On the day of our engagement, my boyfriend, Henley Chatham, handed his assistant, Kiara Dalby, an unlimited black card—then set me up with a shared wallet. Daily limit: twenty bucks.

I laughed. Cold. Said no.

He called me materialistic—then spun around and made some grand confession to Kiara.

So I ended it. Right there.

Then I signed with a classified agency.

Five years later, Kiara and I crossed paths at a car wash.

I was in line when she whipped her car in and cut me off.

I couldn't dodge. Metal slammed—my whole front end wrecked.

She rolled her window down. "Hey, you in the back—blind or what? Can't you see my car?"

I let out a short laugh. "You cut me off. Then you crash into me. And somehow that's my fault?"

Kiara sneered, same attitude, just louder. "I cut in line? Please. Every inch of Hawthorne Bay belongs to the Chatham family. Ever heard of Chatham Corp? My boss could shake this whole town with one move."

I actually laughed this time.

Pulled out my phone. Dialed.

"Ex-boyfriend, I hear Hawthorne Bay answers to you now?"

I came to Hawthorne Bay on a top-secret mission. No time to mess around.

If Henley could act like a decent human—for old times—I might've helped him out.

The car I was driving? Not normal. One scratch, one dent—big problem.

The phone rang twice before he picked up. "You're the eighteenth woman today claiming to be my ex."

I barely got a word out before he hung up.

I just stood there.

'...What? Are all CEOs this full of themselves?'

Kiara saw the call drop and lost it—laughing so hard she was shaking.

"Oh please. I thought you were actually our CEO's ex. You even had my boss's number. Turns out you're fake." She smirked. "You're young, so here's some advice—pay up and move on. You don't want to mess with the Chatham family in Hawthorne Bay."

I just stared at her. "You cut in first. However you spin it, this is on you."

Her eyes slid over my car—a Crownell. She sneered.

"Nice try. You're just looking to scam my boss." She scoffed. "Not happening. Someone like you, driving a local brand? You probably can't even scrape together a few bucks. I'm being nice talking to you, and you're still running your mouth?"

The crowd jumped in, loud and eager.

"Yeah, miss—that's Henley Chatham's assistant. Nobody crosses her!"

"Someone really tried to embarrass Henley Chatham? She's asking to get wrecked!"

And of course—someone went live.

"Everyone, look! This woman hit Henley Chatham's car and won't pay. Now she's trying to extort them!"

My expression shifted.

My identity was classified. Cameras were a hard no.

I reached for the phone—Kiara got there first.

"Girls these days look all sweet, but they're just chasing a payout." She angled the camera at me. "C'mon, get a good look. Don't get played by someone like her."

My face filled the screen.

The comments were already digging me up.

Kiara soaked it in, grinning. I frowned.

I'd had elite training since I was a kid. I didn't deal with people like this.

"I'm warning you. Turn off the stream."

She didn't even look at me—just hyped it up more. "Like and follow, guys. Let's expose her!"

The crowd piled on.

"Yeah—dig her up! Let's show what happens when you mess with the Chatham family!"

"She doesn't look like she just sleeps to sleep. How much does she make a day? Bet that Crownell paid for it."

With everyone backing her, Kiara got even louder.

"So that's what you do. No wonder you don't want to be on camera. Scared your 'clients' might see?"

She grabbed my face. "So what are you, huh? Someone's girl?"

My temper snapped. "Someone's girl? All that praise got to your head? Let me spell it out—my status is something you'll never touch in this lifetime."

Guess no one had ever talked to Kiara like that in this city. Her face went red.

"You little tramp—how dare you?" She scoffed. "I'll show you who runs this city!"

She swung.

Right before it landed, someone rushed in and stepped between us.

He caught her wrist. "What do you think you're doing?"

The guy in front of me was tall, broad, built right.

'No wonder I used to fall for him.'

Guess my taste back then wasn't terrible. For a second, Henley almost looked reasonable.

Yeah—no.

He dropped her wrist and walked straight to Kiara's side. "What are you doing, hitting someone in public? Handle it in private."

Kiara lit up the second she saw him. "Mr. Chatham, it's this tramp. She pretended to be your ex and tried to extort you!"

A few of her little fan club jumped in.

"Yeah, Mr. Chatham, she has zero respect for you. You should show her who runs Hawthorne Bay!"

"I heard she's in that kind of business. Shameless."

Only then did Henley finally look at me. "You're—"

He froze. "Suri Selwyn?"

His eyes slid past me to the Crownell behind me. He scoffed. "It's only been a few years, and you've already sunk this low? Driving something like that?"

