Chapter 2

Betrayal and Scandal

Cassie fell asleep after crying, still wrapped in the blanket.

“It’s already morning. I should get up.” Cassie rose with swollen eyes from crying the night before.

The beautiful twenty-five-year-old woman stood on the balcony of her penthouse, wearing Julian’s white shirt, far too large for her petite frame.

The scent of coffee mingled with the faint trace of his cologne — a fragrance that once brought her comfort but now only tightened her chest.

Cassie gazed down at the busy city streets below: cars, cameras, billboards displaying her own smiling face.

How ironic, she thought. The world saw her as a flawless screen queen, while behind the façade, her heart belonged to a man who never truly wanted her.

Julian appeared in the doorway, dressed in a black suit, his tie not yet perfectly knotted.

“You’re leaving this early?” Cassie asked.

“Meeting. Investors from New York are coming today,” Julian replied.

A cold answer, as always. No embrace. No good morning kiss.

“Don’t you want to have breakfast first?”

Julian looked at her for a moment, then stepped closer. His fingers brushed through her hair gently, yet behind the tenderness lay a distance she could never bridge.

“You know I don’t like breakfast,” he said softly. “Get some rest. Tonight, we’ll have dinner at home.”

Cassie nodded, pretending to believe him. But her heart was uneasy; a strange feeling weighed heavily in her chest. She didn’t know that morning would mark the beginning of her downfall.

---

By noon, Cassie was watching Julian’s live press conference on the massive television in her living room.

At first, she watched with pride — until the camera shifted, revealing a beautiful woman with long brown hair standing beside Julian, smiling sweetly while holding his hand.

“Who… is she?” Cassie whispered.

Then Julian’s voice came through the screen, clear and firm.

“The woman beside me is Elena Rose, my first love. We had been apart for years because of our careers, but now… I promise to marry her soon.”

Cassie froze completely. Julian’s expression was so soft as he looked at that woman — an expression he had never once shown her.

Her hand clutched at her chest; her breath hitched as pain spread through her body. She didn’t cry. She couldn’t. Her tears were too precious for a man who had no feelings for her.

“No… this must be a mistake,” she murmured, trying to deny it. “He must be pretending. Julian, I love you — but why are you declaring another woman as your lover, saying you’ll marry her?”

But the screen didn’t lie. Before hundreds of cameras, Julian leaned in and kissed Elena on the cheek.

Camera flashes exploded like lightning, the roar of the media echoing through the hall.

It wasn’t a coincidence. It was betrayal — broadcast live to the entire world.

---

Hours later, the internet erupted with headlines about Julian — the cold, emotionless CEO — planning to marry a stunning woman.

> Julian Sterling, the famously heartless media tycoon who claimed not to believe in love, is reportedly marrying his first love — a beautiful heiress from a powerful family.

But it didn’t stop there. Moments later, another headline appeared.

> Julian Sterling’s Secret Mistress Revealed as Cassandra Vance! Intimate Photos Leaked!

Cassie’s phone buzzed endlessly. Calls from her agency, from the press, from friends — all asking the same questions.

“Is that really you in the photo?”

“Are you truly Julian Sterling’s mistress?”

“Was your fame built through your relationship with him?”

Cassie could barely breathe as she opened one of the leaked photos.

It was her — lying on Julian’s bed. Her shoulder exposed, her face peaceful. But the world saw it as proof of her depravity.

“No… how could this leak? Who could be so cruel?” Her voice trembled. She turned off her phone and collapsed to the floor.

Cassie wept as she watched the news spread. Yet, deep down, she believed Julian would help her.

---

A few hours later, an official statement from Sterling Media was aired on national television.

> “Sterling Media confirms that the relationship between Mr Julian Sterling and Ms Cassandra Vance is strictly professional. All personal rumours circulating are entirely fabricated. The man in the photo is not Mr Sterling, as his face is not clearly visible.”

Cassie stared silently at the screen. Those words cut deeper than any knife.

Julian had denied her completely.

> You said our relationship was merely professional and that the man in that photo might be someone else. So this is how you erase me, Julian? I know this was your doing.

Cassie’s heart ached as tears streamed uncontrollably down her cheeks.

---

The next day, her face dominated every tabloid under vile headlines:

> Cassandra Vance: From Star to Scandal!

Julian Sterling’s Camp Denies Involvement — If Not Him, Then Who Is the Man Supporting Cassie? Was She Truly a Tycoon’s Mistress?

After the intimate photo scandal, her film contracts were cancelled, brands withdrew their endorsements, and her phone stopped ringing.

The world that once worshipped her now spat on her name.

Cassie sat in her dark apartment, the only light coming from the television showing Julian and Elena appearing affectionate at a charity gala.

She watched the screen for a long moment, then smiled bitterly.

"I must see him. I'm sure Julian will help me later. He will definitely refuse to acknowledge our relationship so that his company doesn't face trouble. He must still love me."

---

That night, Cassie went to Julian’s house. The door opened as she pounded on it.

Julian stood in the living room, expressionless.

“Cassie, why are you here?” His voice was flat, as if there wasn’t a scandal tearing their lives apart outside.

Cassie stepped inside, eyes red, her voice trembling with held-back tears.

“Why are you just standing there? Why did you let them destroy me? Was this your doing?”

“Because I can’t stop something that was bound to end,” he replied. “You couldn’t even protect your own reputation. You let those photos leak — and luckily, my face wasn’t visible.”

“So now you’re blaming me?”

“I told you before — if gossip about us ever spread, you’d have to face the consequences yourself,” he said coldly, without a flicker of emotion.

“So this is how you throw me away? Because you’ve met your first love again? You’re discarding me?” Cassie’s voice broke.

Julian stepped closer, his face impassive.

“I never had a serious relationship with you. If you fall, I lose nothing. You were my secret lover — nothing more.”

Cassie let out a hollow laugh. “And what about these five years, Julian? Did you ever love me at all?”

Julian stared straight into her eyes, unflinching.

“An arrangement, Cassie. Our relationship was nothing more than an arrangement.”

Those words struck her like thunder. Her heart shattered, but she forced herself not to crumble before him.

“You never saw me as anything more, did you? So it’s true — you’re going to marry that beautiful woman?”

“You knew from the beginning,” he said calmly. “I never promised to love you. I offered you a career and money. Of course, I’ll marry the woman I truly love — my first love.”

Cassie moved closer and struck his chest.

“Then why did you make me believe I was special, Julian?!”

Julian grabbed her hand — firm, cold.

“Because you were special… in bed.”

Tears streamed down Cassie’s cheeks, unstoppable now.

She wanted to hate Julian entirely, yet all she felt was emptiness.

The heart once filled with love was now hollow, replaced by a growing darkness — the price of his betrayal.

Julian released her hand and turned away.

“Leave before you destroy yourself any further.”

“You’ll regret this, Julian. One day, you’ll beg for my love.”

Cassie wiped her tears away.