Tania strode over to me, her tall figure cutting an elegant silhouette, her beauty even more striking than in her photos.

She looked me up and down with clear distaste, her eyes lingering on my face for a moment.

"This is our engagement party. What are you doing here, making a scene?"

I shrugged off the security guard's grip and straightened up, fixing my suit collar with an icy laugh.

"Can't you tell what's going on?

"Tania, since when is it polite to have your security rough up guests at the door? Is this how you treat people? Your assistant just–"

She cut me off with a furrowed brow. "Stop it! We're already late for the ceremony, and here you are, picking fights at the door. My security had to step in, or were we supposed to let you barge in and upset everyone?

"You're wasting my precious time.

"You're an orphan, worthless, and stupid. I can't fathom why my mom insists on this engagement."

The onlooking guests glanced my way, their whispers rustling like leaves in the wind.

Their lofty stares made me out to be the jester.

I felt the sting of wasted time, too. I had put in so much effort and even took off work. I could have been updating my latest experiment's data instead.

"Funny. I feel like my time's been wasted as well. If neither of us can stand the other, let's just end this engagement."

Tania paused, her eyes narrowing. "Is this a threat? You think stirring up trouble and threatening to break off our engagement will get you your way? You think you can manipulate me like that?"

As I watched Tania's face, I was suddenly tongue-tied, feeling like I was getting nowhere fast.

Elias stood by her side, the picture of respect, but his voice betrayed a touch of closeness and hurt feelings. "Ms. Jones, if he's making this much trouble at his own engagement party, what's going to happen when he's actually married?

"And he got all red-faced and ready to throw a punch at me just because he saw I'm your right-hand man and thought I was upstaging him.

"I would've been in for it if those security guards hadn't stepped in to protect me."

Tania gave me a look of sheer disbelief. "Elias has been my assistant for two years, sorting out who knows how many issues. Do you really think he's like you, a loser who only got ahead because of who they know? What's there for you to be jealous of?"

I forced a smile, but my eyes were not playing along. "I'm really curious why you would label me a loser. And you're taking your assistant's word over mine?

"Your assistant–"

She cut me off again. "Should I trust my assistant or a lunatic like you?"

Elias covered up a smirk with his hand, blinked back tears, and said, "Ms. Jones, my heart goes out to you.

"You're the one calling the shots in this town, yet you're still under your mom's thumb, getting hitched to a lunatic."

Tania had only been in charge of Jones Group for a couple of years, and her mother, Natalia, could not stop butting in. All that interference had built up a serious head of steam. When Elias finished his spiel, one could feel the tension around Tania thicken.

"Simon, you owe me a serious apology and some form of restitution," she insisted.

"Otherwise, not even my mom's influence will be able to help you out of this one."

It all became clear to me that Elias was less of a right-hand man and more of a conniving flatterer.

He had a talent for saying just the right thing to worm his way into Tania's good graces.

His whispers in Tania's ear certainly contributed to her view of me as a 'loser.'

Tania loved being adored, and playing into that was the easiest way to get on her good side.

I caught her eye and just felt drained.

"What do you want from me?" I asked.

She gave an icy, mocking laugh. "I want you to call my mom and tell her you're the one who wanted to break off the engagement."

I nodded without hesitation.

"Fine."

I pulled out my phone and scrolled through my contacts as she watched, a flicker of surprise crossing her face.

"Be sure about this. Once you make that call, you can kiss any chance of Jones Group's fortune goodbye."

I ignored her and pressed Natalia's number.

"And that's not all. I want him to apologize to me publicly!" Elias piped up, his voice dripping with self-pity and pretense.

"Ms. Jones, I've been loyal to you for years, all thanks to my hard work. I can't take being pushed around and insulted by him like I was earlier.

"If he doesn't say sorry, I'll never let it go."

I could not help but laugh, though I was fuming inside.

The security guards were right there, clearly showing who the real bully was.

"Elias, you're quick to play the victim and twist the truth. Do you really think we're all that gullible?

"You had the guards on me, and you were ready to throw a punch. And now you're claiming I'm the bully?"

Tania positioned herself squarely in front of Elias.

"You're the one who started this with Mr. Holmes. He was just defending himself. If you have even a shred of decency, you'll apologize to Mr. Holmes.

