Chapter 3

“How would I know?” he snapped. “We’re about to go public. I’m tired out. Must be nice to sit at home doing nothing.”

At home, doing nothing—one sentence erased years of work.

Yes, I was at home. But every messy, hard task the assistants couldn’t handle got sent to me to fix before it went back to him.

He was the one sitting pretty.

Yet somehow I became the leech sucking him dry.

“So that’s who I am to you?”

I laughed, hollow. My chest clenched so hard I could barely breathe.

He yanked off his tie with a look of irritation and headed for the shower.

I stared at the blue‑and‑white tie on the floor, blood roaring in my ears—mind blanking, my legs giving way.

I’d picked that tie—carefully chosen fabric and cut.

Gavin’s skin flares with any stiff, cheap cloth. But he had endless dinners; he needed endless clothes.

With the company burning cash, I cut my own spending and gave him only the best, so he could focus on the climb.

I believed that in a pair, one is destined to give more. If it moves you forward, the sacrifice is fine.

I believed Gavin would never let me lose.

Reality slapped me raw.

I didn’t just lose. I lost everything.

On that blue‑and‑white tie was a single false eyelash.

Such a private place has been contaminated with another woman's belongings—what did that mean?

I didn’t dare think deeper. I feared I couldn’t bear it.