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THREE
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2026-03-11 17:45:59THALIA
The meeting dragged on for nearly forty minutes.
Charts flashed across the screen as Dr. Harlan talked about revised timelines for Project Elara. Clara stood beside him, explaining sections of the presentation as if she had always been part of the team.
I stayed quiet.
My pen tapped against my notebook once.
Then I forced my hand to stop.
No reaction.
No weakness.
Inside, though, my thoughts were spinning.
How long had Brandon planned this? Because Dr. Harlan told me earlier, Brandon was the one who approved Clara as the supervisor.
Dr. Harlan finally checked his watch.
“Let’s take a fifteen-minute break,” he said. “We’ll reconvene after that to finalize the rollout strategy.”
Chairs scraped back as people stood.
I gathered my tablet slowly.
No rushing.
No running away.
If anyone expected me to break down, they were going to be disappointed.
I stepped out into the hallway.
“Thalia?”
The voice stopped me instantly.
I turned.
Clara stood a few steps away, holding two coffee cups.
Her eyes widened as if she had just seen an old friend.
“Oh my god,” she said, smiling brightly. “I’m so happy to see you again.”
I stared at her.
“You’re back.”
She walked closer, still smiling.
“I heard you were leading Project Elara,” she said. “I was hoping we’d run into each other.”
“Hoping?” I repeated.
“Of course.” She laughed softly. “It’s been years.”
I didn’t move.
“You disappeared without a word,” I said.
Clara tilted her head slightly.
“Life happens. And you can’t expect me to stick around after you married my man.”
Her gaze slid over me.
“You look good, Thalia.”
I didn’t return the compliment.
“What do you want?”
She lifted one of the coffee cups toward me.
“Peace offering?”
I glanced down at it.
“Black,” she added. “Two sugars. Your favorite.”
“I switched to oat milk years ago.”
Her smile didn’t fade.
“Some habits are hard to forget.”
She stepped closer and held the cup out again.
“Come on. It’s just coffee.”
I hesitated.
Then I reached out.
Her heel suddenly twisted.
“Oh!”
The cup tipped.
Hot liquid splashed across my hand.
Pain exploded instantly.
“Damn it!”
I jerked back as the coffee soaked into my sleeve, burning my skin.
Clara gasped.
“Oh no! I’m so sorry!”
Her tone sounded apologetic.
But her eyes didn’t.
She leaned closer.
“You should really watch where you put your hands, Thalia,” she murmured.
I stared at her.
“What did you just say?”
Her smile turned cold.
“Some things aren’t meant for you to hold onto.”
My stomach tightened.
“Excuse me?”
“Brandon,” she whispered.
Then she added softly,
“This project. This life.”
I clenched my jaw.
“You think you can just walk back in here and take everything?”
She laughed quietly.
“Oh please.”
Her gaze dropped to my hand.
“That burn looks painful.”
I said nothing.
Clara leaned closer again.
“You’ve always had a talent for pretending things belong to you.”
“Stop talking.”
“But it’s true,” she said lightly. “You begged Brandon’s father to save your father’s failing empire.”
My fists tightened.
“And the price was you.”
“Clara—”
“Years of marriage,” she went on. “And you still think Brandon will love you?”
Her smile widened.
“That’s almost adorable.”
“Enough.”
Her voice turned softer.
Mocking.
“Do you still think you’re the noble daughter of the Wentworth family?”
I froze.
She watched my face carefully.
“Oh right,” she continued. “Your father’s empire collapsed, and he died, didn’t he? Who would protect you now? Your mother? Is she still lying in that hospital bed? Years now. Comatose. Completely useless.”
Something inside me snapped.
My hand moved before I could stop it.
The slap echoed through the hallway.
Clara’s head snapped sideways.
A red mark appeared instantly across her cheek.
The conference room door opened, and Brandon stepped out.
Dr. Harlan and two executives followed behind him.
Clara pressed a hand to her face, tears suddenly filling her eyes.
“Brandon…”
Her voice trembled.
“She hit me.”
His gaze moved straight to me.
Not my burned hand.
Not the coffee dripping from my sleeve.
Me.
“What the hell, Thalia?”
