Getting close to the wrong man brings nothing but misery. My darling daughter had fallen for some deadbeat. A broke loser, no less. Not only did this kid have zero class, but he actually had the gall to think he could waltz in and eventually take over my company. But Chloe was head over heels for him. So much so, she was willing to cut ties with me, her own mother, just to marry this bum. I laughed. "Fine. Get out of my sight, the both of you. Stay as far away from me as possible." But later, much later, she was kneeling at my feet, sobbing, begging me to take her away. 1. My birthday gala was winding down when Chloe finally rushed in. She was wearing the designer dress I’d picked out for her, but her hair was a mess, her face flushed. "Mom, I'm so, so sorry. Something came up last minute at the hospital." Standing beside her, the man practically shoved a small, slightly worn box from a generic mall jeweler into my hands. He had a loud voice. "Mrs. Vance, good evening. I only found out it was your birthday on the way over with Chloe. Didn't have time to get anything fancy, hope you don't mind." The entire ballroom went silent. Everyone turned to stare, their faces a mixture of curiosity and judgment. Chloe. He called her Chloe? That familiar? I gave him a slow once-over. Buzz cut, shifty eyes, not particularly tall. He was wearing a suit that looked like it had been pulled crumpled from the back of a closet somewhere—definitely borrowed or rented, and badly. Everyone else here tonight was either old money, new money, or a titan of industry. He stuck out like a sore thumb. The way he held that cheap gift box, looking down his nose at me, it almost felt like he thought he was doing me a favor. I ignored him completely and turned to Chloe, forcing a smile. "Honey, and this is…?" Before the guy could open his mouth, Chloe jumped in, "This is my boyfriend, Derek Stone…" Her voice trailed off, getting quieter, and she dropped her gaze, unable to meet my eyes. My smile vanished. My face hardened. The murmurs started immediately among the guests. "What's going on? Wasn't Chloe engaged to Ethan Hayes? Since when is there a boyfriend?" "Is Chloe blind? Trading Ethan Hayes for… that piece of work?" "Poor Eleanor. What a way to ruin her birthday." "Ethan is such a catch, any girl would kill to be with him. What is she thinking?" Derek, seeing I wasn't acknowledging him, let his forced smile fade. He shifted his weight, rubbing his arm like holding the cheap box was tiring him out. I heard him mutter under his breath, "Seriously? What's with the stuck-up rich bitch act?" He said it low, but I heard it clear as day. Chloe panicked instantly, tugging lightly at his sleeve, silently pleading with him to shut up. Just then, Ethan Hayes stepped onto the small stage, smoothly taking the microphone to rescue the situation. "Thank you all for coming tonight to celebrate Eleanor's birthday! That concludes our festivities for the evening!" He gave me a subtle nod from across the room, a silent message not to worry. Then he started directing the staff to clear the area. Relief washed over me. I turned on my heel and walked towards the exit, snapping coldly over my shoulder at Chloe and Derek, "Follow me." 2 Back home, in the first-floor living room, Mrs. Davis had already prepared tea for us. I sank onto the sofa, composing myself, and looked expectantly at Chloe. "Alright. Talk. When did this start?" She exchanged a nervous glance with Derek. "Mom," she began tentatively, "please don't be angry when I tell you." I just raised an eyebrow. That was enough. She confessed immediately: "High school." High school? My Chloe had always been such a good girl, always did what she was told. In high school, she was completely focused on her studies. She wouldn't have gotten involved in something like dating early unless someone else pushed her into it. Thinking about this, my anger started to simmer again, burning hotter. Derek wasn't the type to read a room. He actually leaned forward, trying to get closer. "Mrs. Vance, I came here tonight because I wanted to be upfront with you. Chloe and I are in love, and we really hope you'll give us your blessing." His eyes darted around the room, taking everything in. Calculation was written all over his face. I took a deep breath. "Marriage? Well, isn't that lovely. It's rare for my Chloe to find someone she likes so much. I guess I need to vet him properly." I turned my full attention to Derek. "Mr. Stone, where did you graduate from college? Where are you currently employed? What's your salary? Do you own a car? A house? What are your savings? And what, exactly, are your plans for the future?" "And if you intend to marry my Chloe," I added, my voice dripping ice, "what kind of financial commitment are you prepared to make? Let's say, as a show of good faith. How about five million dollars?" Chloe froze, stunned by my barrage of questions. She just sat there, speechless. Derek looked even more uncomfortable. He wrung his hands in his lap, his ears turning bright red. He stammered, unable to form a coherent sentence. I saw right through him. "Oh, dear," I said with mock sympathy. "Don't tell me you have… nothing?" Chloe immediately jumped to his defense. "Mom, it's not like that! Derek started his own company, poured a lot of his own money into it! It hit a rough patch, but things are starting to turn around now. He has potential, Mom! He's going to make it big, I know it!" Mentioning the company seemed to puff Derek up again. He lifted his chin, nodding arrogantly. "Yeah, I'm good at business. Never met a deal I couldn't close. Once Chloe and I are married, I'll work even harder, for our family's company…" I gasped, covering my mouth in mock surprise. "What do you mean, our company? Mr. Stone, surely you aren't planning on taking over the Vance enterprises?" He realized his slip-up, his face clouding with frustration. He clamped his mouth shut, refusing to say another word. I took a slow sip of my tea, then sighed lightly. "My Chloe is such an exceptional young woman. So many suitable men would love to marry her. If you really want to marry her… well, maybe I can make an exception, cut you a deal." Hearing this, Derek perked up considerably. "Tell me, Mrs. Vance. Whatever it takes, I'll do it." I nodded. "The requirements