CHAPTER 3

**Eva's POV**

"Are you serious?" I asked Ethan in shock. He nodded, lips curled in a smile.

"Yeah. How much do you want me to pay you? But you must abide by my rules and work as my secretary only," he said, and I gulped hard.

"I haven't been a secretary before. I just graduated with a degree in software engineering and I want to be a software developer. I applied at Almond Tech and they offered me a job starting Monday," I said. His brows furrowed.

"I will pay you 2 million. If you accept, you can come to work in my company by Monday. Fail to show up, and you lose — I am in need of a new secretary," Ethan said. I gulped hard and accepted his card.

"Fine. How about the medicine you want me to take?" I asked as he almost forgot the contraceptive pill in his hands.

"Oh, here it is," Ethan said, giving me the bottle. I took two pills and swallowed them with the bottle of water he gave me.

"Don't forget. By Monday. If you fail to show up, I will get a replacement for you. I will be expecting you. What's your name?" Ethan asked, pausing as he turned to walk away.

Lowering my head and avoiding his eyes, I replied, "Eva Brooks."

"Alright, Eva. I'm looking forward to meeting you again. Take your things and leave. The hotel staff will be here to clean the room," Ethan said, then turned and walked out.

My eyes fell on the red blood stain on the white bedsheet.

Looking at the blue card in my hand, I shook my head, reached for my handbag, put the card inside, and took out my phone. I saw four missed calls from my mother.

"Hello, Mom," I answered, and she yelled at me.

"Eva, what did you do to provoke Jacob? He has cancelled his partnership with your father and called off your wedding engagement. How can you cheat on him at a time like this, when he is planning to marry you? What came over you?" Mom yelled, and I felt guilty.

"Mom, I am sorry. Layla set me up," I tried to explain, but Mom cut me off.

"Shut up. Layla didn't set you up. You went to the man and cheated on Jacob. How can you do this to us? We disown you as our daughter. Don't bring your shameful self home to us again," Mom yelled, and the call ended before I could explain.

Shaking my head, I stood in the hotel room and sighed.

Gripping my phone tightly, I tried to call Jacob one last time to explain that it was all a mistake and that I would never cheat on him. However, the phone rang and he ended it. When I tried to contact him again, I heard, "Sorry, the number you are trying to call doesn't exist."

"What?" My brows furrowed when I realized Jacob had blocked me.

Did five years of our relationship mean nothing to him? I knew that Jacob had always wanted to have sex with me, but I had stopped him and told him we should wait until marriage. Now, I had cheated.

Wiping my sobs away, I put on my black bra and panties before reaching for my green dress and wearing it.

After that, I put on my black shoes and adjusted my long hair in a bun, taking a final glance at the room to ensure I hadn't forgotten anything.

I walked out of the hotel room while the hotel staff went in to clean it. Then I made my way to the elevator and rode down to the last floor.

When I walked out, I felt a pair of eyes on me, but no one stopped me. The impressive luxury hotel was filled with different calibers of people coming and going.

Making my way out of the hotel building, I exited the premises too, recalling that I wouldn't have come here if not for Layla's insistence.

Hailing a taxi, I went home even though my mother had warned me not to return. I knew that I had no one to go to.

Jacob had broken up with me and I couldn't go to his place. Not only that, my relatives would be furious with me—because of Jacob; my father's small loan company could sour further. Now that Jacob had withdrawn his support and demanded that I repay him for all the money he had spent on me, I knew that none of my family members would want to help me.

When I arrived home and paid the cab, I walked nervously up to the gate of the bungalow where my parents lived. My father owned this house; he bought it after Jacob and I started dating.

Reaching the gate, I knocked and the security man, Tom, pulled it open.

"Miss Eva, you are not allowed into the house," Tom said, and my brows furrowed.

"Why? This is my father's house. I want to see him and explain," I begged Tom, but he shook his head.

"Your mother said that if I let you in, I will lose my job. I don't want to lose my job, madam," he said, went back into the house, and locked the gate.

"Wait, Tom," I knocked again, but he wouldn't answer.

Sighing, I paced by the gate, thinking of what to do; I couldn't believe my family would abandon me at a time like this.

Was this how people fall from grace to grass?

I tried calling my mother, but the same number she used to call me wasn't connecting.

Calling my older brother, Cruz, he demanded, "Eva, how could you cheat on Jacob at a time like this when we were looking forward to your marriage?"

"Cruz, I was set up. I didn't mean to cheat on Jacob. Believe me, Layla set me up," I said, and my older brother sighed.

"I warned you to stay away from Layla. That girl is a snitch and you didn't listen to me. She is not from our place and her parents are richer than ours," my brother fumed, and I sobbed.

"I am sorry. I should have listened to you," I said, and he sighed.

"It's fine. Where are you now? Mom and Dad are angry, and they don't want to see you. Also, Jacob is demanding compensation and saying that you never let him touch you, so you didn't do anything for him in the five years you both dated," Cruz said, sighing in frustration.

"Can I come over to your place?" I asked, knowing he had just married.

"Sure, but you know Maddison and you don't get along. Don't worry, I will talk to her," Cruz said, and I sighed heavily, feeling relief that I could rely on him.

Layla's betrayal still stung and I couldn't call any of my female friends.

I went back to the road, hailed a cab, and went to my older brother's house.