Chapter 4. New Wife

"What do you mean by that?" Aria scowled disappointingly, about Dalton's sudden hardheadedness and refusal to divorce her.

It was so unreasonable for him to just outrightly refuse to get divorce, when that was what he had always wished for his entire life. Ever since she had become a part of their family, and married into his home as a wife. She could not contain the anger she was feeling anymore, to the point that she wanted to spit at his face and curse at him.

'Wasn't that what he had always wanted? Did he have to frustrate her efforts again? Well that was really who he was. A disgusting bastard who had never looked at his wife with warmth, or even ever treated her nicely just for once'

Aria, who was already irritated by his silly games and playing around, angrily pushed him away from her and walked to the front of her dresser. Her eyes trailed to the mirror and lowered its gaze to her arm where the bruises from earlier were imprinted, as she stared at it through the dresser mirror so intently while running her left fingers on the surface.

It was as though seeing the affected area, even intensified the anger she was trying to conceal more.

Dalton was so surprised by the manner at which Aria acted, and the violent way in which she had jerked free from his tight grip. His mind went to so many thoughts of what could be happening, and how she had quickly become immune to his suffocating handling of her.

She could never have had the guts in the past, to even turn her neck at the greatest discomfort if he was angry at her.

'Had she always been this strong? What had come over her? Had she started taking d***s?' were the many thoughts that continued to endlessly invade his mind. He could not seem to understand why.

The crazy and new side of her that spontaneously turned overnight, seemed to really arouse his curiosity about what she could be up to. If it was multiple personality disorder that was messing her subjective behavior up, or something that was not yet to be figured out. He would find out soon. He would just allow her to do her worst.

The opaque glass door that was at the entryway to the room, was knocked on gently from the outside which made Aria instinctively scoff. She was pissed off at whosoever was there to knock on the door at that moment, disrupting her serious conversation with Dalton Miller who seemed to be crazy already.

"Mr. Miller?" Alex called Dalton from outside, when he realized that no one from inside would come to open the door. His voice sounded anxious and impatient. "Mr. Miller. There is a huge uproar about your divorce with Mrs. Miller on the internet right now. Someone anonymously posted a detailed story about it and......."

"Has it been taken care of?" Dalton's rude voice cut him off. He hated it when unnecessary reports were given over petty issues.

"Yes sir. Every post and hashtags relating to it has been taken down, and every journalist write ups and press houses coverage of the news has been taken care of. Every media access to the post has been blocked," Alex reported every process to him and then paused, knowing what he was about to report next might anger Dalton.

"The front gate is already crowded with so many journalists, as they are really curious to know who the mystery wife is, and what the divorce is about," Alex dropped the bombshell.

"Sounds like someone has no manners, and likes to put her personal matters out to the public attention," Dalton said in a raging manner but calm tone, as his cold gaze returned from the door he had been looking at, to Aria who kept on rolling her eyes in vexation of nothing in particular.

She probably now had a reason to express her anger, for the fact that Dalton would never even believe in her innocence.

"Since, you are a very cynical person. Denying your baseless allegation would not be, of course, needed," Aria replied to him in a snarky tone and huffed. "And I also think that you should not keep your darling guests waiting, who are curious to know how your wife looks and if the divorce news is true."

~••~••~

"The divorce that was just announced this morning is already in the media?!" Mrs. Miller questioned the maids in fury with a condescending look, whose tens of heads were bowed to the floor in confusion.

They didn't even have access to phones during work hours, where they could even post about anything that went on in the mansion. It was never possible.

"The maids would never have any guts to do something like that, mother. You should look at the other side of the picture," Ellen said to her mother, while trying to ignore the hundreds of comments that had been rolling in under the picture she had posted earlier in bed.

They were all annoying questions about if her brother's divorce with his wife was real and valid. Some even wanted to know what the wife looked like and her name too.

"That sneaky brute!" Eleanor suddenly remarked, as she turned her head to the direction of Aria's hallway like some kind of realization hit her, "There is a high tendency that it is that simpleton of a wife, that has released such bizarre news to the press. I cannot believe such impertinent behavior of her, when she is so aware that the Miller family holds a highly reputable prestige in the society."

Ellen was so pissed that none of her fans focused on how the flattery comments were meant to direct to her, but were so concerned with the affairs of the person she really hated so much in the house.

As she contemplated in her heart whether to delete her Instagram update that morning, she was hoping in her heart that Hailey whom she had informed about it, had told no one about the divorce and caused the present mess. She really wanted to believe it was really Aria, who had leaked the news about her own divorce.

Majestically, Dalton strode out of Aria's room and through the isolated hallway, made his way to the living room to the state of confusion in his home.

He was so furious about the issue with the reporters and how disgustingly persistent they were, and was about to tell Alex to send them away to wherever they had barged from. His mind strategized through some malicious thoughts, as his lip stretched and twisted into a smirk.

"Let the journalist and everyone willing to capture the news about the divorce in," he said to the assistant, whose mind was impulsively waiting to hear the order to send them away.

He was however surprised that Dalton was ready to let the press in, which was never his to do in any situation, that involved the sneaky pests who were willing to write anything in their papers for survival. He soon dashed out hurriedly at the order, still thinking about what his boss could do.

Aria, who had shut the door behind Dalton immediately he left, stood in front of the dresser in her room while checking herself out in the twinkling, strapless, silver dress that she had changed into. She was looking more gorgeous and pretty than ever, and she could not wait to see everyone in the house bulge their eyes out at the sight of her.

More than anything that had taken place at the Millers in just less than twenty four hours, she was so thankful to whosoever had leaked the news about her divorce and made her life more easier.

'A nice way to welcome everyone and officially announce my divorce. Let's see how Dalton is going to wiggle his way out of this, with his dumb stubbornness and pettiness,' her mind snapped in spitefulness of him, as she began to laugh so hard like maleficent herself.

Aria stopped laughing when she heard her phone ring, which she hesitated to pick up at first as she wondered who it was. On checking the name that displayed when the phone rang again, her eyebrows began to slowly form a crease as she folded her left arm into a ball to indicate anger in her.

She bit her trembling lips in so much fury, as she struggled with her hand not to slam the phone against the wall. Instantly, she shut the phone off as she was not ready to listen to the person's scurrilous talks, just at the moment of her goal peak that could ruin her mood.

She took a last peek at the mirror and smiled brightly, as she walked elegantly out of her room and through the hallway. The maids that were usually around every morning to give her the new chart of cloth combinations to wear, were more than shocked to see her dressed in that manner.

Normally, every single cloth and simple flowered accessories she wore each day, were already pre selected and arranged accordingly in her dressing room. The person they saw that walked through the hallway with a choking whiff of cologne, was entirely different from her normal self and from what they had ever seen before.