She Was Never Just the Wife novel Chapter 17

Chapter 17

Chapter 17

But it was too late. Laylah spotted them first. Her eyes lit up, and then she arranged her face into the perfect expression of surprise, a little flustered, a little apologetic, and just a hint of smugness that was barely visible.

“Ms. Ross?” Her voice was soft. “What a coincidence, running into you here.”

Emily and Beckham turned around at the same time. When Emily saw Celia, the warmth drained from her face, replaced by undisguised displeasure.

Beckham’s expression was much more complicated. Surprise, awkwardness, and something else Celia couldn’t quite read. He tried to pull his arm back from Laylah’s grip, but Laylah acted like she didn’t notice and held on tighter.

“Mom. Beckham.” Celia greeted them flatly, her voice calm.

Emily let out a cold snort and looked Celia up and down. “You still remember I’m your mother-in-law? You wouldn’t come back for dinner, but you have time to go shopping with friends.”

Her voice was sharp and loud enough that people nearby started to stare.

Haley couldn’t hold back. She let out a cold laugh. “Mrs. Lucero, that’s rich. Your son is busy shopping with his mistress and her kid, but you’re mad at her for having a life?

“What’s good for the goose isn’t good for the gander, I guess.”

“Who are you calling a mistress?” Emily’s voice shot up.

“The one who answered.” Haley didn’t back down. She tapped her cane lightly on the floor. “Taking your son’s side piece and her bastard out for a nice family afternoon. Mrs. Lucero, you’ve got some hide.”

People nearby had started whispering, their eyes darting between the five of them.

“Is he from the Lucero family? Beckham Lucero from Lucero Group?”

“The woman next to him is Laylah Stein, right? The one who’s been all over the business pages and the tabloids?”

“Is that the wife? Oh my God, this is awkward.”

“Keep your voice down. The Luceros are not people you mess with.”

“What’s the big deal? The wife is actually pretty. How did the mistress steal her man?”

“You don’t get it. Men always want what they don’t have,”

Emily heard the murmurs, and her expression darkened. She stepped forward with Ricardo in her arms and glared at Celia.

“Celia, look at the kind of friends you keep. No manners at all. Laylah is Ricardo’s mother. She’s someone we recognize. Meanwhile, you’ve been married for three years and haven’t produced a single child. Whose fault is that?”

12:56 Sat, May 9 MMO.

Chapter 17

The words landed like a knife, right in Celia’s deepest wound.

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Haley saw red. She stepped in front of Celia, her voice cold as ice. “Mrs. Lucero, that’s an interesting take. If there’s no baby, shouldn’t you be asking your son about that? Why are you blaming Celia?”

Emily laughed like she had just heard a joke. “My son has a problem? Laylah gave me a grandson. What problem could my son possibly have? The problem is she can’t do her job.”

“How do you know Celia and your son ever did the job?” Haley blurted out.

The moment the words left her mouth, everything went silent. Even the whispers stopped.

Celia’s face went pale. Her fingers clutched the fabric of her shirt without thinking.

Beckham’s head snapped toward Haley, his eyes shocked and furious. “Haley, what the hell are you saying?”

Laylah froze. Her gaze shifted from Beckham to Celia, a flash of disbelief crossing her eyes.

Emily looked utterly stunned. Her eyes widened as she stared at Beckham, then at Celia, her voice cracking. “What… what do you mean? What do you mean they never… Beckham, is this true?”

Beckham’s face darkened, his lips pressed into a thin line as he remained silent.

The whispers started again, louder this time.

“Oh my God. Three years of marriage and they never slept together? That’s insane.”

“No wonder the mistress moved in. The wife was just a placeholder.”

“Beckham seems normal enough. Why would he do this to his wife?”

“Maybe he’s gay? Rich families are weird like that.”

“Is that kid really Beckham’s? What if he’s raising someone else’s baby?”

“Rich people are a mess.”

Someone had already pulled out a phone, and then someone else followed, snapping pictures and recording video because the CEO of Lucero Group getting caught in a scandal like this could easily go viral and trend online.

