Chapter 3

I thought I'd have to save for another year or two, maybe hit up Andrew for a breakup fee before I left.

But Julia was so understanding. She made up the difference for me.

It felt like fireworks were going off inside me, but I kept a straight face.

I folded the check, slipped it into my bag, then looked up at Julia with a perfectly composed smile. "Thank you, Julia."

Julia clearly hadn't expected me to accept it so easily. She probably had a whole speech prepared in case I started begging, causing drama, or trying to bargain.

She paused for a moment, then smiled. "Ms. Hart, you really know how things work."

I stood up, picked up my bag, and gave her a polite bow. "Then, enjoy your coffee, Julia."

As I walked out of the café, I felt like I was floating in the air. I got 2 million dollars. With what I'd already saved, I was sitting on almost 4 million dollars.

What did 4 million dollars mean to me? It was more than my mom would earn in over two hundred years at the factory. It meant I finally have the confidence to never worry about money again.

*****

I took a cab back to the apartment Andrew had arranged for me, settled onto the couch, and opened my phone's notes app to start mapping out my next steps.

First up, I should apply to schools. I'd been prepping for the application all through my junior year, and my scores were already good enough.

Most of my application materials were ready, but I'd been holding off because I couldn't afford the tuition. Since the money was there, I could submit everything right away.

My goal was to attend Lavitoria Dauphine Business School for my MBA.

I had my reasons for choosing Lavitoria.

Not only was the school excellent, but business schools in Foriladoria were known for being generous with scholarships for international students.

Plus, Lavitoria was one of Eupheria's biggest financial centers, so many chances to make it big.

Most importantly, it was a world away from Capitavia.

Second, I should launch my own venture, so I wasn't about to spend all 4 million dollars on tuition.

1 million dollars would easily cover tuition and living costs. I planned to invest the other 3 million dollars. I made up my mind to be an entrepreneur.

These past three years, tagging along with Andrew to all those events, I found that the real payoff for me wasn't the cash. It was the perspective.

I got to see how the business world really worked, how money moved, and how the big shots thought.

I was not some business school grad, but I'd got something most people didn't.

For three years, I'd been immersed in the highest circles of business, seeing firsthand how billionaires made their moves.

Even more important, I'd got an advantage nobody else saw coming.

I knew exactly how people in this circle thought, what mattered to them, what they steered clear of, what was okay to say, what was off-limits, and what was a total dealbreaker.

I couldn't pick this up in business school, but after three years at Andrew's side, I absorbed everything firsthand.

Of course, I knew starting a business was no joke. 3 million dollars might seem like a windfall to most, but it was barely pocket change in the business world.

I'd got a concrete plan: a platform for pre-owned luxury goods.

Over the past three years, tagging along with Andrew to all those events, I'd seen more than my fair share of socialites' walk-in closets.

Each one was stacked with luxury bags, clothes, and jewelry. Most of it was worn once or twice before being stashed away, some still with the tags on.

On the other side, there were countless girls like me before, dreaming of owning a luxury item but unable to afford the retail price.

The second-hand luxury market was already well-established overseas, but back home, it was still the wild west, chaotic, flooded with fakes, and lacking any truly trustworthy platforms.

If I could pull off a legit, trustworthy platform for pre-owned luxury stuff...

This idea had been stuck in my head for a whole year, and I finally got the cash to make it real.

Soon after, I moved out of the apartment.

*****

Three days after I moved out, I was in the school library, organizing my notes, when my phone suddenly rang.

It was a number I didn't recognize. I paused, then decided to pick up.

"Is this Sophie Hart?" a woman's voice asked. Her voice had an elegant lilt.

"Yes, that's me. Who is this?" I replied.

"My name is Charlotte Sinclair. I'm Andrew's fiancée. Do you have a moment? Let's meet up."

Charlotte, Andrew's fiancée, was the one from a family as wealthy and influential as his.

I almost turned her down, but then I realized that if I didn't meet her, she'd probably think I was afraid of her, and she might keep coming after me in other ways.

I'd better meet up with her, lay everything out, and settle it once and for all.

"Sure. When and where?" I replied.