Chapter 1

Chapter 1

To force his daughter, Vivian Ashford, to settle down and learn the family business, Richard Ashford assigned her to a subsidiary managed by his most trusted subordinate―Elias Vance.

Of course, Vivian had no intention of obeying some subsidiary executive.

So, she tried every trick in the book to make him quit.

On her first day of work, she smashed his Porsche.

But Elias just gave her a cool glance. "Call a tow truck, file the insurance claim, and the cost will be deducted from your salary."

The next day, she replaced his entire meeting presentation and slides with explicit adult content.

Elias's expression didn't change for a second. He recited the original business plan from memory and successfully secured the key project on the spot.

Vivian wasn't ready to give up. At a business dinner, she drugged his drink, hoping to humiliate him in public.

Instead, he carried her into the presidential suite and fucked her until her back nearly broke.

Everyone said he was the perfect gentleman―elegant, respectable, flawless.

But only Vivian knew how wild Elias became at night, pinning her to the bed and taking her again and again.

In the back of a Rolls-Royce, on the conference room table, even against the floor-to-ceiling windows of the penthouse office…

Elias gripped her slender waist, "taming" her in every way imaginable.

After another session, the man went into the bathroom.

Vivian received a frantic text from her best friend.

【Are you kidding me, Vivi? Are you serious?】

【Elias is just an executive working for your family. You're giving up your engagement to the Sterling family for him? Are you insane?!】

Vivian didn't reply.

They didn't know.

Elias Vance's real name was Elias Sterling-Vance.

He was the very heir to the Sterling fortune.

The man she was crazy about, the man she craved every night, was the same man both families had always intended for her to marry.

It should have been perfect.

But there was no smile on Vivian's face.

After a moment of silence, she called her father, Richard.

"I'm out of the deal with the Sterlings. Let Lily have it. But I have conditions."

She could immediately hear her parents' unconcealed joy. "What conditions? We'll agree to anything if you back out!"

"That compensation fund mentioned in the marriage contract―I want my share, every single penny, transferred to my account," Vivian said, her voice cold as ice.

"You mean that money?!" her father's voice shot up. "That's not a small sum!"

Vivian scoffed.

"Don't play dumb with me. You know exactly how much is in the joint trust fund the Sterlings set up for this engagement. Give me my share, and the rest goes straight into your pockets. Then you get to marry Lily into a top-tier family. It's a win-win for you. You should be celebrating."

The other end of the line went silent.

Two seconds later, her father spoke eagerly. "Deal."

"Wait―how do we know you won't change your mind?" her mother, Catherine, suddenly cut in.

Her wary and defensive tone was like a knife twisting in Vivian's heart.

After all these years, she thought she was numb to their favoritism, but her heart still ached.

"I've already handled the paperwork. In two weeks, I'm flying to Europe. I don't plan on coming back―at least not anytime soon."

Her voice trembled slightly.

Twenty years ago, she was the only daughter of the Ashford family.

Then one day, her parents brought home a girl―her supposedly long-lost sister, Lily.

Riddled with guilt over Lily's tragic childhood, her parents poured all their attention and love onto her.

And Vivian was cast aside.

Her favorite bedroom in the Hamptons estate was given to Lily.

The national science competition project she spent three months working on was submitted under Lily's name.

Even the community heroism award she received for nearly drowning while saving someone was handed over to Lily by her parents.

Vivian protested, she argued, but all she got were their self-righteous excuses. "You need to see the bigger picture. Lily suffered for so many years. Now that she's finally home, letting her have these honors helps maintain the family's reputation. The Ashford name is more important than anything. You should have that grace."

She was like a doll being slowly hollowed out, watching as everything that was hers was stuffed into Lily's pockets.

Even the long-standing agreement between the two families―that Vivian would one day marry into the Sterling family―they wanted to break it and give the honor to Lily instead.

It was because of this that Vivian had a massive fight with them, nearly destroying the entire Hamptons mansion. In the end, Richard heard that Elias Vance was an excellent manager and sent her to the subsidiary to be disciplined.

She let out a breath and picked up Elias's phone.

The password was Lily's birthday.

Vivian's fingers tightened as she opened his messages.

The chat history between Elias and Lily was pinned to the top.

Inside―

The man who always found her childish had saved all sorts of cute emojis Lily sent him.

The man who always wore a stern face for her reminded Lily to eat and rest on time every day.

The man who never replied to her messages shared the details of his life with Lily.

And next to Vivian's name was a do-not-disturb icon.

A sarcastic smile touched Vivian's lips.

She remembered the first time her heart had fluttered for him.

She had crashed a business cocktail party, ruining a deal Elias had worked hard to close. He dragged her into the restroom and ripped the hem of her dress.

Furious, Vivian bit him, but he pinned her against the sink from behind, kissing her earlobe as he whispered in a low voice.

"Vivi, don't fight me."

That single, intimate "Vivi" had shattered her defenses.

No one had called her that tenderly since her grandmother passed away.

Perhaps it was because she had been so lonely all these years.

Or perhaps it was because he truly did take care of her.

He protected her when she was being stalked.

He took drinks for her at business functions.

And once, on a business trip to Colorado, they were caught in a landslide. She thought she was going to die, but Elias dug her out of the rubble with his bare hands and carried her for three miles to find help.

In that moment, through her blurred vision, his handsome and resolute profile was crystal clear.

All those moments flooded her mind, and Vivian knew she had truly fallen in love with him.

So she prepared a special gift, planning to confess her feelings.

However, when she went to his study, full of anticipation, she heard him on the phone.

"You're the heir to the Sterling family. How long are you going to play this executive role in a small company? You have everything, so why come to the Ashford Group for this paltry salary? Don't tell me it's just to stay by Lily's side, something about saving each other during that kidnapping years ago."

Elias's voice was cold. "I wouldn't have survived without Lily. I owe her. It's that simple."

"But you're still engaged to Vivian Ashford, aren't you? I thought you were involved with her because you actually liked her…"

Elias seemed to chuckle.

"Her? Too willful. She's not the right fit to be Mrs. Sterling."

Every word was a sharp knife, stabbing deep into Vivian's heart.

So, the person in Elias's heart had always been Lily.

And she was just a willful, disposable plaything.

In that instant, she threw the carefully prepared gift out the window.

She was done loving Elias.

And now, she was done with the Sterling engagement too.

Vivian's eyes were red as she fought back tears.

The bathroom door suddenly opened, and Elias walked out. He paused when he saw her eyes.

"Was I too rough? Are you crying?"