Laylah’s face went pale when she noticed people recording. She ducked behind Beckham, her voice trembling with tears. “Beckham, I’m not. I’m not the other woman. Ricardo is your son. You know that.”

The tears rolled down her cheeks as she spoke, soft and pitiful, the kind of sight that would break anyone’s

heart.

Emily, worried about her grandson, bounced Ricardo in her arms and glared at the crowd. “What are you filming? Stop it right now. Security. Security!”

Beckham took a deep breath and finally spoke. “Mom, enough. We’re leaving.”

“Leaving?” Emily stared at him in disbelief. “Beckham, tell me. Is what Haley said true? You and Celia

12:56 Sat, May 9 MM

Chapter 17

never… slept together?”

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His silence said everything. Emily looked like she had aged ten years in an instant. She turned to look at Celia, her expression complicated. Shock. Anger. And something else underneath, something almost like guilt.

Laylah sobbed harder. She clutched Beckham’s arm. “Beckham, let’s just go. I don’t want to embarrass Ms. Ross. I don’t want people pointing fingers at Ricardo.”

Her crying set off Ricardo, who started wailing in Emily’s arms.

In that moment, the baby’s screaming, Laylah’s sniffling, the crowd’s murmuring, and the cameras’ clicking all blurred together.

Emily rocked Ricardo, trying to soothe him. “Ricardo, don’t cry. Grandma’s here. It’s okay. Those mean people scared my baby.”

She whipped her head toward Celia, her voice turning sharp again. “Look at what you did. You scared a little boy. You and your friend just can’t stand to see us happy.”

Celia watched the whole scene unfold and felt something close to laughter rising in her chest. Three years. Three years of walking on eggshells, of swallowing her pride, of holding onto a scrap of dignity.

And in one moment, it was all ripped away. She stood there like a joke, surrounded by strangers watching her, whispering about her, judging her.

She stepped forward, her voice eerily calm. “Mom. Beckham. You should keep shopping. Hails and I are leaving.”

“Celia…” Beckham called after her. There was something in his voice she had never heard before.

But Celia had already turned around. She took Haley’s arm and said quietly, “Come on, Hails. Let’s go.”

Laylah watched her walk away, a flicker of triumph in her eyes, though her face stayed soft and wounded.

“Beckham, you should go after her. This is all my fault. I shouldn’t have come out today. I just wanted to take Ricardo shopping. I didn’t think this would happen.”

Emily grabbed Beckham’s arm. “Let her leave. Laylah, don’t blame yourself. She’s the one who should leave.”

Haley looked back over her shoulder and shot Laylah a cold stare. She mouthed two words: Fake bitch.

Laylah saw it, her face going pale as she cried even harder.

By the time they walked out of the toy section, the stares still prickled like needles on Celia’s back. She held her spine straight and kept walking, one step at a time. Her heels clicked against the marble floor.

Haley stayed close beside her and lowered her voice. “Cece, I’m sorry. I lost my temper back there. I shouldn’t have said those things.”

“It’s fine,” Celia said. “Everyone was going to find out eventually anyway.”

“But…”

Chapter 17

“Hails.” Celia cut her off, her eyes steady. “Why would we stoop to their level?”

Haley blinked.

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“If she wants to put on a show, let her.” Celia looked at her own reflection in the elevator doors. Her face looked strangely determined. “Soon enough, none of this will be my problem anymore.”

They stepped into the elevator. The metal doors slid shut, cutting off the stares and the whispers.

With only Celia and Haley in the elevator, it was so quiet they could hear their own heartbeats.

Haley looked at Celia’s calm profile and suddenly understood.

That calm wasn’t weakness or surrender; it was the quiet indifference of someone who had finally let go. Like a tree that had been through a storm, branches broken and leaves stripped away, but the roots still deep in the soil, waiting for spring.

“Cece,” she asked softly, her voice echoing in the small space, “do you really… not love him anymore?”

Celia was quiet for a long time.

The elevator went down slowly from the third floor, the numbers ticking down like a countdown.

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