SEDUCING THE BILLIONAIRE

Chapter 19

Ever since we got married Duke had never really shown any interest in me or the marriage on an intimate level, it was just a business contract and after trying so hard to make him realize that we could do more, be more… I finally gave up and stopped caring. I started living my own life, focusing on my investments and my happiness.
Now suddenly he was interested in celebrating an anniversary of a marriage he never cared about? Suddenly he was throwing tantrums because I had chosen myself over him? He had been choosing his pleasure over mine since we got married and I never threw tantrums, he’d been seeing Connie for months and I never gave him any troubles about it so what was the problem now?
.
Saturday morning, I woke up a bit late, the sun was already out and when I glanced at the time it was past 9AM, I had missed breakfast. I got up to brush my teeth and wash my face then made the bed before grabbing the phone to find a message from Jerome.
“Good morning beautiful, hope you had a great night. Mine was okay even though I do wish I had woken up with you still in my arms.”
I smiled as I read the message, the previous night had been so wonderful I didn’t even regret ditching Duke even though it was our anniversary. Why should I stay where I am not appreciated when there was a man out there who was ready to treat me right?
Duke was already awake when I went downstairs but Lindsey had already left for her tennis lesson. Now that Duke was giving her some breathing space and letting her be interactive and make friends, she had started getting involved in a lot of extracurricular activities. her friend had started taking tennis lessons, so she decided to join as well.
Duke was in the lounge area watching some show about cars, I just walked past and went to the kitchen to make myself a smoothie or perhaps a salad for a late breakfast. I put my phone on the island then opened the fridge trying to get the ingredients, as I was bringing out the fruits I turned and found Duke standing by the island.
“Morning,” he greeted.
“Morning,” I grumbled and focused on what I was doing, washing and cutting the fruits before putting them in the blender.
“Can we talk?”
“About what?” I really didn’t want to start having these conversations with him, it’s not like we were a real couple.
“Last night, am sorry I reacted in that manner, but you also owe me honesty. If you’re seeing someone I deserve to know, just like I told you about Connie.”
I guess he had a point there.
“Do you really wanna know?” I asked as I paused on the cutting and looked at him.
“Yes,” he responded as he swallowed hard and put his hands in his pockets.
“Yes, I am kinda seeing someone.” I confessed.
“I see…” he cleared his throat “does he know about me?”
“Everyone knows about you” I said and resumed with my cutting “and don’t worry, he’s not going to go public or tell anyone.”
“How do you know? Has he signed an NDA? Who is this guy? Where did you even meet him? Where is the relationship going? Is it just about sex or what?” questions came flooding out of his mouth one after the other and I could barely keep up.
“Look, just trust me, he won’t tell anyone…. Let’s just move forward.”
“You know I can’t do that, this can backfire and become a whole mess.”
“Sure, you with Connie it’s fine but if I try to find some happiness somewhere it’s not okay.”
“I trust Connie, she has signed an NDA and I can control her…. I don’t know this man you’re seeing and I sure as hell don’t trust him. If you want to start a new relationship you have to wait until the five years is up…. I won’t have you creating this mess for me.”
Wow, just wow, I guess that was a part of the contract I don’t remember reading but I was not going to stay basically single for the next four years.
“Then maybe we should get a divorce.”
Whoa! Where did that come from? I hadn’t even been thinking about it, so I was shocked when it slipped out of my mouth but once it was out there, there was no turning back.
“Excuse me?”
“We got into this because you wanted to get custody of Lindsey, you have custody, and the adoption was finalized. Even if we divorce you will still have her so let’s go our separate ways because what are we even doing anymore?”
It really didn’t make any sense to stay married to him when I was no longer needed in his life, he already had Lindsey and that was the main reason we had gotten married, he didn’t love me and didn’t even want me BUT he was also forbidding me from having a side relationship while he had Connie so why was I still there? Sure, the money was nice, but the money couldn’t hug me or listen to me while I talked about whatever was on my mind, the money couldn’t hold my hand while we took a walk or cuddle with me. I wanted something real and beautiful; I didn’t want to be alone just getting depressed because my husband was living his life on his terms while I was stuck slowly getting depressed.
