Breaking

Janet Winget POV

“Janet, get a job and try to be civil.”

The prison guard’s voice scraped against my nerves. I nodded lazily, barely listening. Three years locked away for a crime I never committed. Not a single visitor. My own parents and fiancé had betrayed me—all to “teach me a lesson.”

The moment I stepped outside, cold rain hit my skin relentlessly. Perfect. Because when has my life ever gone right?

I took a step forward.

A Porsche screeched to a stop in front of me.

My breath hitched. I knew that car. Knew the plate number. Knew the man inside the car.

Dalton Maris. My fiancé. My betrayer.

The window rolled down, revealing the face I hadn’t seen in three years. Still devastatingly handsome. Still cruel.

“Get in.” His voice was the same. Calm. Commanding. Like nothing had happened. Like he hadn’t let me rot in prison without a word.

My body screamed run, but my mind tangled itself in the past. I shouldn’t have cared. I shouldn’t have felt anything.

But I did.

I swallowed hard. “I—”

“Don’t waste my time, Janet.”

Fingers curling around the hem of my soaked dress, I hesitated. My legs felt unsteady, but I climbed in anyway, pressing myself against the door as far from him as possible.

The heater blasted warmth, but it couldn’t touch the ice in my veins.

“Drive,” Dalton ordered.

Eli, his assistant, glanced at me. Pity? Concern? It didn’t matter.

The car jerked to a sudden stop. My head slammed into the front seat.

Dalton sighed. “You can’t even sit properly? And people call you a Winget?”

I bit my tongue. Biting back was useless. “I’m sorry.”

His lips curled. “No need. I’ll just toss it out.”

I turned to him, voice quiet but sharp. “Because I touched it?”

His gaze flickered. “Only Lia is worthy enough to sit beside me.”

There it was. The familiar ache. The reminder that I was nothing next to Lia, the adopted daughter they’d always loved more.

“We’re here,” Eli murmured.

The house loomed before me. Once a home. Now just another cage.

Dalton stepped out. “Get her changed. She’s filthy.”

Eli shot me an apologetic look, but I barely registered it.

As I walked inside, the maids sneered.

“How long has it been since you bathed?”

Even the maids had stopped respecting me.

“Just give me the clothes.” My voice was steady, but my fingers trembled as I took them and headed to the room.

I locked the bathroom door behind me, exhaling shakily.

The quiet was deafening.

My reflection stared back. Gaunt. Hollow. Eyes too dark. Lips too pale. A ghost of the girl I used to be.

I scrubbed my skin raw under the hot water. But some stains don’t wash off.

When I stepped out, my damp feet slipped on the polished floor.

I braced for the fall.

Strong arms caught me.

Dalton.

He held me effortlessly, fingers digging into my waist. A cigarette dangled between his lips, smoke curling toward my face.

His smirk was lazy, dangerous. “Three years in prison, and this is what you learned? Seducing men?”

Heat burned my cheeks. I pushed against his chest. “Dalton, just because I had feelings for you doesn’t mean you can keep throwing insults.”

He arched a brow. “So you learned to talk back?”

I clenched my fists. This wasn’t the time. The fight wasn’t worth it.

Dalton exhaled slowly. “Lia’s birthday is tonight. You’ll behave, won’t you?”

I said nothing.

He didn’t care.

---

Winget Villa – The Party

The house pulsed with music, laughter, light. But the moment we stepped inside, all eyes turned to me. Whispers followed.

“Why is Lia the favored daughter when Janet’s the real one?”

“Bloodlines don’t matter. Lia built the company.”

“Janet’s been gone for years. What did she even do?”

I kept my back straight, my expression blank. That’s all I ever did.

First, the orphanage. Then, the day I thought I’d finally found my parents, only to learn it was another lie. Even Dalton, the man I’d fallen in love with, had never once looked at me that way.

In prison, I was beaten daily. And the ones who did it? They said Dalton ordered them to.

I never believed it.

Or maybe it just hurt too much to admit.

"She was in prison," someone whispered, jolting me from my thoughts.

