Chapter 1

On the day of the interview, I wore a shirt that had faded from repeated washes. I was there to interview for the Chief Assistant position.

My boyfriend, Lucas Quinn, said he was a nobody at the company and couldn't really help me out with the interview. He sent me 18 dollars for cab fare and wished me luck.

I knew how hard he worked for his money, so I took the bus instead and spent an hour and a half getting there.

When I walked into the conference room, a striking woman was sitting at the head of the table.

She glanced at my resume and suddenly smiled. "So, you're the one Lucas has been hiding all this time? Ms. Linwood, do you realize whose assistant you're interviewing to be today?"

Everyone on the Executive Final Interview Panel turned to me in unison.

Before I could process what was happening, she was already calling someone and putting it on speaker.

A familiar man's voice rang out from the speaker. "Don't give her a hard time. She has no idea who I am."

The woman looked up at me. Her smile broadened. "Did you hear that? It's not that he couldn't help you. He never planned to let you win."

*****

It was terribly quiet in the conference room.

I stood in front of the projection screen. The resume in my hand was torn out.

The beautiful woman sat next to the head of the table, dressed in a white suit with pearl earrings. Her name tag read: Evelyn Winters. Quinn Executive Office, Acting Chief Assistant.

She set my resume down on the table. "Claire Linwood, first place in the written test, case study, and oral exam. Looks like you're a real test whiz."

No one said a word. Everyone in the final panel was looking at me as if they were watching a joke.

The phone was still on. Lucas hadn't hung up.

I could hear his faint breathing, distant as if it came from another world.

Evelyn drawled, "What a shame. The Chief Assistant seat isn't something you can win with top scores. Especially for someone in your position."

My throat went dry. "I don't understand what you mean, Ms. Winters."

She smiled. "You don't get it? Let me make it crystal clear for you. Lucas is the current CEO of Quinn Holdings. He's also the one both our families have already decided I should marry. And you?"

She gave me a slow once-over. "You're the side girl he's stringing along for fun."

As if she thought I might miss it, she leaned toward the phone and repeated, "Mr. Quinn, am I right?"

The silence on the line dragged on, so long my heart kept sinking, deeper and deeper.

Finally, Lucas spoke, his voice tight with restraint. "Evelyn, that's enough."

That's enough. It wasn't that she was wrong. He couldn't take it anymore.

Suddenly, I remembered that morning before I left.

Lucas was crouched by the door, polishing my shoes. He was wearing that gray shirt with the frayed collar.

He looked up at me, his eyes full of tenderness. "Claire, you're totally going to ace it. Once you're in the Executive Office, I'll get to bask in your success too."

Back then, I laughed at how sweet he was. Turns out, not a single word out of his mouth was true.

Evelyn picked up the remote, and the screen lit up.

The cover of a proposal popped up on the projector screen. [Commercializing Community-Based Senior Care.] Evelyn was listed as the author.

In that instant, my blood ran cold.

That title. That diagram. It was the case I'd poured three months of my life into, all for this interview.

Lucas had sat with me, helping me tweak it seventeen times. He told me the model was flawless. He promised my talent would shine through.

Evelyn turned to look at me. "Ms. Linwood, your case study is under suspicion for professional integrity issues. That's all for today's final interview."

I stared at the screen. "Professional integrity issues?"

She tapped the table lightly. "Your materials are almost identical to Quinn Corp's internal project files. The application system keeps a record of everything you upload.

"Quinn Corp can review anything internally, and how far that goes isn't up to you to ask. We're not holding you accountable for leaking confidential information. That's already doing Mr. Quinn a huge favor."

Lucas finally spoke up from the other end of the line. "Claire, come down. I'll be waiting for you downstairs."

I stared at the phone in my hand. "Lucas, what happened with the proposal?"

He didn't answer.

Evelyn hung up for him, her smile never fading. "See? He can't be bothered to make up an excuse."

I took my resume back from the table. The corner of the paper caught my finger, making it sting a bit. "So, I'm done here, right?"

Evelyn raised an eyebrow. "Of course."

I nodded. "Then, please send my written test scores, case study results, and the reason for my disqualification to my email."

Her smile faded a bit. "You still want to make a scene?"

I looked at her. "I'm not here to cause trouble. I want to know why I lost."

I walked out of the conference room. Everyone in the Executive Office was looking at me.

At the elevator, a man stood in a black suit with silver-gray cufflinks.

The watch on his wrist was one I'd seen in a store window, worth seven figures.

When he saw me, he strode over. "Claire."

Someone beside him bowed their head. "Mr. Quinn."

When I heard them call him "Mr. Quinn," it felt so ridiculous to me.

I pulled out my phone. The 18-dollar money transfer was still sitting in our chat, with a note: "Take a cab. Don't save money."

I held it up in front of him. "Mr. Quinn, when you sent me that 18 dollars, did you really think I was some gullible idiot?"

Lucas's face lost all color. "Honestly, I never thought you'd actually take the bus."

I let out a laugh. "Figures. Of course you wouldn't know. People like you never have to worry about being broke."