Chapter 4

I patted Noah's back to soothe him. My ice-cold gaze fell onto Jacob's face.

Being stared down like that made a flicker of panic flash through the depths of his eyes.

Noticing his off expression, Sasha immediately stepped forward and yelled, "You ungrateful bitch! Jacob already agreed to take you and the kid back! Don't push it! Even if you hold a grudge, using a scheme like this to get back at him is way out of line!"

Those words made my mind go blank for a second. I felt as though I had been taken right back to five years ago.

Back then, no matter what went wrong, Sasha could always twist a couple of words to pin the entire blame on me.

In the beginning, Jacob would at least scold her for show, but eventually, he just went along with her, blasting me without bothering to know right from wrong.

Just like now, as he glared at me, his tone was filled with utter disgust. "Jealous bitch."

After a few seconds of silence, he whipped out a check and flicked it right in front of my face. "For the sake of our seven years together, I won't hold this against you.

"Take this 20 grand and go buy yourself some decent clothes. Keep the kid with you for now. I'll arrange for a nanny to come over in a few days. Don't worry. Ever since we landed the Cain Group project, this kind of money is nothing to me."

His high-and-mighty attitude made a wave of nausea roll through my stomach.

It seemed like he'd been doing pretty well over the past five years.

I reached out, shoved the check away, and snatched my coat back. A faint smile tugged at my lips. "Save it, Mr. Lloyd. I don't accept handouts from strangers."

Ignoring Jacob's darkening face, I scooped up Noah, turned around, and walked straight toward the elevators.

He lunged forward and grabbed me, demanding with an ashen face, "I'm giving you money, and you're turning it down? What the hell is your problem?"

I yanked my hand free from his grip. My tone was dead flat as I replied, "I made things crystal clear five years ago. It's best if we don't cross paths again. I don't want anyone getting the wrong idea."

The second I said that, Oliver's easily jealous face flashed through my mind, making my fingertips curl up slightly.

Jacob, however, glanced at Sasha beside him. A look of complete understanding washed over his face as if he had just caught me playing hard to get.

"There's a business gala in three days. I was actually planning on taking you to broaden your horizons. Consider it a lifeline from me. Make sure you go buy a proper dress. Don't show up looking like a homeless beggar and embarrass me—"

Before he could even finish, I cut him off. "No thanks. I'm good."

Getting rejected in public twice in a row completely shattered Jacob's composure.

"You really don't know when to take a hint, do you? I only mentioned bringing you along because I felt sorry for you dragging a kid around. Did you actually take it seriously?

"I was planning to take Sasha to this gala anyway. You honestly think you're worthy of competing with her?"

Sasha wrapped her arms around his elbow meekly. "Don't be mad, Jacob. She just hasn't processed things yet. I've already prepared everything for the gala. I won't embarrass you."

Holding Noah, I strode straight into the elevator and dropped a faint comment right before the doors slid shut. "I hope you'll still be this confident at the gala three days from now."

The elevator doors slowly closed, blocking out all the prying eyes outside.

I looked down to comfort Noah in my arms, slowly pressing down the disgust in my throat.

Jacob and I were together for seven years, and he treated me like a stand-in for every single one of them.

In the end, a single casual phrase—"Sasha's back"—effortlessly tossed everything away.

I didn't make a scene or cling to him. I just left Jindale without ever looking back.

Later, I met Oliver abroad. We got married half a year after meeting, and a year later, we had Noah. Life became peaceful and grounded.

This trip back was originally just to pay respects to Oliver's ancestors, and I had arrived first with Noah.

Never in a million years did I think I would run into this crowd here.

…

Three days later, at the gala, I showed up in the same casual loungewear set as usual.

After walking in, I went straight to the front row and took a seat in the open spot.

It didn't take long for Sasha to spot me. She piped up in a petty tone, "Look, Jacob, isn't that Celine? How on earth did she sneak her way into the front row? She's probably trying to latch onto some big shot tonight."

Jacob followed her glance over.