Part 1 My boyfriend, Leo, had been pulling crazy hours at work lately. I missed him, but I was also proud of how hard he was working. I’d just finished packing up some of the chili I’d made, planning to surprise him at the office, when my phone buzzed. It was a text from Leo. "I have a girlfriend. Please delete my number. Thanks." For a second, I almost laughed. That idiot. Points for loyalty, I guess, but… why was he sending this to me? I typed a single question mark and hit send. A moment later, I saw it. The dreaded red exclamation point. “Message Not Delivered.” He’d blocked me. My boyfriend has a girlfriend, and it isn't me. So… who the hell am I? My temper, which has the fuse of a firecracker, went off. I immediately dialed his number, my thumb jabbing the screen. Before I could even launch into my tirade, a syrupy sweet female voice answered. "Hello?" There was actually another woman with him. For a split second, my brain short-circuited. I couldn't believe it. Leo was the type of guy who practically wore a sign that said "TAKEN." He kept a professional distance from everyone, even his male colleagues. And now some woman was answering his phone? "Where's Leo? Put him on," I said, my voice cold and tight. A condescending little laugh came from the other end. "Oh, you're looking for Leo? He's a little… busy right now." "Put. Him. On. The. Phone," I repeated, practically shouting into the receiver. "Listen, honey," she cooed, "a little self-respect goes a long way. Chasing after a man with a girlfriend is just… desperate, you know?" Then she giggled and hung up. If I was angry before, now I was furious. I grabbed my keys, stormed out of my apartment, and peeled out of the parking garage, heading straight for his downtown office. If this jerk thought he could cheat on me, he had another thing coming. He was about to find out what "consequences" really meant. It was just after 9 p.m. The city lights reflected off the sleek glass of the Hayes Tech tower. The entire building was dark except for the top floor—his floor. The lobby was empty aside from Frank, the night security guard, who looked up in surprise. "Ms. Miller! Here to pick up Mr. Hayes?" I didn't answer, just strode past him and into the elevator, jabbing the button for the penthouse level. The ride up was eerily silent, but as the doors slid open on the top floor, I could hear the low murmur of voices. I stormed toward his office, the words of my accusation already forming on my lips, and burst through the door. And stopped dead. The room was full. His entire executive team was gathered around the conference table, looking at blueprints and charts. A dozen pairs of eyes swiveled to stare at me, their conversation cut short. My throat went dry. But even in my shock, my eyes scanned the room and landed on her. Tucked away in a corner chair, almost out of sight, was a woman who looked completely out of place. She was wearing one of Leo’s blazers, and a smug, knowing smile played on her lips as she looked at me. "Chloe? What are you doing here?" Leo asked, surprised. He jumped up from his seat and started toward me. He must have seen the thundercloud on my face, because his expression shifted from surprise to alarm, and he quickened his pace. But he was too late. The woman from the corner shot out of her chair, moving to intercept him. She physically planted herself between us. "Excuse me," she said, her voice dripping with fake politeness. "We're in a private meeting. I'm going to have to ask you to leave." She smiled and gestured toward the door, a clear dismissal. I gave her a look that could freeze fire and ignored her completely. My eyes went past her, locking onto Leo. "Do I need to leave, Leo?" "Of course not," he said, sidestepping her with a move so agile he could've been a ninja. He reached for my hand, but I pulled it away. The hurt in his eyes was instant. "Chloe? What's wrong?" he asked, his voice low and cautious. "Nothing. Finish your meeting," I said, my tone flat. Leo glanced back at his team, then gently tried to guide me further into the office, toward the empty chair next to his. As we passed the woman, he didn't even give her a second look. "Leo, who is this woman?" she interrupted, her voice sharp with indignation. "This is a confidential company meeting. It's hardly appropriate for her to be here." Leo finally stopped and frowned at her as if just noticing she existed. "Jessica? What are you still doing here?" Her smile faltered. "I… I was staying to help you with the meeting, Leo." "Help me with what? My executive assistant isn't even required to be here tonight. You're her assistant. What are you doing in this room?" His tone was sharp, and it didn’t sound like an act. So, this woman had been sitting in his office for who knows how long, and he hadn't even realized it? The other people in the room exchanged confused glances. "Leo, I…" Jessica’s eyes welled up, and her voice trembled. "This whole floor was empty except for your office. I was scared