Chapter 3I Paid My Debt: How I Escaped the Billionaire Who Broke Me

In the crowded lobby of the corporate headquarters, I was shoved and fell to the floor. The cardboard box tumbled, scattering my belongings everywhere.

There were too many people swarming the entrance. Someone's sharp stiletto heel stepped hard onto the back of my hand, sending a piercing, agonizing pain shooting up my arm.

The swarm of journalists and bystanders were all surging in one direction. Fighting through the pain, I looked up just in time to see Chloe appear, arm-in-arm with a man.

She loved the color red. Her sleek, crimson slip dress was eye-catching, but the man beside her was even more radiant. Arthur hated crowds, and he looked visibly annoyed, turning his head slightly away from the flashes, yet he still meticulously shielded Chloe in his arms.

The reporters blocked their path, thrusting microphones forward, firing questions one after another:

"Chloe! The hashtag #ProposalOfTheCentury has been trending number one on X for a whole week! As the leading lady, do you have anything to say?"

Chloe smiled radiantly. "I'm just incredibly grateful. During the darkest two years of his life, the person by his side... was always me."

Arthur Sterling. The golden boy of New York. He had sailed through life, standing at the absolute peak of society. The only time he ever fell was during the two years he was paralyzed after a horrific car crash. When the walls crumbled, everyone he knew abandoned him, leaving him to taste the bitter cruelty of the world.

Anyone had the right to say those words—except Chloe. Back then, she had immediately booked a flight out of the country. I was the only one left by his side.

It was such a blatant lie. But Arthur looked genuinely happy hearing it. He didn't correct her. In fact, he indulged the lie completely.

Arthur looked down, gazing at Chloe with profound tenderness.

It was as if a raging wildfire had finally met a calming river and settled.

Camera shutters clicked frantically. The paparazzi eagerly captured the deep, affectionate gaze exchanged between the two.

Suddenly, Arthur turned his head. His gaze cut straight through the crowd and locked directly onto my eyes. His look was incredibly cold.

I looked back at him quietly, offering a faint, shallow smile. My heart felt incredibly light.

He instinctively furrowed his brows in displeasure.

Actually, I was also incredibly grateful. During the darkest two years of his life, I was the one who stayed by his side.

The life debt I owed him had been repaid in full.