I lifted my hand slightly.
“She spilled coffee on me. On purpose.”
“It was an accident!” Clara said quickly. “I already apologized!”
Brandon walked toward us.
His jaw was tight.
“You don’t put your hands on someone in my company,” he said coldly.
I let out a quiet laugh.
“Your company.”
“Yes,” he said flatly. “My company.”
He looked at me with open irritation.
“You’re suspended. Effective immediately.”
The hallway went silent.
“Go home,” he continued. “Cool off. We’ll discuss this later.”
“Discuss what?” I asked.
“Your behavior.”
Clara touched his arm gently.
“Brandon… please. I don’t want trouble.”
His expression softened immediately.
“You’re not the one causing trouble.”
I didn’t say another word.
I turned and walked away.
Each step sent a sharp pulse of pain through my burned hand.
Behind me, I heard Brandon say quietly,
“Come on. Let’s get some ice.”
I didn’t look back.
By the time I reached the lab, my hand was shaking.
I locked the door behind me.
Then I turned on the cold water and held my hand under it.
Blisters were already forming.
Second-degree burn.
The diagnosis came automatically.
Years working with chemicals had taught me enough about injuries.
I grabbed burn cream from the emergency kit and wrapped gauze around the wound.
The pain slowly dulled.
When I finally sat down at my desk, my laptop screen lit up.
Three new emails from headhunters.
I ignored them.
Instead, I opened the HR portal.
My fingers hovered over the keyboard.
Then I typed the subject line.
Resignation – Thalia Wentworth
Latest chapter
I LEFT WHEN HIS EX CAME BACK WITH HIS SON FORTY FIVE
CLARAFor a moment that felt heavier than it should have, everything between us narrowed into the small space I had carefully created.I watched Brandon closely, every part of me alert, every thought sharpened with expectation as his hand finally moved. I had seen that shift before in men, that subtle hesitation that meant the barrier was thinning, that control was slipping just enough for desire to creep in.It was working.I stayed still on purpose, letting him come closer, letting him make the first real move. My pulse quickened as I imagined the moment he would finally give in, finally pull me closer like he used to when things between us were simpler, when I had not yet been replaced by Thalia.“Brandon…” I said softly, letting his name linger in the air the way I knew it sometimes affected him.His eyes flickered down briefly, and I felt that small surge of satisfaction.Yes.He was thinking about it.His hand lifted toward me, slow and deliberate, and I held my breath withou
I LEFT WHEN HIS EX CAME BACK WITH HIS SON FORTY FOUR
CLARAI had always hated Thalia Wentworth.Not the kind of shallow dislike that came and went with time, or the kind that could be softened with distance and understanding. What I felt for Thalia had roots that stretched too deep for that. It was something that had grown quietly over the years, fed by every reminder that no matter how hard I tried, I would always come second to her in the eyes of everyone who knows both of us.She used to call me her friend.Even now, the memory made something bitter twist inside me.Friend.The word had always sounded like a lie. No, it was a lie.Thalia had been born into a world I could only stand on the edges of, a world filled with wealth, privilege, and opportunities that had never been meant for someone like me. I was just the daughter of the Langford family’s maid, the girl who lingered in the background while she stood at the center of everything.We had grown up in the same environment, but we had never lived the same life.She had rooms
I LEFT WHEN HIS EX CAME BACK WITH HIS SON FORTY THREE
BRANDONThe drive to Clara’s house should have felt short, but my mind refused to stay on the road for long.It kept dragging me back to the same image.Thalia… stepping out of a stranger’s car.I had not seen the man clearly, but that did not matter. What unsettled me was not who he was, but how she looked.She had seemed… lighter. Unbothered.And then she smiled.Not the distant, restrained version I had grown used to, but something real. Effortless. Warm.I tightened my grip on the steering wheel.When had she stopped smiling like that with me?I had gone there to see if she was struggling, to confirm whether she would eventually have to come back.But that intention had vanished the moment I saw her.Because she did not look like someone who needed anything from me anymore.And for some reason, that bothered me more than it should have.I exhaled slowly and forced my attention back to the present as I turned into Clara’s driveway. The house stood quiet, the soft glow from the win
