Page 1 of A Million Shades Of Love and Betrayal

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Yasmin

I eagerly scooped a generous portion of the steaming pasta onto my fork, its inviting aroma filling the air. As I brought it to my mouth, the vibrant explosion of flavors burst onto my taste buds, igniting a symphony of sensations. The perfectly cooked pasta mingling with the rich sauce left me utterly satisfied with myself.

This wasn’t the first meal I’ve made. It likely wouldn’t be the last, but it was one of the most significant because it was for my husband. Our first anniversary was officially here and even though this was just the anniversary of when we became a couple, I still wanted to make it special.

Married life was different. It could be stressful as a normal person, but when you’re married to a billionaire and you constantly face criticism from his family, it moves from being different to stressful, and on some days; it is downright unbearable. Today was thankfully not one of those days and I could enjoy myself without looking over my shoulder, or so I thought.

The front door opened and, with a glance at the security monitor installed in the kitchen, I watched as Ethan slammed the door shut a moment later. My eyes narrowed into slits as I took in the angry expression on his face. As far as I knew, it was a normal day at the office, so there shouldn’t have been anything to make him pissed off. He was good at leaving his work problems at work, so his angry display only confused me more.

“Yasmin!” he yelled. My name echoed in the empty house as he tossed his coat to the side and slipped out of his shoes. “Yasmin! Where the fuck are you?”

I was just about to shout a response when it dawned on me what he said. He sounded angry, surprisingly he sounded angry at me. The second he burst into the kitchen; his eyes locked on me. The beautiful brown of his iris was a shade darker, more menacing. I’ve never seen him this way before.

“I’m so glad you’re home.” I jumped to my feet, ignoring the waves of anger that seemed to radiate off him. I was in front of him in record time, tossing my arms around his neck for a warm embrace. “I was beginning to think you wouldn’t make it. I made all of your favorite food, and I even grabbed a bottle from the cellar. I hope you don’t mind, but we are celebrating, after all.”

“Are we?” he grunted, his arms which hung loosely at his side reached up to grip my arm, shoving me away from him.

“What the hell!” The sudden movement startled me. My hand held onto the nearest chair so I wouldn’t fall to the floor. That’s how hard he pushed me- until I was seconds away from being a mere puddle on the ground. “Ethan, what are you doing?”

“What am I doing?” his voice was deeper still. “What are you doing?” He advanced on me. “How could you do this to me?”

I could only stare at him, hoping that my eyes showed the confusion I felt. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“You don’t know what I’m talking about,” he mumbled to himself, eyes downcast, fingers clenched tightly into fists. He was furious and, for the second time tonight, I wondered why. What’s made him so angry and why was he taking it out on me?

Taking a deep breath, I asked again what this was about. Maybe there was a misunderstanding. “I’m not sure what your problem is, but if you tell me what happened, we can work it out.”

“I don’t want to work it out!” he barked. “You betrayed me.” I watched as he reached into his inner suit pocket to pull out photos- photos that he tossed in my direction- each one even more graphic than the last.

I immediately knew they were fake. Not only were they staged, but they were so photoshopped it was ridiculous. I didn’t bother reaching for the photos. I’d seen enough to know what he was accusing me of. After all the talk about trusting me and believing that I wasn’t with him for his money, it all boiled down to this: an elaborate plan to paint me as something I’m not.

I slowly looked over at him, the shock of the situation making me numb to everything else. “What are these?” I asked him, not at all oblivious to the way he tensed before me. “Who gave them to you?”

“Who gave them to me?” he laughed humorlessly. “Does it matter? You’re cheating on me. After everything we’ve been through, you’re cheating on me.”

I rolled my eyes, unable to listen to him disrespect me any longer. “I’ve never cheated on you, Ethan. You know that. I don’t know what this is or why someone went to these lengths to portray me as a cheater, but I’m not one. I’d never cheat on you.”

“Then how do you explain the pictures?” he continued, not giving me a chance to speak. “Mom said you would deny it. She even said act like you knew nothing about it.”

I couldn’t help it. I rolled my eyes again. I sat in the nearest chair and reached for the fork so I could indulge in the delicious meal I made before it got cold. When I caught sight of Ethan still standing there fuming, I almost stopped everything to reassure him yet again, but I was so tired of being labeled a gold digger and a cheater.

“Aren’t you going to say anything to defend yourself?” I continued eating, which aggravated him more. “There’s proof of you being a slut and you have nothing to say for yourself.”

“I am not a slut!” I snapped back, letting the fork fall out of my hand. It hit the plate hard, shattering the side closest to me. The sound was unexpected, but I refused to let it bother me. I shot to my feet and stormed over to him. He was taller than me, but I sized him up, my voice laced with venom. “I’m only going to say this once more. I’m not a cheater. I can’t believe you’d let your mom fill your head with lies about me, especially when you know how much the bitch hates me.”

I could have avoided what happened next, only I was too stunned to do so. The second he swung his arm in my direction, I lost it. All of my thoughts seemed to be jumbled together. My head still turned to the left of me as I processed what happened.

The son of a bitch hit me.

In all my twenty-four years on earth, no one has ever slapped me across the face. I prided myself on never putting myself in situations where that reaction would be expected. Yet here I was, frozen in shock. I slowly straightened, shifting my body so I could face him yet again. Wide eyes greeted me as I stared him down. I could tell he was remorseful, but the longer I stared, the more he seemed to think he was right for what he did. His lips pressed into a firm line as he watched my every move.

I would have felt sorry for him if it weren’t for my stinging cheek. He was about to lose me, arguably the best thing that’s ever happened to him, and it was all because of his meddling mother and sister. I underestimated the control they had over him, and now I was paying for it as well. There was no way I could ever forgive him for this, for the way he spoke to me, the name-calling, the physical abuse. All I could think about now was making him pay for the pain he and his family inflicted. All I could think about was revenge and my revenge started now.

Without another thought, I drew back my arm as far as I could and swung forward with all the strength I could muster, slapping him hard across the face.

“Fucking hell!” he groaned out in pain. “Are you crazy?”

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