Mr. CEO's Darling Shame

AVA'S POV

The word positive blinked up at me in neat black letters, and for a long moment, I just stared at it, my breath caught in my throat.

I pressed a trembling hand to my lips, laughter and tears threatening to spill all at once. After months of trying, after all my silent prayers whispered into the darkness of our bedroom, it had finally happened. I was pregnant.

Adrian's child.

My fingers tightened around the test results until the paper crinkled. I could already imagine the look on his face when I told him. Adrian was always so controlled, so careful about appearances, but this... this would break through the ice. He would smile. He had to.

For two years, I had longed to give him this. To give us this. A family.

I brushed a stray curl behind my ear, wiped at the dampness on my cheeks, and tucked the results safely into my bag. Then I hurried out of the clinic, my heart fluttering like it hadn't in years.

Adrian would be at the office-probably in the middle of one of his big meetings. Sinclair Global was visiting today; he'd been talking about it for weeks obsessed with securing the partnership, muttering about global expansion, profit margins, and prestige. I had listened quietly, always silently proud that he was so driven. But surely he could spare a few minutes. This wasn't just business news. This was our life changing forever.

I leaned back in the car seat as the driver pulled out into the traffic. My palm rested against my stomach, and for the first time, I whispered the word out loud.

"A Baby."

My baby. Our baby.

I smiled the whole way to Voss Tower.

***

The glass façade of the building glittered like a mirror against the afternoon sun, and for once, I didn't feel intimidated as I stepped inside. The marble floors echoed under my heels as I crossed the lobby, my pulse racing with excitement.

The receptionist looked up as I approached. "Good afternoon," I said softly. "Could you let Mr. Voss know his wife is here? I'd like to see him."

Her brows pinched together. "His... wife?"

I returned her stare with a small, polite smile. "Yes. Ava Voss. Tell him I have important news."

Something flickered in her eyes-confusion, then something else. She smirked. "Nice try. Mr. Voss doesn't have a wife. Unless you mean his partner, Ms. Monroe."

I blinked, thrown off guard. "I-I think you must be mistaken. Adrian and I have been married for two years." I tried to laugh it off, but my stomach knotted.

The receptionist folded her arms. "Sweetheart, everyone knows Adrian is with Selene Monroe. She's practically his wife already."

The words were a slap. My throat tightened. "That's not true," I whispered.

"Well, it is true."

The voice came from behind me. Smooth. Taunting.

I turned slowly, and my heart dropped. Selene Monroe.

She looked even more beautiful and striking. She was tall and radiant, draped in a scarlet dress that clung to every flawless curve. Her auburn hair tumbled around her shoulders, her painted lips curved into a cruel smile.

Selene. Adrian's old friend from college. The one he insisted was "just like family." The one I'd always told myself I had no reason to fear. The one who I had occasionally invited to have dinner with Adrian and myself

She looked me up and down as if I were dirt tracked onto her marble floor. "Adrian didn't tell me you'd be stopping by today," she purred. "Oh wait-that's because you don't belong here."

Heat crawled up my neck. "Selene, what are you talking about. Adrian and I-"

"Adrian and you?" Selene laughed, tilting her head. "Darling, there is no Adrian and you."

She walked up to me and leaned closer to whisper, "You didn't really think he loves being with someone like you, now. Did you?"

I furrowed my eyebrows at her words. "Selene, what do you mean...?"

"What I mean, oh sweet Ava is that Adrian's too ashamed to even acknowledge you and I mean, with a face like that, you can't exactly blame him."

"Why do you think you never attend events with him? Why do you think no one here even knows who you are?"

Ashamed?

The word struck so deep I could barely breathe. I shook my head. "You're lying. Adrian loves me. He told me you were just friends."

Selene's smile widened, sharp as a blade. "Oh, sweet Ava. I am his friend. The kind who warms his bed while you play house all alone."

My heart lurched violently. I wanted to scream at her, deny it, but the receptionist was watching with open amusement, and a few people nearby had begun to whisper. My scar burned hot on my cheek, as if their stares could set it aflame.

I swallowed hard. "You're wrong." My voice trembled. "You're lying."

Before Selene could reply, the elevator doors slid open.

And there he was.

Adrian. My husband.

He stepped out in his tailored suit, every inch the commanding CEO. His dark hair gleamed under the lights, his gray eyes sweeping over the lobby. The room seemed to hold its breath.

Relief flooded me. He would clear this up. He would shut Selene down. He would tell everyone the truth-that I was his wife.

