Chapter 3

I dragged my suitcase to some cheap motel and checked in. Seven years of genuine feeling, gone like a dream. I was drained. I fell asleep not long after.

The next morning, I went to work as usual.

My department head called me into his office, looking unsettled.

“The contract we had finalized—the client backed out this morning. Specifically requested you to handle the follow-up.”

He paused, his tone cautious. “Did you… offend someone?”

I took the contract, and I understood instantly.

There was no one else it could be. He couldn’t let it go after I dumped him—he was using my job to force me to come crawling back.