I let out a dry laugh. Figures—people in a small place like this wouldn't recognize what that car meant back in Norleigh.

Kiara's eyes flickered, then she smirked. "Well, well—you really are Mr. Chatham's ex. Makes sense. Without him, you're nothing. Bet even that cheap local car came from selling yourself."

Henley stared at me, like he couldn't process it. "Is that true? Where'd you get the money for that car?"

I almost felt bad for him. A CEO everyone worshipped—and he couldn't even recognize the model sitting right in front of him.

I kept my voice flat. "Not your business. Stay out of it."

Henley grabbed my arm. "Being broke isn't an excuse to lose your self-respect. I know your family didn't have much, but this? Really?"

I wanted to rip my own eyes out. How was I ever this blind?

Kiara piled on, loving every second. "She just wants fast money and a nice life. Too bad all that effort only got her a cheap local ride. Not even close to Mr. Chatham's limited-edition Porsche."

I swallowed it down, voice steady. "I got this car legally."

Kiara's smirk went sharper. "Legitimate? How legit? The kind where you just lie there and get paid?"

The whispers kicked up.

"So it's true... can't judge a book by its cover."

"Then the car might not even be hers. Maybe she stole it?"

"She's broke—how would she afford a car?"

Kiara latched onto it fast. "Don't tell me you stole it. Someone like you—where would you get that kind of money?"

The car wash owner rushed over. "You stole a car? Get out. You're not welcome here!"

"Call the cops. This is disgusting!"

Someone already had their phone out—but Henley stopped them. His eyes locked on me.

"Suri, show proof you bought it, and I'll believe you."

The car wasn't bought.

It was assigned—classified, off the record.

No receipt.

I frowned, done with both of them. "This kind of car isn't even sold on the open market—so yeah, not stolen either. If you've got a brain, look it up. A numbered Crownell isn't something you mess with."

Kiara didn't even try. Just smirked. "Please. Like I'd believe that. Your cheap little local ride can't be bought outside? Not even a dog would fall for that. I could say our boss's Porsche is the only one in Norleigh. Even the president couldn't buy it."

She turned to Henley.

He nodded, way too pleased. "It's globally limited. Top-grade South African diamonds, hand-selected, all over the car. How's some local junk supposed to compare?"

Kiara snapped a few pics of the Porsche. "See these diamonds? After you hit it, a few fell off. You're paying for that." She tilted her head, fake generous. "I won't go too hard on you. You and Mr. Chatham have history. Out of respect, I'll keep it simple—ten million."

The crowd sucked in a breath.

"What? A few diamonds cost ten million?"

Kiara shot them a look. "You think it's not worth it? If this tramp hadn't blocked me while I cut in, I'd be long gone. Instead, I'm stuck here. Our limited Porsche's been baking in the sun for over an hour because of her. The whole thing's overheated. You think that doesn't count?"

The bystander forced a grin. "It does—of course it does! Honestly, even a hundred million wouldn't be too much!"

"As expected of Henley Chatham. Drops hundreds of millions on a car like it's nothing. Next time I see one, I'm walking way around it. Not going bankrupt today."

"This girl's cursed. Of all cars, she had to hit his."

People started edging back—real quick. A few diamonds meant ten million.

The guy livestreaming quietly ended it.

Henley soaked it up, straightening his designer suit. "How about this, Suri? For old times, I'll cut you a deal. Eight million."

I flicked my hand. "No need. Ten million."

Henley blinked. "Ten million? You've got that kind of money?" He scoffed. "Need I remind you—five years ago, your parents were gone, and I paid your tuition. And now you're acting like this? Think it through. Don't embarrass yourself when you can't pay."

I didn't argue. Just pulled out a check. Ten million.

"I said—ten million."

Silence.

Kiara stared at it, stunned.

I smirked, looking straight at them. "Happy now? I paid. So let's talk about what you owe me."

Something in my voice hit Kiara hard. She ripped the check in half.

"I've never seen a check like this. What, you forged it to play rich?"

Henley just looked disappointed. "Suri, being broke isn't your fault. But breaking the law to save face? That's low."

The crowd got loud again.

"I knew it. No way she has that kind of money—fake!"

"If you're broke, stop pretending! People like that should just disappear!"

"Get out of our city! You're polluting Hawthorne Bay!"

Someone even tossed trash at me.

Henley frowned and stepped in front of me. "Suri, stop being stubborn. I'll give you a black card for your car. Deal?"

I glanced at the chaos and let out a sharp laugh.

I snapped the card in half and dropped it at his feet.

"You really think a black card fixes this?"