Chapter 1

My father had been furious before I told him about Cole's attitude.

When he heard, the line nearly cracked.

"Fine. Honey, you take the floor tomorrow as a shareholder. I'll back every word."

I hung up and lay back.

The pain in my side from the broken rib came in long pulses. The image from the night before played in my head–bodies pressed against bodies in the dark, foam falling like snow over our heads.

The door opened.

Vivian Shaw walked in, her eyes red. The moment she saw me, tears spilled over.

"Selena, I'm so sorry. I should have made him save you first."

I held her gaze. The calm I had built began to unravel.

While I had been pinned in the crowd, the comms earpiece on my headset had stayed on.

I had heard her ask, "Cole, is this happening because of me? Because I asked you to set off the foam?"

I had heard him cut her off. "How could it be your fault? I would have done it whether you asked or not."

"You remember? I promised you a romantic New Year's.

"After tonight, I'm done with Selena. We can be together

"Don't worry. I'll say the venue had insufficient on-site security. Nobody will trace it to us."

The earpiece had been a supervisory mic. I was the only one wearing it that night. I had assumed it was just a formality.

That was when I learned the truth.

The best friend I had known for ten years… had been involved with my boyfriend for who knew how long.

The stampede had not been an accident.

It had been them.

It had been Cole… trying to impress Vivian.

He had to know what a New Year's Eve crowd of tens of thousands could turn into. Anyone in mall management knew the first rule: never trigger a disturbance.

If the corporation had not pre-positioned emergency response teams nearby, the outcome would have been far worse.

He had treated thousands of people's safety like a prop for a date.

The pain in my chest spiked.

Vivian saw I was not speaking. She suddenly dropped to her knees, tears falling rapidly.

"Selena, are you still blaming me

"I get it. He's your boyfriend, of course he should have saved you first…"

She bit her lip, then continued, "But Selena, you can't let personal feelings ruin his reputation. People will talk."

I almost laughed.

Instead, I grabbed the thermos from the bedside table and hurled it at her feet.

"Enough. Get out."

Vivian screamed and recoiled.

The door flew open. Cole rushed in.

"Vivian! Are you okay?!"

The speed of his reaction made it obvious. He had been right outside.

He helped her onto the couch, then turned to me, his expression dark.

"Selena! I already told you, I'm part of senior management here. Prioritizing guests is standard procedure!"

"You lash out at Vivian over something like this? Why are you being so unreasonable?!"

Then he turned back to Vivian, his tone softening instantly.

"Why are you so stubborn? I told you this wasn't your fault, and you still came to apologize."

"Look at her–she doesn't appreciate it at all."

"The one who should be apologizing… is her."

I let out a cold laugh.

I pointed at the bandages wrapped around my ribs.

"Me? Apologize? For what?"

Without hesitation, Cole pulled back Vivian's sleeve, revealing a dark bruise.

"She didn't even want to come last night, you insisted

"Because of you, she got hurt. Don't you think you owe her an apology?"

A cold sneer formed in my mind.

It was true. I had asked her to come.

That night, I was supposed to oversee the event. I didn't want to interfere with Cole's work, so I asked her to keep me company.

I had even thought it would make things more enjoyable.

If I hadn't heard their conversation… I might actually have blamed myself.

But now, all I felt was disgust.

I looked at Cole and said, word by word:

"Cole, let's break up."