The CEO's Toxic Placeholder
Eleanor thought she was everything to Henry. For three years, she was his constant—his quiet support, his emotional anchor. But when the woman he truly loves returns to the city, everything shatters. “I’ve been chasing her ghost,” Henry confesses, leaving Eleanor to pick up the pieces of a love that was never hers to begin with.
In the glittering world of Manhattan’s elite, Eleanor finds herself trapped in a toxic relationship with a man who can’t let go of his past. After overhearing a conversation that reveals Henry’s betrayal, Eleanor is left questioning everything she thought she knew about love—and herself. With her heart shattered and her future uncertain, she turns to an unlikely solution: an arranged marriage to Jasper Blackwood, the stoic heir to a powerful family she’s known her whole life.
But leaving Henry isn’t as easy as it seems. Jasper’s steady presence stirs something in Eleanor, something she hasn’t felt in years—security, respect, and a growing attraction. Yet, the pull of her past refuses to loosen its grip. As Henry desperately tries to win her back, Eleanor must confront the deepest fears she’s kept buried: Will she ever truly be able to trust again? And, more importantly, can she move on from a love that never truly belonged to her?
In a world where wealth and power dominate, Eleanor’s journey to reclaim her self-worth is a battle she never saw coming. Will she finally choose herself—and the man who has always been there—or will her heart remain tethered to a past that can never be hers?
The choice is hers. But will it be enough to heal a heart shattered by betrayal?