Chapter 2

William's words made me tremble with rage. "Why should I apologize to her?" I snapped. "She's just a homewrecker who ruined our relationship. She doesn't deserve it!"

The moment I said that, William stormed over and slapped me hard across the face.

"What the hell are you talking about?" he roared. "If anyone's the homewrecker here, it's you! You knew full well that..."

Seeing the gossipy looks from our coworkers, William went quiet for a moment, then bluntly shifted the topic. "Are you going to apologize or not?"

I looked at him with utter disappointment, feeling like I couldn't breathe from the pain.

"Are you that sure I'm the one who copied Ella?" I asked him. "What if it was Ella who stole my work?"

William didn't even hesitate. "Ella is brilliant. You're just a nepotism hire. Do you really think you can measure up to her?"

Before I could speak, he cut me off. "Enough. If it's not yours, why won't you just return it?"

I looked at the self-righteous man before me. Seeing him stand by Ella's side without hesitation cut me deeper than any knife.

I couldn't remember when his world had started revolving entirely around her.

He was even willing to hurt me just to protect her.

After the plagiarism drama blew up, William had been absolutely furious.

He had yelled at me in front of everyone, calling me disgusting and a despicable thief.

How ridiculous—the one person who should have trusted me was the one who doubted me the most.

I replied coldly, "So you don't believe me? Fine, I'll show you the proof right now."

I pulled out a flash drive and showed everyone the rough draft and the final version of my proposal. The details were so specific that no one could have faked them.

The room fell silent in the face of the evidence, and Ella's face turned pale.

I stared straight at William and asked, "Well? Do you believe me now?"

William let out a cold laugh, his anger flaring. "Sophie, what does any of this prove? I can't believe you'd sink so low. That flash drive was a gift I gave to Ella. If you don't believe me, check the bottom—it's engraved with 'Carter.'"

His words struck me like a bolt of lightning. I stared at him, utterly stunned.

I knew the drive had "Carter" engraved on it. On my birthday, I found that diamond-studded drive at his place, and he told me it was my birthday present.

Now, I finally understood the look of panic on his face that day.

That gift was never meant for me.

William was right. If it never belonged to me, I should just hand it over.

The reality finally hit me—William was no longer the man I loved.

He had turned into a complete stranger.

William gave Ella a sympathetic glance, then continued, "I was with Ella the whole time while she worked on this proposal. I watched her crunch every number herself. If you want proof, isn't my testimony as an eyewitness enough?"

I didn't say a word. I was completely numb.

To everyone, William's words carried more weight than any of the evidence I had shown.

Ella's eyes turned red, and she looked deeply moved.

William said with an air of noble integrity, "Sophie may be my girlfriend, but I can't cover for her just because of that."

The surrounding coworkers erupted into thunderous applause.

I stood there, frozen to the core.

At that moment, I finally knew what it felt like for a heart to turn to ash.