"Adrian," I said, rushing toward him, my hand pressed protectively against my bag. "I need to tell you something."

His gaze landed on me. For the briefest heartbeat, I thought I saw something flicker in his eyes. Recognition. Panic.

But then his expression iced over. His jaw tightened, his voice clipped and cold.

"Who are you?"

The words slammed into me with the force of a wrecking ball.

I froze, staring at him, my mind scrambling to understand. "Adrian... what are you saying? It's me. I'm your wife."

Selene's laugh sliced through the silence. The receptionist smirked triumphantly. The security guards at the edge of the room shifted, waiting for his command.

Adrian didn't look at me. Didn't see me. He only adjusted his cufflinks, his tone hard as steel.

He looked around. "Who let you in here? Who let her in here?"

"I don't understand, Adrian. It's me, Ava. Your wife." He avoided my eyes and looked around hurriedly.

"Security! Do I pay you to let just anyone walk in here as they please? What the hell do I pay you guys for?" he said with his voiced raised.

Two security guards moved toward me. I stumbled back, my chest constricting.

"Escort her out and make sure she doesn't harass my staff again. I don't ever want to see her near my office again."

The world tilted. My knees weakened. My hands shook as the paper inside my bag crumpled beneath my grip.

"Adrian.... wait. I don't understand." No, this can't be happening. Adrian wouldn't do this to me. He wouldn't treat me like this.

The guards gripped my arms firmly, dragging me toward the side exit. I twisted, struggling, my voice breaking. My throat locked. I tried to call his name, to make him look at me, see me, but Adrian was already turning away-toward Selene, who smirked like a queen receiving her crown.

"Adrian, please-Adrian, it's me!"

But he never turned.

And then the second elevator opened.

A hush fell over the lobby as Charles Sinclair stepped out, flanked by his entourage. Silver hair, sharp suit, eyes as cold and sharp as the empire he ruled. My father.

My breath caught.

AVA'S POV

The doors slammed behind me with a cruel finality, the echo rattling through my chest. I stumbled onto the cold stone steps outside Voss Tower, the guards releasing me like trash tossed to the curb.

My knees buckled, and I clutched my bag to me, the paper with its life-altering words crumpled somewhere inside. A child. Our child. Yet the only words ringing in my ears were Adrian's: I don't know this woman.

The world tilted. My stomach churned, and for a moment I thought I might collapse right there on the steps.

"Ava?"

The familiar voice froze me.

I turned, my eyes blurring, and saw him.

Ethan Sinclair-my older brother. His tall frame cut a sharp figure in his navy suit, his usually composed face shadowed by anger as he hurried toward me.

"What the hell just happened?" His hands gripped my arms, steadying me. His eyes darted from my trembling body to the massive building behind me. "I just saw you being dragged out by guards. What's going on Ava?" I couldn't get a word out.

"Did Adrian do this?" I avoided his gaze.

"Ava-why would your husband have you thrown out like that?"

My lips parted, but no sound came. I tried to smile, to brush it off, but tears burned my eyes. "It's-it's not what you think. Adrian was just... upset. T-today is a big day for him, so he's under a lot of pressure. He didn't mean it."

"Upset?" Ethan's voice thundered, his sharp blue eyes narrowing. "Ava, I've seen hostile takeovers handled with more respect than what I just witnessed. He humiliated you. In public."

I shook my head desperately. "No, Ethan, please-don't make this into something it isn't. He's under a lot of pressure with the Sinclair deal. I shouldn't have shown up without warning."

Ethan's grip tightened slightly. "Sinclair Global is only at the table because you begged Father to give him a chance. If Dad knew you were being treated like this-"

I jerked back, panic surging through me. "No!" The word tore from my throat. "Please, Ethan, don't tell him. You know Father. He'll pull the deal immediately, and Adrian-"

"I will never understand what you saw in him. Adrian doesn't deserve you, let alone Father's trust," Ethan snapped. His chest heaved as he glared toward the glass doors as if he could storm in and drag Adrian out himself. "Does he know who you are? Have you told him yet? Does he even know who he married?"

My heart stuttered. The question cut too close.

"No," I whispered. My throat tightened. "He doesn't. And I want to keep it that way. I didn't marry him as a Sinclair. I married him as me. Just... Ava."

Ethan's jaw clenched. "And look what 'just Ava' gets you." His voice softened then, and his expression shifted from fury to something worse: pity. He pulled me into his arms, his voice a low rumble above my head. "I can't stand seeing you hurt like this. You deserve better."

