All Chapters of She Never Chose Me: Chapter 1 - Chapter 9

9 Chapters

Chapter 1 The Day I Finally Walked Away

The private room fell completely silent, every pair of eyes shifting between Irina Gavrilova and me.Irina still had a tight grip on James' arm. She frowned at me as though she thought this was just another one of my tricks. After all, for the past three years, I had loved her with such humiliating devotion that everyone in our social circle knew me as the ultimate doormat."It's fine. Really." I picked up the glass of red wine in front of me and raised it toward them. "If you two really love each other, I wish you a long and happy life together."James' eyes were rimmed red. He timidly shrank into Irina's arms. "Colin, don't misunderstand. Irina and I just haven't seen each other in too long. We got carried away…""Don't 'Colin' me like we're close." I cut him off before he could continue his sugary act, my tone flat. "I'm an only child. I don't have some stray brother from nowhere."James' face instantly went pale, and tears spilled from his eyes.Irina exploded. She slammed he

Chapter 2 The Apartment Without Me

The moment I stepped out of the restaurant, a black Maybach was already waiting by the curb. The moment he saw me, Richard, the chauffeur, got out and opened the rear door respectfully. "You've been through a lot, Mr. Sanburne."I settled into the car, where a faint cedar scent lingered, and shook my head. "Take me to Block 28, Willow Creek, in the old district."That was the residential complex where Irina rented her apartment. It was an old, run-down building with no elevator and such poor soundproofing that one could hear the neighbors flushing their toilets next door. Yet to pursue her, I cut ties with my family and spent three whole years living in this miserable place.When we arrived downstairs, I told Richard to wait in the car and hurried upstairs myself.The moment I pushed open the peeling security door, the foul stench of the garbage Irina had left behind before going out still hung in the air. Her dirty clothes were piled across the sofa, while last night's takeout con

Chapter 3 The Heiress and the Fiancee

By the time the Maybach reached the Lombardis' manor halfway up the mountain, it was already deep into the night.The car door opened, and a fair hand reached out toward me. I looked up and found myself staring into a pair of eyes as deep as the sea.She was Yelena Lombardi, the heiress of the Lombardi family, a woman revered by everyone in the capital's elite circle. She was also, in name at least, my fiancee."Decided to come back, did you?" Her voice was cool and detached.Thomas, the butler, hurried over to greet me, his eyes slightly red. "Mr. Sanburne, you've finally come home. If your father and mother knew how much you suffered out there, they'd be heartbroken.""Thomas, I'm fine." I smiled, though a bitter ache stirred in my chest.…Back then, I had fallen out with my family and gone into hiding just to accompany Irina while she built her business. Looking back now, I was an idiot through and through.Yelena dismissed the servants, handed me a glass of warm water, the

Chapter 4 A Slap and a Revelation

That weekend, Yelena took me on a shopping spree. I was trying on a bespoke suit when a familiar, grating voice suddenly came from behind me."James, what do you think of this one? It isn't from the newest collection, but with the discount, it should be pretty reasonable."I froze.Through the mirror, I saw two faces that immediately turned my stomach.Irina was carrying several shopping bags from luxury brands, looking as though she had spent a considerable amount of money.James had his arm linked through hers, his face glowing with happiness. However, the moment he spotted the suit I was wearing, greed and jealousy flashed across his eyes. "Irina, that suit looks so good on him… It's just too expensive. We can't afford something like that, can we?"She followed his gaze. The moment she saw my back, her entire body went rigid.I slowly turned around and looked at them with an almost amused smile. "Well, well, if it isn't Ms. Gavrilova. What happened? You haven't gone bankrup

