Divorced My Cheating Husband & Fell For His Twin Novel – I never thought I would say those words in my life. The idea that Marcus would ever cheat on me never even crossed my mind. We were always so happy together, or at least we used to be in the beginning. Now, I don’t even recognise my husband anymore. I first started to suspect Marcus of cheating on me about six months ago when he returned from Hawaii. He had been growing even more distant, and I just couldn’t figure out what had changed between us. Was it something I said? Was it something I did? No matter how hard I tried, my husband had completely given up on our marriage, and there was nothing I could do to fix it. “Maybe he’s just going through a midlife crisis,” Emily had told me when I mentioned it to her. Emily was my best friend since elementary school, and we had always been as close as sisters.
We grew up right next to each other, and we were like two peas in a pod. It was always Olivia and Emily, never one without the other. Since Emily was an only child like me, we bonded immediately and became best friends. We went to the same schools, wore the same clothes, hung out in the same places and we often had crushes on the same guys. Now that I think about it, maybe I should have seen this coming. Emily and I moved to New York together after we graduated from college, and my dad got us an apartment in Brooklyn. We’d both studied marketing and emerging media in college, so we usually ended up applying for the same jobs. I know it wasn’t a smart move, but we both really wanted to work in the same place.
And if we couldn’t, then maybe we could end up working close to each other. But then, everything changed when we found ourselves at Reynard Technologies, the largest tech company in the States. Emily was the one who suggested we should apply there, even though the chances of getting a job there were like one in a billion. Getting a job at Reynard was harder than getting into an Ivy League school, and I wasn’t even hoping for anything when we applied. And yet somehow, a few days after we sent in our applications, we were both called in for an interview. I was over the moon when I got the email, and Emily and I celebrated with an impromptu dance party before we went out for drinks. On the day of the interview, we both arrived before anyone else.
I was directed first into a large boardroom, where I was shocked to find six terrifying people staring back at me from across the table. I recognised the man in the middle immediately as Marcus Reynard, the CEO of the company. My heart dropped at the sight of him, the most handsome man I’d ever seen. Marcus just oozed confidence, with his sharp jaw, and deep black eyes which seemed to stare deep into my soul. His hair was slicked back, framing his handsome face. He was wearing a charcoal suit, and he looked like he was worth several hundreds of millions of dollars, which he was. What was the CEO himself doing interviewing potential employees? “Welcome, Miss Carson,” he said smoothly in a crisp English accent.
“Please, have a seat.” I sat down timidly, trying not to be overwhelmed by how closely they were staring at me. I was particularly aware of Marcus’s fixed gaze on me, and when he smiled at me, my heart soared. He explained that even though Reynard Technologies was a gigantic corporation, he still liked to know everyone who worked under him, because the business was more of a family than anything else. He liked to be involved, and he liked to get down and dirty. As he said this, his lips curved up in a soft smirk, and I suddenly imagined those lips all over me. I swallowed discreetly and forced myself to focus on something else. Like his long and manicured fingers… I could imagine them all over my body, on my neck, caressing my cheeks, my face, my breasts… – This was going to be difficult. I tried to answer all the questions they asked as well as I could, and I explained how eager I was to work and help the company in any way I could.
Marcus seemed pleased with my answers, and the other board members all seemed to be satisfied with my answers. When the interview finished and I was on my way out, Marcus suddenly said, “What do you like to do for fun, Miss Carson?” I turned back slowly, confused by the question. “Um, sorry?” “After a long and stressful week, what do you like to do in the weekend?” he asked. I had to think of the right answer, because I didn’t want to seem like a boring person who had nothing going on in her life. “Fishing,” I blurted out suddenly. “I always used to go fishing with my dad. But I also play golf sometimes.” His smirk widened, and he nodded knowingly. “Good to know.” I left the room in a daze, utterly stunned by how effortlessly handsome one person could be. When I returned to the lobby and found Emily, she practically leapt on me and started to ask as many questions as she could get out. But she was whisked away before I could answer any of them, and I sat there quietly and tried to control my breathing. There had been something charged between Marcus and me, even though I had no way of proving it. I could feel it in my chest, and I wondered if he felt it too.
After Emily’s interview, we headed home and spent the next few hours talking about how handsome Marcus was, and about what we would do if we managed to get the job. Neither of us said anything about the fact that one of us wasn’t going to get it, and we both just lived in the moment. But then, a few days later, we both got an email from the company. We opened them at the same time, and as I read the email, I was lost for words with each sentence I read: Dear Olivia Carson, Thank you for taking the time to apply for the position of Junior Marketing Associate at Reynard Technologies. However, after careful consideration, we regret to inform you that you have not been selected for this position. This decision was not reached lightly, as you were a very strong candidate. Unfortunately, we have chosen to go in a different direction. We wish you all the best in your future endeavours. Thank you for your interest in Reynard Technologies.
