Carter Vance won a priceless pink diamond at an auction. I thought he was finally going to propose to me. After all, we had been dating for seven years. His best buddy congratulated him, saying we were finally about to tie the knot. But I heard Carter ask in return, "When did I ever say I was marrying Maya?" "Who else would it be?" "The Vances are old money. How could my parents ever allow me to marry an orphan with nothing to her name? My family has already arranged a marriage with a woman of equal social standing. I’ll be proposing to her in a few days and announcing our engagement to the press." His friend asked, "Then what about Maya?" Carter scoffed. "How can you mix love and business? I'll just keep her as a mistress after I’m married. With her background, she should be on her knees thanking me." 1 "Damn, Carter, but with Maya's personality, would she really settle for being your side piece?" The grating voice drifted out from the VIP lounge. Through the crack in the door, under the dim, amber lighting, a faint smirk appeared on Carter’s handsome face. "She’s always been clingy, like a little puppy. As long as she gets to stay with me, she’ll do whatever I tell her." The doorknob in my hand suddenly felt like it weighed a thousand pounds. I couldn't push it open. I didn't want to anymore. I had been so full of joy, thinking he was going to propose to me tonight. I never imagined that he had factored me into his future in such an incredibly humiliating way—leaving me the disgusting, immoral position of a kept mistress. Anger flooded my mind. My emotions screamed at me to burst in there, slap him hard across the face, and demand to know why he was treating me like this. But my rationality reminded me that doing so would be pointless. It would only give their elite little circle another joke to laugh at about the poor girl who didn't know her place. After weighing it in my mind, I let go of the doorknob and turned away. "Maya?!" A familiar voice called out. I turned around to see one of Carter’s friends walking down the hall. Inside the lounge, the loud voices eagerly guessing who their "new sister-in-law" would be abruptly went dead silent. "Did you just get here?" he asked. I forced a smile. "I've been standing at the door for a minute." The moment the words left my mouth, the faces inside the room drained of color. From a short distance away, Carter and I looked at each other. Neither of us spoke. He still had that calm, breezy look on his face. He was absolutely certain that I loved him too deeply. He believed that no matter how awful his words were, I could never bear to leave him. Because of that, he was confident. He assumed I would do anything for him, even willingly become his dirty little secret. Suddenly, I found it all so meaningless. I turned and walked away. Behind me, I heard his friend's worried voice: "Carter, is she going to be mad?" "You should go after her and coax her." Carter let out a low, dismissive scoff. "It's fine. I know her personality. she won't make a scene." We had been together for seven years and lived together for three. Carter thought he knew me inside and out. In his eyes, I was quiet, gentle, and understanding. When we first got together, he told me that was his favorite thing about me. He said I was like a wild orchid—blooming quietly, never fighting for attention. Looking back now, that description made me sick. His so-called metaphor was a severe desecration of such a pure flower. 2 I drove back to our shared apartment. I packed my bags to leave. I remembered when we first moved in together. Carter had wrapped his arms around me and said, "Maya, hand in your two weeks' notice. I’ll take care of you." At the time, we both worked at Vance Corp. The difference was that I was just a junior sales manager, while he was the CEO of the entire empire. Hearing him say he would take care of me sounded incredibly sweet. Unfortunately, as someone who grew up with zero sense of security, I firmly believed in the survival rule of relying on myself rather than others. So, I refused. Back then, Carter had frowned. "Vance Corp is my company. You busting your ass all month for that chump change... is it really better than letting me take care of you?" A base salary of $8,000 a month plus commission—in his eyes, it was just "chump change." I knew the gap between us all too well. Billionaires marry billionaires. Nobodies marry nobodies. And sadly, I was entirely alone in this world. I didn't even have a family to speak of. I never expected to walk down the aisle with him. To me, as long as he loved me and I loved him, that was enough. Even if we couldn't make it to the end, we could part on good terms. But he got angry. On our very first day in the new apartment, he gave me the cold shoulder. He ignored me for an entire month. I