Resigning as His Lover

I spent seven years as Christian Vance’s executive assistant and nine years as his secret lover. Until one morning, on my 29th birthday, I woke up in his bed, and he casually gave me an order: "Clear my schedule for April. I need the month off for my wedding." I froze, my eyes instantly stinging with tears. He chuckled, looking at me with amusement. "You didn't think I was marrying you, did you?" I asked him, "Then... what am I?" He pulled me into his arms, soothing me like a child. "You know how the Vance family is. If you married in, they’d eat you alive. Keeping you on the side is freer. It protects you." "Babe, it's just a business merger. It won't affect us. You’re still the one I love most." In that split second, I suddenly didn't love him anymore. Chapter 1 At 7:00 AM sharp, the alarm went off. I kept my eyes closed and nudged the warm chest behind me. "Get up, Christian." The arm around my waist tightened, pulling me back into his embrace. His body heat was overwhelming, pressing against me. I was still sore from last night, my voice raspy as I reminded him, "We’re going to be late..." "Five more minutes," he murmured against my neck, his voice thick with sleep and desire. "I’ll be quick." We had always been compatible in bed. His stamina was terrifying. An hour later. My legs were trembling as I stood in front of the mirror, tying his Windsor knot. He raised a hand to smooth my messy hair, looking satisfied and lazy. "Still mad?" I glared at him, a flush still on my cheeks. "My perfect attendance bonus is gone, Mr. Vance." His fingers traced a red mark on my collarbone, his voice teasing. "I’ll pay you double. Deal?" I slapped his hand away. "We are seriously late!" He was over thirty, yet he had the energy of a teenager. I straightened my blazer and switched into professional mode. "10:00 AM signing ceremony. Lunch with CEO Caldwell at noon. 2:00 PM executive board meeting. 4:00 PM construction negotiation with Mr. Chen. 6:30 PM, the Industry Gala dinner." "Got it." He nodded, fastening his Patek Philippe watch. In an instant, he transformed back into the cold,禁欲 (ascetic) CEO the world knew. He glanced at his wrist. "Oh, right." As if remembering a minor detail, he instructed me: "Clear my schedule for April. I need the time for my wedding." My hands shook violently. The tie I was fixing unraveled. I couldn't process it. He said... wedding. Was he... proposing? My eyes welled up. Tears fell before I could stop them. We had been running this marathon for nearly a decade. I had waited so long for this day. "No?" His voice came from above, tinged with awkwardness. He looked at me, frowned, and then laughed. "You didn't think I was marrying you, did you?" It was like a bucket of ice water dumped over my head. I stood frozen. The messy sheets, the evidence of our intimacy, suddenly looked blindingly grotesque. He paused, then clarified. "It's Bianca Sterling." The Sterling family's eldest daughter. A pamperd heiress. A match that screamed "old money" and "power couple." Silence stretched out, suffocating. I looked at him, my lips trembling. "Then... what about me?" He turned his head slightly, avoiding my gaze. "You know my father's health is failing. My cousin is making a play for the CEO spot. We’re going public soon. Merging with the Sterling family is the best strategic move." He looked back at me, his eyes softening with that familiar, manipulative comfort. "Eva, I'm doing this for our career." It sounded so noble. Our career. "By the way, Bianca can be a bit entitled. Just humor her. Don't take it to heart." He patted my head. "I won't let you be mistreated." I looked out the floor-to-ceiling window. The festive New Year's decorations outside clashed with the blinding sunlight. My eyes burned. My heart felt like it was being squeezed in a vice. "So, you never planned to marry me?" A flash of impatience crossed his face. "Eva, is that piece of paper really that important to you?" "You know my family. They’re vipers. If you married in, you’d suffer. Keeping you outside the family is freedom. It’s for your own protection." I smiled bitterly. What a "noble" sacrifice. His parents had always looked down on me. I was the girl from the trailer park. No matter how competent I was, to them, I was just a gold digger climbing the corporate ladder in Christian's bed. I closed my eyes, tears streaming down. "Christian, what have I been all these years?" "Your lover? Or just a kept pet?" He sighed, wiping a tear from the corner of my eye. "Don't overthink it. Have