Chapter 3

Nathan, who always knew I hated the smell of cigarettes and never smoked around me, casually flicked out a cigarette, lit it, took a drag, and let out a sudden laugh.

"Michelle, did you really think I'd marry you? That we'd be together forever?" Nathan asked.

I was completely caught off guard. Wasn't that how it was supposed to be?

He gave me a light tap on the forehead, his smile still soft and affectionate.

"Silly girl, when have you ever seen a wealthy family really marry someone ordinary? Unless you've got something they can't find anywhere else," he said.

He studied me for a long moment, as if his eyes were saying I obviously didn't.

That day, he tossed me a bank card.

He said I had a month to decide. Whether to stay or leave, it was up to me.

Back then, I was convinced it was true love. So, like a cliché from a novel, I made the noble gesture of returning his card, all to protect my pride.

And I really said something like, "Don't you dare taint my pure love with your dirty money."

I could still die of cringe thinking about it. I couldn't help but rub my forehead in embarrassment.

That day, I stormed out, fuming.

He didn't even get mad. He just stayed on the couch, smoking, not even bothering to get me back.

That month, I hit rock bottom. It was the lowest point of my life.

I felt like a lost puppy, my whole world shattered. I had nowhere to go.

I kept trying to reset my whole outlook, desperate to go back to the way things were before, to a life without him.

But reality made it painfully clear. No matter what I did, I just couldn't pull it off.

Every time I closed my eyes, his handsome, gentle smile was there. It was a sweetness I had never known, and with one glance, it was branded into my memory forever.

Whenever I closed my eyes, my mind was filled with all the ways he'd treated me, like I was some rare treasure. It made me fall deeper and deeper, until I couldn't break free.

And that only made me feel even more hopeless.

I never went looking for him, but a month later, he found me beneath a deserted bridge.

I was filthy all over, but he didn't mind one bit. He bent down and picked me up, like I was still his most treasured girl.

I couldn't bring myself to look at him. I just curled up tight, like a stray cat finally found by its owner.

I whispered, "I'm dirty."

I should've broken down in tears, kept up my foolish stubbornness, but all that came out were those two shameful words, my voice dry and cracked.

That month on the streets taught me one brutal truth. Without Nathan's doting, I was nobody.

Nathan looked at me with a warm smile, his eyes filled with pure affection and concern.

"Even if you're a mess, you're still my precious girl," he said to me gently.

I couldn't stop the tears. They came in a silent, steady flow. The salt of them ate at my skin, and with every drop, the last of my dignity seemed to dissolve.

That day, Nathan carried me home, put me in the tub, and personally washed all the dirt off me.

His long, strong fingers gently worked through my hair, like he was caring for his favorite doll.

"Are you really that into me?" Nathan asked.

His voice was always so magnetic that it made my heart skip a beat.

"Then you've got to learn how to be my kept woman and how to stick around and stay by my side for the long haul..." he said.

In the end, I really did become the kept woman who stayed by his side the longest.

Lochlan asked me what I wanted. "Don't hold back. Just name it. Maybe I'll make it happen," he told me.

Back then, the one thing I always dreamed of as a reward was a share in the Hawthorne Group.

Even if it was just a measly 0.001%, I would've been over the moon.

I was so naive, thinking that if I could just get that, I could finally break out of my gilded cage and become a true partner by his side.

That was why I was hell-bent on joining the company. Even if it meant just fetching coffee for everyone, I was totally up for it.

He didn't turn me down. Instead, he gently tousled my hair, that familiar mix of exasperation and fondness in his eyes.

"Really, you don't need to do all that," Nathan said.

Back then, I thought he was just worried I'd get looked down on or bullied. That only fired me up even more. I swore I'd prove myself, level up, and make him see me as someone truly worth his time.

But when I finally landed my first multi-million-dollar deal and went to show it off, hoping for his pride, he just smiled. He called over a new girl from the lounge and told me to be nice.

How did I feel at that moment?

It hurt so much, and everything after that was just a blur.

For ten years, I went from a naive freeloader to his right-hand woman, managing projects worth billions.

But even after all that, I never got a single share in the Hawthorne Group.

Even the most junior star on my team could get stock options, but for me, he just handed me a piece of jewelry and sent me on my way, treating me no different from any of his other kept women.

I'd thought about it a lot. After ten years, why couldn't I ever stop being enchanted by Nathan?

That was just how people were. Once I had stood at the top of the world, ordinary hills and sand piles just looked dull.

That was why they said, "Don't fall for someone dazzling when you're still young and naive."

I left that apartment for good, like I'd never even existed there.

The night hadn't fully settled in, and I was the only soul wandering the empty street.

The wind started to howl, and the sky sprinkled me with a misty drizzle.

I hugged my coat tighter, chin up, and stepped into the wind and rain, all on my own.

Who cared if there was no one to shield me from the storm?

I was no longer that lost puppy or stray cat, living at someone else's mercy. I'd learned to stand on my own.

The news of the alliance between the Hawthorne family and the Quinn family was officially announced soon.

Photos of Nathan and Charlotte Quinn sharing a kiss were promptly plastered all over the society pages, stirring up a fresh wave of gossip.

I stared at my phone, scrutinizing the pictures.

Though Charlotte was undeniably lovely, her kiss with Nathan seemed slightly off. Nathan didn't like it when others tried to bridge the height gap. He liked to be the one asserting his dominance, bending to pull his partner close, making her yield to his frame.