Chapter 1

On the drive back from the office with Vincent Sterling, a cloyingly sweet female voice chirped from his phone navigation:

"Baby Tiffany is here to remind you—buckle up, handsome!"

She must have set that voice pack while he was asleep the night they reunited, just to show me who was boss.

Vincent glanced at me through the rearview mirror, but my face remained an unreadable mask.

I was his executive assistant and his secret bedmate. For three whole years, I had catered to his every whim in the boardroom and the bedroom, never once uttering a single word of complaint.

The day Tiffany Hayes returned to the country to seal their arranged corporate marriage, everyone in our circle was waiting for my downfall.

"This marriage is strictly business," Vincent had said, wrapping his arm around my waist. "You’re smart enough to know what’s at stake."

I had looked at him coldly.

"Do whatever you want. It’s not like I ever loved you anyway."

Enraged by my complete lack of emotion, Vincent shoved me roughly onto the leather sofa.

"Your body is always much more honest than your mouth," he growled.

His hands roamed under my clothes, ignoring my resistance.

"Mr. Sterling always does whatever he pleases," I said, meeting his dark eyes with chilling indifference. "Since when did you ever care about the feelings of a mere subordinate?"

For three years, he had genuinely believed I was madly, helplessly in love with him. He thought I had no limits when it came to pleasing him.

Suddenly, a wave of violent nausea surged up from my stomach. Pushing him away without warning, I doubled over, coughing and dry-heaving violently.

Vincent stopped, his brow furrowing in disgust.

"Ugh. What a hassle."

Clicking his tongue, he pulled out his phone to call his private physician. But before he could dial, the digital door lock chimed.

In a flash, Vincent sprang up from the couch and shoved me hard onto the floor.

"Vincent, honey, am I interrupting?"

Tiffany walked in, wheeling a designer suitcase. She clearly had no intention of leaving anytime soon. "We’re going to be husband and wife soon anyway. You won't mind me dropping by, right?"

"Of course not. I always respect my woman's wishes," Vincent replied smoothly.

Hearing this possessive, arrogant man speak so gently to another woman almost made me laugh out loud.

"Good evening, Miss Hayes," I forced down my nausea, slipping instantly back into professional mode. I greeted her while quietly stepping back to keep a safe ten-foot distance from Vincent.

"Mr. Sterling is about to become a married man," Tiffany sneered, eyeing me up and down with utter contempt. "A secretary ought to learn some boundaries."

"You misunderstand, Miss Hayes. I'm strictly here for work," I replied blandly, lowering my head.

Before I could even finish, Tiffany threw herself into Vincent's arms. They began kissing right in front of me, and Vincent didn't spare me another glance.

Letting her drape all over him, Vincent carried her upstairs toward the master bedroom. As they brushed past me, Tiffany deliberately tossed her heavy bags right at me, nearly knocking me off my feet.

Soon enough, shrill, breathless moans echoed from the floor above.

As Vincent’s personal assistant, handling his messy personal life was part of the job.

Taking a deep breath, I packed fresh changes of clothes for both of them along with condoms, walked upstairs, and slid the package through the gap beneath the bedroom door.

Then I sat down on the cold hallway floor, leaning my back against the wall.

The muffled sounds of their passionate lovemaking assaulted my ears, forcing graphic images into my mind. I forced myself to endure every second.

An hour later, the noise finally subsided, and the bedroom fell dead silent.

"Mr. Sterling can only sleep peacefully when you're nearby. That kind of emotional dependence is rare," Vincent’s therapist had once told me.

"Then his dependence comes pretty damn cheap," I mocked silently in the darkness.

Once I was certain neither of them would step outside tonight, I let out a long breath. I walked over to Tiffany's luggage, fished out her phone, and plugged in my custom USB drive to clone her data.