I looked up to see Melanie storming into the office. I started to move toward her, but Jeffrey beat me to it. He smoothly pulled her halfway into his embrace, acting like they were already a couple.

My steps froze.

Melanie's face was full of anger as she marched up to me. Then, without warning, she slapped me hard across the face. The sharp crack echoed through the entire office.

"Kieran! What the hell is wrong with you?!" Melanie jabbed her finger at my nose, her voice cutting like a knife. "Why are you bullying Jeffrey? Who do you think you are?!"

I clutched my stinging cheek, staring at her in disbelief. At that moment, even a fool would have understood what was going on.

The whispers in the office were true: Melanie had been cheating on me all along.

Rage surged through me so fast my whole body trembled. I glared at her, my voice shaking. "Melanie, we're married. Are you really going to throw that away for him? I worked my back off to help you build this company from the ground up. Maybe I wasn't perfect, but you really think this is how I deserve to be treated?"

Before Melanie could answer, Jeffrey cut in. He lifted his head and looked at me smugly. "Kieran, you just don't understand women. What they need most is companionship and warmth. Do you even get that?"

The sight of his arrogant expression made my stomach turn.

Melanie's gaze softened as she turned to him with affection. When she looked back at me, her eyes were filled with disgust.

"Kieran, did you hear that? Jeffrey is a hundred times better than you! He's kind, attentive, and he actually helps me run the company and make money! Compared to a deadbeat like you who's never home and just messes around outside all the time, he's better in every possible way!"

A deadbeat?

I laughed bitterly at the absurdity of it all. Back when she was running this tiny startup with just the two of us, the company was on the verge of bankruptcy. I threw myself into it, hunting down clients, closing deals, drinking, and schmoozing until my legs gave out and my stomach was destroyed.

The company's revenue grew exponentially right before our eyes, transforming from a failing operation into a well-known name in the industry.

Melanie? She had pursued me relentlessly, crying and begging, swearing she would never marry anyone but me. I was moved by her devotion, so I turned down offers from top-tier companies and willingly stayed with her little startup.

While I spent countless nights chasing clients to give Melanie a better life, she was busy rekindling an old flame with her childhood sweetheart. Everything I had sacrificed for her had become something she simply took for granted, and my absence from home had even become her excuse for cheating.

I stared at the shameless pair in front of me, feeling my heart grow colder by the second.

In front of everyone, I challenged Melanie. "Have you forgotten that almost every single client this company has was brought in by me? Aren't you afraid that if I leave, this whole company will collapse?"

The moment I finished speaking, Melanie, Jeffrey, and even the sales team erupted in mocking laughter.

They had been itching to take down the guy who never showed up to the office but still held the top sales spot.

"Who does he think he is?"

"You really think the company can't function without you? Get over yourself!"

"Exactly! Ms. Gardner has Mr. Young now. Who needs you anymore?"

Melanie joined in with a cold laugh, her eyes dripping with sarcasm. "Kieran, get it through your head: you're just a salesman. And pretty soon, you won't even be that. Now that I have Jeffrey, he's so much better than you. You're nothing but a discarded pawn I don't want anymore."

I felt my heart turn completely cold.

Alright.

I looked at her calmly and said, "In that case, let's get a divorce. I'll do you a favor and clear the way for you and your homewrecker."

Jeffrey acted like he had just heard the funniest joke in the world. Then, he pulled a marriage certificate from his briefcase, contemptuously hurling it at my face.

"Take a good look! Now, who's the real homewrecker here?!"

I picked up the document from the floor and opened it. Sure enough, it was their marriage certificate.

My mind went blank.

Melanie spoke with smug satisfaction. "That's right. The marriage certificate I had with you was fake. I only did it to keep you loyal and hardworking, so you'd earn more money for me. Now that the company's on track, and I've got Jeffrey to back me up, you're useless."

Her tone even carried a hint of relief as she continued, "Everything I own has nothing to do with you. You can get out now."

I wanted nothing more than to tear this shameless pair apart. Nonetheless, I forced down my rage and looked at Melanie.

