The bells of the Starlight Charity Gala echoed through the glittering night.

Suppressing the frantic flutter in my chest, I texted my secret lover, Edwin, the Vice President of the Cameron Group.

"When are we going to tell everyone, Edwin? When can we finally go public?"

As I held my breath, waiting for his reply, my brother, Connor—the CEO of the group—suddenly raised his hand.

He gestured toward the center of the stage, his voice edged with surprise.

"Hey, Audrey, isn't that Edwin? He's holding some girl's hand... What's going on?"

My gaze shot to where Connor was pointing.

In that instant, it felt as if all the blood in my body had turned to ice.

There was Edwin, down on one knee, proposing tenderly to a girl I recognized immediately.

It was Anaya, the intern Edwin had personally recruited just a week ago.

The one he'd supposedly been "mentoring."

My stare must have burned a hole through him, because Edwin suddenly looked up, his eyes locking with mine.

The moment he saw me, his pupils constricted.

A few seconds later, he slowly rose to his feet, taking the girl's hand.

"Connor, Audrey. Allow me to make a formal introduction."

"This is Anaya, my fiancée."

When his eyes met mine, they immediately darted away.

He shot a quick, nervous glance at my pale face before turning to Anaya beside him.

"This is Audrey, CEO Connor's sister. As far as I'm concerned, she's like a little sister."

A year. A whole year we’d shared a bed, and this is what I was to him? A "little sister."

Fine. Let’s see how you feel when your "little sister" marries the CEO of a rival company. You'll wish me well then, won't you, Edwin?

————————

1

Anaya turned her head, her eyes glinting with pure triumph.

"Audrey, we'll be seeing a lot more of each other at the office from now on."

She leaned into Edwin, her hands gripping his arm possessively.

"After all, an executive-in-the-making like Edwin is incredibly busy. The company demands all of his attention."

"He barely has the energy to guide a newcomer like me."

I stared at the dazzling diamond engagement ring on her finger.

My eyes burned, and a cold, toxic jealousy wrapped around my heart like a vine.

Edwin was busy, all right.

Busy lying to me that he was stuck in a tedious board meeting.

Busy holding another girl's hand and basking in the congratulations of New York's elite.

Busy kissing another woman under the glaring spotlight while I stared at my phone, waiting for a text that would never come.

The tips of Edwin's ears flushed an unnatural shade of red.

He looked down at Anaya, his voice softening with a tenderness I had never heard from him.

"Don't say that. No matter how busy I am, I'd never neglect you."

"Whenever you've needed me, haven't I always shown up right away?"

His words were like swallowing broken glass, a bitter bile burning its way up my throat.

I remembered a week ago, when a raging fever left me too weak to even get out of bed.

I texted him from my empty apartment, pleading for him to come.

He only replied that he was swamped with an urgent project.

He told me to just order some takeout, and then his phone went dead silent.

It turned out he wasn't out of time.

His time had just never belonged to me.

Just then, Connor gave Edwin a hearty slap on the shoulder.

His voice boomed with genuine enthusiasm.

"This is fantastic, Edwin! A Vice President and a fiancée all in one night. I'm truly happy for you."

He then turned to me, a teasing glint in his eyes.

"You know, for a while there, I almost thought you and Audrey might have something going on."

"After all, you're my right-hand man, and you two always seemed so close."

Connor let out a hearty laugh, taking a celebratory gulp of champagne.

"But seeing your fiancée today, I see how wrong I was!"

Cheers and applause erupted around us.

The sound only served to drain the last bit of color from my face.

Edwin spoke up almost immediately, his tone flawlessly smooth.

"How could that be, Connor? I've only ever thought of Audrey as a sister."

"She's a great person. I just looked out for her a bit more at the company, that's all."

"I never dreamed you'd get the wrong impression."

I stared hard at Edwin's achingly familiar face.

A year-long secret affair.

