Back then, when I was in the hospital, Melissa stayed by my side, clinging to me with tears streaming down her face. "Don't kill yourself working. I just want you to be safe and well."

But now she'd forgotten that her company only stood shoulder to shoulder with Zucker Group because I backed her behind the scenes.

I fought the board for her again and again, even signed a 300 million guarantee, betting everything on her success.

She promised she'd repay me and marry me.

The truth? She found another man, and even used me as a stepping stone for his sake.

Nicolas sneered, his words sharpened to provoke. "Mr. Zucker, don't get so worked up. Melissa despises how easily you snap. Keep this up, and she'll never agree to marry you."

He smirked. "I really do hope you two patch things up. Today's the big day for your marriage license, isn't it?"

The words "marriage license" struck like a whip. I snarled, "It's not your place to run your mouth. Get out of my house!"

Melissa took Nicolas' hand, a reproachful frown creasing her brow. "If you'd apologized to Nicky, I might have helped you for old times' sake. But it's clear you haven't learned a thing. Then take this as your lesson."

The door slammed, echoing through the house.

I looked at the wedding decorations we'd put up around the house, and a bleak chill crept in.

Human hearts were fickle. Whatever love Melissa once had for me had vanished in a heartbeat.

I headed to the office to put the merger meeting between Zucker Group and Young Group on hold.

But before I arrived, Melissa had already called the meeting to announce the end of our engagement.

"I regret to inform the board that the merger between Young Group and Zucker Group is officially off. My engagement to Leonel is also cancelled. I can't allow my company to be tied to a tarnished name."

She added, "Furthermore, I'm pleased to announce my engagement to Nicolas, who will be joining Young Group as vice president."

I stood at the doorway of the meeting room, watching her and Nicolas speak before everyone, their hands entwined in plain view.

Barely able to contain his excitement, Nicolas wrapped an arm around Melissa and proclaimed, "I'm beyond grateful to Ms. Young for this incredible opportunity. She's given me the chance to rise into a social class I never thought I'd reach. More importantly, she's made it possible for me to marry the woman I love."

Melissa rose on her toes, cupped his face, and sealed it with a kiss.

The sight hit like a dagger to my eyes, a sharp burning sting.

I forced myself to regain my composure and stepped forward to interrupt the meeting. "Melissa, this merger meeting between our companies should be led by both of us. What gave you the right to convene it without me?"

Her gaze swept over me, cold and detached. "I'm protecting my company by ending my engagement to a man mired in scandal. How is that wrong?" she said indifferently. "As a business leader, I act in my company's best interest."

Nicolas gloated, deliberately raising his voice. "Ms. Young, why bother lying to him? Just tell him the truth."

Then he turned to me. "My apologies, Leonel. Ms. Young called this meeting to settle the score for me and to make sure everyone gives me the respect I deserve."

His words sounded apologetic, but his eyes betrayed a gleam of triumph.

The pain in my chest was so overwhelming I could hardly breathe. I looked into Melissa's eyes. "I have just one question. Did you ever consider my feelings in any of this—"

"Why should I care about your feelings? It's over between us, Leonel! I'm done with you!" she cut me off. "You used our marriage as a stepping stone to boost your company's profile. For a man who plotted every detail of the engagement for his own gain, why should I care how you feel?"

She hurled accusation after accusation at me, each dripping with hate.

But she'd forgotten how she once begged me to help raise her company's profile. I stayed up all night drafting a plan and finally decided to help her by tying our companies through marriage.

Her face had lit up with admiration when I proposed it.

"Honey, you're incredible! This won't just put our companies on the map. It's going to make our wedding the talk of the town," Melissa had said, her eyes glowing with admiration. "I'm the happiest woman alive."

Now, I let out a bitter, self-mocking laugh. There was nothing left worth asking.

Just as I turned to leave, she stopped me and flung a stack of papers onto the table.

"Since the engagement is off, you'll hand back your 20% stake in Young Group. That was meant for my fiance. And now, Nicky is my fiance."

Nicolas handed me a pen with mock politeness and said, "Come on, Leonel. You're filthy rich. A few shares like this don't mean a thing to you, right?

"Thanks for stepping aside. I'll make a great vice president at Young Group and take good care of Melissa."

My grip on the pen faltered. I looked up at Melissa, her face set in cold impatience, a cruel contrast to the excitement she'd shown me the day she first handed me those shares.

I clicked the pen and signed my name in one decisive stroke.

Without looking back, I walked out of the office and called my secretary.

"The chairman's approval has come through. Start pulling our investment from Young Group tomorrow," I said coldly. "The sooner, the better. I don't want to see their faces in public another minute."

Zucker Group's legal team jumped into the online fray and redirected the narrative toward Melissa's cheating.

As the tide of online abuse against me eased, I finally felt a moment of peace.

But the next morning, Young Group held a press conference.

On the screen, Melissa held Nicolas' hand and declared solemnly, "I'm here today to announce that Young Group will be renamed YouGib Group. This is a promise I made to my fiance."