being out there alone, so… so I waited in here for you." An assistant’s assistant. And she was calling him "Leo" and "waiting for him." Yeah, something was definitely up. I crossed my arms and shot a pointed look at Leo. He seemed to feel the heat of my glare and stood up a little straighter. "Chloe, I swear, I have nothing to do with her. My dad made me give her a job here as a favor to an old neighbor." Then he turned back to Jessica, his voice turning to ice. "Jessica, you said you had nothing to do after hours, so you offered to cover my assistant’s duties tonight. If you’re here to work, then go do your actual job. And stay out of places you don't belong." He waved a hand dismissively, gesturing for her to get out. Jessica looked stunned that he’d humiliate her in front of everyone. She stood frozen for a second before pointing a trembling finger at me. "Then what about her? She doesn’t belong here either! Why does she get to stay?" Leo gave her a dead-eyed stare. He didn't bother explaining. He just said one word: "Out." The color drained from Jessica's face. She turned on her heel and fled the office. "I didn't even notice she was in here during the meeting," Leo explained quietly, pulling me into the seat beside him. I just nodded, telling him to get back to work. His team, to their credit, pretended like my dramatic entrance was a totally normal occurrence and resumed the meeting. An hour later, when everyone had finally packed up and left, I pulled out my phone and placed it on the desk in front of Leo, the screen showing our one-sided, blocked conversation. "Explain," I said. My initial rage had cooled into a frosty calm, which was somehow worse. Leo’s eyes widened as he read the text. He put a hand on my shoulder, his expression deadly serious. "Chloe, just wait here. I will handle this." He walked briskly out of the office. I was right behind him. I saw him spot Jessica by the elevators and stride over to her. He didn't raise his voice. He just held out his hand. "Give me my phone back." Part 2 Jessica flinched at his cold tone. She wobbled slightly, then slowly pulled his phone from her pocket, holding it out with both hands. Her eyes were wide and pitiful, trying for a wounded, doe-eyed look. Leo snatched the phone from her, immediately navigated to his blocked list, and his face turned a shade of thunderous purple I'd never seen before. I stepped closer to see what was wrong. Oh. My. God. It wasn't just me. His blocked list was a who's who of our social and professional circle—all female. I recognized the names of several CEOs and project managers from companies he partnered with. "What gives you the right to touch my phone?" he seethed, his voice dangerously low but loud enough to make the few remaining department heads poke their heads out of their offices. "I left it charging on my desk." Jessica physically recoiled, her victim act going into overdrive. "Leo, I… I was just trying to help you." "Help me? You were trying to help me go bankrupt," he shot back, his hand shaking slightly as he scrolled through the list of blocked contacts. I knew how hard he’d fought to build his company from the ground up. Blocking the CEO of a major client wasn't just rude; it could be catastrophic. Just as I was about to step in and try to calm him down, my own phone started buzzing. And it didn't stop. One by one, texts came in from mutual friends and business acquaintances—the same women he'd just unblocked—asking me what the hell was going on and why Leo was suddenly blocking them. In the business world, even a polite "what's going on?" is a serious accusation. I shot a venomous glare at Jessica, then turned back to Leo. "Fix this. Now," I said through clenched teeth. I walked to the other side of the floor and started damage control, texting and calling people back. Thankfully, my family has a good reputation in the city, and people were willing to listen. Combined with Leo’s professional track record, his story of his phone being "compromised" was believable. It especially helped when I mentioned that the mystery person had blocked me, too. More than one person subtly warned me to watch my back with "that other woman" around Leo. By the time I had smoothed things over, my own anger had settled into a cold, hard knot. Even though Leo was on my side, this whole mess was a huge red flag that needed a serious explanation. I took a few deep breaths and walked back to the main area. This time, there were two police officers standing with Leo. Leo was talking to them, his face a mask of controlled fury, while Jessica stood nearby, trembling and looking at him in disbelief. "Leo, you… you called the cops on me?" she stammered. When he refused to even look at her, she turned to the officers, grabbing one by the arm. "Officers, we're friends! It was just a prank! We have a great relationship, you can't arrest me!" The cop gently removed her hand from his arm, his expression a mix of pity and exasperation. "Ma'am, it's not a prank when you