"And yet, after working yourself to the bone for a decade at the Swansons, all you got was just this little bit of alimony. It's so not fair. I feel so sorry for you, Tammy," Melanie said.

It hadn't just been ten years of my life.

In my past life, Swanson Group once dominated the list of the top-performing companies in the country under my leadership. Yet, in my older years, I couldn't even afford to buy myself a box of painkillers.

Ultimately, I was even kicked out of the family by Kayla's children and died from an illness next to a garbage dump on a cold winter night.

The business empire I spent my entire life building ended up benefiting Kayla and her children.

At that thought, I downed the alcohol in my glass at one go, letting the liquid burn down my throat and ignite a fire in my chest.

I was going to show them.

Without me, they would not be able to continue living the life they were used to.

…

The next morning, news of my company registration spread like wildfire, and the industry was instantly abuzz.

Some investors sensed a golden opportunity and rushed in overnight with elaborate proposals, eager to invest in my company. However, many more just watched in amusement, observing the Swanson family's attitude toward the news.

I didn't know who started it, but the paparazzi's news was filled with articles calling me a fool, belittling me, and calling me overly smug and confident.

I just looked at the notifications on my phone and swiped them all away.

I just didn't expect to receive a call from Justin.

"Stop making a fool of yourself, Tamara Baldwin! Running a company is not child's play. Your bit of money won't last that long.

"I haven't removed your position from Swanson Group yet. You can come back instead."

I rejected him coldly and said, "There's no need for you to worry about me, Mr. Swanson."

There were a few seconds of silence on the phone. He was somewhat displeased, but he still tried being patient with me and said, "Can't you be more understanding of me, Tamara? I just met my true love.

"Also, isn't it better for you to stay here in Swanson Group than it is for you to start some stupid company of your own? You should follow up on that M&A project in Southon…"

I hung up on him right away.

Just as I thought, he just didn't want to lose access to using my abilities after all.

That project in Southon was a tough nut to crack, and it was something I'd spent nearly half a year working on before they finally awarded it to me. The Swansons had no way of getting it without me.

Even though I was supposed to be the CEO of Swanson Group, I only received a monthly salary of 3,000 dollars. That was because Harvey told me that we were family, and we shouldn't have to be that petty and calculating when it came to money matters.

I naively used to think that they were simply testing me. However, now that I thought about it, I was just a highly capable yet incredibly cheap labor force they managed to hire.

The more I thought of it, the angrier I got.

I made up my mind.

Regarding all those projects I once secured for the Swansons in my past life, it didn't matter if my new company wouldn't be able to handle them all. If it couldn't, I would direct them straight to Swanson Group's arch-rivals instead.

…

Justin was so mad at being hung up on that he angrily flung his phone to the ground.

He'd been so used to my docile obedience. I used to be at his beck and call. Thus, he felt embarrassed and humiliated to have been hung up on this time.

At that moment, his secretary, Nigel Browning, awkwardly knocked on his door with a pile of documents that Justin couldn't make heads or tails of for signing.

The past few days of hard work, coupled with his years of neglecting the company affairs, had truly left Justin feeling overwhelmed.

Kayla walked in as well and took his hand. She looked at him in concern.

"Don't overwork yourself, Justin. Let me join the company and help you share your burden with you."

Justin was a little hesitant about it. "You're still young and unfamiliar with the company's operations. Why don't you start from the bottom and learn from each department first?"

Kayla's eyes turned red at once. She demanded, "If Tamara could be the CEO last time, why can't I?"

Justin instinctively wanted to say that I was the top student from Alberton College in finance, but when he was met with Kayla's teary eyes, his sense of reason vanished at once.

His heart softened, and he nodded in agreement.

Kayla smiled through her tears and hugged him tightly. She said tenderly, "I'm just so worried about you. Look at you. You've already lost so much weight."

Meanwhile, my company was already on track within half a month of its inception.

During this time, Kayla kept sending her people over to cause trouble for me. However, she used petty, underhanded tactics, all of which I easily and effortlessly defused.

