Chapter 1

I prepared a table of food and sent Jayden a message:

'Jayden, what time will you be home tonight?"

'I made your favorite poached shrimp."

He didn't reply to me.

Ding.

I hurriedly picked up my phone, but the person who sent the message wasn't Jayden.

Instead, his brother Chris sent me a photo.

'You're a fake. The real one is back now."

In the photo, Jayden is carrying a suitcase with one hand. He is tenderly looking at the woman next to him.

The woman is wearing a white dress and smiling, putting her arm around Jayden's shoulder.

She looks a bit like me.

I stare at the photo. I have never seen Jayden look like that before.

It is a tenderness that I have never seen in him before.

After a while, Jayden's message pops up.

'I'll be back late tonight. Don't wait up for me."

The message was very brief.

I walked over to the dining table, ladled myself a bowl of rice, and swallowed the rice with my tears.

I was once assigned to Jayden's company to work on a project.

The day I first met him.

The look in his eyes when he looked at me was full of surprise.

'What's your name?"

I knew he was the company president, and I gently shook his hand as he extended it to me.

I replied respectfully, 'Gabriella."

'That's a pretty name,"

I blushed.

Because of work, I needed to go to his company often.

I don't know if it was a coincidence or something else.

I could see him every time.

A feeling called affection spread in my heart.

Two people who should not have any intersection were bound together because of money.

My grandmother was seriously ill and urgently needed a large sum of money for surgery.

I was desperate and frantic, raising money from all sides.

Jayden appeared and paid the surgery fee for me.

After that, he often brought me along whenever he attended an event.

We lived together like an ordinary couple for three years.

I kept waiting for the day when I would enter his heart.

But I never waited long enough because the person who stayed by his side appeared.

Dreams always have an end.

Early morning.

Jayden came home.

A thin layer of frost covered his body.

I rubbed my eyes and sat up from the sofa.

When I went over to him and took off his jacket, I could smell a faint perfume.

Jayden never wore perfume.

'I told you to get some rest,"

he said, looking down at me with a frown.

'I was on the sofa checking my phone for a while and I fell asleep."

'Okay, go back to the bedroom and wait for me."

Soon after, I heard the sound of water in the bathroom.

I lay on my side on the bed, torn between asking him about the photos and not.

But how should I ask him? Would he think I was being mean?

As I hesitated, the bedside dented.

Jayden gathered me in his arms from behind.

Through the thin fabric, I could feel his body temperature and heartbeat.

The atmosphere gradually became more and more ambiguous.

Jayden bit my earlobe and whispered, 'Gabriella."

His palm slipped under the hem of my shirt, and my breathing grew heavier.

My heart was racing, and I pushed him away.

'Jayden, I'm a little tired today, so I'd better get some rest."

This was the first time I had rejected him in a romantic matter.

Jayden stared at me momentarily, then lowered his head and kissed my brow. He then turned around and fell asleep with his back to me.

Jayden loved my eyebrows.

It turned out that they looked very similar to the woman in the photo.

The breathing next to me gradually became steady.

I looked at the moon outside the window, feeling sad inside, and I didn't sleep all night.

When I went to work the next day, my boss said that Song had a banquet and wanted me to attend.

'Jayden never mentioned to me that there was a banquet today."

I was a little puzzled. Every time before, he would ask me to be his date.

Soon, I got my answer.

In the crowd, I saw Jayden at once and the woman in a long dress next to him.

The man was well-dressed and mature.

The woman was elegantly dressed in a high-end fashion.

I knew why Jayden didn't notify me, because he no longer needed me.

Jayden held the woman's lower back intimately and introduced everyone with a smile.

When he saw me, his face twitched before returning to normal.

'Sherry, this is Gabriella, the project manager of Company L."

Three words that clearly defined our relationship.

'And his girlfriend," I added promptly.

The woman's outstretched hand froze for a moment.

