Chapter one

"You must divorce Cara now. You've been nothing but a fucking disgrace since you married my daughter. This family deserves more than a miserable son-in-law like you!"

Tim, Oliver's father-in-law yelled at him. Oliver raised his brow while gazing at Tim, and tension filled the air as he stood before his wife's family.

Their fiery eyes spoke volumes; a sheer hatred against Oliver that words could barely describe.

He had wondered why they suddenly called on him that night. 

Since he married Cara, they've always made him sleep in the basement and never allowed him access to the main building except to mop and clean.

Then, they'd ridicule him, call him names, and even spit on him for being a live-in son-in-law.

But Oliver endured all of this for one reason only: his love for Cara. Even though she joined them and treated him less than an animal, Oliver made excuses for her inside his head.

He didn't want to let her go.

He so desperately hoped that she would pass his test, and show that she could love him unconditionally.

Then, he'd reveal his secret and show her just how wealthy he truly was, and give her the world! But at that point, Oliver was starting to wonder if that day would ever come.

"Divorce her? But I love Cara. I don't want to divorce her!" Oliver responded to the older man who slapped him immediately.

Cara stood there with a smile on her face. She was intrigued by what was going on.

"How dare you talk back to me? I am a CEO for God's sake! You cannot be married to my daughter!" Tim yelled at Oliver. Oliver's anger began to build while he restrained himself from doing something insane.

"Besides, Cara told me you raped her last night! How dare you do that to my daughter?" Tim added and took his seat.

"I did not rape my wife! She returned home drunk last night. As her husband, it is only proper for me to help her undress, is it not?" Oliver asked Tim. He had a hard time believing that Cara would say that about him.

Did she hate him that much?

"Lies! It's all lies, father. He raped me. I even have bruises on my knees to prove it," Cara suddenly blurted out while raising her pink skirt to expose her bruised knees. 

Oliver gazed at her with shock.

She was much sweeter when they were dating. What made her turn into a monster, and why was she lying against him?

"Cara, you know I didn't rape you. You had those bruises when you came home last night!" Oliver replied to her but Cara scoffed.

"I don't care whether you're innocent or not. My daughter will divorce you and that's the end of this discussion! I need a son-in-law who can uplift my company, not the likes of you!" Tim said to Oliver.

Oliver, furious now, turned to face him.

"You seem to forget that I gave your company ten million dollars three years ago and saved it. Someone else would have bought your company if I hadn't-"

"Don't you dare refer to that!" Cara suddenly cut Oliver off. She approached him with a twisted look on her face as she continued.

"... Last I checked, you gave my father the money willingly. It was your choice to save his company. I don't even know where you got the money from. But ever since, you've been a disgrace of a husband who just stays at home and does housework. I regret marrying you because of that so-called act of benevolence!" Cara yelled at his face.

Oliver fought back the emotions pulsating inside him. His own wife was saying such hurtful things to him, after everything he had done for her. 

After all he had endured!

"I insist on a divorce as well. Cara has never loved you. She just married you out of pity. It's time you leave this family for good!" Cara's mother, who had been standing there, added while touching her husband's shoulder.

Oliver shook his head in the negative.

"No. I don't believe that. Cara loved me. She agreed to marry me when I proposed to her. That only means one thing!" Oliver refuted their claims, but Cara laughed out loud.

"I thought you had more money! I have never loved you. When you gave my father ten million dollars, I thought you had more to spare. But after marriage, I realized you were worthless. I've spent the last three years trying to correct my mistake," 

Cara walked over to a table and served herself some wine. She turned to Oliver with a frown on her face.

"I thought the ill treatments, the curses, and the insults would make you leave. But you stayed like a stubborn fly! Like a plague, you just wouldn't leave. And now, I'm done with this..." 

She then took out divorce papers and threw them on the table. "Sign these papers, right now. This is the end of the road for us!" Cara added with spite.

Just as Oliver was about to give a response, a man walked into the room. He wore an expensive Turkish suit with exotic perfume. 

Oliver's father-in-law smiled widely as the man approached and shook his hand. The man also exchanged pleasantries with Oliver's mother-in-law, and then, with shock in his eyes, Oliver watched Cara approach the man and hug him intimately.

He clenched his fist and gnashed his jaw as Cara giggled at the man's touch. 

"Get your fucking hands off her!" Oliver yelled at the man and all present turned to him. The man chuckled as he stood before Oliver with his hands inside his pocket.

"You must be Oliver, the pauper of a son-in-law," the man suddenly said to Oliver and laughed, almost like he was surprised by Oliver's audacity.

Oliver's face darkened with fury. He stood his ground as well. Did they always have to strike every nerve?

And who the heck was this?