Unveiling Hearts: My Wife Is A Billionaire Tycoon?!

The distinct smell of disinfectant filled the hospital hallway. Sitting in a cold chair, Melanie Baxter had a slight frown on her face.

There was a tube connected to her arm which was drawing blood from a vein, which was bulging due to the tension.

With every drop of blood drawn from her body, it seemed like her life was being sapped out.

Wearily lifting her gaze, she blinked rapidly to clear her blurry vision to no avail.

Swallowing hard, Melanie did her best to see her husband, Ashton Willis, who stood just a few feet away.

At that moment, she tried to identify a trace of hesitation or guilt on his face, but her eyes refused to cooperate, out of focus and hard to keep open.

"Mr. Willis, this should be enough, right?" the doctor suddenly asked as he held up a bunch of filled blood bags. Glancing at Melanie, he added, "If we don't stop now, your wife's life could be in danger."

Hearing this, Melanie looked at Ashton and used every last ounce of strength in her to shake her head slightly.

The blood loss had taken its toll on her and she believed she was going to die if she kept on donating.

But then, Ashton gave a response that shocked her to the core and made her heart skip a beat.

With an icy expression and unfeeling voice, he said, "Olivia still needs blood. Don't stop!"

Short and simple, these words pierced Melanie's heart like a sharp knife.

A mixture of shock, confusion, and disappointment swept through her body, leaving her speechless.

Never in her life could she have imagined that her husband could have so little regard for her life. To make it even worse, he was like this just because of another woman.

The emotional pain from his response hurt more than the physical pain from the blood loss.

"Once you've gotten more, have all the blood bags delivered to Olivia's room," Ashton added coldly.

With that, he turned and left without sparing Melanie a glance.

Watching Ashton's back as he walked away, Melanie got not just more disappointed and sorrowful, but also incredibly angry.

The memory of when he had saved her from the brink of death by pulling her from the cold sea surfaced in her mind at that moment.

Back then, Olivia Hudson was supposed to be standing beside Ashton at his wedding, but Olivia ran away.

As a show of gratitude to Ashton for saving her life, Melanie volunteered to be his bride, marrying him and becoming a member of the Willis family.

They had been married for two years now, and she had done her best during this period trying to please both Ashton and his family. She had done all she could to fit in perfectly as Mrs. Willis, including tolerating the constant insults she faced from her mother-in-law and sister-in-law.

Ashton had informed Melanie that Olivia had been involved in a car accident which led her to lose quite a significant amount of blood. Due to Olivia's rare blood type being the same as Melanie's, she had agreed to donate some of her blood without hesitation.

But now...

As she watched the doctor connect another empty blood bag to the tube connected to her arm, Melanie concluded that she had to put a stop to this.

As the doctor turned away from her, she seized the moment and swiftly pulled the needle out of her arm with her free hand, causing blood to spurt everywhere.

Not caring for the blood running down her arm, she got up and dashed to Olivia's room.

Just as she was about to walk into the ward, she heard Olivia's voice, which sounded both pitiful and deeply apologetic.

"I'm so sorry, Ashton. If I hadn't gotten into that accident, Melanie wouldn't have to lose so much blood for my sake."

At that moment, Melanie's sister-in-law, Stacey Willis, who was standing next to Ashton, shook her head and said, "There's no need for you to feel sorry, Olivia. In fact, you should know that Melanie would be nothing short of delighted to donate blood for you."

Nodding, Ashton chimed in, "Your recovery is all that matters, Olivia. Just wait for a few more minutes, okay? The blood will be here soon. Trust me, I won't let anything bad happen to you."

Every single word uttered by the trio inside the ward was heard by Melanie as she stood outside the door.

So, in Ashton's eyes, her blood and life were nothing next to Olivia's!

"Bang!"

Melanie violently pushed the door open and staggered into the ward. Glaring at everyone in the room, she asked through gritted teeth, "You've all got everything figured out, right? Aren't you even afraid that Olivia's body wouldn't be able to handle the influx of so much of someone else's blood?"

Her voice was cold and hinted with sarcasm.

As Ashton and Olivia weren't expecting Melanie to suddenly show up, they were both quite stunned to see her.

