Chapter 1

“You shameless homewrecker! How dare you seduce my husband!”

A sharp slap rang out, followed by the woman’s shrill, furious scream, shattering the silence that had settled over the entire floor.

Claire Jones stood frozen, her mind blank. It was only when a fiery pain spread across her left cheek that her senses slowly returned.

The woman who slapped her was nearly forty and wore the uniform of Zenith Global Language Solutions.

The color had drained from her carefully made-up face. Her eyes were bloodshot, her expression twisted with rage, and fury and humiliation radiated from her entire body.

“I heard there was a woman at our headquarters trying to seduce my husband. So it was you, you shameless slut!”

The younger woman who accompanied her glanced at Claire’s employee badge and spoke with undisguised contempt.

“My brother-in-law is Victor Grant, the vice president of Zenith Global Language Solutions. His mistress is a woman named Claire Jones. Don’t think you can talk your way out of this!”

Lately, Linda York noticed that her husband had been acting increasingly strange.

Everything he did pointed to an affair, so she had someone investigate. That was how she discovered he was involved with a woman named Claire Jones at the company headquarters.

The surrounding employees immediately erupted. Whispers and speculation rose one after another.

“Oh my God, she’s really Claire Jones?”

“She always seemed so distant and refined. I can’t believe she’s a homewrecker. She’s really good at pretending.”

“That can’t be right. Mr. Shaw has been pursuing her for half a year. He sends flowers to the office every day, and she still hasn’t agreed to date him.”

…

Linda had completely lost control of her emotions.

The moment she saw Claire’s delicate, beautiful face, all her pent-up fury found a target.

She wanted nothing more than to tear the shameless woman’s face apart. Before Claire could react, Linda lunged forward, grabbed a fistful of her hair, and yanked it viciously.

“You dared to seduce my husband, you shameless slut!”

A searing, tearing pain shot across Claire’s scalp.

Her vision swam with darkness, and her unsteady body staggered helplessly.

She had no strength to fight back.

Linda raised her other hand high, and it was about to come crashing down against Claire’s face.

Gasps rose from the crowd.

Everyone was stunned by the scene and had no time to react or intervene.

Just as Linda’s palm was about to strike Claire’s cheek, a sharp voice rang out from the crowd.

“Stop!”

Gordon Bennett, another vice president, rushed forward and seized Linda’s raised wrist, stopping the slap by force.

“You’re in an office, not out on the street! What do you think you’re doing?”

Gordon was clearly flustered, and he spoke faster than usual. “Stop this at once! Eustace Sterling from Dyer Group is here to inspect our company!”

Only then did everyone notice the man standing at the edge of the crowd.

He carried an intimidating presence, with a tall, lean build and striking features that made him stand out from everyone around him.

Claire took a long moment to recover before instinctively following everyone’s gaze.

Her eyes met the man’s.

The noisy floor fell silent in an instant.

His face looked far more mature than she remembered, and even colder. His features were sharp and clean-cut, while his lips were pressed into a tense line.

The face that appeared in her dreams countless times slowly merged with the man standing before her.

Claire’s mind went blank.

A tingling numbness ran through her limbs, leaving her rigid on the spot.

How could it be him…?

And of all moments, he had to see her with her clothes in disarray while a furious wife accused her of being a homewrecker.

Eustace merely swept Claire a cold, indifferent glance before speaking without expression. “So, this is the level of professionalism at your company.”

The moment Gordon heard this, his scalp prickled.

Who was Eustace Sterling?

He was the heir to Westhaven’s Sterling family.

He had personally pulled the Dyer Group back from the brink of collapse and restored it to even greater prosperity than before.

In just a few short years, the group’s business had spread across the globe under his leadership.

Zenith Global Language Solutions had only worked with one of Dyer Group’s subsidiaries in the past.

The subsidiary had been pleased with their cooperation and said that the group’s headquarters would be sending someone to inspect the company that day.

No one had expected that person to be Eustace!

The group’s top executive had arrived, only to witness such an explosive scene.

Gordon wanted nothing more than to slap Linda and Claire across the face, but with such an important figure present, he could only swallow his anger.

He turned to Claire and said in a deep voice, “Claire…”

“I didn’t seduce your husband. I don’t know your husband, and I’m not the homewrecker you’re looking for.”

Claire raised her eyes slightly and swept her cool gaze over Linda, whose face remained flushed with anger. Her voice was calm, without the slightest trace of panic.

“You’re not the homewrecker?”

Linda’s eyes were red.

Claire’s calm composure made her laugh in fury.

“Someone saw the two of you kissing in public, and you still dare to deny it? Have you no shame?”

Linda was furious.

At that moment, Linda no longer cared about Dyer Group or Eustace. Her anger had completely overwhelmed her, and she was ready to let everything fall apart.

Everyone’s eyes focused on Claire once again. Their gazes held scrutiny, contempt, curiosity, and every other emotion imaginable.

Yet the slender woman kept her back perfectly straight.

Her features remained cool and composed. Even when she was humiliated in front of everyone, her face showed no trace of disarray. Only her eyes held an endless chill.

“I already told you. It wasn’t me. If you don’t believe me, you can bring your husband here and let us confront each other face-to-face.”

Claire’s tone remained calm and firm.

“Besides, your actions just now amounted to assault. I’ve already called the police.”

At that moment, the younger woman grabbed Linda’s still-raised hand, her face tense with anxiety.

“Linda, this isn’t the Claire Jones you’re looking for! It’s the other Claire Jones—the one who just came over from the branch office!”

Her voice was not loud, but she spoke so urgently that every person present heard her clearly.

Only then did everyone around them realize that the company really did have two employees named Claire Jones.

The woman standing before them was exceptionally beautiful, so whenever anyone mentioned Claire Jones, she was the first person who came to mind.

Linda was stunned when she heard the news.

After making a scene for so long, Linda realized that she had targeted the wrong person. Yet something about Claire still rubbed her the wrong way.

However, once she learned the truth, Linda quickly regained her composure.

If she ruined the partnership with Dyer Group, she would have to bear the consequences.

With that thought, she immediately swallowed her pride and said lightly to Claire, “I’m sorry. I mistook you for someone else.”

Now that everything had been cleared up, Gordon also let out a sigh of relief.

Claire was one of his most trusted employees.

If she had really done something like that, it would have been difficult for him to deal with.

Since Linda apologized, Gordon had no time to care about Claire’s reaction.

He immediately dispersed the crowd. “Why are you all still standing here? Get back to work!”

Gordon turned to Claire and added, “Go clean yourself up.”

He immediately faced Eustace and ushered him into the reception room, bending over backward to show his respect. “Mr. Sterling, this way, please.”

Eustace said nothing and continued to wear a grim expression.

However, when he passed Claire, his footsteps slowed slightly. He cast her a discreet glance and clearly saw the shocking red mark on her pale cheek.

The moment Eustace stopped, Claire instinctively held her breath.

Time seemed to stretch out, and she could clearly feel her heart pounding rapidly and a slight cold sweat gathering in her palms.

But he only paused for a few seconds.

In the end, he did not even spare her a direct glance.

He followed Gordon’s lead and walked away without the slightest warmth, as though she were a complete stranger.

Only then did Claire release a breath of relief. Yet behind that relief came a dense, overwhelming ache.

“Claire, you used me and then dumped me. You really are ruthless.”

The man’s cold, heartless voice echoed in her ears once again. Those had been the last words he ever said to her.