I reached the hotel entrance, about to call my family for a ride, when I heard hurried footsteps behind me.

"Alexa!"

Grayson came rushing out, Tanya trailing after him, her face pale and drawn.

"What exactly are you trying to do?" I frowned.

"You've gone too far today," Grayson snapped, taking the offensive. "Again and again, you've rejected me. I know you're angry, but if you keep this up, I'll start taking it seriously."

I rolled my eyes, took a deep breath, and said firmly, "I am serious. Grayson, I'm not accepting your proposal. I stopped loving you three years ago. Besides, I'm already married."

Unexpectedly, Grayson let out a short, incredulous laugh. "You don't have to play the married act in front of me. I'm really getting angry."

"Yes, Alexa," Tanya chimed in, moving closer. "Everyone knows you love Grayson. How could you possibly marry someone else? Grayson loves you too. So, I'm willing to let you two be…"

She said this while putting on the same tearful, pitiful expression she always did.

Grayson opened his mouth, muttering, "Impossible… how could you be married? You're wearing the red dress I love most, wearing the perfume I adore—it's obvious you knew I would propose today."

For some reason, trying to reason with them felt utterly futile.

"I am married," I said evenly. "Grayson, we ended things three years ago. Stop harassing me—if anyone sees this, it'll reflect badly.

"My husband loves me. We're happy. And as for the red dress and perfume? Sorry, I don't even remember what you like anymore."

Tanya interrupted, her voice cracking, "Alexa, why do you keep lying to us and hurting Grayson? If you have a husband, why did you come back alone today?"

Grayson's eyes lit up instantly. He looked at me with a spark of hope, as if believing I must still be madly in love with him.

Back then, Grayson and I were childhood sweethearts, our families well-matched. Being together had seemed natural. I, a pampered heiress, had once been willing to cook and tend to him.

Even after his so-called "sister" Tanya appeared, I forgave him over and over, defending him in front of both families.

And what did he give me in return? Repeated betrayals.

He said he only saw Tanya as a sister, but what kind of brother cares for a sister in bed?

Looking back, I must have been completely blind.

But now, facing Grayson, all I felt was annoyance. Not a flicker of anything else.

"Say whatever you want," I said, walking forward without looking back, ignoring the hurt in his eyes. "Just stop bothering me. I don't want to see either of you again."

I had thought I had made it perfectly clear to Grayson: there was no longer any possibility between us.

But the next morning, I was woken not by an alarm, but by an onslaught of messages.

[Alexa, are you getting engaged to Grayson?!]

Confused, I clicked the link my friend had sent—a trending topic on social media.

The moment I saw the headline, my brow furrowed.

[The Caldwell and Hartman Families Unite in a Grand Marriage! Childhood Sweethearts' Love Becomes Reality!]

Below it, a flood of clueless netizens gushed over our supposed romance.

[I'm dead from this cuteness!]

[So the prince-and-princess love story is real!]

[Turns out I'm just an NPC in this world…]

I was about to contact the media to have it taken down when Grayson's call came through.

"Did you see the trending topic? Happy now? I knew you cared about your image. Feeling better?" His voice oozed self-satisfied arrogance.

"Did you leak this?" I asked coldly.

"What's with that tone? Our engagement was already set in stone," he said, his words dripping with condescension. "Let me tell you, agreeing to this engagement is me giving you face. The Caldwell Group is about to enter the international market and become the leading enterprise in the country."

Impossible. Caldwell Group's finances had been shaky for years. I had come back precisely to take over the company!

Feigning casual curiosity, I probed, "Oh? I didn't realize Caldwell Group was doing so well. But I heard from my father that there might be some financial trouble recently?"

"Hmph." Grayson let out a short, dismissive laugh. "Let me be honest with you. I've already contacted internationally renowned investors—they're willing to collaborate with Caldwell Group."

He actually found investors for the Caldwell Group?

If he succeeded, my acquisition plan could be completely ruined.

My pulse tightened, but I masked it with flattery. "I see… so the Caldwell Group is really about to reach a new level. Is there any chance I could meet this investor?"

"Of course," Grayson replied without hesitation. "I've already made the engagement news public. Caldwell Group's stock price has stabilized, and the investors just informed me they'll attend our engagement party in three days."

His voice dropped low. "So, three days from now, you must attend the engagement party. Otherwise, I can't guarantee how it'll affect your company. That's someone you can't afford to provoke."

Hearing the threat in his tone, I pondered silently. A plan began to take shape in my mind.

After a long pause, my voice came out steady and controlled. "Grayson… I'll be there on time for the engagement party in three days."

On the day of the engagement, Grayson had invited hundreds of media outlets—both to create hype and to prove the strength of Caldwell Group to potential investors.

During the ceremony, he wore a façade of deep affection, endlessly narrating to reporters how perfect our love was. I stood beside him, expressionless.

Then, when he played the photos from his "proposal day," his face went pale.

Because the content on the screen wasn't our romantic moments at all—it was a record of Grayson and Tanya's relationship: irrefutable proof of his affair.

There were photos of them celebrating holidays together, screenshots of their sweet chats, even some intimate pictures far beyond innocent.

I took the microphone from him, wiped away imaginary tears for the cameras, and said, "Actually, Grayson had already been unfaithful three years ago!

"He tricked me on New Year's Eve, promising to propose, but stood me up and stayed with his mistress all along! From that day forward, we were already over.

"This supposed engagement was fake news spread by Grayson. He just wanted to use my family name to stabilize his company's stock price!"

The room erupted.

Flashbulbs went off as journalists erupted into a flurry of questions.

[Is Ms. Hartman's claim of infidelity true?]

[Did you really break your engagement during the contract period? How does this affect relations between the Caldwell and Hartman families?]

[Is Caldwell Group really in such poor condition that the CEO has to fake an engagement to stabilize stock prices?]

Online, the public reaction flipped overnight. Yesterday, they envied this "fairy-tale romance." Today, they hated Grayson.

Unable to withstand the barrage of questions, Grayson had no choice but to order security to forcibly remove the reporters.

The engagement ceremony ended in chaos.

With his façade of affection torn away, Grayson could no longer pretend.

The moment the journalists were gone, he turned on me, fury in his eyes.

"Alexa! How dare you? You ruined everything!" he snarled.

I pointed at my phone and smiled. "Caldwell Group's stock has plummeted. Your plans failed."

"So what?" Grayson's eyes widened as he jabbed a finger at my nose. "You ungrateful woman! The investor is coming any minute! Once I finalize the deal, Caldwell Group's stock will skyrocket! And when that happens… the first thing I'll crush will be your company!"

Tanya chimed in, feigning concern. "Alexa, you should apologize to Grayson before it's too late. If you admit your mistake, he'll definitely give you a chance."

I smiled, about to respond, when a familiar voice rang out.

"Am I arriving at an inconvenient time?"

At the sight of the newcomer, Grayson immediately dropped into obsequious flattery, nodding and bowing.

He opened his mouth to speak, but then heard a question he never expected.

"I heard you want my wife's company to go under?"