Chapter 5

Her cheeks burned with humiliation. She felt like a child who had been caught trying to sneak out of the house. She clutched the edge of her desk, her knuckles turning white.

"I don' t know what you' re talking about," she said, her voice barely a whisper.

Liam took another step closer, until he was standing right in front of her desk. He leaned forward, placing his hands on the polished wood. He was so close she could smell the faint, clean scent of his cologne.

"You do," he said, his voice dropping even lower, more intense. "You think I' m a monster. You think I disapprove of everything you do. So instead of rising to the challenge, instead of proving me wrong, you' re taking the easy way out. You' re running off to a department where they' ll praise you for picking the right color for a brochure."

His words were harsh, a direct assault on her character. But underneath the criticism, there was a strange, frustrating logic. He wasn' t just being mean; he was challenging her.

"You' re talented," he continued, his gaze unwavering. "My grandfather sees it. Even I can see it. But talent is useless without backbone. And right now, you' re showing me you have none."

That was the moment her relationship with him shifted. He wasn' t just a cold, dismissive boss anymore. He was someone who saw her, truly saw her, and was holding up a mirror to her own insecurities. It was infuriating and, in a strange way, motivating. She rescinded her transfer request the next day. She stayed. And while he never became warm or friendly, the dynamic changed. He started giving her more responsibility, challenging her with complex tasks, and offering curt, single-word affirmations when she succeeded. It was the most difficult and rewarding period of her professional life.

A vibration from her phone on the bedside table brought her back to the present. An unknown number was flashing on the screen. She hesitated, then answered.

"Sarah." The voice was sickly sweet, but laced with venom. It was Emily.

"Emily," Sarah said, her own voice flat.

"I saw your little post on social media," Emily cooed. "The one about a poor abandoned new mother. Very dramatic. You always were an attention-seeker."

Sarah felt a surge of nausea. She hadn' t posted anything. She didn't even have the energy to look at her phone.

"What are you talking about?"

"Oh, don' t play dumb," Emily laughed. "Trying to make me and Mark look bad. Well, it won' t work. Everyone knows what' s going on."

"And what is that, Emily?"

"You and your boss, Liam," Emily spat, the sweetness gone, replaced by pure spite. "Don' t think I didn' t see the way you looked at him at the company picnics. The way you stayed late at the office. You' re having an affair with him, aren' t you? You probably trapped Mark into marriage just to have a baby and then run off with your rich boss. Is he the real father? I' ll tell you what, if you don' t take down that post and stop this pathetic act, I will tell the whole world about you and Liam. I' ll ruin you. And I' ll ruin him."

The accusation was so wild, so baseless, that Sarah was speechless. Emily' s jealousy had festered into a full-blown delusion.

"Mark is with me now," Emily continued, her voice filled with triumphant malice. "Where he' s always belonged. We were high school sweethearts, you know. You were just a temporary detour. He never loved you. He told me so himself."

The line went dead. Sarah stared at the phone, the words echoing in her mind. High school sweethearts. He never loved you. It wasn't just a recent affair. It was a long, calculated deception. Her entire marriage had been a lie.