Quickly putting on a pitiful expression, Olivia acted like a frightened little child as tears rapidly gathered in her eyes.

Trembling slightly, she said, "Melanie, I'm so sorry. This is all my fault. You've suffered a lot due to my car accident and need for blood. I swear, I'm going to repay you someday. I'm going to be grateful to you forever..."

However, Melanie saw through Olivia's pretense with cold eyes and felt quite disgusted by her fake demeanor.

"You never cease to amaze me with your acting skills, Olivia," Melanie said sarcastically.

Looking demented, Stacey jabbed her finger at Melanie's face and barked, "Melanie! How can you be so cruel? What's wrong with you donating some blood when your body is fine with it? It's not like you are going to die! Stop making this hard on everyone and return to the doctor so Olivia can get the blood she needs!"

At that moment, Ashton noticed that there was no needle in Melanie's arm and realized something was wrong.

"Stop this theatrics of yours this instance, Melanie! Saving Olivia is our paramount goal for now! Head back to the doctor and continue donating blood," he ordered firmly, clearly indicating that there was no room for argument.

However, Melanie ignored him and walked straight to Olivia and ripped the blood transfusion needle from her hand without hesitation.

Not expecting this, Olivia was too shocked to resist and watched in shock as Melanie grabbed the blood bag hanging nearby and threw daggers at Ashton with her eyes.

"Olivia's life is important while mine isn't, right?" Melanie spat.

Not dropping her act, Olivia looked at Ashton with tearful eyes and called his name in a pleading tone. "Ashton..."

Determined that Olivia must be saved at all costs, Ashton rushed towards Melanie to snatch the blood bag from her hand.

However, Melanie anticipated his move and quickly threw the blood bag on the floor with as much force as she could muster before he could reach her.

"Smack-"

The blood bag instantly burst the moment it hit the floor, the sound of which was particularly jarring in the quiet room.

Blood began to pool on the floor, and the scene looked quite gruesome.

With her voice filled with venom and echoing through the entire room, Melanie said, "I'd rather have my blood wasted than donate another drop to Olivia!"

Olivia watched the blood slowly flow out of the bag and pool around it on the white tiled floor. Her face instantly turned pale, and genuine fear flashed in her eyes.

All things considered, she truly had an urgent need of the blood. Without it, she might fall into critical condition.

Ashton was appalled by what he was witnessing, but much more than the shock, he felt rage.

"Melanie! What the hell are you doing?" He instinctively pulled back his arm to slap Melanie, but the cold smile on her face made his hand freeze in midair.

"Are you sure you want to do that?" she challenged in a mocking voice.

"All I need is a few more bruises, and I can finally show the world just what a monster you are. They would know how the admirable young master of the Willis family willingly put his wife's life in danger for the sake of another woman."

A muscle ticked in Ashton's jaw as he stared at the woman in front of him. Although Melanie's face was a little pale, it was full of determination. And it was something he had never seen before.

Was this still the docile Melanie who had always obeyed every word he said?

After a while, Ashton slowly lowered his hand.

Melanie noted the shift in his demeanor and smirked. "Now, instead of wasting both our time, why don't you go and check on your precious Olivia? She would die without the blood, right?"

Taking that as her cue, Olivia called out weakly from behind, "Ashton..."

Sure enough, Ashton immediately whirled around, his once blank face now full of concern as he rushed over to Olivia.

Melanie seized the opportunity and left the place before she suffocated from the sickening scene.

She held her head high all the way, but her bravado deflated as soon as she stepped out of the hospital. Her knees buckled, and her body felt weak.

Mustering what little strength she had left, she took out her phone and made a call. "I need help..."

Melanie didn't get to finish her words. Everything went black.

When she opened her eyes again, she found herself in a warm and well-lit room.

Her best friend, Kristine Dale, was sitting at her bedside.

The moment Kristine realized that Melanie was awake, she lunged forward and took the latter into a tight embrace.

"You finally woke up!" Kristine cried in relief. "Do you have any idea how worried I was? How did you get to such an awful state? Does Ashton even take care of you? I swear, that bastard doesn't deserve you for his wife!"

Kristine proceeded to badmouth Ashton endlessly. Melanie listened in silence, though a pang of sorrow came over her.

