Chapter One

Amelia's POV

I miss the days when I could have whatever I wanted without having to sweat for it, I thought miserably.

"Enjoy your meal, Sir," I said with a bright smile.

I didn't bother waiting for a response before I turned and began to walk back to the kitchen. Just two more tables left, and would finally be able to take a much deserved break.

"Hey," the man called from behind me. "Waitress!"

I wanted nothing more than to scream and throw something at him, but that would mean instant joblessness. So I pasted a big smile on my face and went back to answer him.

"Is there a problem, Sir?" I asked.

"Of course there is," he replied, looking at me like I was either stupid or playing a prank.

"What could that be?" I said, my cheeks hurting from all the fake smiling.

"I ordered grilled turkey, not grilled chicken," he replied.

I blinked, startled. I looked at the meal, then at him. Then at the table I served just before his own, only to see the couple there glaring daggers at me.

Damn it, I thought. I've mixed up the orders again.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" he snapped, shooting to his feet. "Do you need to be taught how to do your own job? Screw this, I'm calling your manager."

And that was how I found myself in the Manager's office moments later, getting yelled at for the second time.

"You have only been here for a week, yet you've made more mistakes that anybody else!" he yelled. "Why the heck are you so useless?!"

"I'm sorry, Sir," I replied humbly, keeping my head down.

Inside, I was fuming. I wanted to stuff something inside that stupid mouth of his.

How dare he talk to me like this? I thought angrily. He thinks he can insult me just because I'm his employee? He wouldn't have dared to look at my face back when my family was wealthy, much less say a word to me.

"If you do something so careless one more time, I am going to fire you immediately. You suck at this job anyway, and I won't have you giving my restaurant a bad name!"

"I'm sorry, Sir," I repeated through gritted teeth.

"Of course you are," he replied mockingly. "You're always sorry but you never stop repeating the same stupid mistakes. I should have fired you long ago—"

"Then why not fire me right now?!" I shouted before I could stop myself. "You keep threatening to do it so just do it and spare both of us this nonsense. It's not like you ever liked me anyway!"

He stared at me, stunned into silence.

I didn't wait to see the effect of my words. I just turned and barged out of the office, banging the door behind me. I marched angrily down the corridor, only to turn at a corner and see Nancy standing there, staring at me with eyes round as dinner plates.

Nancy Styles, my best friend. My only friend, actually. She was the one who had been there for me after my family went bankrupt and my abusive father abandoned me to fend for myself. She was also the one that found me this job, and every other job before it, all of which I had been fired from. Looking at her, I felt guilty.

If I got fired from this job as well, it would fill her with worry.

"I know, I know," I said with a sigh, "I shouldn't have yelled at him."

"Yes," she agreed. "You really shouldn't have yelled at him."

I sighed again and began to head outside the building for some fresh air. Nancy walked beside me, still talking.

"Amelia," she said, "this is your fifth job this month, and the month hasn't even ended. It's like you keep getting yourself thrown out on purpose."

"No, I never got myself fired on purpose," I replied.

I had been tempted to, but each time I would think of the effort she put into getting me the job, and would try to do my best. Not that it ever helped.

"So what's going on? Why are you so upset?" she asked.

"Nothing, I've just been feeling stressed," I replied. "I feel like things just keep getting harder. And Adam has been acting kind of distant lately, which isn't helping."

"Ah, I should have known it was boyfriend problems," Nancy said with a smile. "Tell you what, I'm going to a party later tonight. Do you want to come along?"

……

Partying out all night at the newly opened club sounds like the perfect way to unwind, so of course I told Nancy that I was in.

Surprisingly, the Manager let me off the hook with a warning instead of firing me, so I had to wait till closing hours before I could go home and change for the party.

I didn't need a seer to tell me that I was going to get fired for sure if I made another mistake, so I had to get this stress out of my system immediately.

I took a taxi to the apartment I shared with my boyfriend Adam. I was about to open the front door when I saw a pair of red stilletos at the doorstep. They were clearly not mine, and a strange feeling rushed through me at the sight of them.

"No," I murmured to myself, shaking my head. "There has to be another explanation. Adam wouldn't. He and I have been together for almost two years now."

I walked into the apartment, wearing a broad smile.

"Adam," I called out cheerfully, "I'm back, honey—"

I was cut off by a sound coming from the bedroom. A sound that was unmistakably a moan of pleasure. Quickly, I dropped my bag on a sofa and hurried to the bedroom,

where the door had been left wide open.

On the bed I shared with Adam, an unfamiliar woman was straddling a man, both of them moaning as she moved on top of him.

The man was Adam.