swallowed my pride and begged him to come around. Every day after work, I’d cook his favorite meals, waking up at three or four in the morning to meticulously prep his breakfast. After a month of me quietly delivering lunches to his office, he finally softened. His tone was irritable and displeased: "Maya, you are way too clingy." Back then, I thought "clingy" was just playful banter between couples. Now, I was just thankful I hadn't given up my career for a fleeting moment of romance. Two large suitcases held everything I owned from the past few years. I drove to my new home. It was a small apartment I had bought entirely with my own money—only 500 square feet. When I was house hunting, Carter had laughed at me. He couldn't understand why I would turn down the luxury mansion he offered me, only to insist on buying a tiny, trashy apartment where you could barely turn around. He didn't understand me. Just like I had never truly understood him. For three whole days, Carter didn't realize I had moved out. He didn't even send a single text demanding an explanation. Even though I was now the VP of Sales, I rarely bumped into Carter at the office. If he wasn't going to look for me, I couldn't be bothered to look for him. But one day, an uninvited guest arrived at the company. It was Chloe Harrington, the spoiled princess of the Harrington Group—the family with equal social standing to the Vances. Carter personally went down to the lobby to receive her. I was walking a client out when I bumped right into them. Carter gave me a curt nod, as if we were just the most ordinary of colleagues. He placed a hand on Chloe’s slender waist, guiding her into his private executive elevator. She must be the one. The future wife he had mentioned. The owner of that priceless pink diamond. Before the elevator doors closed, Chloe cast an inquiring look my way. Carter didn't even spare me a glance. The employee elevator stopped on way too many floors. By the time I reached my office, the receptionist was standing at my door, looking deeply uncomfortable. "What's wrong?" I asked. The receptionist answered, "VP Maya, Mr. Vance said my skills aren't good enough. He wants you to go to his office and make coffee for Miss Harrington." 3 I was a little dazed. I thought I had misheard. The receptionist whispered a reminder: "Mr. Vance said to hurry. Miss Harrington is waiting." I let out a breathless, angry laugh. What the hell was Carter doing? Did he seriously think he could make me serve coffee to the "official wife" before I even agreed to be his mistress? I was absolutely speechless and entirely repulsed. But I didn't want to make things difficult for my coworker. "I'll head over. You go back to your desk." Looking grateful, the receptionist trotted back to her station. I went to the breakroom, brewed a fresh cup of artisan coffee, and carried it to the CEO's office. I knocked on the door. Carter’s light, cheerful voice called out from inside, "Come in." It was obvious that Miss Harrington, his new fling, pleased him greatly. I pushed the door open, only to see Chloe sitting directly on Carter’s lap, covering her mouth as she giggled flirtatiously. She was wearing a pastel designer tweed suit that perfectly complimented her flushed, delicate cheeks. She looked like a blooming, exquisite flower. Carter looked up at me. With a cold, detached expression, he tapped his finger on the desk, signaling me to place the cup there. But Chloe suddenly spoke up: "Hand it to me." Standing across the large mahogany desk, I reached over to hand her the cup. Chloe didn't reach out. She lightly tapped the desk, gesturing for me to walk all the way around and place it directly into her hand. Suppressing the intense discomfort in my chest, I set the coffee cup down on the desk instead. "Serving coffee is outside my job description, and Miss Harrington is not my client. I hope our CEO remembers the company’s HR policies and refrains from casually harassing his employees." I turned to leave. But Carter barked, "Stop right there!" "Is Vance Corp too small to hold your massive ego now?" Was he using my job to threaten me? Thinking about the massive contract I was about to close—and the six-figure commission check attached to it—I held my ground. I stopped in my tracks. The moment I turned back around, I didn't miss the fleeting sneer on Carter's face. He was mocking me. Mocking me, the orphan with nothing to her name, for compromising because of his light threat. Perhaps he already knew I had moved out of our home, but he simply didn't care enough to acknowledge it. He probably thought that as long as he gave the word, I would come running back like an obedient dog. Chloe giggled. "Carter, the people at Vance Corp really don't respect the hierarchy, do they? If she were at Harrington Group, she'd be fired instantly