The dam broke. My body shook against him, silent sobs spilling free as I buried my face in his chest. My brother, my protector. The only one who had ever stood between me and Father's ruthless expectations.

Ethan stroked my hair, murmuring, "I won't stay silent about this, Ava. He can't treat you like dirt and walk away unscathed."

I shook my head against him, gripping his jacket like a lifeline. "Please, Ethan. For me. Don't tell Father. Promise me. It was just a misunderstanding. Adrian didn't mean it."

Ethan leaned back, searching my face with an intensity that made me tremble. "Ava-"

"Promise me!" My voice cracked.

His shoulders sagged, defeat etched into the lines of his face. Finally, he sighed heavily. "Fine. I won't tell him. But, Ava, I'm warning you-if he humiliates you like this again, I will step in. With or without your permission."

I nodded, swallowing hard, though dread curled in my stomach.

He kissed my forehead and hugged me once more, tighter this time, as if he could shield me from the truth of my own choices. His cologne was familiar, grounding. I clung to it, desperate to believe everything could still be fixed.

To anyone else, it looked like comfort. But in the right hands, with the right poison, it could look like something else entirely.

As Ethan led me toward his car, shielding me from curious stares, I never looked back at the building. I never saw the shadowed figure smiling behind the glass.

"Perfect," Selene whispered, lowering her phone, her eyes glittering with malice. "Absolutely perfect. This is gonna be interesting."

AVA'S POV

By the time Ethan dropped me off at the Voss family estate, my tears had dried into a dull ache behind my eyes. I promised him again that I'd be fine, that there was no need to tell Father. Adrian didn't mean what he'd said. Ethan didn't believe me. I could see it in the way his jaw clenched, in the way his hands tightened around the steering wheel before he drove away.

But what choice did I have? If Father found out, Adrian's deal with Sinclair Global would vanish overnight-and with it, the only dream I had left of Adrian achieving his dreams and someday being proud of me.

I pushed open the front door, stepping into the cold, cavernous entryway. The scent of polish and lemon cleaner lingered in the air, but it did nothing to soften the voices that greeted me.

"There you are," my mother-in-law, Margaret Voss, snapped from the sitting room. "Where have you been, Ava? Running off first thing in the morning while the house looks like a pigsty? I suppose you expect us to make our own breakfast now?"

I froze, clutching my bag tighter.

Behind her, on the chaise, sat Adrian's younger sister, Marissa, scrolling lazily through her phone. She glanced up, her lips curling. "Honestly, Mother, what do you expect? Ava's not a wife. She's a leech. A curse. She couldn't boil water without burning it, let alone care for this house properly."

Heat rose in my face, but I kept my tone steady. "I-I had an appointment this morning. At the hospital."

Marissa's phone clattered to the cushion as she sat upright, eyes wide. "Hospital? Wait-don't tell me-are you pregnant?"

The words seemed to freeze the air.

Margaret's face went pale, then blotchy red as she surged to her feet. "Pregnant?" Her voice cracked like thunder. "Don't you dare say such a thing in this house, Ava. Don't you dare!"

I blinked, stunned. "But-why-"

She glanced at me and scoffed.

"But why? Because Ava," Margaret hissed, advancing on me with eyes full of venom, "my son's life has already been cursed once by marrying you. I will not have him chained forever to misfortune by a child that should never be born."

My hand instinctively covered my stomach. My heart clenched as though she had struck me physically.

Marissa smirked, her voice dripping with cruelty. "Mother's right. Imagine a child with her face. With that scar. What kind of misfortune would that bring to the Voss name?"

Tears stung my eyes, but I held them back. I would not cry. Not in front of them.

Margaret jabbed a finger toward me. "You'd better pray you're not pregnant, Ava. Pray every night. Because if you think we'll allow this family's legacy to be tainted, you're gravely mistaken."

I bit my lip so hard I tasted blood. The report in my bag burned like fire against my hip. Positive. The most beautiful word I had ever seen, now twisted into a curse on my tongue.

"I'll... make dinner," I whispered, and I turned away before they could see the crack in my composure.

***

That night, I sat alone in the darkened dining room, the clock ticking endlessly. The dinner I had prepared sat cold on the table, untouched. My scar ached with the memory of Margaret's words, Marissa's laughter, Adrian's denial.

At last, the front door slammed open.

I shot to my feet, heart racing, hope warring with dread.

Adrian staggered in, the sharp tang of whiskey hitting me before he even crossed the threshold. His tie hung loose around his neck, his shirt half-untucked. Red lipstick smeared faintly across his collar.

