My brother brings home a scheming girlfriend. He wants to kick me out of the house for her sake and claims that everything at home belongs to him.

I hand the company over with both hands and leave without hesitation.

Less than a month later, my brother, who can't manage the company, grovels at my feet and begs me to return.

The Woman's Provocation

I was meeting a client at a café when a server splashed coffee on me. Before I could say anything, the server began sobbing. "I didn't do it on purpose!"

Yet the defiance in her eyes was palpable.

I frowned. "Get some tissues for me."

The server begrudgingly handed some tissues over to me and said, "I'm just a student working part-time here. Please don't report me to our boss, okay?"

I was wiping the stain off my clothes, though I figured my effort was in vain. My clothes were already ruined.

"Are you trying to avoid punishment after causing trouble?" I snapped.

"I told you it was an accident," she retorted. "Besides, I already apologized. Why are you making things difficult for me?"

Had the server been upfront about it, I wouldn't have pressed further.

"Just because it's an accident doesn't mean you don't have to compensate me," I reminded sarcastically.

"It's just a shirt! How much is it? I'll pay you," she spat out the words.

Whisking out a few hundred-dollar bills from her wallet, she slammed the money on the table and jerked her chin at me. "Is this enough?"

I shook my head.

Her smug expression froze. Reluctantly pulling out a few more bills, she snarled. "Is it enough now?"

"My clothes are from the latest season," I drawled out. "You can check how much it's worth on the official website."

Some eager onlookers had already checked the price of my clothes and gasped. "Ten thousand dollars?"

The server immediately turned grim. "Are you trying to scam me? How can a shirt possibly cost ten thousand dollars? Come on, I could get plenty of shirts like yours anywhere."

I couldn't be bothered to argue with her. Just as I was about to call the manager, the server's expression changed.

"Miss, I'm sorry," she blurted out.

My client also happened to call at that time.

As I stopped in my tracks, the server quickly added, "Miss, you should answer your phone now. With all your money, surely, this small amount isn't worth fussing over."

…

Since my meeting with my client was suddenly canceled, I headed home instead. Sean said he was going to bring his girlfriend over today.

Hearing his voice outside, I was about to go downstairs when I heard a familiar voice.

"That old woman was an absolute lunatic today! I already apologized to her, yet she refused to let me off the hook. You have no idea how arrogant she was. She was just trying to bully poor people like me. Sean, your sister's nothing like that, right?"

Sean patted his chest and assured her, saying, "Don't worry. Sasha isn't that kind of person!

"Sasha?"

As I descended the stairs, I flashed a smile at the server from the café, who was still gawking at me.

Unaware of the awkwardness between us, Sean led his girlfriend toward me and said, "Sasha, this is my girlfriend, Isobel Lane. Izzie, meet my sister."

Isobel froze. "Hi, Sasha…"

"Don't bother," I said indifferently and sat down. "You just called me an old woman earlier."

Sean finally caught up. "Izzie, so the woman you met at the café earlier was my sister? What a coincidence!"

Looking wronged, Isobel hung her head low and murmured, "Sasha, does that mean you're still mad at me?"

I was rendered speechless.

"Sasha has plenty of clothes. Losing one isn't a big deal," Sean said, rushing to comfort her. "Hush, don't cry."

"I know." Isobel sobbed, leaning into Sean. "I might come from a poor background, but I've never thought of taking advantage of you guys. I'll compensate Sasha for her shirt."

"Forget it. We're family, after all," Sean said.

He then turned to me and shook my arms, pleading, "Sasha, have some pity on Izzie, will you? You're the bigger person, so just let this go, okay?"

Slightly uneasy from his rough grip, I chided, "You're not a child anymore, but you're still acting like one."

Sean beamed. "Sasha, is that a yes?"

He turned toward Isobel and quickly urged, "Izzie, say thanks to Sasha now!"

Isobel reluctantly complied.

After all, she was Sean's girlfriend. My expression softened as I said, "You're still young, so be more mindful of your actions. I don't expect much from you two. Sean's my only brother, and I genuinely wish the best for both of you."

"Sasha, don't worry," Sean chimed in happily. "Izzie's the best. When the time comes, we'll both help you out at the company so that you won't tire yourself."

I nodded in relief. "You two have fun at home. I still have some work to handle at the company."

"Sure. You've worked hard, Sasha."

As I was about to reach the garage, I suddenly realized I had forgotten something and turned back.

"Sean, is your sister in charge of the company?"

"Yeah. I'm still young, so it doesn't matter if I have fun for a few more years. I'll also have more time to be with you."

"But I've seen news about siblings fighting over a company. You and your sister get along well, but you should still be cautious."

I didn't hear Sean's response, nor did I plan to go back inside. I simply turned around and left.

For Sean's Sake

On the weekend, Sean brought Isobel back home to meet Grandma.

"Sasha." Sean came downstairs. "Izzie wants to try some of your homemade bread. Can you bake some for her?"

"Sure," I said, setting aside my work.

As I rolled up my sleeves and headed to the kitchen, Sean beamed at me. "Sasha, you're the best."

"Of course." I flashed him an indulgent smile.

Since our parents passed away, it had always been the two of us. We were the closest family we had, and I had always pampered him.

I took some eggs from the fridge while Sean lingered beside me instead of leaving right away. After a while, he suddenly asked, "Sasha, will you give me anything I want?"

The kitchen fell silent.

He went back to his bubbly demeanor again after a few seconds. "I heard a car outside. It must be Grandma. I'll go greet her!"

He left. After what felt like ages had passed, I sighed.

By the time the bread was ready, dinner had already been prepared. Isobel came downstairs and linked arms with Grandma, saying, "Agnes, I have good news for you."