Because of that man, she had missed out on so much and even neglected the things she used to love.

Taking a deep breath, Melanie told Kristine everything that had happened at the hospital.

When she finished, Kristine jumped to her feet in outrage. She was understandably furious, and vented her anger by punching the mattress. "Damn that Ashton! He is the scum of the earth! What did you ever see in that guy, anyway? Are you seriously going to spend the rest of your life with that asshole?"

Melanie felt a rush of warmth from her friend's concern.

She braced herself and said with much resolve, "I don't love him anymore. I am going to divorce Ashton."

Kristine was momentarily taken aback, but her eyes soon twinkled with joy. "I'm telling you, you should have done this a long time ago! But no matter, I'm just glad you've finally seen reason. You're an amazing woman, Melanie. That bastard isn't worthy of you."

Kristine had barely finished speaking when Melanie's phone rang.

She glanced at the caller ID and saw Stacey's name. Melanie didn't even hesitate and tossed the phone back on the side table. Stacey continued to call a few times more, but Melanie never answered.

It was only when Ashton's name flashed on her screen that Melanie finally picked up the call.

"Where are you?" he demanded as soon as the call connected. "Why didn't you return home last night? Get over here right this instant!"

Even as he ranted at her, Melanie could vaguely hear Stacey's shrill voice in the background, spouting a litany of complaints.

Melanie's lips curled into a cold, humorless smile. "I'm coming," she replied calmly.

She would go back home, all right, but she wouldn't be his wife for long.

Melanie hung up before Ashton could say another word. She felt an inexplicable sense of power and satisfaction over that simple action.

She had already repaid everything she ever owed him. From now on, she wouldn't give up anything more for Ashton.

Meanwhile, at that same moment, the atmosphere at the Willis residence was heavy with tension.

Stacey's face was red as she embellished her grievances to her mother, Jenifer Willis.

"You wouldn't believe the audacity of that bitch, Mom! Melanie caused a whole scene at the hospital, yelling at everyone and throwing things around. She even broke the blood bag that Olivia needed for her transfusion! What a vile person. Then after all that mess, she just ran out and disappeared. She didn't come home at all last night, and ignored all my calls! That bitch is completely out of control!"

Jenifer's brows were knitted tightly. She had always thought Melanie unworthy of her beloved son, what with her lack of a respectable background. She constantly found fault in her daughter-in-law as it was, and after listening to Stacey, her view of Melanie only worsened further.

"Ashton, your wife is getting more and more unruly! As expected of a low-born woman. You can bring her to a mansion and dress her with luxurious trappings, but you could never be rid of her uncouth nature. You need to discipline her more properly. She can't just run around and do whatever she wants."

Ashton kept silent as his emotions slowly descended into turmoil.

He couldn't forget Melanie's expression when she threatened him back at the hospital.

When his mother and sister finally quieted down, he said, "I'll talk to her when she gets back."

Shortly after, they heard the front door open. Melanie was here.

She looked utterly composed as she walked through the foyer.

"Melanie!" Ashton called out, stepping forward to meet her.

But Melanie didn't even glance his way. She continued forward, walking past him and up the stairs.

"Melanie! Stop right there!" Ashton thundered, his fury rising as she disappeared in the corner of the stairs' landing.

Melanie went straight to her room and started packing her things. She didn't have much, so it didn't take her that long.

Stacey and Jenifer stalked her to the door of her room, berating her as she packed.

"Have you lost your mind, Melanie?" Jenifer screeched. "How dare you ignore your husband!"

Melanie cast a cold glance at the older woman and smirked. "Aren't you always griping about how much you want me to leave? Well, I'm granting your wish, so get out of my way."

Her words prompted Stacey to look at her small suitcase. "So you're leaving? How do we know you didn't swipe something from our home? I don't care if you leave, but you're not entitled to anything that belongs to the Willis family! I need to check your luggage and make sure you didn't steal anything!"

Stacey was already making a grab for the luggage. It was yet another attempt to humiliate Melanie.

Something flashed in Melanie's eyes. Without warning, she raised her hand and slapped Stacey across the face with a resounding smack.

What followed was a heavy and deafening silence. Everyone was stunned at what had just happened.

