From the very beginning. I signed all the papers, Damian. I put up the money. How long have I known about your affair with Rut? Since February; the confession dropped between them like a silent bomb.
February. Damian’s voice was barely a whisper. But if you knew since February, why didn’t you say anything before? Cristina tenderly caressed her belly because she needed time to process that the man she had married was capable of betraying her while she was carrying his child.
I needed time to decide what kind of life I wanted for my baby, and I needed time to make sure that no matter what happened, he would have a stable future. Sonia took a step closer, her eyes shining with pride as she looked at her daughter.
And why today? Why wait until the divorce? Because today Ru was going to marry you, believing you were a successful businessman. Today she was going to get everything she always wanted to take from me, and it seemed only fair that she discover the truth on the same day I regained my freedom.
At that moment, Ru descended the stairs with hesitant steps. She had touched up her makeup, but her eyes still betrayed her inner devastation. She approached the group with her chin held high, trying to maintain some semblance of dignity.
“Congratulations,” she said, turning to Cristina. “You won. Does this make you feel better?” Cristina watched her calmly. This wasn’t a competition, Ru. It never was. It was my marriage, my life, my future.
And you decided to try to destroy it. I didn’t destroy anything that wasn’t already broken. Maybe you’re right. Cristina nodded slowly. But the difference between you and me is that I built something of my own.
You only tried to steal what you thought belonged to others. Ru looked at Damian, who was still in shock, and then back at Cristina. So what happens now? Are you going to fire him?
Is she going to ruin his life out of revenge? Damian is a good manager and a good father. As long as he fulfills those two roles, his job is secure. Cristina paused significantly.
But Rut, I hope you understand that employees’ wives don’t have access to certain company privileges. The blow was silent, but devastating. Ru understood instantly. No company cars, no paid business trips, none of the corporate credit cards she had taken for granted.
His new life. It had just shrunk dramatically. “Come on, Damian,” Ruth murmured, taking his arm. “Let’s get out of here.” But Damian resisted, his eyes fixed on Cristina. “Why don’t you hate me after everything I’ve done to you?”
“Why don’t you hate me?” Cristina smiled sadly. Because hating requires energy that I prefer to invest in loving our son. And because she gently touched her belly. Because he will need his parents to be able to get along, even though they are no longer husband and wife.
Damian nodded slowly, finally grasping the magnitude of what he had lost. Not just a wife, not just a company, he had lost an extraordinary woman who, even in the midst of the worst moment of her life, continued to think of everyone’s well-being.
As the couple walked away toward the exit, Sonia approached her daughter. “Are you okay, sweetheart?” Cristina watched the revolving doors through which her past and her pain had just disappeared.
For the first time in months, Mom. I think so, but in her bag, her phone vibrated with a notification that would change everything again. A message from Elena Ruiz, her accountant.
Cristina, we need to talk urgently. Have you discovered anything about the company’s accounts? Elena Ruiz’s office. Accounting firm. 2:30 p.m. Elena Ruiz’s accounting firm occupied the second floor of a modernist building on Valmes Street.
With windows overlooking the bustle of Leample. Cristina settled into the terracotta leather chair in front of the solid walnut desk, while Elena nervously organized a mountain of papers and invoices.
The aroma of freshly brewed coffee couldn’t mask the tension that hung in the air. Elena, a 45-year-old woman with brown hair pulled back in a neat bun and gold-framed glasses.
She had been the family’s trusted manager for almost a decade. She knew every euro that went in and out of the accounts, every investment, every expense. That’s why her urgent call had alarmed Cristina so much.
“Before we begin,” Elena said, pouring herself a glass of water with trembling hands. “I need you to know that I would never have allowed this if I had known what was really going on.” Cristina frowned, feeling her son stir restlessly in her womb, as if he too sensed the gravity of the moment.
Leave a Comment