'Hello, Miss Tang, I'm Sherry, the project manager of the Song Group. I hope we can work together in the future."

Stay calm.

Stay calm.

I pinched my thigh to suppress the aching in my heart and forced an ugly smile onto my face.

I shook hands with the other person, 'Hello, Miss Jiang."

I saw the dark mole at the corner of Sherry's eye, the same as mine.

I also smelled the familiar perfume.

Sherry withdrew her hand and intimately took Jayden's arm, "Jayden, why didn't you mention that you have a girlfriend?"

After saying that, she didn't forget to raise her eyebrows and give me a look.

Jayden looked at me with mixed feelings.

'There's nothing to mention,"

He said it in a short sentence, with each word like a knife.

In the tense moment, Chris appeared.

He gave me a cold glance and then put his arm around Jayden.

'The client is waiting for you,"

Jayden frowned and pushed him away.

'Did you just finish smoking?" Then he brought Sherry behind him.

'Sherry has bad lungs. Don't you remember?"

It turned out that he wasn't indifferent to everything.

For example, he protected Sherry.

Jayden gave me a deep look. He was about to say something, but Sherry pulled him away.

I accompanied the manager in meetings with many clients.

After drinking a lot, I found an excuse to leave the banquet hall.

Chris appeared behind me without me knowing when.

'Have you seen Sherry?"

'You have dominated Jayden for three years. It's time to let go."

'Chris, I'm afraid it's unpleasant to see the one you love surrounded by other men."

The night air was cool, so I pulled my jacket around me and ignored the person behind me.

It was after 9 pm, and the party was coming to an end.

'Do you need a ride?"

Sherry asked me from the passenger seat, rolling down the window.

I looked up and locked eyes with Jayden.

Our gazes met.

He said, 'Sherry isn't feeling well. I'm taking her home."

'Okay, be careful on the way."

I clenched my fists, my fingernails sinking into the flesh. Only pain could make me say these words calmly.

'See you tomorrow." Sherry threw down these words, her eyes full of smugness.

The car started and disappeared into the night.

I froze in place, smelling the exhaust and the dense pain spreading from all around.

I was driven home by my manager, and the house was dark.

Jayden came back around eleven.

He carried a small cake.

'Gabriella, I brought you dessert."

I lifted my eyelids, and my gaze fell on the cake.

Every time he coaxed me, he brought me cake.

It was all from the same shop.

'What's your relationship with her?"

'Sherry grew up with me. She's like a sister."

'Don't think about it. We're not doing anything."

He used a spoon to scoop some cream and brought it to my lips.

Just one bite and I couldn't eat anymore.

It was too rich, and it made me want to vomit.

Jayden leaned over and pressed himself against me.

A scorching kiss landed on my lips.

Seeing that I didn't move, he looked at me uneasily.

'Gabriella, we really didn't do anything. Trust me, okay?"

After saying that, he carried me to the bed and skillfully undid the straps of my clothes.

I didn't refuse anymore, but responded to him actively. I bit and nibbled on his neck like crazy.

Jayden let out a muffled groan.

His eyes were full of flames of desire.

'I didn't know you had this kind of fetish."

I climaxed again and again under his movements.

In the morning, I was limp in bed and didn't want to get up.

Jayden gave me a gentle kiss on my brow.

'Baby, you're going to be late for work."

It was rare for me to have Jayden make breakfast.

Although there were still eggshells in the omelet.

Was he trying to be nice?

My heart fluttered a little.

I helped Jayden pack.

I picked up the perfume next to me and sprayed it on my shirt.

The refreshing orange scent was much better than that unknown smell.

Before leaving the house, I stopped Jayden.

'You can drive me to work today."

'Baby, you go first. I promised Sherry I would pick her up at your company today."

Seeing my cold face, he added:

'Sherry has just returned to the country and is unfamiliar with everything."

The weather, which had just brightened up because of him,

became gloomy again because of him.

'Okay. Be careful on the way." I looked at him with a smile.