with an attitude like that." Carter looked at me with deep, meaningful eyes. His voice was heavy. "She definitely needs to be taught a lesson." When you love someone, words like that can be interpreted as playful banter. But when the love is gone, they just sound unbelievably toxic. I picked up the hot coffee again, walked halfway around the desk, and handed it to Chloe. The moment Chloe wrapped her fingers around the handle, I let go. But suddenly, the scalding coffee splashed out, raining down on the back of my hand. In an instant, my skin flared an angry, blistering red. The cup shattered against the floor. Chloe shrieked and buried her face into Carter’s chest. "Carter! It burned my hand! It hurts so much!" she cried, playing the victim. She held up a slightly pink fingertip, sobbing to Carter. Carter's face went dark. He glared at me with sheer irritation and cursed, "How the hell do you do things?! You're as stupid as a pig! I don't know how you ever got promoted to VP of Sales!" 4 The back of my hand was burning, sending shooting pain up my arm. His insult—stupid as a pig—put me in a daze. Years ago, when I secretly passed the interviews to join Vance Corp just to surprise him, I vividly remember him praising me for being brilliant. I had been at Vance Corp for six years. I put my life on the line for this job, just to close the gap between us and give our future a fighting chance. I saw reality clearly, but I refused to accept my fate. I climbed my way up from a regular employee to the VP position, step by step. Yet here he was, calling me stupid, saying I couldn't even serve a cup of coffee. It was laughable. "Is the CEO questioning Vance Corp's hiring matrix? If you disagree with my position as VP of Sales, you are welcome to file a motion with the board of directors. Instead of launching brainless, personal attacks at me in this office." "And let me reiterate: my job description does not include serving coffee to irrelevant bystanders." I clutched my scalded hand and turned to leave. Carter stepped around the desk and grabbed my wrist. "Apologize to Chloe." His grip was incredibly strong. He yanked my freshly burned hand, sending a spike of agony through me. I couldn't hold back a sharp gasp of pain. He instantly let go. The shocking, blistering red burn on my wrist and the back of my hand was fully exposed. I looked up at him, my voice ice-cold. "There are security cameras in the CEO's office. It’s crystal clear who’s at fault here. I think Miss Harrington should be the one apologizing to me." A flash of panic crossed Chloe’s face, but she quickly masked it. "I didn't expect Miss Maya to be so good at playing the victim." Doubt flickered in Carter’s eyes. I laughed out of sheer anger. "Say whatever you want. If you're not satisfied, you and Miss Harrington can call the cops." I turned and walked out. Despite Chloe’s obvious fury, Carter didn't try to stop me again. Looking at the burn on my hand, I remembered there was a first-aid kit in the breakroom. As I approached the breakroom, I heard a few female employees gossiping inside. "Is Miss Harrington going to be our future CEO's wife?" "It's a done deal! Mr. Vance has never brought a woman to the office before. She’s the first!" "I heard from the receptionist that VP Maya was called in to serve her coffee. Maya is a Vice President! Making her serve coffee... Mr. Vance really values Miss Harrington." Someone lowered their voice. "I honestly thought VP Maya and Mr. Vance were a thing. Guess I was wrong." "Mr. Vance did treat Maya differently, but who wouldn't like a capable leader like her?" "It's all about old money marrying old money nowadays. Maya might be great, but compared to Mr. Vance, she falls short." "More than just short! Word on the street is Maya’s an orphan. The Vances are billionaires. Even if they really dated, the Vance family would never let her marry in..." I walked in, and the chatter came to a dead halt. 5 Back in my office, just as I finished applying the burn ointment, Carter called my phone. "You blocked my number on your personal phone?" His first sentence was an accusation. "Mr. Vance, if it's about work, you can reach me on the company's messaging app." "Maya. You've got nerve." Even through the receiver, I could hear him grinding his teeth. "I'm waiting in Parking Level 1. Come down right now." I frowned, about to refuse, when he added, "Don't make a scene and embarrass us both." Maybe it was time to make things crystal clear. I replied, "Fine." In the underground parking garage, Carter was leaning against his car door, looking down, lost in thought. When he saw me, he opened the passenger door. "Get in. Let's talk." I gave a dry, exasperated smile. Nobody at the company knew about our relationship. Even if there were rumors, they were never confirmed. At first, I