That was in the past. I used to ask about her whereabouts more often because I was worried about her safety. But after she scolded me for it, I barely bothered her anymore.

"You've got it wrong. I'm here to hang out with a friend."

Caitlin didn't believe me. She sneered and said, "In all the years we've been together, I've never seen you have any friends. So what if I canceled on you once? I'll just make it up to you on our next anniversary. It's pathetic that you've resorted to this petty little stalking act."

She paused for a moment, then pulled a bouquet of flowers out of the car and shoved them into my hands. Then, she said dismissively, "Here, a gift for you. I was planning to bring it home anyway. But since you're already here, I might as well give it to you now."

It turned out she didn't even remember that today was our anniversary.

When I saw Bryan's name on the greeting card attached to the flowers, I found it even more laughable.

What gift? It was nothing more than a present meant for Bryan, hastily shoved at me as a cover-up after she got caught red-handed.

"No, thanks. Let's break up."

"What? You want to break up?"

Caitlin raised an eyebrow and pointed at Bryan's luxury car.

"Zane, the reason I'm out wining and dining clients is because I can't stand seeing you squeeze onto the subway every day. I'm trying to make enough money to buy you a luxury car and give you some status. And now you want to break up with me? Have you no shame?"

I glanced at the car. It was, unmistakably, one of the vehicles sitting in my own garage.

Years ago, when I was being pushed out at work and was on the verge of resigning, Caitlin drank an entire table of people under the table to help me save my job.

She ended up with a perforated stomach because of it. And as luck would have it, we had just been scammed out of half a year's rent by a shady agent. We were flat broke and couldn't even afford her medical bills.

Too embarrassed to ask my parents for money, I asked Wendell to help me rent out my luxury car. That was the only way we could scrape together enough to cover the medical bills.

Since the car was already out being used, and I didn't want her commuting six hours a day to and from work, I just kept subsidizing our household this way.

Never did I imagine that the next time I saw the car, it would have become Bryan's tool for showing off.

Thinking I was drawn in by the car, Caitlin folded her arms and let out a cold scoff.

"Now you understand why I've been sucking up to Bryan, don't you? If it weren't for our future, do you think I'd willingly grovel and curry favor with others? It's hard for me too."

Was that so?

But whenever she was with Bryan, the happiness in her eyes seemed all too real.

As for sucking up to Bryan for the power behind him…

If Bryan were really that rich, then how come she was the one footing the bill every single time? And wasn't she the one paying for every piece of clothing on his back?

There was no way she couldn't see through that. But I couldn't make someone face the truth when they were dead set on denying it.

Thus, I couldn't be bothered to say anything more.

Just as I was about to leave, Francis spotted Bryan's location tag on Instagram and rushed over by cab.

"Ms. Wiggins, I finally found you! Something terrible has happened—Mr. Eaton wants to breach the contract."

"What? Why didn't you call and tell me sooner?"

Caitlin tore into Francis with a barrage of scolding before turning to grab my hand, yanking me hurriedly toward the car.

"There's an issue with your client. You need to come back to the office with me and sort it out right now."

I sneered and shook off her hand. "Oh no, he's not my client. Besides, isn't Mr. Eaton a relative of Bryan? Why don't you just get him to fix it?"

Caitlin stomped her foot in frustration. "I can let it slide when you throw a fit about quitting and breaking up, but Mr. Eaton is key to my promotion to CEO. So, stop messing around!"

"I'm not messing around. I meant it when I said I want to break up with you, and the same goes for my resignation. From now on, don't bother me with anything involving the company or yourself," I replied flatly.

Caitlin's expression darkened. She planted her hands on her hips and seethed in silence.

"Are you going to the office or not?"

I shook my head. "No."

Caitlin instantly flew into a rage, raising her hand as if to claw at me.

Bryan quickly grabbed her hand and tried to calm her down. "Caitlin, Zane clearly isn't taking this seriously, so just forget it. I'll go instead."

Only then did Caitlin stop, letting out a cold huff. "You should learn from Bryan. Look how mature he is."

It was ridiculous, really. Bryan had stolen my project, so if something went wrong, it was his responsibility to begin with. And yet, Caitlin could actually praise him for just doing his job?

Caitlin's face hardened as she pointed a finger at me. "Zane, I'll give you one last chance—"

I cut her off. "Stop. No matter how many times you say it, I'm not going to help clean up your messes anymore. Since Bryan is so capable, what do you have to worry about if you just leave it to him?"

Because I kept pushing back, Caitlin's face turned red with rage.

"I gave you a chance. Don't you regret this. Not only am I approving your resignation, but I'll also make sure you're blacklisted across the entire industry. Let's see who else would want you besides me!"

She dragged a bewildered Francis into Bryan's car and sped off.

I shook my head, completely unconcerned. Then, I tossed the flowers into the trash and turned to walk into the bar.

I was in the middle of having a great time when Uncle Donovan called to ask me about the blacklisting.

After I briefly explained the situation, he let out a cold snort and said, "Caitlin has gotten way too cocky for her own good. She's barely made a name for herself and she's already pulling stunts like this? Don't worry. I'll help you get even."

I hung up in a daze and kept partying with Wendell. When I finally got home, I was out like a light.

The next day, Michelle Koch from HR called to ask me to come back to the company to go through the offboarding process.

After grabbing breakfast, I took a cab to the company. I was heading toward Michelle's office when I ran right into Caitlin, who clearly hadn't been home all night.

She still hadn't gotten over her anger from the day before.

With her arms folded, she said mockingly, "And here I thought you'd hold out and play tough for a few more days. Instead, you came crawling back to beg after just one night. Too bad for you, you're too late. Bryan already resolved everything, so I don't need you anymore."

So that was why she had approved my resignation. It turned out she simply no longer had any use for me.

Bryan, thinking I was intimidated, put on a show of fake sympathy.

"Caitlin, don't be so ruthless. After all, Zane has been with the company for a long time. At least let him keep a job so he can make ends meet."

Caitlin covered her mouth and giggled.

"Since Bryan asked me to go easy on you, I might be willing to let you stick around as a security guard—if you apologize for how you behaved yesterday. But don't think I'll forgive you that easily. As for us getting back together, that depends on how you behave."

I shook my head. "No, thanks. I'm just here to complete the handover."

Caitlin raised an eyebrow and scoffed. "I see you're as stubborn as ever."

Behind her, I saw Uncle Donovan and the company chairman, Irvin Fischer, chatting and laughing as they walked toward us.

Caitlin spotted them too and said smugly, "See? I told you Mr. Eaton is Bryan's relative, and you didn't believe me. He already put in a word to have Mr. Fischer appoint me as CEO. Zane, even without you, I can still climb higher. But without me, you're nothing."

She shot me a sidelong glance and led Bryan over to greet them.

Uncle Donovan approached with a smile and said to Mr. Fischer, "It just so happens my nephew is here today too. Come to think of it, I've never formally introduced the two of you."

Caitlin's face lit up with delight as she pushed Bryan forward. "Bryan is outstanding at his job. He must have inherited your family's excellent genes."

Uncle Donovan let out a cold snort at that, then waved me over.

"Come here."

Caitlin smirked at me, clearly enjoying this. "Mr. Eaton, rest assured that I've already fired Zane for crossing Bryan. If you're still not satisfied, we can—"

Mr. Fischer couldn't take it anymore and exploded in fury. "You fool! Zane is Donovan's nephew! You abused your authority by not only pushing him out as the project lead but also firing him! Caitlin, is this how you run a company? You're fired! Pack your things and get out right now!"