I spoke slowly, deliberately, "Fine, the marriage was fake. But my shares in the company are real, aren't they? I'm also a shareholder in this company. If you want me gone, then cash out my shares and give me what I'm owed."

Considering my percentage of ownership, if I were to leave, Melanie's company would take a significant hit.

However, Melanie raised an eyebrow and laughed mockingly. "Shares? Who said you have any shares? Kieran, are you dumb? Those documents were all fake! I tricked you into signing them just to mess with you."

Then, she pulled out a set of keys and tossed them onto the floor. "But since you've worked like a mule for me all these years, I'll be generous. That old, crappy house we ‘bought' when we faked the marriage? Take it as your severance package. Now get lost."

I nodded slowly. "Fine. Just great."

I turned, ready to walk away from this place that made me sick to my stomach.

"Wait!" Melanie suddenly called out to me.

She added, "Hand over that multi-million dollar deal you're currently negotiating to Jeffrey. And leave all the client files you have as well. Otherwise, I'll sue you for stealing company trade secrets and have you thrown in prison!"

I had no desire to get tangled up with them any longer.

I pulled a flash drive from my briefcase and tossed it over my shoulder without looking back. Jeffrey and the sales team erupted in thunderous cheers, as if my departure would instantly shower them with riches.

They had no idea that without my personal involvement, those clients would never do business with the company.

I watched the celebrating crowd and took one last look at Melanie. "I hope your company goes bankrupt real soon, Melanie."

Then, I turned to Jeffrey. "A talentless fraud like you calling yourself a sales director? Just wait. You'll run this company straight into the ground."

Jeffrey quickly put on a self-righteous expression and wrapped an arm around Melanie's shoulders. He said with false sympathy, "Don't be mad, Melanie. He's just upset about getting fired and talking nonsense."

Melanie looked at me with pure arrogance and hissed, "Kieran, you're just jealous! Jeffrey is a hundred times more capable than you! Everyone here will see soon enough what a real top closer looks like!"

I laughed.

That was fine by me. I wanted to see how this useless parasite she had hired at top dollar would ever become the future sales champion.

Melanie handed over all the company's sales operations to Jeffrey's management.

As for herself, she continued doing what she had always done: checking employees' attendance logs and making sure everyone clocked in. Then, she spent the rest of her time flooding social media with photos of her and Jeffrey, flaunting their relationship at every opportunity.

She had probably long forgotten how she had gone from living in that tiny 300-square-foot dump to her current 2000-square-foot luxury penthouse. She had forgotten how she could drop ridiculous amounts of money without blinking on useless designer items that just sat around looking pretty.

I built all this–one drink at a time, one contract after another, painstakingly accumulated over the years.

...

I gave myself a week off. During that week, my phone practically exploded with calls. Headhunters and CEOs from major companies were all reaching out, offering incredibly tempting positions just to get me on board.

Among them was Melanie's biggest rival and the true industry leader, Everise Group.

Fiona Edwards, Everise Group's CEO, personally called me three times. The offer she made was impossible to refuse.

"Kieran, come to Everise Group, and I'll give you fifty percent of the company's shares. You won't be my employee; you'll be my partner. The two of us will run Everise Group, together."

I accepted Fiona's invitation. However, what I did not expect was that on my very first day at Everise Group, Melanie showed up at the company entrance with Jeffrey in tow, ready for a fight.

Fiona had gathered all the company executives in the lobby, lined up to give me a grand welcome ceremony. Before anyone could even deliver the welcome speech, Melanie's shrill voice cut through the air.

"Kieran! You ungrateful, two-faced snake! Wasn't mooching off me enough for you? You joined my rival company just to humiliate me, didn't you? You're trying to steal my business, aren't you?"

She pointed at my face, yelling like a madwoman who had completely lost control.

Jeffrey stood beside her, adding fuel to the fire with his usual smug tone. "Kieran, leave some room to breathe, man. Don't burn every bridge. You're making yourself look pathetic."