you ever seen anyone keep a 'pet' for ten years?" He pulled me into a hug. "Babe, it's just a business marriage. I promise I won't touch her. You’re still the one I love." "My heart has been yours for nine years. Have I ever strayed? Look at our circle. Who else is as loyal as I am?" He wasn't wrong. In this circle of billionaires, fidelity was a myth. Open marriages and a carousel of mistresses were the norm. Christian was different. Everyone knew the CEO was obsessed with his secretary. For nine years, he had put me on a pedestal. Chapter 2 I first met Christian Vance during my senior year of high school. He had just taken over the family business and came to my school in the Rust Belt for a charity event. I was the student representative presenting him with flowers. Suddenly, my father stormed onto the campus, grabbing my arm, screaming that I had to drop out. He needed me to work at a factory. He owed gambling debts, and selling me off to a local mechanic for a quick dowry was his solution. At the age when dignity matters most, I was slapped twice across the face in front of the whole school. Just as I felt I was drowning, a cold, clear voice descended from above. "How much? I'll pay it." I looked up. Christian was in his early twenties then. Sharp brows, phoenix eyes, possessing a calm authority far beyond his years. The debt was $25,000. He wrote a check for $50,000. He bought my freedom and severed my ties with my father. He was like a god descending to pull me out of the mud. I didn't know then that $50,000 wouldn't even buy a single screw in the watch he wore. A casual act of kindness changed a poor girl's destiny forever. After that, his assistant wired me money every year for tuition. I never saw him again. For years, I sketched his face in my memory. When I was 20, I had saved up every cent he had given me. I wanted to pay him back. I didn't have his number, so I waited in the lobby of Vance Enterprises. It was a freezing winter day in New York. After three hours, I saw his Maybach pull up. "Mr. Vance!" I rushed forward. He glanced at me sideways, frowning. The window rolled up, sealing him away. He didn't remember me. I panicked and reached out, my fingers getting pinched in the closing window. "Mr. Vance, I'm Eva Saunders! You sponsored me three years ago!" The window lowered slowly. He turned, his gaze landing on me. I handed him the envelope of cash, my fingers throbbing. "I don't need the sponsorship anymore. This is to pay you back." "I'll pay back the original $50,000 slowly." I bowed deeply. "Thank you for saving me. You’re a good man." "Oh. It's you." He scanned me, his eyes lingering on my red, swollen fingers. "Get in. Let's go to the hospital." "No, Mr. Vance, I... I'm fine." I clenched my hands, stepping back in embarrassment. My nose was red from the cold, my coat was from a thrift store, and my boots were worn out. I was a vision of poverty, completely out of place against his luxury car. Eventually, his driver got out and opened the door for me. I sat on the edge of the leather seat. It was warm inside, a different world from the freezing city streets. I tried to hide my scuffed boots and pilling sweater. The heat hit my face, mixing with shame, turning my ears bright red. He broke the silence. "You made that much money in two years of college?" I nodded, face burning. "I keep my scholarship. And I buy vintage clothes from estate sales to resell online. I made a decent profit." He raised an eyebrow, a flicker of appreciation in his eyes. "You have a head for business." He paused. "Interested in interning at Vance Enterprises over the winter break?" I nodded furiously. "Really? Yes! Thank you, Mr. Vance!" Chapter 3 That winter, I became a lowly intern in the Secretary's Office. Surrounded by Ivy League elites, I felt like an ugly duckling. Christian had impossibly high standards. During the day, I ran around until my feet blistered. At night, after everyone left, I stayed behind to study the files. One evening, I was still at my desk. Outside, the Manhattan skyline glittered. I didn't notice. "Why haven't you clocked out?" The low voice startled me. I spun around. Christian stood there, framed by the city lights, looking like a king. "What are you reading?" He leaned over, looking at my screen. Private Equity. Options. Leverage. I stammered, "I heard you discussing these terms with a client... I didn't understand, so I wanted to learn." He nodded, a faint smile playing on his lips. "Ambition is good." He walked to a bookshelf and pulled out a few volumes. "Read