Chapter 2

I didn't stay behind to watch them pop champagne. I grabbed my bag and went straight home.

My neighbor, Mrs. Higgins, bumped into me in the hallway, her face full of surprise.

"Hazel! What are you doing home so early? Didn't you say your big project wrapped up today and there was a celebration party? You're the new department head now, right?"

I had spent months preparing for this promotion. Everyone in my life knew about it.

Because of that, now that I had been publicly humiliated, I didn't even have the energy to fake a smile.

I kept my key in the lock and tried to sound casual. "Oh, it's nothing. The company had a last-minute restructuring."

Mrs. Higgins gave me a look of deep sympathy and wisely changed the subject.

The second I closed the door behind me, I ran straight to the bathroom.

I bent over the toilet and threw up until my stomach was completely empty.

I collapsed onto the cold tile floor, trembling.

My chronic stomach ulcers had gotten worse. It was the result of pulling endless all-nighters to get Dominic's projects across the finish line.

Dominic knew about my stomach issues, but he didn't care.

In his eyes, I only survived because of him. He assumed he would always be the one feeding me, so my career didn't matter.

As I got up to rinse my mouth, my phone started buzzing frantically.

It was a Slack channel that both Dominic and I were in.

"Boss is a total alpha. Did you see that? Hazel didn't dare say a single word."

"How does Dominic train her like that? She's so submissive. It's honestly impressive!"

"Hazel doesn't have any family to back her up anyway. Plus, Dominic has all the money and power. What could she possibly say?"

They were laughing and joking. Then, someone sent a message:

"Hey, do you guys think Dominic is even coming home tonight?"

The replies came instantly.

"Are you stupid? Of course he's not! What does a boss do after a successful launch? He celebrates with the hot new intern!"

This was followed by a string of dirty, suggestive jokes.

But suddenly, Mike, Dominic's childhood best friend, typed in panic:

"Are you guys drunk? You posted in the wrong channel! Hazel is in this group! Delete it, now!"

The chat went chaotic. But it was too late. Most of the messages couldn't be unsent.

One colleague, seemingly finding the situation hilarious, typed lazily:

"So what if she sees it? You think she actually has the guts to speak up?"

I felt nothing. I locked my phone, walked into the kitchen, and made myself a simple bowl of oatmeal.

As I took the last bite, the front door swung open.

Dominic walked in, reeking of expensive whiskey.

Seeing that I didn't rush to the door to greet him like I usually did, he let out a low chuckle.

He walked over and wrapped his arms around my waist from behind.

"It’s just a promotion, Hazel. Don’t make a big deal out of it."

Just a promotion. He had allowed his employees to mock me and treat me like a joke in front of the whole company.

"Sure," I said quietly.

I wriggled out of his embrace, picked up my bowl, and walked into the kitchen to wash it.

Dominic followed me in. He took a gold bracelet from his pocket and slipped it onto my wrist.

It wasn't my style at all. But I recognized it.

A few days ago, he had bought Chloe a diamond necklace. This bracelet was the cheap freebie that came with the purchase.

"Thank you," I said, keeping my eyes on the running water.

Dominic let out a sigh of relief. He leaned down, trying to kiss my neck.

I gently pushed his chest away and put the clean bowl into the cabinet.

I forced a polite smile. "You forgot. I'm allergic to alcohol. The smell makes me break out."

Dominic’s brows furrowed. He stared at me, about to say something.

But his phone rang.

The screen lit up with Chloe’s name.

His annoyance vanished instantly. He swiped to answer and walked quickly into his home office.

With a soft click, he locked the door behind him.

Chapter