Mr. Graham’s Untouchable Wife

The one who’s married to Averie Quinn’s biggest nightmare was her sister yet she’s the one pregnant with his baby.

As an adopted daughter of the Quinns' family, Avery lived her life trying to be in her family's good books. She strived hard to please them. And maybe that included getting pregnant for her brother-in-law on behalf of her eldest sister, the real daughter of the Quinns’ family.

Standing behind the curtains with her big protruding belly, Averie’s hands trembled under the weight of the food tray, causing her to approach the dining table with difficulty. She seemed to be invisible before her parents as she set down the plates to serve them because they never spared her a glance. Her parents were busy discussing work with their eldest daughter and her husband, the heir to the biggest company in the states, also, Averie’s boss.

No one cared for her presence, even as she gently dabbed the sweat rolling down her temple.

Back to the quietness of her room, Averie settles in bed in exhaustion. She’s been working all day in preparation for the family dinner tonight. Even though she couldn’t join them, she didn’t think much about it. Ever since she got pregnant, she wasn’t allowed to dine with them on several occasions because of her sister, and even her freedom was restricted. But the truth is, this is the life she’s used to. Ever since she was small, she was manipulated by her foster parents for every meal she had, every care given to her. She was made to understand they weren’t free and the only way to repay them for bringing her up was to always please and obey them.

For every cookie, every pen in high school, Averie had always worked for it. Down to her major in College, everything was decided for her because they didn’t want her to surpass their real daughter in anything; including success.

A soft knock came on her door and her brother-in-law entered. Averie’s lips parted in surprise. She wondered why he came looking for her and how he managed to get away from her clingy sister to begin with.

“Mr.Graham, do you need an extra plate of food?” she asked as she tried to stand on her feet.

Darian Graham, her cold and emotionally detached boss closed the door behind them. He sized Averie up and down with his frosty blue eyes. His expression has always been cold and distant, especially towards Averie, even at work. It seems to get worse after the surrogacy agreement, he simply hated her for no reason.

Averie was burning under his intense gaze and silence.

“I came to check on the baby. Don’t stress too much” He said with the meanest voice but strangely, there’s a hint of warmth in his tone.

“Uh? Yes… I’m okay” Averie stammered, taken by surprise. This is the first time in months that her boss has finally decided to talk to her. On several occasions, he would ignore her or stare at her with disdain all day.

“I don’t care about a breeder. As long as the baby is okay” He said with no expression on his face.

Averie swallowed a bitter lump but still covered up with a smile “Sabrina must be waiting, you should return if there’s nothing else I can help you with” She clenched her dress, embarrassed.

Darian clenched his fist in his pocket; he was quick to conceal his bruised ego.

“Listen to me Averie,” he closed the distance between them, advancing toward her until she was cornered against a wall. Their faces were just inches apart. The room thickened with the suffocating air of their tension. Anger, fear, yearning… Averie sure was scared to trace her boss’s eyes to her lips and other parts of her body. His hot breath and the way he seems to be restraining himself from touching her.

“Smart at work but dumb in other areas of your life, so pathetic” he uttered with heavy breath.

“I’ve always wondered why you hate me this much, it can’t be about this pregnancy could it?” Her brows creased with curiosity.

The door opened to reveal Sabrina, her sister and before Darian could respond, Averie flinched and pushed Darian away from her face.

Sabrina said no words to them, she looked rather composed; her signature look before she ruins people's lives.

Sabrina walked over to Averie, raised her hand, and struck her hard across the face.

“This is your last warning Averie, stay away from my husband,” she said with her finger pointed.

“Sabrina, he came into my…”

Her sister didn’t give her a chance to explain herself, she grabbed her husband by the arm and left the room.

As soon as they were out, Darian pulled away from her with a deadly look. Sabrina’s hands hung mid-air with a heartbroken smile “You promised to…”

“Don’t touch me if others are not looking” he said, deadpan.

“Trust me you’re worried about our baby and nothing else. After two weeks, she’ll know where she stands” Sabrina balled her fist out of strong jealousy. Unlike everyone else, Sabrina could tell there was another reason behind Darian’s cold facade but she still managed to marry him under false charges.

……

That same night after dinner, Sabrina came back to the house without her husband. Averie walked in on her talking to their parents.

“I don’t think I can wait anymore, she’s due in two weeks anyway”

Those were the words she heard before Sabrina spotted her.

“Uhm Averie darling, the doctor called. You’ll need to get admitted pending your due date” her mother explained.

And like that, she got dragged away by her sister.

They arrived at the hospital in disguise. Immediately, four nurses started attending to Averie. They injected her twice but she could do nothing except to wait and observe.

“Sis… is the baby in danger?” she asked drowsily, she was losing consciousness.

Her sister’s wicked smile was a blur. Hours later, she woke up on the operating table. She had regained consciousness during surgery.

The harsh lights stung her eyes and she was forced to shut them tight.

“This is bad. She’s up” She heard a voice from one of the blurry figures hovering on top of her.

“Continue. She’s going to die anyway” Averie made out her sister’s voice next.

Amidst the chaos, realization dawned on her. They were taking out her baby before her due date. Her eyes faltered to another figure injecting a red liquid into her water line.

“Don’t blame me greedy Orphan, I’ll raise the baby well.”

Averie was desperate to talk but she wasn’t in control of her body. She hoped that her sister would reconsider and let her live at least. Maybe she had misunderstood her earlier, she was willing to get on her knees with her intestines rubbing her feet to plead for forgiveness if she could, at that moment but it’s impossible.

Next, the cry of her baby filled the room and she felt the most gut-wrenching pain ever. Hot tears poured down her face, recalling how she had lived miserably trying to please her family.

“My baby…” her breath hitched

She merely wanted to repay them for raising her… not that they’ve betrayed her.

“Do I mean anything to you all?…” she attempted to lift a finger.

“Rest in peace if you want” Sabrina scoffed.

“If only I had lived right, I wouldn’t have regrets” More tears fell as she slowly succumbed to the excruciating pain.

“WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON HERE?” A familiar masculine voice suddenly thundered through the operating room.

“Honey… we have the baby,” her sister said with crazed laughter.

Averie couldn’t believe her ears. She immediately went into shock, shuddering on the cold table “I wish you all a painful death” Her voice was strained.

She took her last breath.

In a luxurious space that looked like a hotel room, Averie Quinn turned in her sleep comfortably. Sweet fragrances assaulted her senses and her lips curved with a smile.

As realization set in, Averie sprang up from her sleep with a gasp.

She looked confused but the environment sure seemed familiar— It was her room. Her heartbeat tripled.

She gripped the duvet tightly as she carefully inspected her body, her flat belly. Her phone vibrated and she gasped.

It’s a message from her boss “Avery Quinn, you have five minutes to get down here”

Averie shouted when she saw the date on the text message, she had miraculously returned to the night it all started. Two years before the storm… the night of the party when her sister slept with her boss.