Chapter 3

Gabriella's POV

When William got home, he found me with eyes swollen from crying. He pulled me into his arms, his expression full of concern.

"Gaby, I'm sorry," he said. "My dad passed away from illness back then, so I had to return to Frostmere and take over the family business. Your social status is too low, so the elders in my family would never have allowed me to marry you."

I couldn't take another word. I shoved him away, tears streaming down my face. "So you married someone else? William, what did our seven years of long-distance relationship mean to you?"

William looked down at me, his expression settling into calm. "Gabriella, as the head of the Harrington family, I have obligations. Alexandra and I are of the same social standing, and our marriage benefits both our families.

"Lexi said that as long as you behave yourself, she'd turn a blind eye and let you stay by my side."

I looked up at him as tears rolled down my face.

William leaned down and brushed the tears from the corners of my eyes. "Gaby, we've been together for so many years; I won't treat you badly. If you want to stay in Frostmere, I can arrange a position for you at the company as my assistant."

I slapped him across the face. Under his stunned gaze, I grabbed my suitcase and quickly walked out of the front door.

As I rode away in a cab, William sent me a voice message. "Gabriella, don't be difficult. Not everyone can work for Harrington Group. I'll give you three days to think it over."

Then he transferred 100,000 dollars to my account. Back when he was pretending to be broke, he never sent me more than 1,000 dollars at a time. Now, he sent a hundred thousand without a second thought.

I didn't reply and returned all the money.

Once I had rented a place and settled in, I opened my phone to find that the situation between William and me had gone viral. Someone had posted a video of me outside his office building. In the footage, I looked completely disheveled, and my eyes were darting around.

The trending posts claimed William was having an affair and that his mistress had shown up uninvited. I was his real girlfriend, yet somehow I had become the homewrecker everyone despised.

I immediately posted the full story of our relationship along with our chat history. The timeline made it clear that William and I had been together long before he married Alexandra.

Public opinion flipped. The entire internet turned on William, calling him a scumbag.

William called me several times, but I hung up each time.

A few minutes later, Alexandra posted their marriage certificate on Instagram. She claimed their relationship was harmonious and accused me of staging the whole thing for attention.

Harrington Group's PR team insisted that the chat history I posted was fabricated and threatened to sue me for defamation. Paid accounts flooded the internet with rumors, branding me as a scheming mistress trying to ruin a marriage.

The comment section of my post was completely overrun with negative comments.

"The mistress tried to fight back and got hit with a legal warning instead. That's hilarious!"

"That's the real wife for you—shut down that arrogant homewrecker in just a few words."

"She destroys someone's marriage and then tries to use it for clout. Disgusting!"

My inbox was flooded with insults, and some even wished for my death.

Half an hour later, my post disappeared, and my account was banned. It was the first time I truly realized how powerless I was against people with immense influence.

My phone kept ringing, and every time I ignored it, the caller called again. With no other option, I finally picked up.

It wasn't William who called me, but Alexandra. Her laughter carried a hint of disdain. "Ms. Bennett, let's have a little chat."