Stacey pressed her palm against her rapidly swelling cheek, her face a mask of rage and disbelief.

"How dare you hit me!" she screamed before charging at Melanie like a rabid animal.

Jenifer was fuming as well, outraged that a good-for-nothing nobody had lifted a hand against her daughter. She stepped forward as well, intent on teaching Melanie a lesson.

Before either woman could do anything, Melanie turned and locked her gaze onto Ashton. He had been standing to the side the entire time, just watching them.

Chuckling to herself, Melanie pivoted and deftly averted Stacey and Jenifer's attacks.

Driven by momentum, the two women lost their balance and staggered a few steps to find purchase. Jenifer almost fell face first on the floor, too, if Stacey hadn't managed to catch her at the last second.

Melanie swept her eyes over mother and daughter.

"You're accusing me of stealing things from the Willis family? How absurd. It is you two who have been pilfering my belongings! That bracelet on your wrist, Jenifer, and those earrings, necklace, and bracelets that Stacey is wearing-those are all mine!"

Both Stacey and Jenifer stiffened, their expressions grim.

Jenifer instinctively covered the bracelet with her other hand and turned away, while Stacey fiddled with her hair in an attempt to hide the glittering earrings.

Shocked, Ashton turned to his mother and sister, his eyes narrowed in suspicion.

The Willis family had more money than they could ever need in a lifetime. Why would they take Melanie's jewelry?

"What is going on here?" Ashton demanded roughly.

Stacey quickly put her hands behind her back, afraid that he would see the bracelets, while Jenifer put on an affronted act.

"Stop lying, Melanie!" she said fiercely. "When did we ever take your things?"

The tension in the room was so thick, you could cut it with a butter knife.

Melanie cocked her head to the side and shot her a sarcastic smile. "You've been quite vocal about liking my jewelry. When I made no offer to give it to you, you simply stole it behind my back. I still have the receipts for all those pieces you are currently wearing. We can take this to the police station if you'd like. What do you say?"

Jenifer and Stacey were rendered speechless. They pressed their lips into thin lines and hung their heads. Behind them, Ashton's expression turned darker.

But Melanie wasn't interested in arguing with them any further. She had said her piece, so she picked up her luggage and walked away.

This snapped Ashton back to attention. With a few quick strides, he was in front of her, blocking her path. His face was twisted in a mix of guilt and helplessness.

"Melanie, I... I had no idea that Mom and Stacey were touching your belongings. It's a grave oversight on my part, I will admit. In return, I will forgive your actions at the hospital. But as my wife, you need to get rid of that stubbornness and get back in line."

Despite his callous words, there was a hint of pleading in Ashton's voice, something that even he failed to notice. Deep down, he desperately hoped that Melanie would listen, so they could all return to the way things had been.

Melanie was unmoved, though. To her, he might as well have talked to the air.

Unfortunately, Ashton took her silence as a yes, and thought she agreed to his request. He breathed a sigh of relief and kept talking. "See, that temper of yours nearly put Olivia's life at risk. You need to apologize to her."

That earned him a scoff and an eye roll. Melanie couldn't stomach this ridiculous amount of self-righteousness.

Before Ashton could react, she produced the divorce agreement she had prepared beforehand and threw it at his face. Dumbfounded, he watched the papers flutter to his feet.

"I will not apologize," Melanie said, her voice ringing loud and clear. "And I no longer want to play the role of your wife. We are getting divorced, Ashton."

The word "divorce" struck Ashton like a bolt of lightning in the sky, leaving him dazed.

He stared at Melanie incredulously. "What kind of nonsense are you up to now?"

"This isn't nonsense, Ashton. If you don't want to settle this peacefully, I'll be more than happy to take the proceedings to court." Her tone was calm, yet decisive.

Still thinking that she was just throwing a tantrum, Ashton moved to persuade her, but Melanie dodged him and headed for the door.

Ashton acted on reflex and grabbed her wrist.

"Let go of me!"

Melanie tried to shake free from his grip, but she was still weak from the blood loss.

Her struggle proved to be futile, and one of her sleeves even slipped in the process, revealing her shoulder.

"That's enough!" A booming male voice suddenly called out from the doorway. "What are you doing?"