After all, I had been working in Cornton with plenty of accumulated connections over the years I'd been here, and she was just a greenhorn who was no match for me at all.

The veteran employees in Swanson Group, whom I personally trained back then, had thoughts of switching over when they heard that I'd gone solo. Ever since Kayla took over, she'd been constantly making things hard for them on purpose. She'd been making their lives absolutely miserable.

However, I wasn't in a rush to hire them at once.

I just told them to secretly cause some minor trouble at their old workplace before they left, as a way to show their "loyalty" and "pledge their allegiance" to me.

Kayla didn't think much about losing a few people. In fact, she was secretly happy that she'd managed to get rid of a number of staff who used to be my "minions".

However, she had no idea that the departure of some of these core people was akin to draining the company's lifeline.

Projects failed one after another, and Swanson Group's stock price began falling.

On the contrary, my company was very strong and well-equipped with talent, and my team displayed astonishing vigilance as they secured several multi-million dollar deals in quick succession.

I stood before the floor-to-ceiling windows of the conference room and looked at my jubilant team celebrating below, announcing loudly, "I'm treating everyone to dinner tonight at Bayside Chowder! Let's all celebrate with some food and wine!"

"Yes! Thank you, Ms. Baldwin!"

I brought the team out from the office building amidst their roaring cheers.

At the door, I noticed that a familiar black Rolls-Royce Phantom was parked quietly by the roadside.

The door opened, and Justin got out of the car haughtily. He waved at me.

I didn't spare him a glance and continued walking forward with my staff.

He sent Nigel to block my way.

Justin came soon after. His face was filled with undisguised displeasure and frustration.

"What do you mean by this, Tamara Baldwin? Did you not see me? You really think you're something now, don't you?"

I lost my patience with him and levelled a faraway look at him. "What do you want, Mr. Swanson?"

He was taken aback by my attitude. However, he still went straight to the point and ordered, "Shut down your company and come back to Swanson Group."

I got so amused by his self-righteousness that I burst into angry laughter. Yet, he thought that my laughter meant that I was wavering. He softened his tone and said, "I've been really tired lately, Tamara. When will you stop being stubborn about things and come back?"

He then paused, as if making a huge concession, and said, "If you really don't like seeing Kayla at home, I'll just arrange to have her sent elsewhere in the meantime."

I stared at the narcissistic, self-righteous man before me and wondered how I ever managed to fall in love with him in the past.

"I'm not being stubborn," I said, interrupting him. "We're already divorced. Kindly refrain from interfering in my life again, Mr. Swanson."

He lost all his patience with me and suddenly raised his voice. "I'm already making a huge compromise here! What else do you want from me!

"The company needs you now! Must you really act up and be difficult at a time like this?"

I suddenly realized that Justin was a very unreasonable man. Did he think that everyone in his life had to revolve around him all the time?

"If you have a problem, Mr. Swanson, I believe that you should just bring it up with your wife, Ms. Kayla Holt. I'm just an outsider. I have no obligations whatsoever to clean up after your mess."

Realization dawned on him, and his eyes lit up with understanding.

"You're making a fuss because of your title, aren't you?

"Fine. Just wait till Kayla gives birth to my child, and I'll reconsider. You just have to promise me that you will never make it public. I don't want Kayla to get upset."

I stared at him and tried to make myself clear, enunciating each word. I said, "I will only say this one more time. Get out of my life. I never want to see you ever again.

"I am never getting back together with you or remarrying you. Not for the rest of my life."

Justin then flew into a rage.

"Don't you get haughty and arrogant with me, Tamara Baldwin! Don't you forget that this is Cornton, and I know more than just a few ways to destroy a meager company like yours! It would be as easy as pie!"

Just then, a bright yet slightly lazy male voice chimed in.

"Oh? You've got quite the nerve, Mr. Swanson. How dare you openly harass my fiancee and also openly declare that you're going to ruin her company?"

Justin turned around. His expression nearly faltered when he saw who it was.