Rover.

As usual, she didn't comment on his rude behavior towards her. It didn't bother Mia that her husband treated her that way.

This started about a year ago: him staying out late some nights because of work, and the very day he comes home, he just has sex with her, and in the morning he takes a quick shower and goes back to work.

Mia never wanted to add the inclusion that her husband could be cheating on her, and even if he did, she was still willing to be with him and fight for her marriage.

She had everything planned out already for how she was going to celebrate this year's anniversary; all she needed was for him to come home early.

She had ordered a cake a week ago and freshened up to pick up the cake and start the decoration.

She got into her black Audi as a birthday gift from her husband in their second year of marriage. Gifts were part of his love language, so she hurriedly went to pick up her cake at the bakery.

She couldn't stop grinning. The cake came out nice, just as she had imagined. She couldn't wait to see Xavier's face. Their initials were written on it with frosting, surrounded by red hearts.

She went home and started preparing for the special dinner. Since she stopped working because she was trying to conceive, it was both her and Xavier's idea to stop working in the company and focus on childbirth, but things did not go their way.

Mia had missed her husband terribly-the way he used to look at her with love in his eyes, like she was the only one in this whole universe for him.

The way he used to hold and caress her face before leaning in for a kiss.

She craved her husband's attention, but she knew she was getting none of that, and that's why she chose to fight back for their love, for him to realise he still loved her.

She was still in denial that he had fallen out of love with her.

He shouldn't give up on their marriage just because of a mistake on her part.

She was wearing the clothes he bought for her on their first anniversary. He loved the cloth on her; her hair was wavy, just like how he liked her natural hair. She was wearing natural eyeshadow with dark red lipstick.

Mrs. Adam, their maid, helped her set up the house with romantic candles, and Mia gave her and the rest of the staff the day off. The only person missing is her husband.

Everything was perfect for her, with the perfect weather conditions.

Nothing can go wrong. Mia kept muttering to herself while she kept checking her watch. It was almost 8, and her husband wasn't back. It was past his closing hour, so she decided to call him. The first dial went to voicemail.

Mia kept muttering to herself, "Nothing can go wrong," while she checked her watch.

It was almost 8 o'clock, and her husband still hadn't returned, even though it was past his closing hour.

She decided to call him, but the first dial went to voicemail.

"Hey baby, it's me. I just wanted to know if you're on your way home. Give me a call. I miss you, babe. Love you." She hung up the call, and at that exact moment, she heard his car honk.

He had finally arrived. Mia ran as fast as her legs could carry her to hug him, but he stopped her and shoved her aside.

"Happy anniversary, my love," she said, ignoring his rude behavior and speaking excitedly while trying to grab his bag.

"Can you believe we've been married for three years now?" She asked, moving to kiss him, but he dodged her, which hurt Mia.

"So, this is how you waste your time and my money doing these childish things?" he asked Mia.

"What do you think my apartment is for?" Mia replied angrily, with a scowl on her face.

"I need a divorce," he blurted out.

Mia stood frozen in front of him, not believing what he just said. She looked at him to check for a sign that he was joking, but he kept a serious, deadpan face.

It took her a minute to get her composure. "Babe, you're joking, right?" She couldn't believe what she was hearing.

"How was work? It was stressful, right? That's why you are saying this." Mia kept shaking her head, asking.

"Great, just great. You think I'm some frustrated man that would get so riled up because of work?" Xavier asked with a mocking laugh.

"Do I look like a clown?"

He took long, striking steps towards Mia as she took small steps back, about to stumble, with cold, menacingly cold eyes.

"You had one job, Mia, one freaking job to have our child, but nothing. You couldn't do it for three years now, and all you can come up with is a celebration for our anniversary."

"What is there to be celebrated about? You are a manipulator, a liar, selfish, and a cheater." He raised his voice at her.

"I'm trying, Xavier, and you know I am." Mia tried to explain with tears flowing down her face.

"And I never lied or cheated on you, Xavier." Mia wondered what it was he heard about her that made him say and react this way.

"All you know how to do is lie and lie over and over again. I'm sick of this thing we have between us."

**********

A week later

Mia headed straight to the hospital. She signed up for fertility treatment without her husband's notice.

"Mrs. Sinclair, I made it clear that for this next appointment, you were supposed to come with your husband," Dr. Michelle asked Kiara.

"He... he... he can't make it today. He is on a business trip," she lied to the doctor.

"How are the results, doctor? Am I the problem? Is something wrong with me?" Mia couldn't help but ask the doctor so many questions all at once, with a sweaty face and shivering hands.