I arrived at the company and organized the materials needed for the meeting.

'Gabriella, I heard that the person in charge at Song's has changed. Have you met her?"

'Yes, she is very beautiful."

While we were talking, there was a commotion in the company.

Jayden arrived with Sherry.

I reported the project's progress, plans, and other information to Jayden.

'Sherry will be in charge of this project from now on, so you can report directly to her."

'Okay."

After listening to the report, Sherry frowned, and in her high heels, she walked up to me.

'I think there are many deficiencies in your work."

'First..."

'Second..."

...

The atmosphere in the meeting room was tense.

I smiled and looked directly into Sherry's eyes.

'You're right. I'll make the changes right away."

Sherry must have seen the hickey on Jayden's neck. I'd sprayed orange perfume today, too.

So, she was deliberately picking on me.

And Jayden, my boyfriend, just said lightly,

'It's up to Sherry."

I became the laughingstock of everyone.

'Isn't Gabriella Jayden's girlfriend?"

'Why is Jayden protecting that Sherry?"

My colleagues in the pantry gossiped about me, but when they saw me, they all fell silent.

'It's okay, you guys, go on and chat, don't mind me."

Although I had long expected this day, I couldn't help feeling sad.

My heart felt as if it had been wrapped in a dense tangle of vines, pulled and torn apart, and the veins on my forehead were pulsing.

I returned home exhausted and threw myself onto the bed.

I slept heavily and had a dream.

I dreamt that I confessed my love to Jayden.

Three years ago, I mustered the courage and embraced him from behind.

'I like you,"

Jayden said, turning around and holding me in his arms.

He grabbed my waist and kissed me.

His eyes were full of desire.

He didn't say he liked me, and he didn't reject me. So we just started.

I also dreamt about my late grandmother.

My parents got divorced, and neither of them wanted me.

Only my grandmother treated me like a treasure.

She always said, 'My dear, you have suffered so much over the years."

But my grandmother suffered much more than I did.

She was alone and struggled to raise me.

I grew up, but she grew old.

Just after the graduation ceremony, I received a call from my neighbor saying that my grandmother had been hospitalized.

Fortunately, she was rescued in time.

After that, I took my grandmother in and hired a nanny to take care of her.

Life was a bit more difficult, but I didn't mind the hard work as long as my grandmother was well.

However, God always likes to play jokes on me.

My grandmother became seriously ill again and was hospitalized. I stayed by her bedside day and night.

The company hospital had a rental room, and I was in a rut.

I begged everyone around me, but I still couldn't scrape together the surgery fee.

It wasn't until Jayden paid the surgery fee for me that I was able to do so.

But I still couldn't save my grandmother.

In a coma.

Cold fingers stroked my cheek, wiping away my tears.

'Grandma, I miss you so much,"

I murmured, hugging the person next to me.

When I opened my eyes, I saw Jayden. I thought he wasn't coming back tonight.

'Did you have a nightmare?"

Warm breath tickled my face.

I sniffed.

'Jayden, will you leave me?"

'No."

The next day, he went shopping with Sherry.

It was the anniversary of Grandma's death.

In the past few years, Jayden has accompanied me in paying respects.

This year, I was alone.

I bought a bouquet of flowers and placed them in front of the tombstone.

I sat down on my knees and told her how I felt.

'Grandma, his sweetheart is back."

'I don't want to like him anymore. It hurts here." I pounded my chest.

'If only I knew I was being used as a substitute, I could have left without a care."

'Grandma, I miss you so much."

'I miss you too."

If Grandma were still alive, she would surely wipe away my tears gently with her calloused hands.

'Good girl, who's been bullying you? You've got Grandma to back you up."

Then, she pretended to pick up the broom in the yard and waved it twice.

'No one can bully my precious granddaughter."

I went to the bank to deposit a sum of money. There's only a little left, and I can repay Jayden.

By then, we'll be even.