Marry My Billionaire Second Husband-Chapter 29: Unwanted Calls

"Who is it?" Matteo asked, his voice gentle as he patiently waited for Amelia to answer. Seeing her blanched-white face, however, he furrowed his eyebrows. 𝘧𝓇ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝘣𝓃ℴ𝓋𝑒𝑙.𝑐𝘰𝑚

"It’s... Caleb..." Amelia answered, her voice shaky.

"What does he want?" Ronan couldn’t help but ask.

"Answer it," Matteo said, and Amelia did as told. Her thumb pressed on the small green button, picking up the call right as Matteo tapped the speaker button.

"Amelia?" Caleb’s voice came in from the other end. "Where are you?"

"What do you want, Caleb?" Amelia asked angrily.

"Can’t I be concerned about my wife?" Caleb asked, worry coloring his tone. It was almost enough to fool her into believing he truly cared about her well-being. "It’s not every day you find yourself plastered over the internet, accused of sleeping your way to the top."

"Don’t pretend that you had nothing to do with it," Amelia yelled. "You were following me the whole time!"

"Is that a crime? No matter what, we were husband and wife for years. Could anyone fault me for being worried about my poor impressionable wife being taken advantage of by her wealthy older boss?"

"Ex-wife," Amelia said with gritted teeth. "I’ve signed the papers. You and I have nothing to do with each other."

"That you did," Caleb said, "But what use is a signed divorce agreement if I didn’t send it out?"

Amelia’s blood ran cold. "You wouldn’t."

"Who knows? I might have gotten cold feet," Caleb said playfully, but Amelia could feel nothing but dread. "Imagine what would happen if I let the public know you’re actually married to me, while you’re out gallivanting with Matteo. The names they’ll call you... it’ll make ’slutty secretary’ sound mild in comparison."

Amelia’s entire body trembled at the audacity of this man.

"What do you want from me? Why are you torturing me like this?" Amelia yelled out, and both Matteo and Ronan narrowed their eyes at her desperation.

Matteo wordlessly ordered Ronan to check on Amelia’s marital status. If the form was filed, it would leave a record in the system. Caleb Walton would not be able to lie his way out of this.

"You’re a very troublesome woman, Amelia Kentwood," Caleb said. "Matteo Montgomery doesn’t know it, since he’s blinded by what’s between your legs, so this is my way of letting him know. When he finally gets rid of you, you’ll have no choice but to come crawling back to me, begging me to take you back."

"Fuck off, Caleb," Amelia seethed, her fingers curling as though they longed to reach through the phone and wrap themselves around his neck. "I’d rather die than return to you. Don’t forget― you’re the one that wanted a divorce. If that’s all you have to say, I’m hanging up."

Before she could lose her nerve, she jabbed at the red icon, severing the conversation for good. She heaved in deep breaths, trying to calm herself down. Her legs felt weak, as though she had run a marathon.

"Sit down," Matteo instructed, slowly guiding her to the sofa seat. "Amelia, do you need water?"

Amelia shook her head weakly. There was a pounding in her temples, and she let out a small groan.

"Mr. Montgomery, you heard him. I cannot be engaged to you when I’m still married to him. And you shouldn’t marry me to begin with― I’ll bring you trouble. It’s better if you just fire me."

"Definitely not," Matteo said.

He reached out and cradled her clammy hands with his own. Amelia’s breath caught in her throat as the sudden warmth traveled through her body, banishing the awful chill that threatened to swallow her whole.

"I will not allow Caleb Walton to bully you any longer," he firmly said while holding her gaze. She deserved better than to live the rest of her life tormented by such a man simply because her heart was good enough to give him a chance.

Tears began to roll down Amelia’s cheeks at his words. She couldn’t help the sobs that were slowly threatening to overcome her. Matteo could only crouch in front of her, helplessly watching her cry into her own hands. He reached out gently and patted her back, feeling her tremble underneath his palms.

How could Caleb Walton bear to torture his wife like this?

Meanwhile, Ronan was quickly making inquiries. To his relief, the system had flagged Caleb’s name. He had indeed filed the forms for divorce, no matter what he claimed.

"Well, Miss Kentwood, I have good news. Caleb did file the forms for divorce, contrary to what he said. It has also been processed. The both of you are no longer married," Ronan said, handing a tissue to Amelia.

"He lied?" Amelia asked. She felt a stone being lifted off her chest with Ronan’s proclamation, and looked to Matteo for confirmation.

He nodded. Matteo’s hands came to cup Amelia’s face, and he slowly wiped away the tears with his fingers.

"You won’t have to worry about him. If he tries anything, official documentation cannot lie," Ronan piped up from the back.

"Marry me," Matteo said, his voice barely even above a murmur. Beneath the frosty expression, Amelia thought she saw a figment of a blush coloring his cheeks. "I’ll be by your side. He won’t dare harm you."

Ronan’s mouth fell open at his best friend’s audacity. Surely there was a time and place for everything!

Amelia was similarly gobsmacked. She sniffled, blinking away the last of her tears. Ronan’s news that Caleb had filed the divorce documents had settled the worst of the turbulence in her heart, but Matteo’s words were threatening to send her into a tailspin.

Marry him?

Was he serious?

She stared into his eyes and only found honesty.

"I... I need to think about it," Amelia said weakly. "This has been a huge surprise, I need time to mull it over."

"I understand," Matteo said, but she detected the slight disappointment in his voice. "It’s a big decision to make."

Ronan cleared his throat, reminding his best friend not to be too selfless. His professional reputation was also at stake!

"Don’t take too long to decide, Amelia," Ronan said. "Matteo needs to answer to the board of directors soon."

Amelia nodded and scrubbed the last of her tears away from her face. "I’ll give you an answer by... tomorrow. I want to discuss things with my father."

"I’ll send you back home right now," Matteo offered before Amelia could protest that it was technically still working hours. "If you’re here, no one will be getting any work done today, and you’ll have to endure more of their scrutiny."

"But my work..."

"Just go with him, I can take over your job―" he then added under his breath, muttering with a roll of his eyes, "―since it was mine, to begin with."

Matteo shot him a frosty look over his shoulder and Ronan wrinkled his nose in indignance.

"But don’t do anything stupid!" Ronan spluttered. "And remember to keep your head down around the paparazzi!"