Chapter 1

Anise Buccaneer felt as if there was something lodged in her throat while tears began to well up in her eyes. “Don’t worry, Mom. I got it. I’ll come home to be with you after I’m done with the handover.”

After hanging up, she began to pack up her belongings in her office.

Over the years in Renault Corporation, she had so many personal belongings piled up. When she was halfway through packing, her phone rang again.

Clarice Reid had sent her a location along with a short text, [Come.]

There was no mistaking it. It was the address of Arthur Renault’s villa.

Twenty minutes later, Anise stood in front of the villa.

She pushed the ajar front door open and stepped inside to see Clarice in the center of the living room, holding a piece of bracelet.

Anise felt her heart skip a beat. She was sure she had taken all of her belongings with her when she moved out of this villa. How did she miss that?

Before she could even respond, Clarice slapped her across the face.

“These last few days, I've been trying to find out the identity of the woman who got with Arthur when I was abroad. I never thought it would be you, someone who I thought was my best friend!

“How did you pull this off? Look at yourself, you’re not even much of a looker, and you have the figure of a hag! How did you seduce him?”

Anise shivered while she felt a wave of shame wash over her.

“Clarice, things just happened because of a coincidence. For the record, our… intimate arrangement only happened during the time you were broken up with him. We never crossed any line before that.”

Smack!

Clarice slapped her again, “Even if we’re broken up, Arthur will always belong to me! Who do you think you are?”

Clarice slapped her so much harder this time that a trace of blood trickled from her lips. When a third slap was about to be delivered, Anise finally fought back and seized Clarice’s wrist.

“Anise, what are you doing?!”

A terrific shout emerged from behind. Before Anise could turn around, a tremendous force threw her off her feet.

She stumbled for balance before crashing to the ground and smashing her knees against the marble floor. The pain was so terrible that it made her wince.

It was Arthur. He stood guarding Clarice protectively behind him.

The handsome suit he wore made him look more dashing than ever, but what was more striking was the cold look in his eyes, which sent a chill down Anise’s spine.

Clarice immediately burst out crying, “Arthur, I found out about you and Anise! I can’t believe my best friend got together with my ex-boyfriend... I was so angry and tried to confront her, and that was when she hit me.”

“I didn't! It was—”

“Enough.” Arthur sharply cut Anise off, but the look in his eyes softened instantly when he turned back to Clarice. His voice was laced with a hint of panic, “Clarice, what happened between Anise and me was just an accident. I did it because I was longing so much for you at the time. Didn’t I pick you up as soon as you came back? That’s evidence that you are the one I love.”

Anise felt as if there was an invisible hand clutching tightly around her heart.

This entire time, she barely qualified as a replacement. She was only a rebound.

Clarice looked up at Arthur through her tear-filled eyes and asked, “Are you sure you don't love her?”

“Yes.” Arthur's answer was firm and without the slightest bit of hesitation.

“I want you to prove it to me.” Clarice pointed at Anise, “Get the bodyguards to have her stripped naked.”

Anise felt her blood freeze in an instant. She cast a look at Arthur and noticed his brows locked into a tight frown, but he would not say a word.

“I knew it! You don't have the heart to do it to her!” Clarice cried out. “Fine! If that’s what you want, I’ll leave!”

As soon as she said so, Arthur grabbed her to stop her before barking an order at his bodyguards.

“Get to it!”

Two bodyguards clad in black emerged out of nowhere. Anise desperately tried to squirm away from them, but she was no match for their strength.

“No…no…”

The sound of torn fabric echoing across the villa sounded especially jarring. Soon, the buttons of her shirt came loose, and her dress was ripped apart along with the strap of her underwear…

After the last bit of her clothing was torn off, Arthur finally spoke up, “That’s enough.

“Get out. Don’t you ever come back here again.”

Anise did what she could to cover her nakedness while staggering out of the door.

She could still hear Arthur's gentle, doting voice behind her, “Don’t be angry, Clarice…”

It was pouring rain outside. Pellets of rain beat against her bare skin like hail, but it was nothing compared to the chill she felt inside.

She clutched the shred of whatever fabric remained of her clothes tightly to her chest while she braced the storm. Throughout her journey, the freezing rainwater mingled with her tears and trickled into her mouth, tasting agonizingly bitter.

