All Chapters of When I Stopped Carrying Her: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

The room went quiet for a beat when I said I'd take the prize—then the laughter came back even louder.Victor lost it, practically doubled over, wiping tears from his face."Now THAT'S how you make it to the top, huh? That kind of thick skin? Most people couldn't do it!"I let the jab slide and said, steady, "Just to be clear—since the company gave me bathroom duty, that'll be my only task for the next three days. I won't be doing anything else."Victor froze, clearly didn't see that coming.Thing was, it was year-end—and every target had already been crushed because of me. All that was left were client bank transfers to lock things in.Me stepping back now? That was handing over $100 million in deals, gift-wrapped.He probably thought I'd finally snapped. Didn't even hesitate. "Fine, no sales for you. You think this place can't survive without you? Go scrub toilets. And if I find ONE hair on the floor, don't bother coming back!"I didn't say a word. Just turned and walked off.

Rachel spun around, stunned. "Are you insane? Do you even hear yourself right now? We're just 300 deals away from hitting that $1 billion mark I promised you. Once those payments clear, we're done. If you screw this up now, don't expect a second chance!"I didn't say a word.I just walked out.Back home, just as I was kicking off my shoes, my phone rang.The second I picked up, my dad's voice exploded through the line. "Aaron, are you out of your mind? How dare you fight with Rachel?!"Listen to me—right now, this minute—you go apologize to her! You're a grown man, and everything you have is thanks to her. Don't be ungrateful!"His tone dropped, all weight and pressure. "Rachel's young and beautiful. A woman like that sticking with you for twelve years? That's a damn miracle. Now you've pissed her off—who else is gonna want you?"It's better to be with someone capable than struggle alone. Go back, say sorry, and get that marriage locked down. Quit stirring up drama."Without Ra

The guy wasn't even done talking before Rachel snapped."What did you say? Over a hundred cancellations?"She lunged forward and grabbed him by the collar. "You sure you didn't screw up the count? They already paid deposits. Why would they all suddenly bail?"Victor pushed in, eyes locked on the guy. "There's gotta be a mistake. Go check again! Maybe someone's faking calls, pretending to be clients!"The employee shook his head hard, voice shaky. "I triple-checked. The calls came from the official numbers we have on file. A bunch of them even sent emails. This isn't a prank!"Rachel's face drained of color. She whipped around just as I hit the elevator."Aaron Lawson! This is your doing, isn't it? You couldn't just leave—you had to stir things up and wreck the company!"Victor jumped in, yelling too. "Yeah, who else could've hit up that many clients? You're seriously that bitter? You'd burn the whole place down just to get back at us?"I stood there in the elevator, calm as eve

She added, "I spent three years building this company. I'm not letting Aaron wreck it in one day!"If he could land clients, so can everyone else! Tell the team—drop everything and sell. I don't buy that hundreds of employees can't compete with one guy!"But the truth was, things were even worse than she thought.The next morning, right as the sales office opened, a group of suppliers showed up with contracts in hand, blocking the front desk and demanding Rachel handle the overdue payments herself.They gave her three days to clear the construction material debts—or they'd sue and cut off all future deliveries.Then came the bank reps.An old loan had gone delinquent, and they weren't playing around. Full repayment, plus interest, was due in a week—or they'd start seizing company assets.While each group took turns making a scene, the few potential buyers who had walked in took one look and bailed.The once-busy office emptied fast.Employees stopped caring. They grouped up, w

I wasn't done. "The clients didn't cancel because I told them to. They left because they only trusted me. Without me, of course the company tanked."That's not on me. Rachel didn't value her people. She wrecked it."I gave everything for that place—for her—and you never once asked what that cost me. But she throws you a few perks and suddenly she's the victim?"Did it ever cross your mind that I'm your son?"I got it all out in one breath. My throat was dry. The last words barely made it out.Silence on the other end.Then finally, he spoke. "All of this... is it true? Rachel really treated you like that?""Every word," I said quietly. "I've got no reason to lie just to tear her down. Dad, I get it—you think it's smart to stick with someone capable, someone who lifts you up. But I need you to understand something: I can stand on my own."Rachel's not worth it. Not worth sacrificing myself for. We're done. Her company isn't my problem anymore. So from now on, don't bring her up