She Was Never Just the Wife novel Chapter 63

Chapter 63

Chapter 63

The deafening slam of the door rang out behind Haley, making the doorframe vibrate, and her heart jump. She stood frozen with her back to the tightly shut door, her chest still heaving from that brief but fierce confrontation.

Beckham’s last icy question “What exactly is she trying to do?” lingered in her ears like a blade forged in ice.

‘Drugging someone? Celia?’ Haley thought, feeling her head spin. ‘Ridiculous!’

The combination of those two words made Haley so angry that it was almost funny. She whipped around, her eyes burning as she stared at the manila envelope Beckham had tossed onto the glass coffee table.

The light brown envelope with its seal barely closed sat quietly on the gleaming surface, like a bomb waiting to explode.

‘Celia would never do something like that. Not unless pigs fly!’ Haley thought, her anger flaring.

Haley knew her best friend like the back of her hand. Celia was proud to her bones. Even at her lowest, she’d never resort to something as dirty as drugging someone.

That would be a vicious attack on her character, a real slap in the face, way worse than the cold shoulder Beckham gave her or that divorce agreement back then. The thought made Haley sick to her stomach.

But judging by the way Beckham just acted, she thought he didn’t seem to be lying.

Haley had seen Beckham angry before. Beckham, the shark in the business world, could freeze a whole room with a glare.

But this time, there was something else in his eyes, a mix of shock, pain, and disbelief she’d never seen before. It wasn’t anger or blame; it was more like he’d been blindsided by some damning “evidence.”

What kind of “evidence” could make someone like Beckham lose his composure and storm over to the home of his ex-wife’s best friend just to demand answers?’ Haley wondered.

Haley’s mind was a storm of doubt and anger. She gritted her teeth, marched over to the coffee table, and grabbed the envelope, feather-light in her hand, yet impossibly heavy.

The cool touch of paper against her fingers made her heart race. Without hesitation, she ripped open the already loose seal and pulled out whatever was inside.

It was a handful of color photos, enlarged but with poor resolution, and that telltale blur and odd angle could only be captured from a secret snap.

Haley’s eyes widened, her pupils contracting, and her brows drew together in a hard frown at a single glance.

The background was unmistakably Cloudscape, and the signature dark wallpaper and soft wall lights made it clear it was nighttime.

The first photo showed a woman in a beige knee-length dress standing sideways, her head slightly bowed as she whispered something to a waiter holding a tray. Her long hair draped over her shoulders, her figure

19:37 Mon, May 11 d

Chapter 63

40

55 vouchers

slender and graceful.

The second photo zoomed in, catching her hand hovering right above a glass of water on the tray, frozen at a moment that seemed full of implication.

The third photo was a blurry shot of the waiter carrying the tray toward a private room, with the word “Pine” barely visible on the door sign.

‘Seriously? Just a few blurry photos, taken from weird angles with faces barely visible, and Beckham jumps to the conclusion that Celia drugged him?’ Haley thought, her anger rising.

A wave of absurdity mixed with rage at being made a fool of surged through Haley. She was so furious that she almost laughed. But in the next instant, it felt like an invisible hand squeezed her heart, sharp pain stabbing through her.

Not because of the ridiculous accusation, but because Beckham actually believed such nonsense as “Celia would drug him.” ‘Is he worthy of that?’ Haley fumed.

Haley forced herself to breathe, tamping down the chaos inside. She grabbed the photos and headed to the big window; afternoon sunlight poured in, way brighter than before. She needed a clear look at the so-called “evidence.”

Holding the photo by its edge, Haley squinted, her eyes scanning every detail like a laser, inch by inch.

The height, the build, the simple draped hair, the beige dress style… At first glance, anyone could mistake this woman for Celia.

Especially with these dim, weirdly angled, blown-up snapshots, and the details were blurred out, easy enough. to fool someone who didn’t really know her.

But Haley’s gaze turned razor sharp. She and Celia had been inseparable since college: roommates, confidantes, sharing every secret and heartbreak. Haley knew Celia inside out, maybe better than herself. But the woman in this photo…

The side profile looked rounder, the jawline not as crisp as Celia’s. And as for the shoulders, Celia always carried herself with a quiet, upright confidence, never slouching. But this woman’s shoulders were slightly hunched, almost timid, like she was deliberately trying to shrink away.