Memories from the past flooded into her mind.

Back in university, Arthur was the crush of nearly every girl on campus. He was tall, handsome, and whenever he played basketball, there would be a concert of girls screaming for him.

Meanwhile, Clarice was undisputedly the fairest girl on campus. She was fair-skinned, beautiful, and came from a wealthy family.

On the other hand, Anise hardly had a presence. Not only was she plain-looking, but she was also from an ordinary family.

That was, until a fateful lunch break one day when Clarice suddenly sat opposite her with a tray of food and offered with a sweet smile, “It’s no fun eating by yourself. From now on, you’re going to eat with us.”

From then on, she became Clarice's "best friend."

Everyone praised Clarice for her gracious gesture of befriending a so-called “ugly duckling” like Anise.

Anise was the only one who knew Clarice only wanted her around to make herself look good.

That was, until Arthur came into the picture.

At first, Anise mistakenly assumed Arthur had his eyes on her. It all happened one evening when she was cornered in an alley by a few thugs, when Arthur, who happened to pass by, valiantly stepped in to help her.

Arthur’s brave silhouette, outlined by the sun, became the definitive picture of her youth.

It did not take long before she realized Arthur only approached her because he was interested in Clarice.

The easiest way to get to a girl was through her best friend.

Regardless, she helped him in his pursuit.

Even now, she remembered how she would put in a good word for Arthur to Clarice. She would wisely excuse herself whenever they were spending time together so the duo could have some time for themselves.

And yet, there were also the countless times she would scribble down the name of the infamous Arthur Renault in her diary entries.

After that, she was as good as an NPC. She watched helplessly as Arthur won Clarice's heart and spoiled her rotten.

The entire time, she thought she would witness their romance budding into marriage, and that they were going to have children and spend the rest of their lives together.

But when graduation came around, Clarice suddenly broke up with Arthur and insisted on going abroad.

Arthur chased her to the airport and braced the pouring rain for an entire day. For all his effort, Clarice barely even looked back at him.

During that period, Anise was the one who stuck by his side.

When he lost himself at the bottom of the bottle, she was the one cleaning up the scattered bottles on the floor for him.

When he was at the height of his depression, she was the one who kept things orderly for him.

Eventually, she even became his secretary. She dedicated herself to sorting out every detail of his personal and work life. She was good at it.

Things took a turn when Arthur was drugged during a business dinner. She tried to call a doctor for him, but he was lost in his senses. In a fit of passion, he pinned her down onto the couch in the lounge.

After they were done, he barely even glanced at her. Still, she remembered the burning heat of his body and how his breath turned rapid.

Similar incidents were repeated several times. Arthur was drunk whenever it happened.

He never kissed her on the lips and hardly even looked at her for the matter. All he did was take what he wanted.

Their ambiguous relationship lasted for three whole years.

About a month ago, when Clarice finally returned, Arthur went straight back to her without hesitation.

That was the moment Anise knew it was time for her to withdraw from their relationship.

With that, she secretly resigned from her position. She even agreed on a blind date her mother set up for her back in her hometown.

To Anise’s surprise, that was not enough for Clarice as the woman would not let her get away.

When she returned home, still dripping water on the floor, Anise’s phone suddenly rang.

She reached for her phone. It was a notification of Arthur transferring a significant amount of money to her, supplied with a curt remark, [Compensation.]

Shortly after that, she received a text from him that read, [I know you like me.]

Her breath was caught in her throat the moment she read the text.

He knew this entire time.

All the hastily withdrawn glances, the arranged accidental encounters, the subtle display of concern… She thought she hid them well enough.

[But it’s never going to happen.

[Clarice just happened to be in a bad mood today.

[Don't hold it against her.

[Don’t be jealous of her and don’t try to hurt her.]

Each message he sent felt like a dagger sent straight to her heart.

She found herself laughing ironically while tears streamed down her face.

She remembered the years they spent together.

The times when she had to hold back tears when he got drunk and embraced her while wailing Clarice’s name.

On his birthday, she secretly snuck in an anonymous present for him in the piles of presents he received.

The way he would cover her eyes whenever they did it.

This whole time, he knew.

Her fingers hovered over the screen for a long time before she finally replied.

“Don’t worry, Mr. Renault. You have my word that I will never have feelings for you again.”