Chapter 3The Prenup

Chloe’s tears finally spilled over.

“Preston, I’m so sorry.”

“This is my fault. I never should have accepted your gifts.”

“It makes perfect sense that Ms. Davis is taking it out on me.”

“She was with you for so long, it’s only natural she’s feeling bitter and inadequate.”

Every word she spoke was feather-light, but carefully calculated to remind every executive in the room of one thing:

I was yesterday’s news. I was the bitter, obsolete baggage weighing Preston down.

I took two steps forward and slapped her hard across the face.

Chloe’s head whipped to the side. A collective gasp echoed around the massive boardroom.

Preston grabbed my shoulders, shoving me back.

“MAYA!”

I shook out my stinging hand.

“That slap was for wearing something that didn't belong to you.”

Chloe covered her cheek, sobbing and trembling violently.

“I swear, I had no idea it was yours…”

I cut her off.

“You didn’t know?”

“When you drafted a prenup specifically excluding me, you didn’t know who I was?”

“When you moved into the penthouse right next to my future marital home, you didn’t know who I was?”

“When you wore my dead grandmother’s jewelry and gloated about a 'fresh start', you didn’t know who I was?!”

Chloe’s lips trembled. She didn't have an answer.

Preston’s eyes were pitch black with rage.

“Apologize to her.”

I looked up at him.

“You want me to apologize to her?”

“Yes,” he said, his voice dropping to a lethal chill.

“She is my employee.”

“You walked into my boardroom and assaulted her in front of my executive team.”

“You will apologize.”

It was the very first time he had openly, undeniably chosen her over me.

No excuses. No deflecting.

I nodded slowly.

“Okay.”

A flicker of smug victory crossed Chloe’s tear-stained face.

In the next second, I picked up the Letter of Intent for the share buyout from the table.

Right in front of Preston’s face, I ripped it cleanly in half.

The torn pieces fluttered onto the mahogany table.

“You just lost your right of first refusal.”

“I’m calling Apex Capital right now.”

Preston’s pupils dilated in sheer terror.

“MAYA!”

I turned and walked toward the glass doors.

Before I walked out, I paused and looked over my shoulder.

“Oh, and Preston.”

“You better make sure Chloe keeps that bracelet safe.”

“Because I’m taking it back. With interest.”

After I left the building, I drove straight to the old pawn shop downtown.

The ownership had changed hands, but the records were still there.

I handed the clerk my faded, eight-year-old receipt.

“I pawned a gold bangle here eight years ago. Can you track where it went?”

The clerk typed on his computer for a long time. Finally, he looked up.

“Looks like it was bought back at a massive premium three years ago.”

My fingers tightened on the glass counter.

“Three years ago?”

The clerk nodded.

“The buyer’s last name was Vance.”

I stood perfectly still in the dusty shop, but my lungs felt like they were collapsing.

Three years ago, he bought it back.

I distinctly remembered my birthday three years ago. I was staring at my empty wrist, smiling sadly. “I wonder where my grandmother’s bracelet ended up.”

Preston was sitting right across from me at the dinner table. He didn't even look up from his steak. “If it’s gone, it’s gone. Don’t obsess over old junk.”

It wasn't gone.

He had it. He just chose to give it to someone else.

As I walked out of the shop, my phone buzzed. A text from Olivia, my lawyer.

[Maya, the audit team confirmed it.]

[The down payment for Chloe Sterling’s penthouse was wired directly from Preston’s personal offshore account.]

[The wire transfer was initiated exactly three days before he proposed to you.]

I stared at the screen.

I stood on the sidewalk for a long time before a hollow, bitter laugh escaped my chest.

Three days before he proposed.

He was picking out my engagement ring with one hand.

And buying a multi-million dollar penthouse for another woman with the other.

Right on cue, my phone pinged again.

A text from Chloe. Just a single photo.

In the picture, she was standing in front of the floor-to-ceiling windows of her penthouse. The gold bangle on her wrist caught the afternoon sunlight, gleaming brightly.

The caption was short:

[Ms. Davis, from this angle, you can see straight into your new condo. Preston said it would make it easier to 'keep an eye on things'.]

I stared at the message, and a chilling realization finally settled in.

She hadn't accidentally let it slip that she had the bracelet.

She wore it today specifically because she knew I was coming.