And clinging to him was a scent that didn't belong to me. Floral. Sweet. Expensive. Selene. My face fell.

"Adrian," I breathed, stepping forward. "You're home."

He stopped in the doorway, his gray eyes bloodshot, his expression hard as stone. "Don't." His voice was low, dangerous. "Don't come near me."

I froze.

His gaze flicked to the table, then back to me, disgust curling his lip. "What is this? Another pathetic attempt to play house? Do you think I need your little dinners to feel like I have a wife?"

My chest tightened. "I just wanted-"

"To disgrace me huh. What you want doesn't matter!" His shout cut through me, sharp and merciless. "Do you hear me? What you want doesn't matter. Not your feelings. Not your face. Not your-" He stopped abruptly, his nostrils flaring, his eyes narrowing as if he had caught something in the air.

"And how dare you show your face at my office this morning after I've told you-warned you-not to? How many times must I remind you, Ava? You don't belong there. You don't belong in my world."

The words ripped through me, harsher than the guards' hands dragging me out. I stumbled back, shaking my head.

My hand instinctively brushed against my stomach.

"What were you doing at the hospital this morning?" His words were cold, edged with suspicion.

I swallowed, my throat dry. "It was just-just a check-up. Nothing important."

He stepped closer, looming over me, the scent of whiskey and another woman suffocating me. "If you're hiding something from me, Ava..." His voice dropped to a deadly whisper. "I'll never forgive you."

I trembled, clutching my bag against me like a shield. The test result pressed hard against my palm inside, a secret I wasn't ready to share-not now, not like this.

"Adrian, please," I whispered. "I just... I just wanted to see you happy."

His laugh was bitter, sharp as broken glass. "Happy? By humiliating me? Happy? With you?"

"I-I only wanted to surprise you. I thought you'd be happy."

"Happy?" He gave a bitter laugh, his mouth twisted cruelly. "The only thing I felt when you walked into that building was shame." My heart dropped.

"I warned you never to come to my office," I snapped, stepping closer. "And yet you did. After everything I've told you, you still disobeyed me. Do you have any idea what you've done? You humiliated me in front of my staff. In front of Sinclair Global."

My chin trembled. "I didn't mean-"

"Didn't mean?" His laugh was bitter. "You're unstable, Ava. Confused. Obsessed with playing the role of wife when you're nothing but a liability to me. I've been protecting you from the world's eyes, and this is how you repay me?"

My eyes filled with tears, but I shook her head desperately. "Adrian, that's not fair-"

Tears blurred my vision. My heart twisted so violently I thought I might faint. Protecting me? Was that what he called his shame? Was that what he meant every time he'd told me not to show up at his office, not to attend his events, not to stand beside him in public?

He wasn't protecting me.

He was hiding me. Selene was right.

"And now," He roared, slamming my fist onto the table, "I find out you've been parading around in public with another man? Do you enjoy making me look like a fool?" My breath caught in my throat.

"Who is he Ava?"

My face went white. "What? No! Adrian, I would never-"

"Don't lie to me!"

The force of his voice shook me to my core. My hands instinctively pressed against my stomach, as though to shield the tiny secret growing inside me. His gaze lingered for a second, suspicion flickering in his eyes, before turning away in disgust.

He shoved past me, sending me stumbling against the table. Plates rattled, silverware clattered, but I caught myself before falling.

The silence he left behind was deafening.

Adrian didn't look back. He only muttered, "You disgust me." as he disappeared up the stairs, leaving the reek of whiskey and betrayal in his wake.

I sank into my chair, the tears spilling freely now. My hand trembled as it lingered on my stomach. I can't tell him, I realized with a sickening clarity. If he could look at me with such hatred now, what would he do if he knew? He wouldn't see a baby. He would see a trap. Another curse.

Staring at the untouched dinner, the lipstick stain burnt into my memory like a stamp. My stomach twisted violently-not from the child I carried, but from the growing realization that Adrian might never see me as anything more than a shame he couldn't erase.

Would he have acted this way if he knew about my identity as the heiress to the Company he wishes to secure a partnership with?

And in that moment, I understood: the life I was carrying, the life I thought would save us, might be the very thing that breaks me completely.

Upstairs, the muffled sound of Adrian's phone buzzed through the silence. I couldn't hear the words exchanged, but I knew that laugh. Selene's laugh.

And as my hand cradled my stomach, I realized the truth that chilled me to my bones.

If Adrian ever discovered I was pregnant... it wouldn't bring him closer.

It might destroy me.

How do I tell him about my true identity when I can't even reveal my pregnancy to him?