was the one who wanted to keep it a secret for the sake of my career. Later, he became the one who wanted it hidden. Now that he was getting married, did he really need to sneak around just to meet his girlfriend? He handed me a tube of prescription burn cream. I shook my head. "It's already bandaged." Carter let out a soft "Hmm." "You always did know how to take care of yourself." I smiled silently. "That's why, Carter... let's break up." Carter froze. Then he gave a cold laugh. "Maya, we’ve been together for seven years, and now you're telling me you want to break up?" A wave of powerless anger surged in my chest. "Carter, you're getting married. Do you seriously expect me to stick around and be your dirty little secret? Seven years. You said it yourself, it's been seven years. Do you even have a heart?" I turned my face away. I didn't want to look at him anymore. He felt like a complete stranger. Carter tapped his long fingers against the steering wheel, his tone perfectly composed. "What's wrong with being my mistress? You can still be the VP of Sales at Vance Corp. If you don't want to work anymore, I’ll support you. You can have kids if you want, or not if you don't. A comfortable, pressure-free life. What’s so bad about that?" "Is it really that hard to accept reality?" I looked up at him, unable to comprehend how he could say something so abhorrent with such a straight face. The man who used to look at me like I hung the moon, the man who promised to spend the rest of his life with me... how did he turn into this? So, his version of "spending the rest of his life with me" was keeping me stashed away in a penthouse, treating me like a useless trophy waiting to be fed? "Let's just part on good terms. You wouldn't want me ruining your family's perfectly calculated, elite marriage, would you?" Carter's calm facade finally cracked. 6 Truthfully, my savings were enough to sustain me for a very, very long time. I probably wouldn't even need to work for the rest of my life. But I was greedy. The security that a man couldn't give me, the numbers in my bank account could. The massive contract I was handling was almost finalized, and I couldn't bear to walk away from that huge commission. So, I kept delaying turning in my resignation letter. After my ugly fallout with Carter, the next time I saw him was on a plane. It was a mandatory business trip to Chicago. I had no idea he was going to be there. Or rather, he went specifically because of me. The colleague who was supposed to accompany me bailed at the last minute, claiming an emergency. On this trip, it was just me and him. The hotel had also booked single rooms. He claimed the hotel was fully booked and there was only one room left. What a cheap, pathetic trick. I immediately turned around and booked a room at the hotel across the street. Carter's face went pitch black. He asked me out to dinner. I refused. He offered to bring food to my room. I refused that, too. Since we broke up, I wanted a clean, absolute break. But he showed up at my door anyway. "Maya, give me the contract. I need to review it one more time," Carter said in a low voice through the door. I grabbed the contract we were signing tomorrow, cracked the door open, and handed it to him. But Carter shoved his way inside. He kicked the door shut behind him, pinning my wrists and pressing me hard against the back of the door. His heavy breathing echoed in my ear. His voice was hoarse. "Maya." "Maya." "Why won't you drop this useless pride and just enjoy being with me?" "Don't you love me anymore?" I pushed back with all my might, but I couldn't move him an inch. "Carter, don't make me hate you!" I bit down hard on his shoulder, which only enraged him. He threw me onto the soft hotel bed and violently ripped my blazer open. The moment he pressed his body over mine, I braced my leg and kneed him as hard as I could right between the legs. He curled up in agony. I bolted out of the hotel room. The early spring night was biting cold. I remembered back in college, when the distinguished alumni returned to give a lecture. The university had chosen me to present him with flowers. He told me I had a beautiful smile, especially my dimples. That polite, charming gentleman was a stark contrast to the beast who had just assaulted me. The cold wind slapped my cheeks, leaving them freezing. I didn't even realize I was crying. I wiped my face, telling myself to hold it together. I just needed to get through this one obstacle. It was nothing I couldn't handle. I had made it this far. I was just one contract away. Even if I had to grit my teeth until they shattered, I was going to finish this project. I sat outside for a long time. Only after I saw Carter leave the hotel did I finally return to my room, my heart still pounding in my chest. The room was a mess, documents scattered everywhere. I spent ages organizing everything. The next day, I arrived at the signing venue as planned. Carter was already sitting there, his face unreadable. I could tell he was furious, so much so that his jaw was still tightly clenched. I checked the time. I was fifteen minutes early, and the client hadn't arrived yet. "Mr. Vance," I said, taking a seat with perfect composure. Carter gave me a half-smile. "Maya, did you know?" "This deal has been canceled." 