cause actual damages by misusing private property." "We are not friends, and it wasn't a joke. She's a new employee," Leo cut in, his voice like steel. "Frankly, officers, I'd like you to investigate this fully. I suspect she was deliberately trying to sabotage my company." Hearing that, Jessica's face went white as a sheet. She bit her lip, her eyes swimming with tears as she looked pleadingly at Leo. When he continued to ignore her and instead walked over to ask me how my calls went, she finally broke. "Leo, I just thought that you should be more careful!" she cried out. "You have a girlfriend now! You need to keep your distance from all these other women. I was just trying to help you!" The tears finally spilled over, a single, perfect droplet tracing a path down her cheek. It was a masterful performance—just enough to look tragic, not enough to look messy. Too bad for her, Leo wasn't the audience. "What do my contacts have to do with you?" he snapped. "You started by blocking my girlfriend. You weren't trying to help me keep my distance; you were trying to make me die alone. And this?" He pointed to a name on his phone. "This is Ms. Albright. She's the same age as my mother. Does she also need you to 'help' me keep my distance?" He took a step closer, his voice dropping to a low growl. "I am your boss. You do what I tell you to do, and nothing else. Do you not have the most basic professional decency?" He then turned to the police. "Officers, my phone contains sensitive trade secrets. For a brand-new employee to steal it and use it to cause this much damage… I want her investigated thoroughly." I just stood there, stunned. I had come here ready for a fight over a cheating boyfriend, and instead, I’d found… a delusional, self-sabotaging stalker. Part 3 I never thought Leo would actually call the cops. It was extreme, but it also erased any doubt I had about him and Jessica. This woman was a threat, and he was treating her like one. My presence, standing firmly by Leo’s side, seemed to be the final straw for her. She wrenched away from the officer and lunged toward us, pointing a finger in my face. "What about her? Why does she get to be in the office? If you have a girlfriend and have to cut me off, why are you protecting her?" "Are you insane?" Leo shot back, his patience gone. "Can you not tell she's my girlfriend? Did you miss the 'My Chloe ❤️' contact name? Stop playing games." Jessica shrank back behind the officers, finally looking truly scared. The police tried to de-escalate, asking if a private settlement was possible. Leo was resolute. "Absolutely not. She sent that message to my girlfriend. That's a declaration of war. I'm not letting it go." Because Leo refused to back down, the officers took Jessica into custody. As they were leading her away, she made one last pathetic attempt. She clutched the blazer she was still wearing and looked at Leo with pleading eyes. "Leo, I'm cold. Can I please borrow this jacket?" Leo glanced at the jacket. "It's not mine." Just then, his head of design, who had been shamelessly watching the drama unfold from his doorway, popped out. "That's mine! It's from AllSaints! I must have left it on the chair next to Leo's. You can give it back now, I'm cold too." Jessica's face contorted with rage. She ripped the jacket off and threw it at the designer, then shot one last, hate-filled glare in my direction before being escorted away. I almost had to laugh. A wannabe homewrecker tried to take me on and ended up getting herself arrested. What a night. Later, Leo explained everything. Jessica was the daughter of some old neighbors who had moved out of state a decade ago. They had recently moved back and reconnected with his parents. When they heard Jessica was looking for a job, his dad pressured Leo into giving her a position. He’d barely remembered who she was. And on her very first day, she pulled this stunt. Part 4 "So, she's some kind of long-lost childhood sweetheart?" I asked, rolling my eyes. Leo made a gagging noise. "God, no. Don't even say that. She was the absolute worst. Every time she got into trouble as a kid, she'd play innocent and find a way to blame me, then finish it off with a tearful 'it's all my fault.'" He shuddered dramatically. "Seriously, I never wanted to see her again. I only hired her because my dad wouldn't let it go." As it turned out, Jessica didn't face any real charges. She cried to Leo’s dad, who then yelled at Leo until he agreed to drop it and settle things privately. She was out of the precinct by the next night. I figured after a move that drastic—and that stupid—she’d finally get the hint and disappear. I was wrong. A few days later, I got an Instagram follow request from her. The app said she was a "suggested contact from Leo’s phone," which was a nice little twist of the knife. I accepted out of sheer morbid curiosity. She immediately sent me a photo. It was a picture taken at a fancy restaurant, across a large, round table filled with people. I recognized