I LEFT WHEN HIS EX CAME BACK WITH HIS SON FORTY TWO
THALIAI closed my eyes briefly, already feeling the familiar wave of exasperation rise.“Dr. Carter—”Before I could finish, Adrian let out a low chuckle.I turned to him, narrowing my eyes slightly, silently warning him not to encourage her, but he only leaned back in his chair, looking entirely too relaxed.“I mean,” he said lightly, his gaze shifting to me, “it would be hard not to be attracted to someone like Thalia.”My breath caught.It was subtle. Almost careless in delivery. But there was something in the way he said it that made my heart skip in a way I hadn’t expected.After chasing Brandon for so many years and getting ignored, I’ve totally forgotten I am an attractive woman. Heat rushed to my face before I could stop it.“Adrian,” I said quickly, trying to regain control of the moment, “we are not doing this.”Dr. Carter only smiled, clearly pleased with herself.“If you say so,” she said, waving her hand dismissively.I exhaled slowly, choosing not to engage any further
I LEFT WHEN HIS EX CAME BACK WITH HIS SON FORTY ONE
THALIAThe freaking visitor was my boss.Adrian Vale.What in the world?!For a brief second, my mind refused to process what I was seeing, because the connection did not make sense fast enough for me to catch up with it. He stepped into the room with his usual composed ease, his presence filling the space without effort, and before I could even react, he was already moving toward Dr. Carter.“Evelyn,” he greeted warmly.Dr. Carter’s face lit up in a way I had rarely seen before, and she stood immediately, closing the distance between them as she pulled him into a hug that spoke of familiarity, not politeness.“It took you long enough,” she said, though there was clear affection in her tone.I remained where I was, watching the interaction unfold with quiet shock settling deeper into my chest.So this was what he had meant.During my interview, Adrian had mentioned knowing Dr. Carter, but I had not imagined it was like this. Dr. Carter was not someone who formed close relationships e
I LEFT WHEN HIS EX CAME BACK WITH HIS SON FORTY
BRANDONThe numbers in front of me refused to make sense, no matter how many times I reviewed them or how carefully I traced every line of calculation back to its source.I leaned back slightly in my chair, my eyes fixed on the report spread across my desk as though prolonged scrutiny alone might force the inconsistencies to reveal themselves. The projections were clean, the structure was precise, and yet the conclusion sitting at the bottom of the page remained absurd.A two hundred percent increase.I exhaled slowly, dragging a hand over my jaw as irritation settled deeper beneath my skin. Nothing in the data justified that kind of escalation, and the more I examined it, the more obvious it became that something fundamental was missing.Not something.Someone.The realization came quietly, but once it surfaced, it refused to leave.Thalia.Before she left, the system had run with an efficiency I had taken for granted. There had been no unexplained spikes, no hidden losses buried b
I LEFT WHEN HIS EX CAME BACK WITH HIS SON NINETEEN
THALIAThe car had barely turned the corner before the silence settled in.I leaned back against the seat, exhaling slowly, letting the tension from earlier slip off me piece by piece. My fingers rested loosely in my lap, but I could still feel the faint echo of everything that had just happened.
I LEFT WHEN HIS EX CAME BACK WITH HIS SON EIGHT
Clara leaned forward slightly so she could see better.“I never knew she turned out to be a slut,” she said quietly.I didn’t respond.My eyes were still fixed on the dance floor.Thalia laughed at something the man beside her said.He spun her lightly, and for a moment her body pressed closer to h
I LEFT WHEN HIS EX CAME BACK WITH HIS SON THIRTY
THALIAIt was my first day at work, and my hands would not stop shaking.Not the cute, nervous kind either. It was the kind that made me question every life decision that had brought me here.I sat in the car for a second longer than necessary, staring at the building like it might suddenly decide t
I LEFT WHEN HIS EX CAME BACK WITH HIS SON THIRTEEN
THALIABy the time I got home, the headache had finally dulled to a manageable throb.The quiet of the apartment wrapped around me the moment I stepped inside. No voices. No arguments. No Brandon. Just silence.I dropped my bag onto the couch and kicked off my shoes before collapsing into the chair
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