Chapter 1

At my engagement party with Edward, his closest female friend, Lily, cried so hard that she actually passed out.

Edward ditched me, scooped her up, and rushed straight to the hospital.

When he finally came back, he hadn't even bothered to clean the white stains off his shirt.

That night, Lily posted on social media: [To the one who defined my youth. It's finally time to say goodbye. No matter what happens in the future, I wish you happiness.]

Overnight, I became the wicked woman who destroyed their true love.

My best friend, Chloe, was so mad that she wanted to tear that jerk and his little mistress apart.

I stopped her, slowly closed my social media app, and let a sly smile curl on my red lips.

I said, "Don't rush.

"First, leak those photos of Edward and Lily getting intimate at the hospital. Spread the word that the Sinclair Group's heir broke his promise for love and is ready to hand over all his shares.

"Oh, and don't forget to attach that video of him begging me to invest. Make sure it's in HD."

Hashtags: [Sinclair Heir Ditches Fiancée for Love], [Feel Bad for Lily; Capitalism Turned Her into the Other Woman], and [Stella Is So Toxic] hit the trending list.

Chloe slammed her phone down on the table, her whole body shaking with anger.

She said, "Stella, did you see this? These lying jerks are twisting the whole story. I'm gonna hire a bunch of trolls and spam their comments so hard that they'll have no choice but to turn them off."

I idly swirled my wine glass.

I said, "No need. Let them stir things up.

"The bigger the drama, the harder they'll fall."

Just as I finished talking, the front door burst open. Someone had kicked it in.

Edward stormed inside, practically freezing the room with his anger, his usually handsome face twisted in fury.

Lily was clinging to his arm, tears streaming down her face as she sobbed uncontrollably.

Edward demanded, "Stella, what the hell are you trying to pull?"

He slammed his phone onto the table, the screen ablaze with the photos and videos I'd told Chloe to spread all over the internet.

In the photos, he and Lily were making out in some hospital corner like nobody was watching, totally wrapped up in each other.

And in the video, he grabbed onto my dress like his life depended on it, desperately begging me to invest in his project.

I set down the scissors and deliberately wiped my hands with a wet wipe.

I said, "Edward, you should at least knock before you barge in. Even a toddler knows how to be polite."

Edward was so pissed that he actually laughed.

He snapped, "You did all this to me, and now you're lecturing me about manners?"

I gave him a look full of sarcasm.

I shot back, "Did I doctor those photos? Did I use AI to fake that video?

"Or was it me who made you ditch me, your fiancée, at the engagement party, and run off with another woman?

"Or maybe that disgusting mess on your shirt was just some hospital air freshener?"

Edward's face kept switching between pale and furious, like he was about to explode.

Lily nervously clung to his sleeve, tears falling from her eyes like scattered pearls.

She whimpered, "Edward, please don't blame Ms. Grant. It's all my fault. I shouldn't have fainted or messed up your engagement party.

"Ms. Grant, I'm begging you, could you please delete those posts from the internet?

"Edward can't lose the Sinclair Group. His reputation can't just go down like this."

She started to bow down as she spoke.

I shot her a cold look and said, "Save your innocent act for someone who cares. It doesn't work on me."

Edward yanked Lily into his arms, shooting me a furious glare.

He snapped, "Stella, don't push it. Lily and I are just close friends, nothing more. If you've got a problem, bring it to me."

I stood up and walked right up to him, my gaze icy.

I said, "You're exactly who I'm after.

"Edward, did you really think my family picked you as my fiancé because you're the Sinclair Group's heir? No, it's because you're a Sinclair.

"You trashed our engagement, and now you've slapped both our families in the face.

"So tell me, what do you think your father's going to do to you?"

Edward's phone started buzzing like crazy. When he saw who was calling, his face went white as a sheet.

It was his father, Andrew.

Edward didn't dare not answer.

Andrew's thunderous roar came through the phone, so loud that I could hear every word, even from across the room.

He demanded, "You disgrace! Get your ass back here, right now!"

Edward hung up, shooting daggers at me, his eyes full of hate.

He spat, "Stella, just you wait. This isn't over, not by a long shot."