Chapter 1

1

At the annual bonus gala, my CEO boyfriend had just announced he was giving me a 30% stake in the company.

Suddenly, his secretary stepped up and literally snipped the microphone wire with a pair of scissors.

She walked onto the stage, grabbed his hand, and declared to the room, "I am the CEO's real girlfriend. Who do you think you are, trying to take 30% of the shares?"

Ethan, the man who had always treated me with nothing but love, didn't stop her.

Instead, he looked at me and told me to hand over the AI project I was nearly finished with and go home to get some rest.

My colleagues and friends all whispered to me, telling me to just suck it up. After all, she was the boss's girlfriend now.

I just smiled and accepted every single one of his arrangements.

I handed over the project, but I also handed over my security badge.

"Since you want me to rest, I'll be the one to decide if and when I ever come back," I said.

The entire hall fell into a deathly silence as soon as the words left my mouth.

Everyone there knew that without me, this company would never have had a chance of going public.

Sensing that I was about to walk away for good, some coworkers rushed over to stop me.

"Sienna, you've been with us since the beginning," they pleaded. "Don't be so impulsive. Just swallow your pride for now. She's Mr. Blackwood's girlfriend."

But how much was I supposed to swallow? How many more times would I have to endure this?

I had been pushed to the edge, yet Ethan, the man I had been secretly dating for five years, just stood on the stage with his arms crossed.

He looked at me with total indifference, like he was watching a cheap show.

His secretary, Jade, stood beside him with a triumphant smirk, enjoying my public humiliation.

"Sienna Vance, do you really think you're that important?" Jade sneered. "Making a scene over some shares and embarrassing the CEO... have you no shame?"

Seeing Jade's sharp tongue, others tried to play mediator. "Jade is just trying to lighten the mood. She didn't mean any harm."

I waved them off and gave a polite nod to the room.

"Thanks, everyone. But my mind is made up. I wish you all the best in your careers."

With that, I dropped my badge on the floor and turned toward the exit.

Just as I reached the heavy glass doors, Ethan's voice rang out behind me.

"Sienna, if you dare to walk out that door today, don't you dare come back crawling and crying for my help later."

My heart felt a sudden, sharp pang.

For a girl who just labeled herself as his girlfriend, Ethan was willing to lash out at me―the woman who had sacrificed everything for him for five years.

I didn't turn around. "Don't worry, Mr. Blackwood. In the future, even if you're the one begging me, I won't be coming back."

I went back to my desk and began packing my things into a cardboard box.

Every item I picked up brought back a memory. These things were the silent witnesses to the five years I spent with Ethan.

Five years ago, we graduated from the University of Technology together. To support his dream of starting a business, I gave up my chance at a master's degree.

I moved to the city with him and worked myself to the bone.

During our hardest times, we lived in a tiny basement less than fifty square feet, eating nothing but cheap instant noodles.

Later, as the company grew, I spent nights in the lab designing blueprints, running between factories and the office.

I turned a tiny, unknown startup into a market leader.

I gave five years of my life, only to be met with Ethan's betrayal.

If Ethan was so confident he could lead the company without me, then I would let him.

Since he had become someone I no longer recognized, there was no reason for me to stay.

A smart person knows when to leave a sinking ship. From today on, I would go back to being the brilliant, independent woman I was always meant to be.

"What's the matter? Did you find a new sugar daddy already? You don't even want this ring you've worn for so long?"

Jade walked over to my desk, looking like she owned the world.

She fished the ring I had tossed into the trash out and laughed.

"This must be real. If you sell it, maybe it'll buy you a few meals. Unlike me, I'll just have to reluctantly take your position and enjoy the high life."

I laughed internally. This woman really spent all her energy on manipulating men.

If she had paid any attention, she would know that my job was a grueling, thankless task.

I kept my face calm and gave her a thin smile. "Then you should definitely enjoy it while it lasts."

Seeing my lack of reaction, Jade scoffed. "Go ahead and laugh. You're just acting tough. You'll be sobbing your eyes out the moment you get home."

Jade was half right; my smile was fake. But she was dead wrong about the rest.

The moment I stepped out of the office building, I called my parents, who were vacationing in the Maldives.

I told them I was ready to take over the family business and agree to the blind date with the son of the city's wealthiest tycoon.