Silence.

Dalton’s gaze flicked to the speaker. The woman paled instantly.

“I misspoke,” she stammered. “Of course, Janet was abroad.”

Too late. The damage was done. They knew. They all knew.

A man chuckled. “With Janet back, things must be interesting for Mr. Maris. You two were engaged, right? Any wedding plans?”

Dalton’s eyes turned to ice. “Mind your own business.”

The man swallowed. “I didn’t mean to offend—”

Dalton smirked. “You couldn’t offend me. You’re just a disturbance.”

Before the man could respond, he was cut off.

“Attention, everyone! Today is my sweet daughter’s birthday.”

My eyes landed on my parents. Smiling. Radiant. My mother made the announcement while Lia stood beside them, looking like a princess.

Unlike me.

For years, I missed them.

Hoped—prayed—that one day they’d come see me.

They never did.

And now, watching them, I saw the truth as clear as day.

They were happier without me.

I’d denied it for so long, but tonight, the truth shone so brightly, I couldn’t blind myself to it anymore.

“Hope you’re all enjoying yourselves,” my mother continued, “but we have something to announce.”

What now?

I glanced at Dalton. He stood perfectly at ease, like none of this was a surprise.

It hurt. More than I could bear.

But as much as I hated them, I hated myself more. Because here I was, standing among them like a fool.

Like a bitch.

“We want to hold the official engagement of our daughter and Dalton.”

The words hit like a slap.

Official engagement?

What?

Today?

No one told me. No one said a word.

Dalton and I got engaged in a private family gathering, so if today is the official announcement, why wasn’t I informed? And why are they announcing it on Lia’s birthday?

“Lia and Dalton are a perfect match,” my mother said, beaming. “So we decided to hold the engagement today.”

A hollow ringing filled my ears. I blinked, waiting for someone to correct them, for someone to say this was a mistake.

No one did.

How can they do this?

I had loved Dalton since childhood. He was my fiancé. And yet, they stood there, saying it like it was nothing.

Like I was nothing.

My heart burned.

I turned to Dalton.

He stood beside me, lips curved into a smile. Did he bring me here just to humiliate me?

Tears threatened, but this wasn’t just sadness.

This was devastation.

The kind that clawed at your chest, made it hard to breathe.

I wanted to cry my heart out.

But I refused to break.

Not here. Not in front of them.

“On Lia’s birthday, we are holding the engagement,” my father announced. “Please bless these two.”

The betrayal cut deep, but I refused to let it show.

I lifted my chin, forcing my expression into something unreadable. Let them think I was indifferent. Let them believe I didn’t care.

But I wasn’t.

Dalton hadn’t even spared me a glance. Lia stood there, glowing in the spotlight, soaking up the attention. My parents beamed at her like she was the greatest thing to ever happen to them.

And maybe, to them, she was.

A slow clap broke the moment.

"How touching," a voice drawled from the crowd.

All heads turned toward the entrance.

A tall man stepped forward, his presence commanding, his sharp gaze locking onto mine. His tailored black suit fit him like a second skin, exuding wealth and power. The crowd murmured, shifting uncomfortably as he walked deeper into the room.

Dalton’s jaw tightened.

My parents stiffened.

I frowned. Who?

The man stopped in front of me, eyes glinting with something unreadable. "Janet Winget." He said my name like he owned it.

I swallowed. "Who are you?"

Dalton’s entire body tensed beside me. The murmurs grew louder, uncertainty rippling through the crowd.

The stranger’s eyes gleamed with something dangerous—something almost possessive.

Then, without warning, he grabbed my chin and tilted my face toward his. Before I could react, his lips brushed against mine.

A collective gasp echoed through the room.

Heat flared in my chest, but it wasn’t from the kiss—it was from the way he did it. Not tender. Not affectionate. Just a statement. A claim.

I pushed him away, breath unsteady. “What the hell—”

He smirked, gaze flicking to Dalton. “Well done, Janet,” he murmured, voice laced with amusement. “Breaking your engagement with him… for me.”