Chapter 2
I could see the pain in my father’s eyes as he brought me back home and urged me to rest. During this time, he took great care of me, and little by little, I began to move on from Steven.
But one day, while scrolling through my social media feed, I stumbled upon a post that stopped me in my tracks. It was a picture of Steven and Giselle at their engagement party.
In the photo, Giselle was heavily pregnant, holding onto Steven‘ s arm with a triumphant smile.
I stared at her round belly and chuckled bitterly. So this was the truth–Steven and Giselle had been together all along. She was already carrying his child.
To keep me distracted, my father suggested I start working at the company. Since I was new, my workload was light. One day, my
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secretary informed me about an upcoming business gala that I needed to attend.
I agreed without giving it much thought, never imagining that I would run into
Steven there.
He arrived at the event with Giselle on his
arm. When his eyes met mine, his expression turned complicated, while
Giselle looked at me with unmistakable
arrogance.
“You must be Cherry Adams,” she said, her tone condescending.
I nodded. “Yes, that’s me.”
“I didn’t expect your company to send you for this collaboration,” Giselle. sneered. “You know, I’m quite close with your company’s CEO. In fact, the eldest daughter of your family is one of my best friends!”
I blinked at her, then smiled politely. Her claim was laughable–this was the first
time I’d met her so how could she
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claimed that we were best friends? Besides,
our family’s status was leagues above hers. The Cooper family had begged for this collaboration, and even then, I wasn’t sure if it would go through.
As the wealthiest family in the province, we held all the cards. Giselle’s display of superiority was clearly aimed at humiliating me, but I chose not to react.
Behind me, my assistant seemed ready to speak up, but I motioned for her to stay quiet.
Steven walked over, his expression conflicted. “Cherry, why did you leave without a word?”
I smiled faintly. “I was just making space for you and Giselle.”
My response made his face darken further.
“Cherry, you know I came from the countryside,” he said after a pause. “If I want a better life, I have to hold onto someone like Giselle.”
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I nodded. “You‘ re right. Your choice makes perfect sense.
My calm acknowledgment seemed to unsettle him even more.
“Cherry, after you left, I went looking for you,” he said bitterly. “I know you went to the hospital…”
“Steven, I’m grateful,” I interrupted him coldly. “I realized back then that you weren’t the right person for me. Walking away was the best decision I could‘ ve made. Otherwise, I’d probably end up being used by you until there was nothing left of me.”
My words struck a nerve, and his expression turned even uglier.
I handed the rest of the evening’s matters to my secretary and left the venue without
another word.
Just being around the two of them soured my mood. It was better to avoid
unnecessary contact.
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After I left, my secretary reported that Giselle continued her high–handed behavior, even going as far as publicly claiming to be my best friend.
I laughed at the absurdity and instructed my secretary to tolerate her for now. As for the collaboration?
“As long as I’m here, it won’t happen,” I said decisively.
That evening, Steven called me.
“Cherry, let’s meet,” he said.
I rejected him without hesitation.
“Steven, there’s nothing left for us to discuss.”
