Chapter 3

Compared to everyone else, I was a beat late.

But honestly, I didn't feel rushed at all.

I gave my brother a call.

He chuckled on the other end. "So, what's it going to be? Starting your own thing, or coming back to take over the company?"

I said cautiously, "With you running things at home, the family's business is in good hands. I want to give entrepreneurship a shot myself."

He said warmly, "Starting your own business is great, but you have to be practical. We've got a branch under the company that's been struggling for years.

"Why not start as a tech intern there, work your way up from the ground floor, and figure out what's really going wrong?"

I had no clue where to begin with my own thing, and this way I could get some real experience and help my brother out, so I jumped at the chance.

Never in a million years did I expect that fate had a way of making things interesting.

It just so happened that Winona was interning at the same branch.

She was in operations, and I was in tech.

On my first day, I felt what it was like to be an ordinary employee.

The department manager threw every tedious and exhausting task my way.

From sorting out endless reports to checking data line by line, I was so busy that I barely had a second to breathe, let alone grab a drink.

Still, none of it was really a challenge for me.

But what really got me was that Edie Holmes, the intern who started the same day as me, barely had anything to do.

Not only did he have way less work, but the manager kept fussing over him, always checking if he was comfortable.

I wondered if Edie was the manager's relative or something.

It wasn't until I was hanging out in the break room that I overheard some coworkers chatting.

A person asked, "Hey, did you hear? The CEO's son is interning with us!"

Another person asked, "Seriously? Which department is he in? Talk about keeping it low-key..."

Someone else said, "Man, if I could get him to notice me, I'd be set for life!"

I was holding my coffee and found myself rubbing my nose without thinking.

The CEO's kid might be rich, but he was surely no fool.

I felt that they were being delusional.

Suddenly, I remembered my ex who ditched me for being broke, and I couldn't help but shake my head.

Just as I was about to leave, I overheard them still gossiping.

A person said, "But aren't rich kids supposed to wear designer brands? I don't see anyone in this batch of interns rocking anything fancy.

"The priciest thing is probably Neil's shirt. It's worth over three grand, but he wears the same one every single day."

I glanced down at my shirt and couldn't help but chuckle.

I was just obsessed with this brand's cut and feel, so I went ahead and stocked up on the whole series.

Another girl immediately shot back, "No way. It's definitely not him. It's gotta be Edie. He's got the same last name as the boss, and none of the other new interns do."

My grip on the coffee cup paused for a second.

It all made sense to me at that point.

That was why the manager had been treating Edie like royalty.

My eyes narrowed thoughtfully.

Being misunderstood wasn't the worst thing for me.

This was the perfect chance to see just how many social climbers were hiding in this company.

That night, after a long day, I flopped onto my king-sized bed.

Suddenly, my phone buzzed with a friend request.

Not bothering to check who it was, I just assumed it was a coworker and accepted it.

As soon as I accepted, a flood of messages came through. "Neil, don't flatter yourself. I only added you because I've got something important to discuss."

That familiar tone made me smirk.

I replied: [Winona?]

She fired back instantly: [It's been a month, and you still haven't moved on? I get it. I'm pretty amazing.

[But let me be clear. Just because you managed to get into the company doesn't mean anything.

[Stop acting like a lovesick puppy. It's honestly pathetic. There's no way we're ever getting back together.]

I stared at the screen, left speechless.

I never realized that she was so self-centered before.

If she hadn't switched up her avatar and handle, I never would've realized it was her.

I wouldn't have bothered accepting her friend request in the first place.

I shot back with a snarky reaction gif. [Chill, I'm not even remotely interested in getting back together. We ended up at the same company because it was a pure coincidence.]

Winona: [It better be. Since there's nothing else, let's just delete each other.]

I couldn't care less about dragging this out.

Honestly, in my book, a proper ex should be as good as dead.

But Winona shot back in a hurry. [Hold on a sec. I need some info on the new guy sitting next to you, Edie. Are you close with him?]

That was when I realized what was going on.