My Husband’s Bedmate Hurt My Daughter Chapter 03

My Husband’s Bedmate Hurt My Daughter Chapter 03

I’d loved Matteo for six years, and we’d been married for three.

I’d once believed our life would stay steady forever.

But he’d let his mistress—the woman he’d tucked away inside this company—hurt my own daughter.

Every last shred of affection I’d held for him died right then and there.

I left Elodie in the care of the front desk clerk, Clara Bellini.

When she got a look at Elodie’s bruised face, her eyes immediately welled up with sympathy.

“Ms. DeLuca, don’t worry. I’ll keep a close eye on her.”

I nodded, then pulled out my phone and dialed my attorney straight away.

“Draw up divorce papers for me immediately.”

“Also, arrange to take over DeLuca Group’s internal audit and finance departments effective immediately.”

There was a beat of silence on the line.

“Did something happen with Matteo?”

“Nothing happened to him,” I said coldly. “It’s time for him to pack up and go.”

Matteo had sat in the chairman’s seat at DeLuca Group far too long.

So long that most people in the firm had forgotten he wasn’t born into that chairman’s seat.

He’d forgotten every bit of this position was mine to give.

Now he’d dared plant Bianca within the company, and even let her lay hands on my child.

It was high time I reminded him exactly who owned DeLuca Group.

I hung up and headed straight for the top-floor meeting lounge.

Looking through the glass office wall, I spotted Bianca clinging right up against Matteo.

She wore a crisp white skirt suit, a stack of folders tucked against her chest, a smug smile playing on her lips, carrying herself like she was already the chairman’s wife.

The soft way he looked at her cut right through me.

Several clients sat nearby, chuckling and teasing them openly.

“Matteo, you and Ms. Marlowe make such a striking pair.”

“When are you two going to go public? We’d love to raise a glass to you both.”

They laughed like they had not a care in the world.

My little girl had cried herself to exhaustion only minutes earlier, yet this woman stood there preening and smiling.

“Ms. DeLuca?”

One of the clients spotted me first.

Matteo and Bianca spun around at once, their faces draining of color the second they laid eyes on me.

I walked toward them step by slow, unyielding step.

Matteo instinctively stepped in front of Bianca to shield her, lowering his voice sharply.

“Serena, we’ve got clients here. Don’t embarrass me in front of them. Go home now.”

I fixed my gaze on him.

“You’re choosing to protect her?”

Matteo’s brows drew tight with frustration.

“If you keep this up, we’re done.”

I let out a bitter, hollow laugh.

“Fine by me.”

I shoved him hard out of my way.

Crack.

My palm connected hard across Bianca’s cheek.

She shrieked, clapping a hand to her face and sinking down to her knees, fresh tears spilling instantly as if she’d suffered some terrible injustice.

I stared down at her.

“That’s for my daughter.”

I lifted my hand to strike a second time, but the blow never landed.

Matteo shot his arm up and struck me square across the face.

My head snapped to the side, a high ringing tone flooding my ears.

The entire meeting room fell dead silent.

Matteo pulled Bianca tight against his chest, his tone icy and biting.

“If you’re losing your mind, do it somewhere else. This is a workplace.”

He raised his voice and roared toward the hallway.

“Security! Escort her out.”

A handful of security guards rushed forward.

I held a hand to my stinging cheek and lifted my chin to meet their eyes.

“Does anyone here remember who actually owns this company?”

They froze mid-step, none daring to lay a single hand on me.

Bianca leaned into Matteo’s chest, tears streaking her cheeks, her voice clear and deliberate as she spoke.

“Ms. DeLuca, I know your father left you some company shares, but Matteo’s the one running day-to-day operations around here. If you’re upset about something, we can talk in private. There’s no need to strike someone in front of our clients and put Matteo on the spot like this.”

The second she finished speaking, several clients chimed in.

“Matteo, if your major shareholder is this emotionally volatile, we’re going to need to reconsider this partnership entirely.”

“I have to agree. For the group to move forward, we need more stable stakeholders at the helm.”

“We’ll call this meeting off for today. We can revisit the deal at a later date.”

They stood and filed out, and Matteo’s face turned storm-dark with rage.

“Serena, you just cost us a huge deal. Are you satisfied?”

I watched them leave, overcome with bitter absurdity.

His lover had abused my young daughter, yet everyone was acting as if I was the one ruining business.

At that moment, a man stepped forward: Gareth Pike, the HR director Bianca herself had hired.

“Ms. DeLuca, with all due respect, I think you owe Bianca an apology.”

I turned slowly to face him.

He flinched for half a second, then straightened his spine when he caught Matteo’s approving glance.

“Bianca was assisting Matteo with the clients. Your personal outburst hurts the whole company’s interests. As a shareholder, you’re expected to keep personal and work matters separate. On top of that, your daughter was drawing all over the chairman’s desk. Bianca was just correcting her behavior for her own good.”

A few onlookers bowed their heads, while others nodded along in agreement.

“Yeah, children need firm discipline to stay in line.”

“The chairman’s office is full of sensitive documents—who knows what damage she could’ve caused?”

“Ms. DeLuca really let her temper get the better of her today.”

I scanned every single one of their faces, memorizing each person clearly.

I’d stepped back from daily corporate operations for years to prioritize Elodie’s well-being, and these people had foolishly convinced themselves Matteo held all the real authority.

They were so desperate to curry favor with Matteo they expected me—the true DeLuca heir—to apologize to a low-level secretary like Bianca?

Fine.

This company was long overdue for a full purge.