Here was the clincher…

Haley practically pressed the photo to her face, letting the sunlight hit right as she zeroed in on the patch of skin behind the woman’s ear, right at the hairline.

There was a tiny brown spot, about the size of a sesame seed. ‘Is that a mole? Or just some pixel noise from blowing up the photo?’ Haley wondered.

She couldn’t say for sure, but one thing she knew. Celia’s skin behind her ear was flawless, smooth as porcelain, not a single mark. Haley had braided Celia’s hair and helped her with skincare. She knew that spot like the back of her hand.

And then there was the vibe.

19:37 Mon, May 11 d

Chapter 63

55 vouche

Even as a blurry side profile, the woman in the photo radiated this vibe, for which Haley’d rack her brain for the right word, and it was something needy, almost like she was desperate to please, all hunched and awkward.

But Celia? Her pride was built in, bone-deep. Even in the plainest outfit, standing in the farthest corner, she had that cool, distant glow, like a star one couldn’t dim. The difference was worlds apart.

“Son of a bitch!” Haley spat through gritted teeth, slamming the photos down on the coffee table with a sharp crack. Her chest heaved, her fingers icy with rage.

This wasn’t some misunderstanding. This was a blatant, calculated setup.

Someone had found a woman bearing a resemblance to Celia, staged this whole scene at a specific time and place, and snapped these misleading photos. Haley wondered, ‘What’s the point? To ruin Celia’s reputation?

“To drive a wedge between her and Beckham, even though they’re already over? Or is this connected to that scandal that broke this morning: Beckham and Laylah were spending the night together at his apartment?’

A vague but terrifying outline started to form in Haley’s mind. “This had to be part of a much bigger game, and Celia was either a pawn being played or a scapegoat for someone’s smear campaign’

A cold wave of panic washed over her, nearly drowning her. ‘Where is Celia right now? Does she even know about all these dirty tricks?

‘Beckham’s almost convinced, and with all the chaos from that scandal and his anger, what might he do to Celia? And the mastermind lurking in the shadows. What’s their next move?

‘I have to get in touch with Celia right now!’

Haley scrambled over to the couch, grabbing her phone. Her fingers trembled with anger and worry as she unlocked the screen. She quickly scrolled to the top of her contacts list, Celia, and hit the call button.

The steady beeping echoed in her ear, each tone like a hammer striking her already frayed nerves.

Then came that cold, robotic female voice: “The number you have dialed is powered off. Please try again later.”

‘Her phone’s off?’ Haley thought, her heart sinking.

Suddenly she remembered something and smacked her forehead in frustration. ‘Damn it! How could I forget about that?’

Her memory snapped back to two nights ago. In this very living room, Celia was curled up on the couch with a steaming cup of coffee, looking cozy, while Haley was busy sorting through case files.

Celia said, “Hails, I booked my flight for the day after tomorrow.”

“Oh? Where to? Isn’t your advisor in Valoria always pushing you to go over for that exchange?” Haley asked, not glancing up as her pen moved across the papers.

“Not Valoria,” Celia replied softly, her voice carrying a rare, familiar calm. “It’s Kenyelle. Dr. Williams emailed

19:37 Mon, May 11

Chapter 63

4

55 vouchers

me again, and he said this year’s animal migration in the Mara Reserve could be spectacular, and asked if I wanted to go document it.

“I thought… why not? It’s been ages since I last went. The night sky out there can make you forget a lot of things.”

“The Great Migration?” Haley dropped her pen, her eyes practically sparkling as she jumped up. “Wildebeest crossing the river, crocs lurking, and Lion hunting… Oh my god, I wanna go, too. Take me!”

Her excitement lasted about three seconds before her shoulders slumped and she put on a dramatic pout. “Ugh, bury me now!

“I’ve

got that merger case in court next Wednesday, and the other lawyer is a total pain. My paperwork’s a mess… My boss is gonna kill me!”

Celia couldn’t help but smile at Haley’s theatrics, a faint but real curve on her lips. “Maybe next time. You’ll get your chance, promise.”

VERIFYCAPTCHA_LABELVerify