The CEO’s Quadruplets

            “I hate her,” Isabella muttered to herself.

            “I want you to understand that nothing happened, Isabella. I would never hurt you like that. I swear on my life and everything that I am.”

            Ignoring Amory, Isabella kept muttering, “I hate that girl.”

            “Don’t get too worked up, Bella. It’s not good for you.”

            “How could let this happen?!” Bella exclaimed aloud to herself, and hardly realized that Amory assumed it was for him.

He interjected into her inner tirade with, “My word is my bond, Bella! I will always be faithful to you. You know that!”

Stopping for a moment, she stomped her foot in frustration, feeling catty and furious as she finally replied, “I do! It is not you that I don’t trust! It’s that brat!”

Amory scoffed. “You cannot be serious. You just said it yourself: Starla is a child playing games, but she isn’t stupid enough to ruin her place here. She’ll leave me alone. I’ll talk with her and make things perfectly clear.”

“That doesn’t matter.”

“I can’t recast. It would not be fair to the rest of the actors or crew.”

“Shouldn’t my needs come first? Shouldn’t we come first?”

“Yes, but the money will be lost. The board won’t like it.”

“To hell with the board!”

“It will be fine. We don’t need to overblow this.”

“You need to recognize the severity of this right now, Amory!”

“I do, but it’s manageable. She is manageable!”

Isabella threw up her hands and shook her head. “You did not see the look in her eyes then, Amory. This won’t be the last time she will pull a stunt like this. She knew I was coming! She timed this all! She’s a villainous little bi*ch!”

Amory took a step back. “I don’t think I have ever heard you be so cruel.”

Isabella rolled her eyes in disgusts as she snapped back, “I’ve never had a twenty-year-old girl try to steal my husband. Forgive me for not taking that too kindly. Being graceful was never my strong suit.”

            Bella was past caring as Amory grew frustrated, saying, “No woman will ever replace you as long we both shall live. I made that promise!”

            Bella felt her voice rise higher and higher as she screamed out, “And you vowed to be on my side! You dedicated yourself to me! We are supposed to be a TEAM! We’re starting a family! We’re moving into a new home! The company is reaching a cornerstone year! Nobody has time for her! She can seduce some other man twice her age if she wants, but not you and not at this studio!”

            “This is MY company, Isabella! You don’t make decisions here! I do!” Amory shouted at the top of his lungs.

It was lucky the office floor was empty except for them.

            Isabella felt horrified. Everything had gone downhill so quickly. After all this time of promising her everything she asked, it seemed she had been spoiled by such a luxury. Even Amory Blake had limits.

            However, that did not change the fact that legally they shared everything Amory once owned by himself. Amory had been deliberate about calling everything theirs to share for the rest of their lives, but now “we” had so quickly turned into “I.” It felt like a nightmarish side of her husband had come to life, and this might be the side her worst fear had always known was there. Isabella had never tried to contradict him on such a fundamental issue, and that now seemed like a grave mistake.

Even further, their conversation had snowballed from a debate to an argument to an avalanche of emotion crashing down on them both. There was no stopping her tears now as emotion overwhelmed her heart. As the droplets began to streak her face, she watched Amory quickly deflate. He tried to reach out, but she pulled away. She refused to be touched. Part of her wanted to be held, but she would not give him the pleasure or satisfaction of human contact. Isabella wanted him to feel as desolate as he looked standing there in the lobby of his personal office.

For so long they had been a team, but now one stupid sl*tty actress had ruined their marriage. Oceans and time had not been able to do that, but somehow Starla ’s plan had ultimately worked. It made Isabella hate the little actress even more.

“Well, if we’re drawing battle lines, I’m drawing mine at the front door of the new house. I don’t just have a child to consider. It’s children. I have four other people to think of now, even if you don’t. If you want to start putting work before your family, don’t bother coming home to it.”

Amory seemed verging on tears himself. “Where do you want me to go? There’s… The sale on our old house has gone through.”

Her tone was like a dagger dipped in poison as she muttered to him, “A hotel. New York. Starla’s bedroom. Right now, I don’t really care.”

They both knew she did not mean it, but she wanted to be sure he would not dare darken their doorway. Isabella picked her purse up of the chair as she heard the last plea come from Amory’s mouth.

His voice was weak as he begged, “Don’t leave like this.”

“Fire her,” Bella stated in an angered monotone as she stared down the door.

“I- I- I can’t just do that.”

Isabella did not turn to face him as she admitted, “The worst part about this is that I cannot have a damn drink when I get home.”

She heard Amory slump back into a chair as he took those words in. It demeaned their marriage. The words hit him hard. She knew it, and left him to wallow in misery as she slammed the door behind her. Getting on the elevator, she noticed how desolate the corporate building looked now. Everyone had gone home for the day, and now she had to return to a lonely mansion and grade essays from her class. In the confines of the elevator, Isabella let herself sob openly before calling a car to take her home.