chapter 1

Lucas's POV

'Smack!'

Lucas was slapped so hard in the face that all he could feel was a wave of pain racing through his features. It took a moment for his eyes to adjust to his mother-in-law, Margaret Ross's, angry expression, glaring at him.

He had hoped that the party would go off without a hitch. His wife, Piper Ross, was celebrating her 28th birthday and had prepared a lavish party to entertain the guests. He should have been there, standing by her side, but she didn't want her incompetent and useless husband to make her look bad.

His face contorted in pain, and he instinctively reached for it, tenderly holding it to relieve the searing discomfort. He could feel the ring on Margaret's finger, leaving a trace on his face. It was going to swell, he thought.

Lucas looked around, noticing the various looks on the faces of the guests who had witnessed the incident. They all shared one expression: disgust.

It wasn't the first time he'd seen that expression on someone's face, so he was used to it. What he wasn't used to was seeing a lot of people look at him with disgust.

His gaze was drawn to his mother-in-law's face, where he could see the rage engraved on Margaret's features as she scowled at him. Her dark and narrow eyes terrified him at that moment.

Quickly, he lowered himself to the floor, scooping up the shattered glass fragments. "I apologize, mother. I tripped and lost my balance," he apologized quietly, believing that would be enough to appease her, but instead, she booted him with her shoes, knocking him to the ground.

"How dare you!" She yelled, her voice rising to the top, capturing the attention of everyone around him and making him feel ashamed.

"I'm sorry, ma'am," he said again, rubbing his side where she had booted him, which was now hurting badly; another part of his body was going to bruise, he thought.

"Sorry?" snorted one of Margaret's friends.

"Would being sorry get me a new pair of shoes? You can't even afford them, and you dare pour wine on top of them, you useless idiot! Do you even know how much these shoes cost?" She yelled at him.

Lucas sighed as he gazed at her shiny red shoes. Even if he emptied his bank account, he couldn't afford even one pair of the woman's shoes. He heard murmuring as more visitors approached to see what was going on.

"I apologize, ma'am. I can try to clean it," he grumbled, coming closer to the woman's foot and wiping the wine mark from her shoes with his cloth.

"Don't touch me!" The woman spat with venom and moved away from him, disgusted.

"What's going on here?" He heard Piper's voice as his wife neared the scene.

Lucas had tried not to embarrass Piper during the celebration since it was her big day, and instead of staying in the hall, his mother-in-law suggested that he go to the kitchen to help out the servants in carrying out their duties for the night.

"Your useless husband has once again outshined the celebrant with his stupid acts," Margaret mocked. "He purposefully poured wine on my friends and me," she explained.

He didn't pour wine on them on purpose; he was serving wine at another table when his mother-in-law sighted him and requested that he serve them as well.

She had urged him to make himself scarce earlier, and now she was asking him to serve her and her companions.

He had walked over to their table, not thinking much about the weird order, and the unexpected had happened. Someone had tripped him, leading him to almost fall off. He lost balance on the tray he was holding and spilled the drinks he was carrying on their feet.

Piper inspected him and sighed, shaking her head. "You're always looking for an opportunity to embarrass yourself, Lucas." She said. "It's a good thing I'm divorcing you," she scoffed.

Lucas grimaced at the remark. It wasn't the first time Piper had told him she was leaving him, but this time it sounded genuine. He swallowed hard as he struggled to get to his feet.

"I can't believe you let your daughter marry such a person. Good for nothing," one of Margaret's acquaintances sneered, scoffing at him, causing him to lower his head in shame.

Margaret chuckled, giving him a devilish smirk. "Oh, he served his purpose, and he's now useless," she muttered.

Lucas had married Piper three years ago, despite the fact that she was unwell and needed surgery. They had been madly in love, and he needed her by his side. So, when her family consented to accept him, he volunteered to donate one of his kidneys to her in order for her to live.

Everything had been going swimmingly until she stopped sleeping in the same room as him. The affection had vanished within the blink of an eye, and he was now treated like garbage every day. They made him one of their servants and tortured him on a daily basis.

He still loves Piper, despite the fact that she despises him with every ounce of her being. It was difficult to detest her because she carried a piece of him, and he hoped that one day the love she once had for him would be rekindled.

"Then get rid of him if he's now useless!" Margaret's friend spat at him while staring at him.

Lucas felt shame flood over him when his mother-in-law spilled the contents of one of the champagne glasses left on the tray over his face.

"Get away from my sight, you piece of trash, and I don't want to see you for the rest of the night!" She shrieked at him.

He wiped his brow and lowered his head slightly in apology. As he turned to go, he noticed Margaret's sneer, and he realized right away that she was the one who had tripped him earlier. She was capable of causing him pain.

He sighed and returned to the kitchen to continue working. When he tried to help, even the servants gave him weird stares and tried to shove him out of the way.

"Perhaps you should just get out of the way and let others do the work. You've made quite a stir today, and I'm sure Mrs. Ross would raise hell at us if we let you back there," the butler had said.

He felt useless. Even the servants regarded him as a thorn in their side. He then walked to the corner, where he could observe the festivities outside while still watching the servants work. He didn't hold it against the butler; the man was merely protecting his head from the Ross family.

Nobody wanted to irritate Margaret Ross or even Elton Ross, his father-in-law. The man was not only affluent and wealthy, but he was also influential, as he knew a lot of high personalities in the country. He was also frightening and evil.

Lucas watched as Piper entered the stage and clicked her glass, drawing everyone's attention to her. She was still as stunning as when he first met her. Her red gown did justice to highlight her beauty.

She smiled and cleared her throat. "I'd like to thank you all for coming to my party tonight, and I hope you're having a good time. I also have important news to share." Piper announced, stretching her hand as a man accepted it and placed a kiss on it as he climbed the stage next to her.

Lucas frowned, perplexed as to what was going on. Another man had just kissed his wife's hand. Was she cheating on him? Piper wouldn't do that, he thought. He moved closer to the kitchen entrance to get a better view of the stage.

"His name is Nicolas Rivers. I'm sure you've all heard of him." Piper blushed as Nicholas placed his hand on her waist and drew her close.

He recognized Nicholas Rivers. He was one of the city's wealthiest and most eligible bachelors. Every billboard and television show featured the man. The news spread his name like wildfire.

"Well, we're pleased to inform you all that we're engaged and will be getting married soon!" Piper exclaimed enthusiastically before Nicholas kissed her lips.

Lucas' heart shattered like that glass that had fallen out of the tray. What the hell was Piper up to? he wondered as he began walking towards the platform, where she was still standing and staring at Nicholas as if he were her entire universe.

He didn't make it to the stage, however, because two men, one on each side, stopped his route and hauled him out of the room.

He struggled against their grip, and before he could say anything, Lucas felt a harsh hit to his back, followed by blackness.