Leo's parents, and Leo himself. He was sitting next to the person taking the photo, smiling as he placed a piece of food into their bowl. He looked relaxed, caring, intimate. The photo was followed by a message: "Chloe, you don't really think Leo loves you, do you? He's always been in love with me. Tonight, our families are meeting to officially discuss our wedding plans." After what happened last time, I wasn't falling for it. If I hadn't gone to his office that night, and if he hadn't called the cops, that first text would have become a seed of doubt between us. I wasn't letting that happen again. I didn't feel the same rage as before. I just calmly dialed Leo's number. It rang for a while before he picked up, the background noise suddenly muffled as if he'd stepped outside. "Chloe! Hey, what's up?" He sounded happy, cheerful even. "Where are you?" He paused. We trusted each other, so I rarely asked him questions like that. "I'm at The Hawthorne Grill with my parents." "Is Jessica there?" "Yeah, our families are having dinner together," he said, completely matter-of-fact. Not a hint of guilt in his voice. I was silent for a moment. "Check your Instagram DMs," I said, then sent him a screenshot of the photo and her message. "Is she sick in the head?" he exploded. "She wasn't even sitting next to me! My niece was sitting next to me!" He sounded furious. A second later, he hung up, telling me to wait. A moment later, my phone buzzed with a screenshot he’d sent me. It was from his niece's Instagram story—the same photo, but uncropped, clearly showing the little girl sitting next to him, beaming as he gave her a shrimp. "Chloe, you should come over here," he texted. "We need to end this once and for all. This woman is a psycho." "Are you sure? It's a family dinner. I don't want to intrude." "Intrude? My parents love you! And if we don't shut this down face-to-face, she'll keep pulling this crap and try to ruin us." He was panicking now. "Yes. You have to come. I'm sending a car for you right now." Part 5 He was right. This needed to be settled. I changed into a sharp but elegant dress and headed out. The Hawthorne Grill wasn't far, and twenty minutes later I was there. Leo was waiting for me at the entrance, still looking furious. I walked up and put a calming hand on his arm. He looked at me, his expression softening into pure relief mixed with desperation. "I'm so glad you called me," he said. "What if you had been like one of those women in those crazy Reddit stories you made me read, and you just believed her and disappeared?" I had to suppress a smile. That was my fault. When we first started dating, I was worried he was too nice to spot a manipulator, so I'd made him read a ton of posts from the "Am I The Asshole?" subreddit. It seemed the main takeaway he got wasn't how to spot a master manipulator, but a deep-seated fear that if he ever upset me, I'd just ghost him. He pulled me into a hug, then led me toward their private dining room. When we walked in, the room was buzzing with cheerful conversation. The moment Leo's parents saw me, their faces lit up. His mom immediately called a waiter over to add another chair. "Chloe, honey! Come, sit right here next to me," she said, patting the new seat she’d placed between herself and Leo. Across the table, I could see Leo’s little niece sitting exactly where he said she'd be. And next to her… was Jessica. When she saw me, her jaw dropped, and her face turned pale. "Leo, who is this?" a woman next to Jessica—who I assumed was her mother—asked, her voice dripping with disdain. "Why are you bringing outsiders to a private family gathering?" Leo's mother's smile tightened instantly. She patted my hand reassuringly before beaming at Jessica's mom. "Oh, she's no outsider," she said sweetly. "This is my future daughter-in-law, Chloe Miller." "Oh, so this is Leo's little girlfriend," the woman sneered, forcing a laugh. "You've certainly got him on a tight leash, dear. He can't even have dinner with his parents without you showing up to check on him." In one sentence, she painted me as some kind of controlling, psycho girlfriend. Normally, I'd show respect to an elder, but some people don't deserve it. Leo had given me a clear green light on the way in: "If they give you any trouble, you let them have it. Don't you dare hold back." So I smiled, a bright, dazzling smile that didn't quite reach my eyes. I even gave Jessica a playful little brow-raise. "Oh, you must have me mistaken, ma'am," I said, my voice as sweet as sugar. "It was your daughter who insisted I come. She sent me a lovely message saying you were all here tonight to discuss her and Leo's wedding plans. I couldn't let my boyfriend get taken advantage of, could I? I just had to come see for myself." The table fell silent. Leo's parents turned to look at Jessica, their expressions a mixture of shock and confusion. "What wedding plans?" his father asked, his voice dangerously low.
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