From Ex-wife To Heiress

4

Laura

I sat on the floor, my back resting against the door as tears streamed down my cheeks. I stared at the DNA test result and the message from the doctor about my pregnancy. How will I be able to raise my child without Lorenzo?

I grew up in a poor but loving family. Dad didn’t have a job and mum had to do three jobs a day to pay our bills and provide for us but it wasn’t enough. She didn’t have money to put me in one of the best schools in the country but she tried her best to put me in a middle class school. I was a victim of bullies. I lost my self confidence and became scared, naive and timid. Every time I came back home, I came back with bruises. My mum would notice them and ask me what happened to me and I would lie that I fell off the stairs or fell into a pit. She would cry and tell me ‘I’m sorry, sweetie. But you don’t have to lie to me’. Dad would suggest I drop out of school so he could open up a farm and we could work in it but I wanted to go to school.

Years later, my dad got a well paying job and enrolled me into the best high school in Atlanta Bergen and that was where I met Paula, Lorenzo’s cousin. I was continuously bullied in high school until the fourth year. Paula caught some girls bullying me and stood up for me. They were afraid of her. That was the last time I got bullied in high school.

I became friends with Paula. She invited me to her birthday party which was taking place in her home. Never had I thought I would meet a guy I would fall in love with at the party.

I was pushed into a pool by a group of rich and popular girls. I couldn’t swim. I was screaming for help and thought I was going to drown. But then, a tall and handsome man pulled off his shirt and jumped into the pool to rescue me. That was Lorenzo. Before he could swim over to me, I fell unconscious. It was the feel of his mouth on mine that woke me up. He was performing CPR. And that happened to be my first kiss. I was scared and couldn’t say a word. He scolded the girls who pushed me into the pool.

Later on, Paula told me Lorenzo was interested in me. A nobody like me. He was the son of one of the richest men in the country. How could he be interested in someone like me? He came to pick me up from school one day which got all the girls in high school talking. He took me on a surprise date. After some dates, he asked me out. I fell in love with him. Two years later, we got married. I was nineteen at that time. He had asked me to drop out of school and end my cupcake business because of his reputation. I didn’t want to do it but I had to because I loved him so freaking much.

“Laura, are you okay?” a gentle knock at the door pulled me out of my reverie. I tasted the saltiness of my tears.

“Laura,” the voice called out again and I recognized it was Shawn’s voice. “Say something.”

“I’m fine,” I said, trying to sound convincing but my voice must have given me out.

“You don’t sound fine.”

“I am. I…” I wiped the tears off my eyes and stood up. “I’m so good.”

“Can I come in?”

I opened the door.

“Good morning,” he said, his piercing green eyes staring at me, as though they could see through me. “Did you cry overnight?”

“No.” Oh well, yes. I didn’t sleep a wink. I just couldn’t.

“Those beautiful pale eyes tell me otherwise.”

“Um… I just couldn’t sleep,” I finally said and gasped.

He arched his eyebrows. “You can talk to me. I can tell you need someone to talk to.”

I closed my eyes tightly, trying to hold back my tears. The only person I needed to talk to was Paula.

I felt his fingertips wiping away my tears and opened my eyes, slowly. “It’s okay to cry. It doesn’t mean you’re weak. It only means you have been hurt.”

Tears began to stream down my cheeks, again and I began to sniff. He drew me into a warm hug and rubbed my hair. “Everything is going to be fine.”

How was everything going to be fine when I just got divorced from the man I loved so much? We could have worked things out. I would definitely have forgiven him for infidelity. For better or for worse. That was the marriage vow we took. To be with each other for better or for worse.

Shawn led me to the bed and made me sit. He sat beside me. “A problem shared is a problem half solved.”

“My husband was in bed with my half sister and that was on our anniversary day.” I still considered her my half sister despite the fact that her dad was not my real dad.

Years ago, the bell had rang. I went to open the door and saw a girl crying at the door with her luggage. She asked me who I was but before I could reply, dad intervened. He called out her name, Victoria, with a shell-shocked look. She cried and walked into the house with her luggage. Dad never asked about her mum, he couldn’t muster the courage. Years later, I woke up one morning to see dad was gone with Victoria. Mum kept on crying. Victoria had left a letter in my room. She wrote she had taken her dad back and we’d never see him again.

“I’d never have believed he’d cheat on me. He loved me so much and never gave me a reason to think he’d ever cheat on me. I should have realized—he was becoming distant…” I choked on my tears. “I asked for an explanation but he showed me divorce papers. We could have sorted things out. Why did he have to bring up divorce?”

Shawn held me closer to himself and I continued to sob. “Sorry,” he muttered. “No man should make a woman cry. God help me but if I should ever come across your ex husband, I’ll beat him up to a pup for making a beautiful lady like you cry. Dry your tears, Laura, he doesn’t worth it. You have to be strong for your unborn child.”

I wished I could just dry my tears and act strong but I couldn’t.

“Only a foolish man would let a precious woman like you go,” he growled, holding me closer to his chest. "You're too good for him," Shawn whispered.

“No, I’m—“

"Shh," he placed his finger on my lips.

My phone began to ring, dismissively. I glared at the caller ID.