Ficorpio
Chapter 1
At the company’s annual gala, Vivian Hayes’s dog, the one with the eating disorder, kept circling you. With her arm linked through Ethan Sterling’s, she snickered.
“Miss Bennett’s father was a butcher. I suppose this dog caught the inherited smell of blood on her.”
Your temper flared instantly. You were just about to lash out when Ethan stepped forward and shielded Vivian behind him.
The undisguised disgust in his eyes struck you hard.
“Vivian didn’t mean any harm. I’ll apologize on her behalf. But your perfume really is rather ordinary. You should change it.”
It was the same perfume he had given you when you got married. He had once told you that its scent made him feel at ease.
But now, the identical lavender fragrance clinging to him and Vivian’s skin was so overpowering it tightened your throat. It was the scent of the lavender body wash he had once hated most.
The heavy lavender smell invaded your nose again, and a flood of terrible possibilities rose in your mind. They crashed over you until you could barely think.
The employees’ whispers pricked at your ears like needles.
“Has Vivian lost her mind? How dare she humiliate Mrs. Sterling like that? She’s Ethan’s favorite person. Last year, a senior manager looked down on Mrs. Sterling because of his experience. He was fired the very next day.”
“What do you know? Without Mr. Sterling backing her, Vivian wouldn’t dare provoke Mrs. Sterling even if she had ten times the courage.”
“Put simply, a woman’s confidence depends on where a man’s heart lies.”
“A man can have plenty of favorites, but there’s only one person he truly treasures. It probably won’t be long before Mrs. Sterling’s seat belongs to someone else.”
…
You froze and instinctively looked at Ethan.
He was looking at you too, but the reproach in his eyes was so unfamiliar that it frightened you.
You had been in love with him for three years and married to him for five. This was the first time he had ever looked at you that way.
It felt as though someone had dumped a bucket of ice water over your head. Your throat constricted, and for a long moment, you couldn’t force out a single word.
Vivian peeked out from behind him, her voice small and aggrieved.
“Mr. Sterling, didn’t you say Miss Bennett was easy to get along with? How can she not even take a joke?”
“It’s my fault.” Ethan’s voice turned so gentle it was almost cloying. “She wasn’t like this before.”
Their exchange sounded almost flirtatious. You shook with fury.
“Ethan, you—”
He cut you off before you could finish.
“Claire, the gala is about to begin. Whatever you have to say, we’ll discuss it when we get home.”
Before you had time to respond, he turned and headed straight for the seat of honor.
Vivian followed close behind and sat down in the place that had always belonged to you.
Chapter 2
She lifted her chin, smugness written across her face.
“I’m sorry, Miss Bennett. Mr. Sterling has to give a speech later, and there are a few details I need to review with him. Why don’t you sit over there for now?”
“That will also make it easier for you to look after Lucky.”
Lucky was the pet dog with the eating disorder.
You followed the direction of her finger and saw a thick, ornately carved column. The seat she claimed would be “more convenient for looking after the dog” was hidden behind it.
Not only could you see nothing of the stage from there, but a beautiful dog bowl had also been placed on the table.
You recognized it at a glance.
It was the homemade lunchbox you had packed for Ethan that morning.
When you remained rooted to the spot, Vivian Hayes followed your gaze to the lunchbox.
The moment your eyes met, she offered a casual explanation. “I was in such a rush this morning that I forgot to bring Lucky’s food bowl. Then I spotted this lunchbox in Mr. Sterling’s trash, so I grabbed it and used it as a dog bowl.”
“The trash?” you repeated, your voice trembling.
“That’s right.” Her tone turned overly familiar as she deliberately leaned closer to Ethan. “Ethan said the food his housekeeper makes is absolutely awful. He insisted on having the spicy rice bowl I brought instead. I barely got anything to eat today because of him.”
You looked at the smugness in her eyes and suddenly felt like laughing.
The “housekeeper” she was talking about was you.
Ethan had chronic stomach trouble. To help him recover, you had studied nutrition and improved your cooking, spending day after day in the kitchen racking your brain for meals that would suit his tastes.
And in the end, all your effort had earned you one verdict.
Absolutely awful.
Perhaps the irony on your face was too obvious, because Ethan glanced away guiltily.
“I…” His voice faltered. Whatever explanation he had intended to give died on his lips, replaced by an accusation. “The gala is about to begin. Why are you still standing here?”
Vivian covered her mouth in feigned surprise. “Ms. Bennett, are you unhappy with the seating arrangement?”
“I just thought that since Lucky likes you so much, you must like him too. I wanted to give you a chance to spend more time together.”
She reached over and swayed Ethan’s arm, her voice turning coy. “Ethan, Ms. Bennett doesn’t seem happy with the seat I arranged for her. What should I do? Did I mess up again?”
He immediately gave her a reassuring look. When he turned back to you, a warning had already settled into his expression.
“We invited several important business partners tonight. Vivian has been coordinating with them, so she knows them better. Could you please be reasonable and stop making trouble for me?”
“Fine,” you replied without hesitation.
Your quick surrender caught Ethan off guard.
Relief visibly washed over him, but before he could fully relax, your next words blindsided him.
Chapter 3
“But your assistant has to apologize to my father.”
“Claire!” Ethan’s voice rose sharply, disbelief filling his tone. “Have you lost your mind? Your father has been dead for years. How is a living person supposed to apologize to the dead?”
Vivian pouted. “Ethan, you said it was fine, but Ms. Bennett is obviously holding a grudge. Just look at her. Her eyes are so wide, she’s terrifying.”
“Apologize to her father? She’s just using this as an excuse to humiliate me!” Vivian stamped her foot, her voice turning petulant. “I don’t care. You’re the one who told me to stay close to you. You said I should follow you wherever you went.”
“You even wanted me to go into the restroom with you. Now Ms. Bennett is jealous, but I’m not taking the blame for that.”
“Claire!” Ethan slammed his speech onto the table. His voice strained with impatience. “Do you have to embarrass me right now?”
“Are you blind? Who’s embarrassing whom?” you shot back, but your voice broke the moment the words left your mouth.
In the past, whenever the two of you argued, the slightest redness in your eyes had always been enough to make Ethan back down first.
Not this time.
His gaze skimmed over your tear-bright eyes and landed on Vivian, who had suddenly begun to cry. Unmistakable tenderness flickered across his face.
Anger edged Ethan’s voice. “She just graduated from college. She doesn’t know any better, and she’s never been to an event like this. She was nervous and said the wrong thing. Do you really have to corner her like this?”
At his accusation, the pressure that had been building inside your chest abruptly vanished.
You walked toward Ethan, one measured step at a time, and stopped in front of him. The heavy scent of lavender flooded your nose again, so cloying it brought tears to your eyes.
Up close, you finally noticed the faint red mark near his collar.
His bow tie wasn’t tied the way you had done it for him that morning, either.
You couldn’t help wondering when the man you had loved for eight years had become so rotten.
But the answer no longer mattered.
You drew a deep breath and, as Vivian screamed, flipped the table over on the spot.
Then you met Ethan’s livid stare and said, each word cold and clear, “Remember this: I’m the one leaving you.”
After leaving the hotel, you didn’t go home. Instead, you headed to Sterling Enterprises.
With everyone at the annual gala, company headquarters stood deserted.
You unlocked the doors with your fingerprint and walked straight to the executive office at the end of the hall.
The moment you opened the door, the overpowering scent of lavender washed over you. Your stomach churned.
Forcing down the nausea, you headed for Ethan Sterling’s private office lounge.