Then she turned it around on me. "The people attacking me online were hired by Leonel. I've put up with his volatile temper and controlling ways for years. It got so bad I couldn't even have dinner with anyone without his permission.

"Nicky's the only one who's ever stood by me, quietly supporting every decision I've made. So today, I, Melissa Young, want to make it clear. Whatever it takes, I'll fight Zucker Group to the very end."

Almost immediately, my phone buzzed nonstop with messages.

"Mr. Zucker, YouGib Group has poached a large number of Zucker Group's clients and resources. Many of our projects have come to a standstill."

"That's not the worst of it. Melissa convinced several shareholders to withdraw their investments and move them to YouGib Group instead."

Those were the clients and resources I'd secured before our engagement, all to prepare for the merger of our companies.

Once we were married, the merger would go through, and those resources would be ours to share.

But I didn't expect her to snatch away all the groundwork I'd laid for our marriage alliance without a word.

Anger shook me to my core, and I went straight to confront Melissa.

"Melissa, our engagement is over! What makes you think you can take resources meant for our merger?" I said. "Don't you realize this is corporate fraud?"

Melissa signed the incorporation papers for her new company, then shot me a dismissive glance. "I had every right to those resources. Why wouldn't I take them?"

She scoffed and added, "Maybe you should ask yourself why the shareholders and partners chose me over you—a man with a ruined reputation who dragged his company's name through the mud."

My fist clenched as I roared, "Ruined reputation? You know damn well whether those rumors were true, and who threw me into this mess!"

She ignored my fury and shoved me aside as if I were nothing. Linking arms with Nicolas, she said coldly, "Are you done? Nicolas and I are heading to our new office site. Do us a favor and stop wasting our time."

Melissa looked at me as if I were some unreasonable stranger throwing a tantrum.

A look of smug satisfaction spread across Nicolas' face as he said in a patronizing tone, "Why don't you come with us, Leonel? After all, we couldn't have launched this new company without your help."

He smirked and added, "That's so generous of you, Leonel. Not only did you give up Melissa, but you even handed us all those resources."

White-hot anger shot to my head. I snapped and swung my fist at him. "Nicolas, this is your last warning. You don't get to talk to me like that!"

But before my fist even touched him, he stumbled back, crashing into a table and chairs with a loud bang.

His voice instantly turned tearful and wounded. "I really did want to thank you, Leonel. Why are you so hostile toward me? Is it because my dad works as your family's chauffeur, and I'm destined to spend my whole life being looked down on?"

His words struck a chord within Melissa. She grabbed my arm and shoved me against the sharp corner of the table. Again and again, more than a dozen times, she slammed me against it.

A searing pain shot through me, and I felt like the bones in my back were on the verge of snapping.

Finally, she let go of me and helped Nicolas to his feet.

"Leonel, who do you think you are, looking down on Nicky? Since you think you're above him, I'll make you swallow your pride before him."

"Get on your knees and apologize to Nicky!" she demanded.

I pressed a hand to my aching back and met her gaze with a cold stare. "What if I don't?"

She let out a cold laugh, her eyes gleaming with malice. "Fine. You asked for it. Leonel, have you forgotten what I'm holding over you?"

Then she barked an order. "Call an immediate meeting with the legal department. I've got a bombshell to drop."

My heart clenched, and I rushed out after her.

The bodyguards blocked me at the conference room door. Inside, Melissa was live-streaming a press conference.

"Here's the bombshell," she said. "Leonel from Zucker Group? His mom's nothing but a homewrecker! Leonel, a homewrecker's son, doesn't deserve to be the CEO of Zucker Group."

A violent tremor ran through me. I froze in place, completely blindsided.

I'd only ever shared my past with her. And I'd made it crystal clear that Mom wasn't a homewrecker. It was Dad's ex-wife who dragged out their divorce for five years, all because she wanted a bigger settlement.

Back then, Melissa had comforted me, saying my origins weren't my fault. But now, those same sweet words had turned into blades, cutting me to pieces.

Nicolas fanned the flames for the cameras. "You can imagine what kind of man a homewrecker's son grows up to be. And who knows how many shady deals are being pulled in a company run by someone like that?"

He continued, "If it were me, I'd have packed up and crawled back to whatever hole I came from. How does he even have the nerve to call himself a CEO?"

Melissa's icy glare fell on me as I stood outside the conference room. She raised the microphone and spoke with deliberate clarity. "From now on, Young Group will pay triple to monopolize every company that works with Zucker Group. Anyone who dares to work with Leonel is making an enemy of me!"

Unfazed, I chuckled in her face. Then I pulled out my phone and told Victor, "She wants to monopolize all my partnerships? Let's see how deep her pockets really are. Pull all of our investments from Young Group now."

Five minutes later, as Melissa tearfully poured out the hardships of her relationship with Nicolas, she answered a call. In an instant, the color drained from her face.