"If not, I'll make sure you do."

Her eyes swept the room, and the security guards, clued in, fixed me with threatening glares.

"Simon's got plenty of dignity. It's you and your sidekick who seem to have lost all sense of shame," came a crisp voice from behind Tania.

Cecilia Baker, the head honcho of Baker Group, approached with an effortless grace, her signature teardrop mole beneath her piercing eyes catching the light.

Baker Group was the Jones Group's arch-nemesis, their business interests often clashing.

Cecilia had taken the reins of her family's empire early and had been giving Tania a run for her money.

However, with my latest tech giving Jones Group an edge, it looked like they were starting to outpace Baker Group.

Cecilia showing up at the engagement party was a curveball for Tania.

"Ms. Baker, you sure know how to enjoy your downtime. Crashing your competitor's party, and now butting into my personal drama?" Tania snapped.

I watched Cecilia's protective stance in front of me, equally taken aback.

We had talked shop before, and things had been going smoothly.

However, I never expected that midway through, she would hint at using a 'seduction scheme' on me, enough to scare me into running back to my lab that very night.

As for that patent, it was an easy decision: Melissa and Natalia had been close friends for years, so I handed it over to Jones Group without a second thought.

Never did I imagine Cecilia would step up to bat for me.

"Simon? How's the engagement party shaping up? Still happy with the setup?" Natalia's soothing voice floated out of the phone.

"I'm actually calling to talk about calling off the engagement. Ms. Jones's assistant wouldn't let me through to the venue and had the security guys get rough with me.

"Ms. Jones herself didn't even try to sort things out–just brushed it off and demanded I apologize to Mr. Holmes.

"I guess I'm not cut out for the high standards of the Jones family. I'm staying out."

The line went dead for a beat.

"What?!

"That troublemaker! Just wait till I get my hands on her..." Natalia's grumbling trailed off, replaced by the roar of an engine.

"Mrs. Jones, don't fall for that schemer's lies. She's pulled the wool over your eyes!"

Elias lunged for my phone, looking like a kicked puppy.

"I was just trying to welcome Mr. York at the door, and he wouldn't come in, just stirred up a scene.

"After all my years of dedication to Jones Group, is an apology too much to ask for?"

Natalia's voice turned icy.

"Mr. Holmes, huh.

"You're done here. Go clear out your desk with HR."

Elias's expression stiffened.

"Why are you messing with my daughter's wedding? You think I'd fall for those lies?"

To my surprise, Natalia took my side. Elias's face gave a little quiver, his fingers tightening around his phone.

He blinked hard, fighting back tears as he turned to face Tania.

"Mrs. Jones, if you don't care about your own daughter, can't I be the one to care?

"Are you really okay with using Ms. Jones as a bargaining chip, just to cozy up to some professor? You're setting her up with an orphan who's got no connections. Do you see her as nothing more than a pawn in your game?"

The line went dead silent.

It took a while before Natalia let out a weary sigh, her voice suddenly sounding older.

"Tania, is that what you think, too?"

"Do you believe... Is it my fault? Is that why you've done all this, refusing to get engaged to Simon?"

Tania shot me a look, then quickly looked away.

"If Simon is willing to sincerely apologize to my assistant, I'm still open to the engagement," she said.

A sharp scratch echoed as nails dragged across the phone case. I glanced over and saw Elias's face twist up.

"So... Simon... what's your take?"

There was an expectant pause on the line.

What were they waiting for? An apology from me to Elias?

I had dealt with Natalia on the patent deal before, and I had pegged her as someone fair.

I trusted the values she was supposed to have instilled, so when my mentor, Melissa, said Tania was to be my fiancee, I came with an open heart.

As it turned out, a businessperson was always just that.

They stepped over the line to get what they wanted, even if it meant bending the truth.

I had to wonder: did she really think Tania was the only one for me?

The thought struck me as funny.

I reached out and gave a light tap on the shoulder of the person in front of me.

Cecilia shivered ever so slightly.

She was seething with anger over Natalia's words, ready to lash out with a biting comeback, but I cut her off.

Her anger melted into curiosity as she turned to me, tilting her head up a notch, blinking, and giving me her full attention.

"Cecilia, I've decided to look for a new fiancee."

"Are you throwing your hat in the ring?"