At that thought, I let out a long, bitter sigh. Maybe it was better to know now than to keep living in a lie.

Once my head cleared, I picked up my phone and dialed my assistant.

“Cancel everything: the estate I asked you to buy, the wedding dress, the diamond-studded Bentley, and every single thing. Just cancel it all.”

“And book the private jet. I need to leave the country for a while.”

4

Half a year later, I finally returned home. I had clawed my way out of the black hole of betrayal, and my parents, seeing that I’d finally seen through Blair’s true colors, breathed a long-awaited sigh of relief. They believed the ordeal had tempered me and made me wiser. Without a second thought, they handed me the reins to the family business and told me to take some time to enjoy life abroad.

Not long after I landed, my assistant whisked me straight to a social gala. I adjusted my cufflinks, straightened my suit, and walked in.

I hadn’t even taken two full steps when Blair suddenly appeared out of nowhere and grabbed me by the arm, yanking me aside.