“No.”
“What?!”
“If you walk away now you forfeit the $5million you’re supposed to get at the end,” he said to me and a few months earlier this would have stopped me in my tracks but at that moment I had been getting a hefty weekly allowance so my bank account was as fat as my ass, I had a house I was renting out, a boarding house and I had just purchased a big land where I was planning to build a gated community. Even if I walked away, I would not be stranded or hit rock bottom.
“Fine, keep your $5million,” I told him, and his jaw dropped like I had spoken of a taboo.
“you’re not serious.” He shook his head “it’s this same guy who has you thinking you’ll be better off with him but you won’t… he’s probably only with you because of the money WHICH I am the one giving to you, what does he even do for a living? You have to stop use your brains here!”
Wow, could he get any more offensive?
“Are you saying the only reason any man would want me is because of money? That’s it?”
“wha… ah no… of course not… what I meant was…”
“You know what, am done with this.”
I stopped making the smoothie and walked out of the kitchen, but he followed me up to the bedroom.
“Come on Audrey let’s just be realistic and logical here, what man in his right mind would start dating a married woman without any ulterior motives?”
“Can you just leave me alone please? Even if he’s using me why should you care? Am the one who will get hurt not you.”
“We are not getting divorced, and you will stop seeing whoever that person is, we signed a contract, and you will see it through” he ordered, and I felt tears sting my eyes, but I was not going to shed them, not in front of him. I was not going to give him the satisfaction of seeing me cry.
“Please get out of my room,” I demanded.
“I know you hate me right now but it’s for your own good, am protecting you. Men can be vultures and gold diggers as well.” He said but I kept on ignoring him until he walked out of my room with a sigh.
.
As if demanding that I stop seeing anyone wasn’t enough, Duke hired a driver for me and I knew it was because he wanted to be spying on me and knowing my movements, which was a very shitty thing for him to do. All these things he was doing were just making me resent him, he was cutting me off from living my life and it was very frustrating.
When Jerome saw what Duke was doing, he slowly started distancing himself from me and even though we hadn’t really been seeing each other for a long time I actually felt heartbroken and I hated Duke, it was his fault that I was now this lonely shell with no enthusiasm for anything.
I was now even regretting having taken the damn deal. Sure, without him I would still just be a journalist not earning a lot, but I would have been happy and able to go out and hang out with friends, perhaps I could have met a nice average guy who liked me, and I would have been happy.
As if him basically keeping me in lockdown wasn’t enough, Connie started sending me pictures and videos of them. Watching a video of your husband’s dick getting sucked by his mistress is not how I envisioned to start my morning but there it was, and there was nothing I could do about it because was he even my husband? Should I even be calling him that?
.
Two months, it took two months for me to lose weight, not because I had started going to the gym or changed my diet… nope, it was because I was depressed, lonely, felt hollow and each time Connie sent me pictures of videos my appetite would quickly vanish. I had lost so much weight that my mother started asking if I was sick cause I had never been that slim in my adult life before.
“she’s probably just dieting because she doesn’t want to start looking like Duke’s aunty after they start having kids,” Inonge had commented. I bet she was happy about it because all my clothes had gone to her as I had to buy smaller sizes and the clothes which didn’t fit any of my sisters or the workers at home got donated.
.
One Saturday morning, Lindsey’s friend had invited her to join in for a “mother-daughter” fun day. And apparently, she had told them that she would be coming with her “mum” as well. When the lady called me the previous evening just to tell me about her plan for the day and whether I had addition or subtractions, I was surprised but I wanted to be there for Lindsey, so I agreed to go with her.
Lindsey was the one who even picked out our outfits because she wanted us to match.
Duke was just waking up when I passed through his room to go out.
“Morning,” he greeted in his deep sleepy voice “where are you going so early?”
“Hanging out with Lindsey,” I mumbled.
“Oh okay. Have fun” I didn’t respond “you look really beautiful” he added, and I just scoffed, rolled my eyes and walked out of there.
Sure, now that I had lost weight because of him and his girlfriend I looked beautiful? Hell no.