Betrayed by My Love, Recruited by His Enemy

symphony of vibrant life, were a muted, gray cacophony. The scent of street food, exhaust fumes, and damp pavement barely regist

erful yellow walls seemed to mock me. The photos of us on the mantelpiece-smiling on a beach, laughing at a Chris

key. He looked up as I entered, and the mask of the concerned boyfriend was gone. In its

trip to the grocery store and not the public execution of my career. He swirled

feeling strangely disconnected from my body. I held up m

f panic, a tightening in his jaw. Then, it was gone, replaced by a slow, cond

h as silk. "That. I was wonder

ould have been. The last, fragile thread of hope tha

voice trembling. "Mark, you destr

so naive. There was never an 'us.' There was you, your tal

face. My hands, clenched at my sides, started to shake. The air smelled

ut. "Access to what?

horne was looking for a new flagship design for their next product line. We also knew we couldn'

sion. It was almost touching. I just needed your portfolio to get Thorne's attention, and then I needed you to fail

cheated on. I was a pawn. A disposable tool in a high-stakes game of corporate espi

for a rival firm?" I asked,

lling it to Vance Corp. Leo's father. They've been trying to break Thorne's m

ether, and gloated about his betrayal. The man I loved didn't exist. He had never exis

aid, the words

alked over to the desk in the corner and picked up a stack of papers. He

g a different set of documents, "is on a few new credit cards and a rather substantial busin

I'd never seen. He hadn't just destroyed my career; he had buried me in fraudulent

aid, finishing his whiskey. "I'd say it was nice knowi

t without a backward glance. The click of the lo

t and onto the street, with nothing but my handbag and the clothes on my back. The city lights of Veridia blurred into

an a house, glided to a silent stop beside me.

at Julia

ight. He looked even more formidable outside the confines of his boardroom. His stormy eyes were

air. It wasn't a question. It was a summons. "I beli

ver my disheveled state, takin

aving no room for refusal. "We have a mutual

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