Checking through the system, Dr. Michelle confirmed, "You are perfectly fine based on the results we conducted."

"What then is the problem, doctor?" Mia asked the doctor with a puzzled look on her face.

"That was the reason I requested your husband be here so we could conduct some tests on him."

Biting her fingers and stamping her legs in small steps is a habit Mia cultivates whenever something bothers her.

She is about to be kicked out of her matrimonial home. It takes about 2 weeks to bring the divorce letter and 2 more weeks to process it. All she thought she could do was get pregnant during those periods.

If only a miracle could happen right now. She was desperate to save her marriage.

All her life revolved around her husband. She had sacrificed a lot.

Yes, she had always liked her husband long before they married, but it couldn't deny the fact that she was used as collateral to save her father's dying company.

She was never seen or respected by the Sinclair family.

To Xavier's parents, she was a leech sucking off their son. They never valued her. The Sinclair family never deemed her fit for their son's social status.

Her mother-in-law was always on her neck for a child, always calling her a barren woman.

His siblings were no different, except for Nora, his twin sister. Xavier's elder sister just acted all superior.

Xavier's father, in fact, did not notice she existed. At one family dinner, he mistook her for the maid of the house.

She endured their insults and verbal abuse for the past 3 years just because of her love for her husband.

She stopped working at her daddy's company because her dad suggested she stay at home as a full-time housewife just because of childbirth.

Apparently, the remaining stake remains for her dad in the company, which he may lose to the Sinclair if she cannot provide an heir, and they become the full owners of the company. That was part of the agreement.

Her dreams were kept on hold. Everything in her life-her marriage, her father's company-depends on her right now, and with the divorce filed by her husband, it's only a matter of time before she gets kicked out.

"I'm going to prescribe these drugs for you to boost fertility. You get them and take them as prescribed, and let's see how it goes." Dr. Michelle brought Mia back from her thoughts.

"Dr. Michelle, I want to ask for a favor. Can this be kept between us, please? I beg you, Mia pleaded to the doctor desperately.

"Dr. Michelle held Mia's hand. This stays between us, I promise."

*****

"What are you still doing well in my son's house?" It was Xavier's mother.

"I thought by now my son would get rid of you, and you would be gone." She continued

Didn't you get those divorce papers? Mia just realized that her mother-in-law was in support of their divorce and that Xavier wasn't joking the other night.

She wasn't surprised about her mother-in-law's attitude towards her; it was nothing new, but she was hurt. She just wanted her mother-in-law to defend her once.

"I knew you shouldn't be trusted, so you were cheating on my son."

"What, mother! I would never do that," Mia responded, trying to defend herself against this accusation.

Faster than lightning, her mother-in-law slapped her across the face. "You lying bitch."

"I am talking, and you are talking back to me. You have no respect or manners for your elders."

It stung so much that tears welled up in her eyes. She didn't want to be a crybaby right now, but this was too much.

Mia just kept shaking her head with her pleading eyes, muttering a small "no, no, it was not me."

"Nora told me everything," her mother-in-law kept insisting.

Nora is Xavier's twin sister and the only person who always takes Mia's side in the family. Now she was the one spreading such malicious rumors about her.

Mia kept muttering, "Mummy, it's not me. I can't do such a thing. I love my husband; I would never cheat on my husband," with tears in her eyes.

"I just want you out of my son's life before the end of today. I knew you were a gold digger and one not to be trusted," Xavier's mother kept accusing Mia.

Xavier's mother decided to take her leave. On her way out, she paused to tell Mia something. "And by the way, my son already has someone special in his life who could probably be pregnant and finally give us the heir we wanted."

Mia drove to her husband's office immediately after her mother-in-law left.

"Can I help you, ma'am?" the receptionist asked professionally.

The receptionist kept eyeing Mia up and down, from the casual-looking shoes she was wearing to the dress.

Right now, she is just a shell of herself. Dressing doesn't impress her anymore. The one she thought she was dressing for does not compliment her anymore and does not find her attractive.

"I am here to see Xavier Sinclair," she requested.

"Do you have an appointment with him before coming?" the receptionist asked.

The receptionist had thought she was some low one-night stand prostitute and that she had the intention of blackmailing her boss.

"I was wondering if I could be buzzed in. I forgot my phone at home and couldn't inform him of my coming."

"Ma'am, you are asked to wait in the lobby as the boss is indisposed at the moment."

Sixty minutes had passed, and she was still sitting down unattended. Right where she was seated, she saw the receptionist ushering a guest who came to see Xavier inside the elevator.

