THE BILLIONAIRE'S KARMA

Chapter 1

Silvana

If roses were red and…

I had lost touch with every romantic part of myself at that point, as I was hit by reality. My five-year glide ride with Reed had come to an end.

“I have fallen out of love with you,” Reed's words cut me deeply as he made me feel like I was some sort of toy that he had gotten his fill of, and was ready to get rid of.

“Reed… we can talk about this, just calm down…” My breathing was beginning to get pretty constrained as I couldn't handle the heartbreak that was bound to come. “You don't have to go this far… we can talk it out if you want…”

“There’s nothing for us to talk about.” Reed’s words made it clear that his mind was made up completely, without any space for a second thought. “I can't do this with you anymore. It just isn't working.”

“What isn't working?” I asked, insisting on finding out what it was that wasn't working out. “Tell me, Reed. Is it something I can fix or something I can change?”

“You can't fix nothing, Silvana,” he hadn't called me by my full name in a while. The first time we had met it had been Vee, but now he was speaking to me like I was some business partner he didn't want to do business with anymore.

I knew that things had begun to get cold between us, but then, I hadn't seen a divorce letter coming— not from a mile away.

Why was he turning on me all of a sudden? Had I done something that he detested to the point of serving me with papers? Those questions kept burning up in my head, but I couldn't get an answer befitting enough. Nothing was adding up.

“Don’t pretend like we were some lovely couple that had been in love with each other. You know how suffocating this union has been ever since it began.”

Reed seemed intentional about trying to get me agitated so he could get me to accept the fate that was being shoved down my throat.

But I was t doing to give him that satisfaction just yet, as I was grappling with what the consequences would be if I wasn't going to accept that divorce.

“You know I can't leave you, Reed. You're all I've got…” I was trying my best to be calm, but my tears were threatening to break out of my eyes.

The one thing that was giving me some level of happiness and sanity was about to be taken away from me in such a saddening manner. I couldn't let it happen to me without putting up a fight. That would be the end of my world as I knew it.

“If you can't leave, then you're going to have to learn just how to do it right this instant.” Reed’s tone was unbelievably unforgiving as I stared at him. “There is no way I can keep putting up an act of a happy family that's nonexistent.”

“So this has all been to you? From the wedding vows? Your proclamations of love…?” I was having the rug being pulled from underneath me in the worst way imaginable. The rug had been pulled and I was falling hopelessly to the floor on my face. “Did you even ever love me?”

“Oh come on… are you going to make me say this…” Reed sighed, as he palmed his forehead. “Alright, fine… I did… but I just don't anymore…”

“What…?” At that point, I felt like I had been living a lie every single day of the past five years.

He didn't love me anymore? What the heck did he mean by that? Was I some sort of toy that was meant to be used and discarded when I wasn't pleasing him anymore? That was pretty much what he was sounding like. But I still didn't want to believe that he was dumping me there and then.

“You heard me right, Silvana. Quit pretending like you didn't hear what I had just said. If you force me to reiterate, I might not sound just as nice.” Reed spoke with indignation in his eyes.

The silent moments that passed by let me soak it all in painfully as it dawned on me that he meant every word of it.

“It's not like I'm divorcing you without any benefits. You get to have a million dollars to yourself and that's more than enough to give you a head start somewhere else… anywhere else but here…” he had lost touch with how bad those words would make me feel.

“Reed…” I was short of words at that point, as it felt like I had been speaking with some cold-hearted stranger who seemed to be in the body of my husband somehow. “Are you doing this to me?”

“It's not as bad as you are making it out to be. I am sure that you're not enjoying this marriage, just like I am not. So let's just call it—”

“Reed? Honey…?” a shrill, feminine voice called out from upstairs and it was followed by some footsteps that gave the rhythm like that of a catwalk. “You've been keeping me waiting all this while…”

My heart was nearly sinking out of my chest as my eyes met with that of the blonde woman who was scantily dressed in a dangerously short gown and lingerie to go with it.

“Who are you?” I questioned angrily then paused for a couple of moments, as I recognized who exactly she was. “You…” I turned to Reed. “I thought you said that she was just one of your ex’s whom you've gotten over. What's she doing here all dressed like this?”

“Well, Esham is here to stay…” Reed said, with a confidence that had me scared. “She's the one I truly loved, and not you, Silvana. It's best that you just sign these divorce papers and head out with your compensation of a million dollars, or I'll have you arrested…”

I couldn't feel my legs anymore, as my heart just couldn't take it anymore. In the heat of it all, I found myself fading.

The sun had just set in my life, in just one day. I blacked out instantly from the shock.