Chapter 2

I turned, yanked the door open, and stormed out.

Behind me, Blake's furious voice echoed, "Samantha, stop right there. Don't come crawling back to me. Let's see who else would want you, you old hag."

I jabbed the elevator button and rode it down. My phone was buzzing like crazy in my pocket, the screen flashing "Honey." I hung up in disgust and changed his name to "Trash" in my contacts.

As soon as I got into the cab, Olivia sent me a photo.

Blake was shirtless, his head resting on Olivia's lap, while she flashed a peace sign.

The caption read: [Blake was totally drunk and wouldn't let go of me all night. He said young legs are just better, so smooth and soft. Sam, your long johns are so outdated. No wonder Blake's not into you.]

Then came a voice message, Olivia's tone fake sweet. [Sam, Blake was calling my name in his sleep. He said he's been sick of you for ages. If it weren't for your money and your connections at work, he would've broken with you ages ago.]

I put my phone on silent.

Those two cheating jerks really thought I was some pushover?

When I got home, I gathered up all of Blake's stuff, his toothbrush, towels, underwear, and every designer outfit I'd ever bought him, and stuffed it all into black trash bags. Then I dumped the bags out in the hallway.

Just as I finished, there was a loud pounding at the door.

"Samantha, open up. Why did you lock the door? Are you out of your mind?" Blake shouted.

I checked the video doorbell. Blake was leaning against the wall, while Olivia stood behind him, wrapped in his coat, looking like she was waiting for a show.

I opened the door and stood my ground in the doorway. "Already done? Guess you really can't last long."

Blake's face flushed as he pointed at the trash bags. "What do you think you're doing? Are you trying to start something? Get this stuff back inside and go make Liv some hangover cure. I'm letting what happened go, but don't test me."

He was used to me waiting on him hand and foot.

Olivia chimed in, her voice dripping with sarcasm, "Sam, stop making a scene. Blake's got a headache. Nothing happened between us. You're just being childish. Come on, let us in, my legs are about to freeze off."

I snorted coldly, eyeing her bare legs. "If you're cold, put on some long johns. Weren't you the one who said only country bumpkins wear those?

"Aren't you a fashion blogger? Why don't you heat yourself with your fashion and see if that keeps you warm?"

Blake shoved me aside and stormed right in. "Cut the crap. This is my house. I'll come and go whenever I want."

I stepped aside, and just as he crossed the threshold, I stuck my foot out and tripped him.

Blake went down hard, face-planting onto the entryway rug.

Olivia shrieked, but I blocked her from coming in.

"Just to be clear, I paid for this place in full, and the deed's got my name on it, only mine. You're nothing but a mooch living off me, and now you're getting kicked out," I said to Blake.

Blake scrambled to his feet, looking stunned. "Samantha, are you serious? Are you breaking up with me over something this petty? I'm about to get promoted. Soon I'll be making a million a year. Don't you dare regret this."

Promotion? He had no clue I'd already killed his big promotion behind the scenes.

"I won't regret it. But you? You'll soon find out what real regret feels like," I said.

I grabbed him by the collar and shoved him out the door.

Blake stumbled into Olivia, and the two of them went down in a tangle.

"Grab your trash and get lost," I shouted.

With a loud bang, I slammed the front door shut.

The next day, the vibe in the company lobby was weird.

The receptionist looked like she wanted to say something, but held back, and people were whispering in the break room.

"Did you hear? Ms. Payne's got a wild private life. She's into threesomes."

"I heard that guy is Blake. He's robbing the cradle, and now the young girl has come knocking on his door."

I walked into the break room, face completely unreadable, and the gossip stopped dead. Everyone scattered.

I grabbed a coffee and checked the group chat.

Sure enough, someone had anonymously posted photos of me kicking Blake and Olivia out last night, with a caption twisting everything: [Female executive, jealous of her boyfriend's young and pretty intern, kicked them both out in the middle of the night.

[She's even bullying an intern.]

No doubt Olivia did it.

I scoffed and carried my coffee into the office.

Just as I sat down, the door was flung open.

Blake, in a new suit, swaggered in. Olivia was hiding behind him, playing the victim.

"Samantha, I'm willing to let last night slide," Blake said, tossing some papers onto my desk with an arrogant air. "But you owe Liv an explanation.

"She failed her internship test, and you traumatized her. Apologize to her in front of everyone, and give her a permanent position. Plus, get my promotion and raise sorted out. Do all that, and maybe I'll forgive you."

I leaned back in my chair. "Blake, seriously, who gave you the guts. Was it the girl who can't stop showing off her legs?"

Olivia peeked out from behind him. "Sam, Blake's just trying to help you out. Now, everyone in the company thinks you're some crazy drama queen. If you apologize, Blake can still clear things up for you.

"Otherwise, once Blake gets promoted and becomes your boss, it'll be way too late for you to beg for forgiveness."

I raised an eyebrow. My boss? Really?

So, HR hadn't gotten around to telling everyone yet.

"My boss? You really think so?" I opened my drawer and slid a document across the desk toward him. "Since you're here, go ahead and sign this."

Blake picked it up, grinning smugly. "Glad you finally came to your senses..."

But his words died in his throat.