The receptionist had just told her that Xavier was not around. Standing up from where she was seated, she reached out to the receptionist, but just in time, she was interrupted.

"Yes?" questioned a familiar voice she knew all too well, her husband's right-hand man and cousin Raphael Sinclair. He was the lawyer in charge of legal tenders in the office and her husband's best friend.

"Hi, Raphael. Is Xavier in? I've been waiting in the lobby for the past thirty minutes," she said.

He gave the receptionist a sinister look. "Don't you know she is Mrs. Sinclair?"

"I only told her the boss was indisposed at the moment," the receptionist defended herself.

She insisted she was just following her boss's instructions not to allow anyone without an appointment to enter.

Raphael is Xavier's cousin and also a friend of her, and he has been nice to her.

She could hear voices from her husband's office, her husband's voice, and a female voice that sounded oddly familiar.

She feared opening her husband's office door because it felt like she was about to open Pandora's box. Different thoughts swirled in her mind.

What would her husband's reaction be because she came to his office unannounced? Lost in her thoughts, she hesitated to open the door. On another thought, she considered going back and informing Raphael to pass the information on to her husband.

Just as she was about to make a U-turn, she was brought back to reality when the door to his office opened, and she bumped forward into his chest, causing a picture to fall from her husband's hand.

With her face pressed against her husband's chest, she struggled to remove her head from his shirt because her earring was hooked to the button of his shirt.

"Damn this earring; now is not the time," she cursed at herself with pure embarrassment.

Mia was harshly brought back to reality when her husband yanked her hair away from his shirt, removing his upper shirt button in the process.

Mia winced "Ouch!" Xavier felt guilty for a blink of a millisecond before switching to his angry face.

The pain on her scalp was imminent, and she looked up to meet his face.

Huffing, he growled to himself before directing his anger towards her.

"Why can't you just do things right? And by the way, what are you doing here?" he asked, the anger evident in every word.

Xavier bent down to quickly pick up the picture, trying to hide it from Mia, but she caught a glimpse of it-it was a sonogram.

"It could be true," Mia muttered to herself, trying to convince herself; she was still in denial.

He had just come out of his office with a smile on his face, and now he was preventing her from entering his office and shutting the door on her without any gentleness.

Mia stammered, struggling to speak properly. "I wanted to..." She lost her composure and couldn't find the right words.

She was sure she saw a baby sonogram. Could it be that Xavier cheated on her? She was confused and heartbroken.

"What do you want to say? Be quick about it." His lips pulled down in a ferocious scowl as he sent her a hateful glare.

Mia, unsure of what to say and how she was going to state the main reason why she was here, felt like she had finally lost her husband, which is what he wanted the most. But she was still in denial that it could be someone else's.

She couldn't deny it; she could feel the hatred he harbored for her. It hurt a lot. He would always compliment how good she looked in this dress, no matter how many times she wore it, but it was different this time. It physically and emotionally pained her to know that her husband hated her and that he couldn't even stand the sight of her for a proper conversation. It hurt to know that he no longer welcomed her sweetly as he used to do before; he didn't even want her in his vicinity.

"Good you came, Raphael. Where are the papers? I need her signature on them before she leaves." Xavier asked, looking in the direction of his cousin.

"My signature on what, Xavier? You can't do this. As of now, she was on the verge of tears, but she promised herself not to cry.

She tried to hold them in.

"I'm sorry," Raphael whispered to Mia. He had no choice.

"And what if I don't sign them?" Mia asked.

"Not only would your father and beloved brother lose their share in the company, they would be left broke, and your family would be back to square zero. And just so you know, you would be the cause."

With long, thundering steps, Xavier moved towards Mia, looking at her with cold stares. She tried to meet his cold stare with all her willpower, trying not to back down.

This is one of the reasons he loved her-she never backed down easily. And now he was going to use her greatest weakness-the person she loves most after him-her brother.

"Not only would your family be penniless, but I would also make sure to send your brother Dylan to jail for fraud. And do you know what would be his crime?" Pointing his finger at her, he said, "YOU."

"He will rot in jail on account of your father's sins, and I will make sure to make him suffer. That's a promise I'm making to you."

He could see the fear in her eyes; that's what he wanted-for her to yield.

"You are heartless, Xavier," and now the tears couldn't stop flowing from her eyes.

Xavier's threat about her brother made her weak. Her brother was her only real family after the death of her mother, and she couldn't afford to let any harm come to him. She collected the papers and signed the divorce agreement immediately.