Chapter 5 The Real Show Begins

'Mr. Sanburne? Ms. Lombardi?'Irina and James were completely stunned.Irina barely even noticed the excruciating pain in her wrist anymore. She stared blankly at the manager who was practically bowing and scraping before me.She knew this manager. He was notoriously arrogant, barely even bothering to acknowledge ordinary business owners, yet now he was acting completely subservient toward me.'And this woman… Ms. Lombardi… There's only one Ms. Lombardi in the whole city who can command enough authority to make a shopping mall manager this terrified—Yelena Lombardi, who holds the reins of Lombardi Inc.!'Irina's mind went completely blank.She looked at me, calm and composed, then at Yelena, whose mere presence made the air feel heavy. An absurd thought suddenly surfaced. 'Could Colin really have become Yelena's sugar baby?!'"Throw these two out." Yelena shook Irina's hand off with obvious disgust. She took a wet wipe from one of her bodyguards and carefully wiped her hand, a

Chapter 6 Regret in the Dead of Night

Irina walked out of the office building in a daze. As soon as she reached the ground floor, she spotted James sitting beside a flower bed, fixing his hair.The moment he saw Irina, he hurried over, his face full of anticipation. "Irina, how did it go? Did you land the project? We should celebrate at a fine dining restaurant!""Oh. My. God! Is eating all you ever think about?" Irina finally snapped. She shoved James away. "I'm about to lose my job, and you're thinking about fine dining?"James fell to the ground, scraping his palm against the pavement. He looked at her with wounded disbelief. "Irina, how could you treat me like this? You've never gotten this angry with me before…"Mentioning me only made Irina even angrier."Don't mention that loser!" she screamed, her eyes red with fury. "If it weren't for you, I'd still be a daughter-in-law of the Sanburne family! I wouldn't have to put up with this crap now!"James froze.As he looked at the vain, materialistic woman in front

Chapter 7 The Engagement Party

Irina's life continued to spiral downward. At work, she was increasingly sidelined. At home, she had to deal with James' endless complaints and demands.She desperately needed an opportunity to turn things around—something that would put her back in the spotlight and, better yet, give her a chance to surpass the Sanburne family.…Then, at a business dinner, she heard some major news: the two most prestigious families in the city were about to announce an engagement.It was set to be the year's biggest business alliance. Powerful figures from both the political and business worlds would be attending, making it an extraordinary opportunity to expand her network.Irina immediately saw her chance.If she could somehow get into the engagement banquet and connect with a few influential figures, she could secure some investment and make a comeback. When that happened, she would make Colin see that even without his family, she could still rise to the top.To get tickets, Irina practica

Chapter 8 When the Truth Came to Light

'Hubby?'The revelation blew Irina's and James' minds again.They stared blankly at Yelena intimately linking her arm through mine, then at the calm, blissful smile on my face. A terrifying possibility slowly surfaced in their minds.'Could the couple at the center of today's engagement party be…'"No! That's absolutely impossible!" Irina cried out, her face turning deathly pale. "How could you possibly be the heir of the Sanburne family? How could you possibly be Yelena's fiance? You were just a penniless nobody who did nothing but do housework! You lied to me! All of you lied to me!"Just then, the ballroom doors slowly swung open. An exuberant symphony filled the room, and the emcee's voice rang out through the speakers. "Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the engagement celebration of Ms. Yelena Lombardi and Mr. Colin Sanburne!"A massive wedding portrait of Yelena and me slowly appeared on the large screen.In the photograph, I wore an extraordinarily expensive suit, looking

Chapter 9 Too Late to Beg

Finally, one day, she stopped my car outside the company."Colin! Colin, please, just listen to me!" Irina pressed herself against the car window. Her hair was disheveled, her face haggard, and she gave off an unpleasant smell. "I know I was wrong! I really do! I shouldn't have hurt you for James. I shouldn't have driven you away… I must have lost my mind! Colin, please, give me another chance! I swear I'll treat you like royalty. I'll never let you suffer even the slightest bit of injustice again!"Looking at the woman sobbing outside my window, I felt nothing but irritation. I lowered the window slightly and looked at her coldly. "Irina, do you think that just because you apologized, I have to forgive you?""No… I really do love you, Colin!" Irina hurriedly defended herself. "I've thought about it so much these past few days, and I realized that you're still the person I love most…""Love me?" I let out a mocking laugh. "You don't love me. You love the convenience you lost. You l

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