Chapter 2

2.

The moment I stepped out of City Hall, I got a call from the head of HR. Her tone was strictly business.

She said they'd received my resignation, but because I was a key revenue generator for the firm, my departure required a complex client handover process as per my employment agreement.

"Amelia, this will require a 'Client File Transfer Authorization' signed personally by Adrian, our managing partner. He has already informed me that you are not to take any client resources with you before this form is signed. He also hinted that if you don't discuss this with him in person, he might enforce the strictest non-compete clause in your contract."

To make a clean break, I gritted my teeth and went to find him.

The address was a trendy pool hall in Brooklyn. Chloe had posted on Instagram that she wanted to learn how to play pool.

Adrian, who normally treated his work like his religion, had apparently been skipping out for days to teach her.

When I found him, he was leaning over Chloe from behind, his hands over hers, showing her how to hold the cue stick.

The second she saw me, Chloe's lips curled into a smirk.

A few of the junior associates from the firm were gathered nearby. Their leader was Jennifer―the daughter of one of Adrian's major clients, a classic nepo baby.

She saw me and said in an exaggerated, pitying voice, "Oh, Amelia, honey... you came all the way out here? We thought Adrian gave you a week off to... you know, process your feelings."

Her little posse of followers snickered. Jennifer pretended to cover her mouth. "I guess the 'three-day rule' doesn't really mean anything to you, does it? Give the man some space, sweetie."

I frowned. I'd heard jabs like this a million times before.

But never had they annoyed me as much as they did right now.

"I'm not here to make up with him."

My words made Jennifer laugh out loud. "Stop pretending, Amelia. Everyone knows you're Adrian's most loyal little puppy. He couldn't get rid of you if he tried."

I ignored them and tossed the papers on the table. "Adrian, sign it."

Just as Adrian reached for the document, Chloe whined, "Adrian, how do I hit this ball?"

He immediately dropped the papers and pulled his electronic signature device from his pocket, tossing it to me carelessly.

"Do it yourself. And don't come here again unless it's important. You're interrupting my lesson with Chloe."

Adrian was always obsessively private. He never let me near his safe.

He'd shield his phone from me even when just typing in a payment password.

An e-signature device was something he guarded with his life.

But now, he just threw it at me without a second thought, blowing off official company business for a date with Chloe.

I clutched the signed resignation form in my hand, a cold wind blowing through the hole that had just been ripped open in my chest.

I turned to leave, but Adrian called out to me.

"Chloe's busy for the next few days. Take care of her caseload for her."

He threw a thick stack of files at me, each with nothing but a title on the cover.

I couldn't even remember how many times he had made me do Chloe's work for her.

I just knew that as soon as I finished, Chloe would take all the credit.

But if I ever made a single mistake under the heavy workload, I would be the one to take all the blame.

Sometimes, I'd get fed up and refuse.

Then Adrian would say I was disappointing him, that I didn't care about him or the firm.

He'd say if I didn't do it, he'd have to do it himself.

I felt bad seeing him so stressed from managing the firm, so I always ended up giving in.

But all my sacrifices only earned me his entitlement, his scorn, and his expectation that I would always be at his beck and call.

But now, I had resigned. The firm's business was no longer my problem.

"No, I've already qui―"

Before I could finish, Chloe's pitiful voice cut me off.

"Adrian, if Amelia doesn't want to, it's okay. I can do it myself."

Adrian's tone immediately softened with concern for her. "You just got divorced, you're not in the right state of mind to work. Come on, go have fun. Stop this."

He turned back to me, his voice turning to ice. "Do you have any idea how much you upset Chloe with that Instagram stunt? I'm giving you a chance to make up for it, and you're refusing? You keep this up, and I swear, in three days, you could be on your knees begging and I wouldn't take you back."

I laughed bitterly. My own mother had passed away unexpectedly, and I had cried myself unconscious several times.

All Adrian had said was, "When you're done crying, remember to be at work on time. There's a lot to do."

But for Chloe, who had been divorced for two years, "not being in the right state of mind" was a perfectly valid reason to skip work.

"Fine, don't take me back. I don't care."

I turned and walked away. The shock on Adrian's face was impossible to hide.

My colleagues were stunned. "Is she really leaving?"

But Chloe just chuckled. "Amelia, if you don't want to do the work, just say so. You don't have to play hard to get."

Hearing this, Adrian's tense expression immediately relaxed, replaced by his usual confident smirk. His tone softened.

"Alright, Amelia, I know I've been neglecting you lately. Just help Chloe finish her work, and in three days, I promise I'll go with you to City Hall and we'll set a date. Okay?"

I scoffed. Adrian was dangling another one of his empty promises in front of me.

But this time, I had no appetite for it.

I didn't answer. I just walked away.

The snide comments from my colleagues followed me out.

"Ugh, why is she acting so tough? Just watch, you guys. By tomorrow at the latest, she'll be back, begging for forgiveness."

A wicked thought crossed my mind. I wanted to see the looks on their faces when they realized how wrong they were.

I let out a short, sharp laugh and looked back at them.

"Alright then. You just wait and see."