7 I couldn't believe it. That was impossible. The terms were fully negotiated. We were at the finish line. Why would the client back out now? "Mr. Vance, is this a joke?" Carter looked at me, amused. "Do I look like I'm joking?" "What reason did the client give?" Carter said nothing. I pulled up the client's number on my phone and dialed. The client sighed helplessly. "This was your CEO's decision. Mr. Vance said Vance Corp is no longer interested in taking this project." I stared at Carter in total disbelief. "What the hell are you doing?!" I yelled. A multi-million dollar project, and he just scraps it on a whim?! Did he know how many evaluations I ran, how much blood and sweat I poured into this? With a single, flippant sentence, he negated all the hard work me and my team had done. Carter lit a cigarette, the smoke curling around him. "I told you. Except for the title of 'wife,' I can give you everything." "But naturally, if you refuse to behave, I will take things away." I froze in place. I couldn't help but let out a bitter laugh. "I was too greedy." Carter finally smiled, like a hunter who had successfully trapped his favorite prey. Grabbing my briefcase, I headed straight for the airport. In the departure lounge, I hit "send" on the resignation letter sitting on my laptop desktop. Exhausted, I finally made it back to my little apartment, only to find a scene that made me shake with rage. The hallway walls were spray-painted in bright colors with horrific slurs: [HOMEWRECKER], [SLUT], [TRASH]. My front door was wide open, the inside completely ransacked. My clothes, toiletries, and documents were scattered all over the floor. The furniture I had just bought was smashed to pieces. I trembled uncontrollably. An unknown number called my phone. I answered, and a familiar voice came through the speaker. It was Chloe Harrington. "Miss Maya, I wonder if you like the gift I sent you?" Her delicate giggles echoed through the phone, grating on my nerves. "There are some men that someone of your status shouldn't even dream of. Let me give you some advice: stay far away from Carter Vance." I hung up and called 911. Unfortunately, the hallway security cameras were conveniently broken. Without solid proof, the police couldn't do anything. I packed whatever was salvageable and crashed at a friend's place for a while. My resignation process hit a roadblock at the final step. Carter refused to sign off on it. HR told me Mr. Vance wouldn't budge, and their hands were tied. I asked Carter to meet me. I smiled and asked, "Didn't you want me to quit my job and stay by your side? What, you don't want that anymore?" Carter's eyes filled with affection. He leaned in and pulled me into a hug. "I was worried you had other plans. Maya, isn't this so much better?" "Don't live in that dump anymore. Let's move to a mansion in the hills. "If you really want, we can even have a private wedding ceremony overseas." Where he couldn't see, my smile vanished. I whispered, "In your dreams." 8 The day all my salary, commissions, and bonuses were finally deposited into my account. I changed my phone number and got on a flight to Seattle. The world is huge. Hiding from one person is incredibly easy. I heard from friends that Carter went crazy looking for me. When he found out Chloe had trashed my apartment, he personally went and smashed up Chloe’s favorite luxury villa, and even severed all business ties with the Harrington Group. But eventually, the elders of the Vance family suppressed the chaos. Carter’s father had quite a few illegitimate children, and even his mother had a daughter from an affair. Carter was merely the nexus of his parents' financial interests. No one was going to let him throw a tantrum without consequences. When his father prepared to elevate one of the competent illegitimate sons to power, his mother intervened, and Carter finally surrendered. The pink diamond Carter had bought at a premium was finally slipped onto Chloe Harrington's finger. On the day of their engagement, the media aggressively pushed the narrative of a perfect, elite "old money" fairytale. Meanwhile, I bet everything I had and took over the multi-million dollar project that Carter had killed. I convinced a few of my trusted team members to leave Vance Corp and start a firm with me. Without Carter, I realized I wasn't