Margaret Wheeler, Senior Marketing Manager, Reynard Technologies. The realisation hit me like a high speed train. I wanted to sink to my knees and start crying, but then Emily suddenly leapt into the air in excitement beside me. I turned to find her dancing and screaming at the top of her lungs, saying, “I GOT IT! I GOT IT!” I wanted to feel sorry for myself, but I was happy for Emily. If I didn’t get it, then she deserved it. I wouldn’t want anyone else to get it except her. And when she calm down and realised what this meant, she hugged me and told me that more opportunities would come. We both knew they were just empty words, but I didn’t argue. I thought that would be the end of that, until about two weeks later after she’d started going to work and I was still sending in my applications to other tech firms. I was just about to leave the apartment when a knock came on the door, and I opened it to find Marcus Reynard himself standing in the hallway, wearing a black polo shirt and white sweatpants. My breathed hitched at the sight of him, and I couldn’t understand what was happening.
But he offered me a handsome, dazzling smile, and he pulled out some golf clubs behind him. “Get changed,” he said. “We’re going golfing.” Three months later, I was standing at the altar and saying yes to this perfect man, who had swept me completely off my feet. It was like a fairytale, and I had never been happier. Emily was my maid of honour, and she was genuinely happy for me. Or so I thought. Now, four years later, I’m standing at the entrance of our apartment exactly where Marcus had stood that day, and staring into his cold, empty eyes. Emily was standing across the room, wearing his shirt and trying not to look at me. I couldn’t even look at her, the hurt and betrayal so painful that I was starting to choke up as I stared at my husband. I waited for him to say something. Anything. But he just stared blankly at me, as though he couldn’t even see me standing there. “How could you?” I whispered, nearly breaking down as I stared at him.
“How could you do this to me?” “You weren’t supposed to find out,” he said simply, his voice cold and void of emotion. “Are you kidding me?” I thundered. “Is that all you can say? I wasn’t supposed to find out?” “Liv…” “Shut up!” I yelled as soon as my name left Emily’s lips. “I don’t want to hear whatever bullsh-it excuse you’ve cooked up.” I turned to face Marcus once again, who was still staring blankly at the wall behind me. He looked like he wanted to disappear, like he wanted to be anywhere else in the world but here. He didn’t look like he was sorry. He just looked like he was disappointed that he was caught. Without thinking, I yank off my wedding ring and throw it in his face, then I turn around and storm down the hallway, saying the one sentence I never thought I’d say: “I want a divorce.” – As soon as I got back home, I started to pack my things.
I forced myself not to cry, focusing instead on the task at hand. The image of Marcus and Emily was burned into my memory, and I knew that I would remember it for the rest of my life. But I wasn’t going to give them the satisfaction of seeing me cry. They could jump off a bridge for all I cared. After spending so long wondering what exactly I had done to deserve this cruelty from my husband, it was satisfying to finally have an answer. He was more interested in fu-cking my best friend than fixing our marriage. I could picture the two of them right now, and even the thought of it made me want to sink to the floor and cry until my tears dried up. I couldn’t bear to think about what happened, or the sad reality of what my life was about to become. I didn’t know what I was going to do now, but I sure as he-ll wasn’t going to stay in this house. For so long, it had felt more like a prison than anything else. I had no memories of being happy here, and I wasn’t going to miss anything about being here. I had a plan in mind. Once I packed my things, I would get a hotel. Somewhere in the Upper East Side, so I wouldn’t be so far away from anything. And tomorrow, I’ll call the lawyer and tell him about the divorce.
It shouldn’t take long, since Marcus wasn’t going to oppose. Once we finalised everything, I would leave New York. Everything I loved about this city was with Emily, and I couldn’t bear that thought. I had always wanted to move to England for a while. Maybe I would go there for a while before I figured out what to do with my life. Marrying Marcus made me forget all the things I wanted to do with my life. He told me it wouldn’t be right for his wife to be seen working, because I would never want for anything. So he asked me to give up on my dreams and stay with him, and I stupidly obliged. How could I have been so stupid? How could I not see that he was cheating on me? The late nights, the mysterious phone calls, and the way he seemed so satisfied with our current situation. In the past, he couldn’t keep his hands off me.
But all of a sudden, he stopped trying. The mere mention of intercourse was enough to piss him off. He would snap at me whenever I tried to get intimate, or he would make up some excuse that he was tired or just not interested. There was also the unexplained pack of condoms I always kept finding in the trash. That was the first thing that raised alarm bells in my head. Either he had screwed up, or he simply didn’t care and he wanted me to find out. I finally managed to pack most of my clothes, and I hauled my suitcase out of the closet. I refused to look at our bed as I walked out of the room, and I dragged it out into the hallway. I must have been making a lot of noise, because Carlos—the butler—suddenly appeared in the hallway right as I was about to head for the stairs. He was still in his uniform, his greyish hair slicked back and his piercing green eyes narrowing down on me. Even though he was much older than me, we had always been so close ever since I started living here. I was going to miss him the most. “Ma’am?” he asked confusedly, his gaze shifting between me and the suitcase. “Are you going somewhere?” “Yes, Carlos,” I replied. “I’m getting out of this house.”