aren't that high. Just show me you can provide that five million dollar commitment I mentioned. Then, I'll agree to the marriage." His face twisted instantly, ugly. He practically spat the words out between clenched teeth: "Five. Million. Dollars?" He turned on Chloe then. "Chloe, I'm so disappointed. Your mother is unbelievably materialistic!" With that, he stormed out of the house, slamming the door behind him. Chloe was left standing there, stamping her foot in frustration. She looked at me reproachfully. "Mom! Why did you have to say that? You can't put a price tag on love!" She turned to chase after him, but I stopped her sharply. "A man who isn't willing to show any kind of financial commitment, not even for your future? And you still want to be with him? Starting today, you are staying home. You are not going anywhere. Your relationship with him is over. Understand?" Chloe flared up. "That kind of money? How is he supposed to come up with that right now? Rob a bank?" "Is five million really that much, Chloe?" I looked at her coldly. "For you, that amount used to be pocket change. When did your standards get so low?" She couldn't argue with me. Defeated, she sulked back to her room. I paused for a moment, then pulled out my phone and sent a text to my private investigator. 'Run a background check on a Derek Stone. I want everything you can find.' 3 Derek Stone's family background was, to put it mildly, a disaster. His father was a gambling addict. After one particularly bad loss, he flew into a rage and killed the person he owed money to. A convicted murderer, serving life. His mother remarried and cut off all contact with Derek completely. He was in the same grade as Chloe in high school. Before senior year even ended, he was expelled for bullying another student. He'd been drifting through low-end jobs ever since. He'd been in plenty of trouble. Just like his father: prone to anger, volatile. The PI told me the company Derek started was in game development. But he lacked the skills and, more importantly, the funding. He couldn't attract real talent. The company was floundering, basically dead in the water with no future prospects. This was the man I was supposed to let Chloe be with? Absolutely not. I closed the file folder. "Mrs. Davis," I called out, my voice firm. "Inform Miss Chloe that the wedding to Ethan Hayes will proceed as scheduled. Next week. Tell her to prepare herself." The wedding was set. Before Mrs. Davis could even respond, we heard pounding footsteps on the stairs. Chloe rushed down, clutching the fabric of her dress. "Mom! I won't marry Ethan! I don't love him! The person I love is Derek!" I'd had counselors talking to her for days, trying to make her see reason. Clearly, it hadn't worked. If anything, it seemed to have made her even more defiant. My face hardened instantly. "Ethan Hayes is respectful, intelligent, and capable. He has a brilliant future ahead of him. How can Derek even compare?" Ethan was the perfect match I had carefully chosen for her. The sole heir to the Hayes fortune. Marrying him meant Chloe would never have to worry about money. She could focus entirely on her own career in medicine. "You grew up with Ethan, Chloe. You know him better than anyone. There's simply no comparison between him and Derek!" I tried reasoning with her, my voice softening slightly. "Honey, you need to marry someone who is already established, someone good. He won't let you suffer. Derek is only with you because you're Chloe Vance. He wants your money, your connections, your status to build himself up. Take away the Vance name, and there's nothing left for your relationship." Chloe shook her head vehemently, tears starting to well up. "No, that's not it! All my life, I've felt like a puppet! No thoughts of my own, no freedom! Just following the path you laid out for me, step by step!" "Derek brought color into my life! When I'm with him, I can laugh out loud, I can be myself, completely unrestrained! Only then do I feel like a real person, alive, with feelings!" She looked straight at me, big tears rolling down her cheeks. "Mom, do you know how lonely it is? Living alone in that huge, empty condo you bought me? It's so cold. Derek came over one night… he cooked dinner for me. For the first time, I felt like I had a real home, something warm." I was stunned. "A home-cooked meal?" My voice was incredulous. "One meal made you feel warmth? Then what about everything I've done for you, all these years? What does that count for?" Chloe wasn't my biological daughter. I adopted her from the foster care system when she was young. I've never been good at intimacy, at expressing affection. The only way I knew how was to provide, to give her everything I thought was best for her. She didn't do great on her SATs, so I sent her to a top-tier university overseas. She walked straight into a prestigious residency program after graduation. I worried about her commute to the hospital, so I bought her a condo nearby and a car. I even pulled strings behind the scenes to smooth things over with her colleagues and superiors. My daughter had the best of everything growing up – clothes, education, friends from influential families. And now, she was throwing it all away for a single home-cooked meal from a loser? I was shaking with anger. "So, you feel like I've somehow failed you?" Chloe bit her lip, her voice suddenly soft again. "Mom, that's not what I meant, please let me explain…" I cut her off with a bitter laugh. "No need to explain. If you insist on being with Derek Stone, then fine. I will freeze all your assets. And effective immediately, you no longer work at that hospital." Chloe paled, then flushed with anger. "Mom! I earned that position on my own merit! You can't do this!" I gave her a cold, dismissive glance. "Your merit?" "The only reason that top-ranked medical team even looked at you was because your last name is Vance." "The reason you can walk into work and not worry about office politics, do whatever you please, is because you are my daughter. Everything you have, Chloe, comes from this family. It's not something you could have ever achieved through hard work alone." She crumpled, sinking onto the floor as if her legs couldn't hold her anymore. She had no reply.
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