Chapter 1 Betrayed

"Cindy, please-"

His words were cut off by the loud smack that echoed through the room as my hand landed on his cheek. I gasped for air, my chest heaving. I tried to control my overflowing emotions but the betrayal was just too much.

Even if I didn't want to, my tears fell.

"You filthy man..." I muttered through gritted teeth, a smirk with no hint of humor made its way to my lips. "We're done."

I turned to leave without sparing my stepsister even a single glance, who was still on the bed and naked body was wrapped by a blanket. All I knew was she was satisfied. I was sure she was laughing at me for seeing me cry because she had successfully stolen my man. That bitch was enjoying it all.

"Cindy! Cindy, wait! Hear me out!"

I ignored his curses as he searched for his pants, while my heels were clacking against the floor as I hurriedly walked out of his unit. Hear him out? For what? What I had witnessed was already enough to break it up with him!

He spent the night with Lindsay, probably thinking that I wouldn't be home this early from my out-of-town trip. They both agreed to do it and they both enjoyed it! I wasn't stupid to stick to him after that. If he had done it once, he was capable of doing it again in the future!

And she wasn't just some random girl he found on the street. She was my stepsister! One of the people I hated the most and he knew that! How dare he?

The image of Rey was the last thing I saw before the elevator finally closed. My tears kept on falling, my chest ached that it's making it hard for me to breathe. He threw it away. Our three long years relationship was thrown away for that disgusting woman!

"That bastard..." I rested my head against the wall and breathed deeply. "How could he do this to me?"

Our relationship wasn't perfect. We had arguments but we always made sure the day wouldn't pass without resolving it! I knew I wasn't a perfect girlfriend either, but I was doing my best! We were happy! We were content! Or maybe that was just me?

Maybe he really wasn't content with what we had?

I ran out of the elevator as soon as I reached the lobby. With blurry vision, I went directly to the parking lot and approached my car. Rey had just exited the building when I drove away. My first thought was to go home to my own penthouse, but for sure he would follow me there.

So instead, I did a U-turn and drove my way to my best friend's place. There wasn't a second my tears stopped from falling. It was annoying. Why did I have to cry this much for a guy like him?

Damn I truly loved that bastard!

"Cindy, what the-" Freya Ariel Collins, my one and only friend, muttered curses as soon as she opened her unit's door and saw my swollen eyes. She immediately pulled me in and held both of my shoulders.

"Tell me, Cindy."

"I broke up with Rey."

"What?"

I looked away and escaped from her grasp. That's when I found a man on the sofa, someone I had never met. Freya loved playing around. Unlike me who had only had my first boyfriend since I was eighteen, Freya had already had countless boyfriends and exes since she was seventeen.

She didn't have a boyfriend anymore, but the 'no strings attached' kind of relationship. That's the very reason why she was so carefree and had no love life problems.

"Go home," Freya's voice from behind me snapped me out of my trance, talking to the stranger. The guy didn't say anything and just gathered his clothes scattered around the living room, displaying his well-built body clad only in his boxers.

That's when I realized that Freya was only wearing an oversized shirt and her underwear.

Without any word, he walked out of the room after dressing up, but not without kissing Freya on the lips. The scene only put salt to my wounded heart. Grimacing, I ignored them and walked to the sofa.

"So what happened?" Freya asked after locking the door. She jumped on the space next to me before grabbing the pack of potato chips on the center table.

"I caught him doing Lindsay."

She choked. "W-What... What the hell!"

I sniffled, resting my head on the backrest and stared at the ceiling. "I didn't know what to do. I was so shocked and..."

The memory of it made another tear to fall from the corner of my eyes. Rey had once given me a spare key to his condo. Yes, that's how deeply we trusted each other. But now...

Where did we go wrong?

"It just hurts so much, Freya," I covered my face with both my hands. She quickly wrapped her arms around me. "I only left for my job! We had a nice talk the night before my flight, and he said he understands! When I heard that I'd be able to go home earlier than expected, I planned to surprise him!"

But I was the one who was surprised. I just witnessed how they pleasured each other with their bodies! I heard their moans and... It's disgusting!

"Shh! It's okay, Cindy. It's natural to feel pain because you loved him, but you'll be fine soon. You'll move on, while that bastard will forever regret his mistake," Freya stood up and ran to her kitchen. She returned not long after with a glass of water. "You lost nothing, babe, but he did. He doesn't deserve you."

I sipped a bit. The cold liquid that traveled to my throat calmed me down a bit, and Freya's words helped a lot. I knew she wasn't the type who would give advice or would say something for comfort, but now she did and tried her best to make me feel better and I appreciated it a lot.

"Thank you," I gave her a forced smile. Freya was the only one I had.

She was my best friend, my sister, and was sometimes acting as my mother, too. She was always there for me. She was always so protective of me. Freya was the only one who I considered as family.

"I can't believe Lindsay would go that far..." I mumbled after a moment of silence.

She surely did something while I was away. Did she blackmail him? But he didn't seem blackmailed to me. He was enjoying it as much as she did. He was seduced. He couldn't resist the temptation, and so he gave in despite the fact that he was in a relationship.

"Of all people, why did it have to be Lindsay..." I despised that woman the most.

"No, Cindy," Freya said with a stern voice. "Why did he even have to do it with another woman at all? Even if it's not your slut stepsister, what he did is still wrong. He had a girlfriend for Pete's sake!"

Right. I would still be broken even if it's a random woman. "But I felt more betrayed that it's Lindsay. Rey knew how much I hated her, and he knew the reason!"

Lindsay was one of my two stepsisters. I hated them both along with my stepmother. Ever since they came into the picture, my already ruined life went even more downhill.

Freya let out a sigh. "I think you should rest first, Cindy. You just had your flight. You're tired physically, mentally, and emotionally." She grabbed my wrist and pulled me towards her guest room. "Take a proper rest and refresh your mind. We're going to talk again once you wake up."

I only let her pull me, until she suddenly stopped when we're already in front of the room. She looked at me over her shoulder. "Wait. Have you already eaten dinner?"

Blinking, I shook my head. My plan was to surprise Rey and ask him for a dinner date. But that plan was ruined.

"My gosh!" Freya shook her head and started dragging me to her kitchen. She glanced at me when my phone rang. I fumbled looking for my phone in my sling bag. We stopped at the kitchen entrance when I found it and saw the caller.

"I... I need to go." A lump formed in my throat.

"Who is it?" Freya asked in impatience, worry was evident in her blue eyes. "Who is it, Cindy?"

"M-My father..."

Her eyes widened. Biting my lip, I answered the call with a trembling hand and just waited for his voice from the other line. And it's as though a cold bucket of water splashed on me upon hearing him speak.

He sounded so cold.

"I want you home right now, Cindy Riella." And the call ended.

Why? Why did he call so suddenly...

I could only think of one reason.

"That must be very important," Freya spoke softly, though I could see her gritting her teeth. "Your father never contacted you unless it has something to do with your family business."

I smiled bitterly as I looked down at my phone. "Yeah..."

He surely wanted to talk about the conference meeting I had attended last week. He wanted to know right away if I had managed to close the deal with the infamous billionaire Dion Theron Montero.