Three hundred and sixty-five nights of stolen passion.

And with one casual, dismissive sentence, he’d erased it all.

A sharp pang lanced through my chest, the sound of something inside me cracking.

But I took a deep, steadying breath and forced a smile onto my lips.

I stepped forward, linking my arm through Connor's.

"Don't worry, Connor. I'll bring my boyfriend to meet you on Thanksgiving."

Connor patted the back of my hand, his smile bright and encouraging.

"That's my girl! I can't wait to finally meet the guy you've been hiding from me."

"I'll have to vet him properly. I can't have just anyone dating my little sister."

Edwin didn't seem to be listening, his gaze fixed on Anaya, completely absorbed.

A piercing ache stabbed at my heart, but it was quickly followed by a spark of reckless revenge.

I curled my lips into a sharp smile and shot him a pointed look.

"Coincidentally, my boyfriend is also a CEO."

"His company is in Chicago."

The air around us went still.

The smile on Edwin's face instantly stiffened.

He glared at me, his lips forming the silent words: Don't you dare.

Just like he used to do when we would steal kisses in his penthouse.

Whenever the housekeeping staff walked by, he would shove me into the walk-in closet in a panic.

Then, he would peek through the door, his eyes pleading for me not to be angry as he stole a soft, apologetic kiss on my forehead.

But now, the panic in his eyes was pure fear—fear that I would ruin his perfect new life with Anaya.

Fear that I would expose him for the two-timing hypocrite he was.

I looked into those familiar, pleading eyes.

An invisible vise clamped around my heart, sending a shooting pain all the way to my fingertips.

My lips twitched. I looked away, pointedly ignoring him.

"But he's very low-key. I'll bring him to the next gala, and you'll all get to meet him."

Edwin visibly relaxed.

Suddenly, Connor's phone buzzed.

He answered it, and after a few seconds, his expression turned serious.

He hung up and gave us a tight wave.

"There's an issue with the European branch. I have to get back to the office for an emergency meeting."

"Looks like I'm pulling an all-nighter."

He turned to me, his eyes full of brotherly concern.

"Audrey, it's late. It's not safe for you to go home alone."

"Have Edwin drive you."

Anaya immediately tightened her grip on Edwin's arm, her smile sickeningly sweet.

"Don't worry, Connor. Edwin and I will take Audrey home. We'll make sure she gets there safely."

A wave of nausea churned in my stomach, and I threw up a hand to stop them.

"No, it's fine. I've already called a car. It's waiting just at the corner."

I turned to leave, but Edwin grabbed my wrist.

"Connor entrusted you to me. It's my responsibility to see you home safely."

Before I could protest, he was ushering me into the back seat of his Mercedes.

As soon as the car door closed, Edwin leaned over to fasten the seatbelt for Anaya in the passenger seat, murmuring for her to hold on tight.

Anaya wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed his cheek, her voice a soft, coy purr.

"I know, darling. Drive safely."

I sat in the back, my eyes scanning the car's interior.

That passenger seat used to be my spot.

The center console used to hold the custom cufflinks I'd given him for his birthday.

The sun visor used to hold our first photo together, a silly polaroid from a street fair.

Even the air freshener was my favorite citrus scent.

But now, the cufflinks were gone.

The photo had been replaced by a glossy selfie of him and Anaya from the gala.

The air was thick with the cloying rose fragrance Anaya adored.

Even the music was no longer the jazz I loved, but some trendy pop album that matched Anaya's age.

It was clear he had meticulously scrubbed every trace of me from this space, from his life.

I turned my head away, blinking back the hot tears that burned my eyes.

When the car stopped in front of my SoHo apartment building, Edwin smiled at Anaya.

"Wait for me in the car, honey. I'll be right down."

I ignored them and marched toward the building entrance.

Edwin followed me in silence.

When we reached my door, he finally spoke.

His tone was filled with an infuriating, self-righteous helplessness.