these instead." He tapped my desk. "It's late. Go home. I don't run a sweatshop." We walked out of the building together, only to run into a college classmate who had been stalking me. I had rejected him multiple times, but he had followed me to work. "Eva! I've been waiting for hours. Let's get dinner." I was mortified. After getting rid of him, I apologized profusely to Christian. "Mr. Vance, I promise he won't come back. It won't affect my work." He raised an eyebrow. "Suitor?" "Sort of..." He tilted his head, looking at me. "Do you know the best way to reject someone?" I shook my head blankly. He smiled, a look that was hard to read. "Tell them you have a boyfriend." "But I don't..." "What kind of boyfriend do you like?" he asked. "I don't know..." I twisted my fingers nervously. He lowered his head, staring straight into my eyes. "Is someone older okay?" I avoided his gaze, heart pounding. His eyes burned into me. "Is someone like me okay?" Handsome, wealthy, successful. To a girl from nowhere, he was the ultimate dream. Maybe I had fallen for him the moment I looked up at him at 18. I didn't know why he wanted me—a plain, boring girl. Maybe he was bored. Maybe I was a novelty. I never expected that I would spend my twenties in his shadow. Walking beside him for nearly ten years, only to end up here. Chapter 4 "Miss Saunders, I hope you know your place." It was something Christian used to say when we argued. At work, we were boss and subordinate. If I messed up, he scolded me, and I took it. At home, he would hold me and say, "You can't talk back to the boss, but you can talk back to your boyfriend." That was the "place" he gave me. Now, his fiancée was saying the exact same words to me. "Miss Saunders, I hope you know your place." When Bianca Sterling appeared at the company, it caused a sensation. We had kept our relationship low-key at the office, but nine years of glances and body language couldn't be hidden. Everyone knew. I was the last to know about the marriage. "I thought Eva would finally get the ring," VP Miller whispered loudly to a group of employees. "Guess the boss finally woke up." "Nine years with the same woman? Even if she's a supermodel, you'd get sick of it." "No comparison. Eva is pretty, but look at Bianca. That Hermès bag alone is worth more than Eva's life." Miller had always hated me. He made sure I heard every word. Bianca sat on the sofa in the CEO's office. She looked immaculate in a tweed Chanel suit that would look matronly on anyone else but looked royal on her. She looked me up and down and laughed lightly. "I've known Christian for years. He's a creature of habit. He eats the same dish over and over." "It doesn't mean the dish is good. He's just too lazy to switch restaurants." She lifted her chin. "But eating too much fast food is bad for your health. Don't you agree, Miss Saunders?" I stood there, nails digging into my palms, unable to speak. "Christian has been loyal to you physically, I'll give you that. If you stay quiet, I won't make trouble for you. But—" She frowned, looking concerned. "You're almost thirty, right? I've never seen such an... elderly mistress." "How many years do you have left? When your looks fade, will he still care?" "There is no shortage of young faces in this city. What makes you think you can be a mistress for life?" She narrowed her eyes, enjoying my humiliation. "Secretary by day, bedwarmer by night. You really work hard, don't you?" I swallowed the lump in my throat. "Miss Sterling, my relationship with Christian isn't what you think." For nine years, he took me to meet his friends. They called me "sister-in-law." We lived together. We built a home. Bianca sneered. "Eva, you've lived the good life so long you forgot where you came from. A trailer park girl who climbed into her sponsor's bed to change her tax bracket. We all know how much effort that took." "He kept you for nine years, but did he ever promise you a future?" She stepped closer. "You think because his frat buddies call you 'sis' that you're Mrs. Vance? Wake up. The Vance family doesn't let trash in the front door. He's marrying me for power. He's not an idiot. He won't throw away his empire for you." She looked at my red eyes with disgust. "Don't go crying to Christian. Vance Enterprises needs the Sterling capital. He's lucky I chose him." "Men are all the same. I picked Christian because he's handsome and cleaner than the rest." "From now on, tuck your tail between your legs when you see me."

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