All Chapters of The CEO's Toxic Placeholder : Chapter 1 - Chapter 5

I froze just outside the private room, a cold chill creeping up my spine as I overheard the voices drifting through the crack in the door.“Henry, now that Vivienne’s back from Paris, what’s your plan with Eleanor?”Henry’s voice was smooth, practiced—a perfect Wall Street mask. “What do you mean?”“Come on, man. You and Eleanor have been together for three years. Vivienne’s back in the city. That changes things, doesn’t it?”I peeked through the gap, watching Henry. He took a long drag from his vape, the cloud of smoke swirling in the low light. He exhaled slowly before answering, quieter this time. “I don’t know. I don’t want to hurt Eleanor, but Vivienne... that’s complicated.”A laugh rumbled from one of his friends. “Vivienne was your college sweetheart. You guys were legendary. Everyone at Yale still talks about it. No one’s judging you for not being over her.”“Look,” another voice interjected, “Eleanor’s been ride-or-die for three years, and she’s gorgeous. You’re telling me y

“Are you serious?” I snapped, my voice rising as I stared at Henry.He seemed to wake up all of a sudden, as though I was a ghost he'd forgotten about. His hand slid off Vivienne’s waist like it burned him, and he stepped back, a look of guilt flashing across his face.The guys, following his gaze to me, scrambled. “Let’s keep playing,” one of them said, awkwardly breaking the silence. “Vivienne, skip the drinks if you’re not feeling well—truth or dare is better anyway.”“Yeah, truth or dare’s perfect!” Vivienne cheered, oblivious to the tension in the air.Henry took a deep breath and sat back down on the couch. He was trying to act like everything was fine. He must have thought I was about to throw a fit. I couldn’t blame him; that’s what everyone else probably expected. But I didn’t do anything. Not a word. Not a glance. Nothing.I just sat there, staring at the group like they were part of some weird, distant dream. A part of me wanted to yell, to demand an explanation, but anothe

“Wait—hold up, that’s a watch?” Quentin's voice pulled Eleanor out of her thoughts. His eyes flicked from the shopping bag in her hand to her face, his brows furrowed in surprise. She shrugged, not feeling like explaining. “Just picking up some things.” He eyed the bag again. “A gift for Henry?” It felt easier to nod than to lie. Quentin hesitated, clearly uncomfortable with the idea. “Eleanor… you don’t need to spend that much on him. Even their basic models go for fifteen grand. Henry—he’s not worth that.” She bristled at the words but didn’t say anything. No need to get into it. He didn’t know the full story. “Last night... he wasn’t exactly a gentleman, was he?” Quentin continued, his voice dropping as if he were choosing his words carefully. "He left with Vivienne right in front of everyone. I don’t know what game he’s playing, but—" Eleanor didn’t need to hear more. She already knew. Henry had made it clear—she was a placeholder. Nothing more. He couldn’t get over Vivien