Chapter 1

1.

At the Sterling Group's annual gala, a young female student threw herself at Pierce Sterling.

Pierce, usually as cold as ice, suddenly froze.

This girl looked exactly like Sierra, his late first love who had passed away years ago.

He couldn't help but mock her in front of everyone.

"You're asking me to keep you as my mistress right in front of my wife? Aren't you afraid of being thrown out? "

The girl tilted her chin up stubbornly. Her expression was a carbon copy of Sierra's.

"She's just a business transaction, Pierce. Can she really tell you what to do? My mother needs the money for her treatment. Are you going to take care of me or not? "

She was right. I was just a trophy wife bought through a merger. How could I ever influence Pierce's decisions?

I saw a tenderness in his eyes that I had never seen before. A self-deprecating smile crossed my face.

Maybe it was better to walk away now than to be hunted down like a stray dog later.

The atmosphere in the private suite turned eerily quiet for a few seconds.

Everyone expected the girl to be rejected.

Instead, Pierce gave a low chuckle and pulled her directly into his lap.

"You're the first one brave enough to talk to me like that. "

"What's your name? "

His whisper was like a midnight demon, instantly turning the room's tension into something suggestive.

"I… my name is Cecily. "

The girl sitting on his lap blushed. She turned her head and shot me a provocative, triumphant smirk.

My face went stiff. I couldn't even maintain a fake smile anymore.

Cecily. Her name was so similar to Sierra's nickname.

Sierra was the soulmate Pierce had lost in his youth.

With such a blatant coincidence, it was no wonder I felt like a defeated dog the moment she appeared.

The people around us looked at me with hesitation or nerves. But mostly, I felt their malicious joy. They were waiting for the show.

"Pierce already has her in his arms. The mood is right! Give us a show! "

"Exactly! Don't let her just sit there. Feed her some wine, mouth-to-mouth! "

For once, Pierce didn't entertain his rowdy friends' trashy ideas. He gripped the girl's slim waist and pulled her protectively against his chest.

He then downed the offered glass of wine in one go.

"She's new to places like this. Don't scare her. "

"Wow, he's already being the protective hero. This is too much sweetness for me to handle. "

"Hey, keep it down. Don't you see his official wife is still sitting right there? "

All eyes moved back to me. I lowered my head, trying to become invisible, pretending none of this was happening.

Pierce spared me a cold, indifferent glance.

"Why are you looking at her? She's just a maid with a title in our house. Does she look like someone who dares to tell me what to do? "

My fingers clenched the hem of my dress. Bitterness choked my throat, but I didn't dare make a sound.

So, in his heart, I was nothing more than a servant.

What else was there to say?

Some people only had to stand there to get everything I had ever dreamed of.

I had once drunk myself into a stomach hemorrhage just to shield Pierce from business rivals. I ended up in the ER having my stomach pumped.

His only response back then was, "Now we're even. "

I suddenly stood up and walked over to Pierce.

Cecily acted like a frightened fawn in his arms. Her eyes were full of panic, as if I were about to strike her.

Pierce looked at me with pure annoyance. "What kind of drama are you starting now? "

I didn't say a word. I fought the tremors in my body and pulled off my cherished engagement ring. I placed it on the table in front of Cecily.

"Congratulations on finding your Sierra again. It's time I return the things that never belonged to me. "