nearly as heartbroken as I expected to be. I no longer had to endure his subtle jabs at my background. I no longer had to stress over his constant dismissal of my abilities. And I certainly no longer had to worry if we had a future together. Less emotional drain, more actual work. My life became richer and more fulfilling. At a standard business gala, I bumped into a handsome young man who looked oddly familiar. He laughed, saying I seemed very approachable, and handed me a few medium-sized contracts. My company steadily stabilized. The day he showed up at my office with a DNA test, I was completely stunned. He hugged me, crying his eyes out. "Sister! I finally found you." Relying on the caution of a grown adult, I insisted we do another DNA test. When the results came back, I really was his biological sister. When I was four, my parents took me on a trip, and I accidentally got lost. While searching for me, they got into a horrific car crash. My father died on the spot, and my mother fell into a vegetative state. She was still lying in a hospital bed today. My childhood memories were so blurry I could barely remember any of it. I felt a wave of bittersweet emotion. I thought I had been alone my entire life. Turns out, I had a family. My brother, Leo, organized a small, private welcome-home dinner for me. Our family was small—just my stern, intimidating grandfather, Arthur Sterling, and my younger brother, Leo. After the dinner, Leo looked at me with aching eyes. "Sis, our family is loaded. You never have to work so hard ever again!" During my startup phase, I regularly worked past midnight, surviving on three or four hours of sleep. But I never felt it was a burden; I actually loved it. I knew my brother managed a massive fortune, but I had my own career to build. "I like working," I told him. Grandpa Sterling chimed in: "If your sister likes it, let her do it. Hand over some of those major projects you're holding onto and let her run them." 9 I was in a daze. The projects Leo handed over to me were astronomically larger than I ever imagined. The Sterling family was vastly wealthier than I had assumed. I finally had the backing to stop hiding and evading Carter’s search. We ran into each other at a high-society cocktail party. Clutching a wine glass, his eyes red, he walked straight toward me. "Maya. You sure know how to hide." He grabbed my hand, trying to drag me into a secluded corner. I violently ripped my hand away. "Mr. Vance, please conduct yourself." Carter raised an eyebrow in shock, his voice thick with emotion. "Maya, do you really not miss me?" Miss him? Not at all. The name 'Carter Vance' had long been buried under my busy schedule. Aside from occasionally catching his name in the tabloids, reminding me he existed, I rarely ever thought about him. I gave a polite, tight-lipped smile. "Mr. Vance is a man of incredible status. How could a commoner like me dare to miss you?" He gripped my hand tightly, pleading in despair: "Maya, I was wrong. I was so damn wrong." "Maya, I only feel at peace when you're by my side." "I’ll break off the engagement with the Harringtons. You and I can—" I cut him off. "We've gone our separate ways. Who you marry has absolutely nothing to do with me." Carter tried to keep pestering me, but Leo stepped in and shut him down. The next day, Chloe Harrington marched up to me, slamming a stack of photos onto the table. They were pictures of Carter harassing me at the gala. She screamed at the top of her lungs: "Do you have no shame?! Carter is engaged to me! Why are you still seducing him?!" I set down my fork. A perfectly good meal, completely ruined by her. I had booked this exclusive restaurant weeks in advance. I finally found the time to enjoy it, only to be rudely interrupted. "Miss Harrington, you really never know who to blame, do you? You only ever target the people you think are weaker." It was clearly Carter’s fault, yet she wouldn't dare confront him. Instead, she came hunting for an innocent bystander to interrogate. Last time, she hired thugs to trash my apartment because Carter went crazy. And now, she only dared to come after me. Bullying the weak while fearing the strong—pathetic. I enunciated every word: "I think you need to get your facts straight. I am not seducing Carter Vance. He is the one harassing me." Chloe completely lost it. She cried and screamed: "If you hadn't suddenly shown up, he would never have changed his mind! I'm already pregnant, and he's trying to call off the engagement! He's so cruel!" I was shocked. I didn't realize Carter's moral baseline was that low. Chloe was pregnant, and he was refusing to take responsibility? And he was trying to use his "undying love" for me as an excuse to dump her? His character disgusted me even more.
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