He blinked at me confusedly, and as I started to pull the suitcase, he rushed forward and took it from me. “I always knew this day would come,” he whispered, a sad expression on his face. “But it was not my place to speak.” “You knew about the affair?” I asked. “I didn’t,” he replied. “But it’s not so hard to realise that you and the master are not happy anymore. I suspected it would eventually come to this, and you would leave each other sooner or later. I guess it was sooner.” “I wish things were different, Carlos,” I said. “But I cannot stand this sham of a marriage anymore. I’ve held on for too long. I have to leave. For my own sake.” “I shall miss you, ma’am,” he said as he dragged the suitcase downstairs with me. “These past few years of having you with us has been wonderful. You were truly the best we could have asked for.” I forced back my tears as I said, “Thank you, Carlos. You have been an amazing friend. Will you inform the rest of the staff for me? I don’t have the strength to say any goodbyes right now.” “You can count on me, ma’am,” he said as we finally got downstairs and headed for the elevator. “I wish things could have worked out differently.” He smiled at me, but his smile disappeared as we rounded the corner and found Marcus standing in front of the elevator. My heart dropped into my stomach as my eyes met his, and he smiled wickedly. “Leaving so soon?” he drawled, swaying slightly.
He had clearly been drinking, and I could see it in how unfocused his gaze was. His shirt wasn’t properly buttoned, his shoes were in his hands, and he had used his tie as a belt. He looked like he’d just been dragged through a junkyard, and I wondered how he had gotten this hammered. But it wasn’t my problem anymore. “I have nothing else to say to you, Marcus,” I said. “Get out of my way.” “Y-you bit-ch!” he hiccuped. “You think y-you’re so much better than me, don’t you? You think you’re a saint, don’t you?” “Marcus, move,” I said. “Now.” “Fu-ck you, Liv,” he spat. “You think I-I wanted to do this? You think I wanted any of this?” “I don’t care what you want,” I spat. “I don’t care what you want, Marcus. You can go fu-ck yourself for all I care.” For a moment, he looked shocked that I was talking back at him. I’d never actually spoken to him this way before, maybe because on some level, I always felt like he was my superior. But now, I’d thrown all caution to the wind. I wasn’t holding anything back. Marcus blinked at me like he was just seeing me for the first time.
His lips were slightly parted, as though he was about to say something. I was so close to him that I could see the tiny black flecks in his eyes. I could see the slight crookedness of his nose which he always dwelled on, and he always tried to hide in public. But he was a total stranger to me now, and he stared at me like he didn’t know me anymore. And then he slapped me. I didn’t even see it coming. One minute I was looking into his eyes, and the next I was on the floor. It was sharp and painful, and it stung as I looked up at him, my mouth open in shock. Marcus had never hit me before. And I couldn’t believe what had just happened. “How dare you speak to me that way?” he roared, his anger dulling some of the effects of the alcohol. “You think you have the power to even stand next to me? You filthy peasant. I made you what you are today. If it wasn’t for me, you would still be in the gutter right now, searching for scraps and trying to make a name for yourself.
I pulled you out of the gutter and made you what you are today. And now you think you have the audacity to stand there and lecture me?” I was still too dazed by the slap to say anything, and my cheek was burning as he towered over me. I couldn’t look up at him, afraid of what I would see. “Listen to me very carefully, Olivia,” he said. “This is just the beginning of your worst nightmare. I’m going to make your life a living he-ll. You think this is the end of it? I’m going to take everything from you. I’m going to make you beg for mercy, and I’ll make sure you’re smooching my feet by the time this is over. I’m going to take everything from you. I’m going to ruin your life so much that even the filthy gutter rats like you won’t recognise you.
Believe you me, you’ll wish you’d never been born by the time I’m through with you.” He stormed off without another word, leaving me right there on the floor. I couldn’t even move, and my ears were ringing from the slap or from his words. The entire lobby was deathly silent, until Carlos moved forward and offered me his hand. “I’m so sorry, Ma’am,” he said. “I’m so sorry.” I didn’t say anything as he helped me to my feet, and I didn’t say anything as he rode downstairs with me, and helped me outside. I didn’t even say anything as he helped me find a taxi, and he said a quick goodbye before heading back up to the penthouse. I climbed into the back of the taxi as we drove off, and I stared out the window and watched the cars flying past. I couldn’t hear them, or anything else. I couldn’t focus on one thing in particular, as a hollow and scathing feeling settled in my chest. And that was when I started to cry.