Grandma, who had been quite unhappy with Sean's choice of girlfriend, suddenly burst into laughter after hearing Isobel whisper in her ear.

"That's wonderful! That's some great news, indeed. Hurry up and sit down—don't tire yourself out."

"Agnes, I'm fine," Isobel replied gently.

Placing the freshly baked bread in front of her, I said, "It's still quite hot. Let it cool before eating it."

Yet she didn't seem to hear me. She continued chatting with Grandma instead.

"Agnes, can I come visit you whenever I'm free?"

"Of course! I'd be happier than anyone to have you here."

Feeling somewhat awkward, I simply withdrew my hand and sat down.

Now that Isobel had Grandma wrapped around her finger, she finally turned toward the bread in front of her. Disgust filled her expression as she screeched, "This is way too greasy! Who put this here? Don't they know that pregnant women can't indulge in sweet stuff?"

Since Grandma's future great-grandchild was involved, she immediately got all worked up and slammed her hand on the table. "Who put it here? Do they want to get fired?"

Just then, Sean walked in and caught only the tail end of the conversation.

"Sasha baked it for Izzie. What's wrong, Grandma?"

Grandma swerved toward me with a distant look in her eyes. "Sasha, Izzie is pregnant now, and she can't stand sweet or greasy food. Don't serve this kind of food from now on."

Sean tried to interject, saying, "Grandma, I was the one who—"

"Sean, I feel like going for a walk," Isobel suddenly said. "Will you come with me?"

"Sure." He turned toward Grandma and me. "I'll take Izzie outside for a bit."

He gave me an apologetic look, and I returned it with a smile to reassure him I was fine. As I turned around, I caught the triumphant glint in Isobel's eyes.

I frowned, fully aware that she had framed me on purpose. But for Sean's sake, I held back.

It had been ages since Grandma last received wonderful news, and she couldn't stop smiling.

"Sasha, please don't ever do this again," she chided. "A woman has to be extra careful during the early stages of pregnancy. You're Sean's sister, so you have to take care of them. Won't you have to rely on them too when you get old?"

What she said didn't sit well with me, but considering her old age, I said nothing.

"Let's go, Grandma. I'll take you back."

…

I had been so busy that the next time I saw Sean was in my office.

"What a rare guest," I remarked with a chuckle.

Scratching his head, Sean said, "I happened to pass by with Izzie, so I figured I'd drop in. I didn't expect the new building to be this luxurious… Sasha, does the whole building belong to us?"

Once My Brother

"We also have other companies," I replied.

"That's great," Sean remarked. "I heard this area is really expensive. By the way, Sasha, I'm planning to work at the company once Izzie's pregnancy is stable. What position can you offer me?"

I called Ellis Wood, my secretary, through the intercom and asked her about the available vacancies.

As soon as Sean heard the positions Ellis mentioned, his expression hardened.

"Sasha, I'm your brother, aren't I? It'd be embarrassing if people find out I'm holding such a minor position," he said, his amused tone belying his embarrassed expression.

After signaling Ellis to leave, I replied, "You've never been involved in company matters, so it's best to start with the basics. That way, it'll also be easier for me to promote you later."

"But you immediately became the head of the company back then," Sean blurted out. "Since you're doing so well, why can't I?"

"Sean, things are different now," I replied. "I had no choice but to take that position back then. But now, there are so many employees relying on their salaries to survive. If the people in charge make one wrong move, those employees will be the ones to suffer."

Worried that I was being too harsh, I softened my tone and continued, "I'll arrange for someone to mentor you. Once you've learned and gained experience, no one will doubt you when I promote you in the future."

"Fine," Sean reluctantly agreed. "I'll leave you to your work, then."

Watching him leave, I pressed my forehead and sat down.

"Ms. Carrington, you're having a headache again," Eliis remarked as she entered and poured me a glass of water. "Mr. Carrington is really awful… You're already struggling to hold things together at the company, yet he's still trying to make things worse for you."

I took a sip of water and said nothing.

Ellis stepped aside and said, "Ms. Carrington, Mr. Yeager just called. He wants to have lunch with you."

"Cancel it."

…

Perhaps out of his dissatisfaction with the position I arranged for him, Sean spent five million dollars in just a few days.

Karl Yeager told me that Sean had custom-ordered a five-carat diamond ring at his store.

The next day, Isobel and Sean came to me. Carefully supporting Isobel, Sean announced, "Sasha, we're getting married."

"That's great! When's the date?"

"We don't want to wait until Izzie is showing, so we're planning to have the wedding next month."

"Alright. I'll be sure to give you both a big wedding gift."

"Thanks, Sasha."

As Sean faltered and fumbled with his next words, Isobel urged, "Say it. Hurry up!"

I smiled. "Is there anything else?"

Taking a deep breath, Sean asked, "Sasha, can you give me Beaugor Villa?"

I looked up in surprise, wondering if I had misheard.

"Izzie is still studying, so it'd be more convenient for her if we had that house as our marital home," Sean explained.

I was so infuriated that I barked out a laugh. "Have you forgotten why I bought that house in the first place?"

I wanted to stay somewhere near the company. After tiring myself out the whole day at the office, it was always almost midnight when I was finally done with my work. I just wanted to have somewhere near to rest.

Honestly, seeing my own brother side with someone else made me really upset.

We were both orphans and only had each other as family. After our parents passed, I worked so hard to secure our family business. To save time commuting, I bought a house near my company, and Sean was well aware of that.

"Sasha, can't you just buy another house? Izzie's in love with Beaugor Villa," Sean continued, his voice tinged with irritation.

His patience was clearly running thin as he bellowed, "Or you just can't bear to give it to me at all? You said you'd do anything for me. Was that a lie, after all?"