Chapter 2

The lunchbox slipped from my hand, spilling food all over the floor.

Sierra clicked her tongue and frowned at the mess.

“Julian, can’t you even hold a lunchbox? If your hands are useless now, go see a doctor! Don’t throw a tantrum in my office.”

“Now go call maintenance and get this cleaned up!”

Her angry words made me feel like a servant.

She seemed to have forgotten that my hands were only injured because of her.

I opened my mouth to explain, but then I realized there was nothing left to say.

The office door opened and Ryan Cole walked in with two bento boxes. He feigned surprise when he saw me.

“Oh, Julian, you’re here too?”

He placed the boxes on the desk and smirked at the mess on the floor.

“Didn’t CEO Shen tell you? Your cooking has been terrible ever since your accident. She only eats the lunches I make for her now.”

I looked at Sierra. She didn’t even try to deny it. She just picked up where he left off.

“I’ve been throwing out the food you bring. You don’t have to bring me lunch anymore. Ryan takes care of it.”

So all those meals I set an alarm for, waking up early every single day to cook, had all ended up in the trash.

Ryan stood beside Sierra, looking down at me with contempt. He opened a lunchbox and held a piece of food to her lips.

Sierra didn’t even look up from the documents she was reading as he fed her.

“By the way,” she said casually, as if giving an order, “I need you to contact a bridal shop for me. The one you had picked out before. Ryan and I need to go try on some dresses.”

Any other time, I would have exploded with rage. We would have had a massive fight.

But now, I didn’t even have the energy to speak to her. I just quietly agreed.

My strange calmness must have seemed suspicious. Sierra finally looked up, giving me an odd glance. For the first time, she bothered to explain.

“Ryan’s family is pressuring him to get married. He’s so stressed he can’t focus on work. I’m just helping him out by going through with a fake wedding to appease his parents. Don’t overthink it.”

Just help him out with a wedding?

I couldn’t believe she could say that with a straight face.

We had been together for seven years. My family had pushed for marriage countless times, and every time I brought it up, she accused me of the same thing.

“Julian, don’t push your luck! I told you from the beginning that I don’t believe in marriage. Don’t use your parents as an excuse to pressure me!”

But for Ryan, the always-too-busy CEO Shen could somehow find the time to stage a whole wedding.

Her pathetic explanation just made me realize how absurd and pathetic my last seven years had been. I just nodded.

“Okay, I get it.”

I didn’t argue. I didn’t throw a fit like I used to. I was obedient, agreeable, and had nothing more to say.

My compliance seemed to infuriate her. She slammed her hand on the desk.

“Julian! Don’t you dare stand there with that passive-aggressive bullshit, pretending you understand! I know exactly what you’re thinking! Ryan is my secretary. He’s crucial to my work. Without him, all my plans would fall apart.”

“A man like him is worth my time. As for you, a worthless freeloader I keep at home, you can stop dreaming.”

As she spat those words at me, she seemed to forget that I had given up my own career to save her.

Five years ago, I was a brilliant concert pianist. My shows sold out in minutes.

When Sierra was trapped in a mall fire, I ran in without a second thought to save her.

A falling beam crushed my hand. The bones in my arm died. I was practically a cripple.

Back then, I couldn't sleep for the pain. Sierra held me in her arms and whispered, “Stay with me. I’ll take care of you.”

Now, watching her walk out with Ryan, the pain in my heart was like a thousand needles.

I forced a bitter smile and grabbed a brightly wrapped piece of candy from the jar on her desk, popping it into my mouth.

For the first time in my life, the sugar tasted bitter and foul.