Indignant Wife

Yvonne went red as a cooked crab.

I was going to keep exposing her past, but then someone shoved me down to the ground from the back.

I crashed my head against the corner of a table before I fell, and something warm trickled down my face. Blood. The pain was making my head spin, and I closed my eyes.

When my eyes snapped open, the first thing they saw was a finely dressed woman smashing a piece of cake into my face. "That is hogwash! Yvonne is of noble stock, but you are not! Your blood is filthy! You think a peasant like you deserves Mr. Solomon?"

Yvonne was gloating. "She's right. I got the firm a deal worth 4.5 million dollars in a month. A nanny's spawn can never get that kind of achievement. I have a PhD in law from Bullings University."

Yeah, identity theft. They did it through and through.

"Yeah. Know your place, nanny! Stay away from your master!"

"Yvonne, you can't let her stay! God knows what she might do! She's already trying to steal your identity!"

"If she loves the art of seduction so much, maybe she should consider prostitution."

I looked at Salazar. His face was a mask of ice, and he was swirling his glass of wine like this was not his business.

"Remember what you promised me when you tried to make me your girlfriend? That you'd love me forever. That you'd protect me forever. And now you're letting them humiliate me?"

That wiped off his mask of indifference, but it did not change his attitude. Icily, he said, "This wouldn't have happened if you had never crashed this party."

That emboldened Yvonne. "He told me you tried to seduce him all the time, but he always let it slide because your mother worked for his family for years. Still, calling him a criminal is too much. I hereby announce that Tamara Sheffield is fired! We do not keep any ungrateful bastards in our ranks!"

Ungrateful bastard, huh? I looked at Salazar.

"Are you really sure Yvonne's the one who closed all those deals? You know very well that I'm the one who kept finding clients for your firm. I was the one who worked through the nights sorting out the files. I was the one who snagged ten cases worth at least a million in a row! I was the one who found a foothold for the law firm! Why don't you tell them that?"

There was a hint of wariness and hesitation on Salazar's face now.

But then Yvonne stepped in. "Yes, we let you deal with the clients for the early stages, but it was only training. And you botched all of them. Salazar and I had to clean up your mess for you."

To my surprise, Salazar actually believed that story. He believed that the cases only fell into their laps thanks to his and Yvonne's unrelenting efforts. And his face fell.

"I've spoiled you too much, Tamara. To think you'd try to steal Yvonne's credit."

The disdain everyone had for me was growing palpable at this point.

"She's an errand girl, and she thinks she can steal Yvonne's credit. What a worm."

Salazar held Yvonne's hand. "Resign right now and hand over Mr. Sheffield's number to Yvonne. Or else we reserve the right to sue you for defamation."

The icy winds froze my heart all over. So the man I shared a bed with for five years had been plotting against me all along. They wanted to steal the biggest cases from me. The ones that could make them nearly three million, each.

There were three of them too.

This was a plan years in the making, and all because he wanted to please his mistress.

I shook my head and clicked my tongue. Pity his schemes would fall apart like a house of cards. His family was beneath mine. He had no idea that Mr. Sheffield, the richest man in the city, was my grandfather. I was from that very family. And the client was, of course, my grandfather himself.

And now it was time for me, the true heiress, to deal with this imposter. I smiled. "Of course. A minute. But do you really think you can close this deal? The client is the richest man in the city. I won't stop you from kicking me out after you used me, Salazar, but nothing good will come to you. Also, I'll email you the papers."

The Counterattack Begins

"You're off your rocker, Tamara. Do you really think you're an actual heiress just because you pretend to be? Divorce? Please, Yvonne's my one and only wife."

Salazar was clenching his teeth. The man was stuck in a sticky situation, and he had to lie his way out of this.

I crossed my arms and watched the circus show unfold. The people around me were changing their opinions, and they showed respect for me.

Though they were whispering, their voices were loud enough to pierce through the silence.

"Tamara's a Sheffield. Maybe Yvonne's the real mistress here."

"And if the stories are true, the Sheffield heiress lives a very low-profile life. Yvonne, though, wears designer goods from head to toe. It's like she's overcompensating for something."

Yvonne noticed the discussion, and that wiped the smile off her face immediately. She was glaring at me now. "Tamara, I have a PhD in law from Bullings University, while you don't even have a high school diploma. How dare you insult me! I'll call Mr. Sheffield right now. I'll show you how a pro handles closings!"

Her confidence swayed the crowd again, and they kept watching.

"I can't believe you, Tamara! You knew Mr. Sheffield wouldn't just take any calls from anyone, and you pushed Yvonne into calling him! I can see why you almost fooled everyone. You're a sly fox! Tell me, which of my clients specified you as their principal?"

My heart sank. That just hit me. No wonder Salazar kept telling me to give him the spot as principal for every single case I took. "It's for the firm. We want people to know about it," he said.

No, that was not the real reason. This was. He was waiting for this moment, when he could steal all my credit and give it to Yvonne.

He would take everything. My identity as heiress, Bullings' PhD holder, his wife, and even the principal for his cases.

I laughed at myself. The old me must've been blind. I could not believe I spent five years hopelessly in love with this bastard.

The lawyers took my silence as an admission of guilt. And the lackeys started attacking me.

"And I thought she was telling the truth, but she can't even show us any evidence. Yeah, that's what she gets for posing!"

"Where are the guards? They ought to throw her out. She's nothing but a poser. Disgusting!"

Some of the lecherous guests exchanged a look and came forth. They surrounded me.

"Don't have to call the guards. We can handle her. A little lesson, and she'll be quiet."

They did not bother hiding the lust in their eyes. The leers alone were making me shiver, and my feet were taking me backward.

Salazar frowned. He was wondering if he should let this go on.

"Eh, it's just a lesson. We're all lawyers in this city. They won't do anything too… egregious."

That convinced Salazar. He turned his attention somewhere else.

One of the leering men, a bald one, grabbed my wrist, and he laid his eyes on my chest. He never looked away again.

With all my strength, I barked, "Let go! I'm the granddaughter of Hereward Sheffield, the richest man in this city! Let go, or you're dead!"

Everyone froze, and then hilarity climbed. They burst into raucous laughter.

"Wow, she really is serious about the part, huh?"

"Honestly, she does look like an heiress now, if only for a moment."

The bald man was dragging me away, and his friends were touching me inappropriately.

"Okay, you keep on this rich girl act while we have our fun."

With tearful eyes, I looked at Salazar, and I shouted, "Salazar, tell them to stop right now! My family gave yours the rise it wanted, and we can take it away just as easily!"

Salazar looked at me again, but his eyes were devoid of emotion. He grunted. "Don't get mad at me, Tamara. You're nothing but a servant's girl. You can never be my wife, much less replace Yvonne."

That was the bald man's cue to go further. He slid his hand into my clothes and started to…

"Mr. Sheffield has arrived!"