Chapter 0001

“Take this and leave the company.” 

Tessa Hilton stirred in her sleep and picked up the piece of paper that was unceremoniously thrown on her face. 

“What is this?” 

She mumbled as she squinted her eyes to read the content but they were yet to adjust to the light in the room. After a long night of passionate lovemaking, she felt weak and tired. She just wanted to rest and sleep in. 

No answer came from the man who sauntered around the room with nothing but a towel hanging low on his hips. 

It appeared he had just come from the bathroom as his body still had beads of water that were trickling down his well-defined chest, sliding down his Apollo’s belt and disappearing into the towel. 

Tessa bit her lip and felt hot again when she saw this. How could she get so lucky to have such a good-looking man as her… eh… sneaky link? The man had never really put a label on their relationship so she had no idea what to call him.

 He had medium dark brown hair and a neatly boxed beard that gave him that manly vibe. His hair was usually styled neatly but right now, it was wet and fell over his forehead messily, making him look more handsome. 

He had mesmerising cerulean blue eyes that were like whirlpools that could suck you in. They seemed magical. Whenever he looked into her eyes, it was as if he could see through her soul. 

The man was none other than Aaron Wentworth, the CEO of the Wentworth group. He was Tessa’s boss and she was his senior assistant but secretly, they were lovers, sneakily linking up when no one was looking. 

Regardless, Tessa thought they had a special connection and there was something more between them. 

Tessa frowned when she sensed his sudden cold demeanor so she glanced at the paper in her hand. Only for her heart to sink deeper and deeper into her stomach when she saw what it was. 

It was a cheque. 

Her eyes almost popped out of their sockets when she saw the figure. 

One million dollars!

“What’s this for?” Tessa felt confused. Why would Aaron suddenly give her a cheque of money out of the blue? 

She whipped her head up sharply when she recalled he had told her to leave the company after throwing the cheque at her. 

“Aaron…” she called out his name, her eyebrows furrowing. 

The man glanced at her and the coldness in his eyes shot a pang of pain through her heart. Her stomach twisted with nerves and a bad feeling crept into her.

‘What’s going on?’ She could only ask the question in her mind since Aaron looked so terrifying at the moment.

The man who made love to her the whole night like he didn’t want to let go was gone and in his place was this cold and distant man that she couldn’t recognise. 

“Are you deaf?! Didn’t you hear what I said? I said you should leave the company. That money should be enough to sustain you for a while,” the man responded, iciness dripping from his tone.

 A flash of irritation was plastered on his devilishly handsome face as he stared at Tessa as if she was a stranger. 

“Y-you’re firing me?” Tessa’s voice quivered and she felt her eyes sting as tears threatened to fall, her heart clenching painfully.

She didn’t know why Aaron was behaving this way but it was making her feel uncomfortable, hurt even. 

“I’m not firing you. Your contract ended. Or did you forget you signed a contract to work for me for two years?”

The coldness in his tone felt like someone was squeezing her heart. But Tessa still couldn’t understand what was going on. Since Aaron and her had been in a secret relationship for two years, she assumed her contract renewal was a done deal so she never really thought about it or sent out any applications to look for a new job. 

“Was it something I did?” She asked, a lump forming in her throat. 

Aaron glared at her, his patience running thin. “What’s wrong? Are you unwilling to leave? Is the money not enough? Fine. I’ll add more.” 

His words made Tessa’s heart drop to her stomach and the tears she was holding back finally rolled down her cheeks. Sitting up from the bed, she grabbed the quilt and covered herself up to her chest while she watched as Aaron wrote another cheque and threw it at her. 

“There. That should be enough for someone like you. Don’t be greedy.” 

‘Someone like me? Greedy? What does that even mean?’

 Her eyes fell on the cheque and her heart skipped a beat. 

Two million dollars!

Indeed, it was too much money. Money she couldn’t dream of ever having in her life but what she couldn't fathom was why Aaron was giving her this money. 

She remained quiet as he dressed up, thinking of how to ask him to let her stay at the company. After all, she had worked extra hard during the last two years and had gotten used to her role.

“I don’t need the money,” she mumbled but Aaron kept quiet. If he had heard her, he was doing a good job at pretending he didn’t. 

He glanced at her as he buttoned up his white dress shirt. “I didn’t use protection in the last round because I ran out of condoms. Make sure you take plan B pills. I don’t want any unwanted surprises.” 

The words he kept uttering felt like a thousand spears were piercing her heart one at a time. Not only was he asking her to leave the company, but he also didn’t want to have children with her. Did it mean he had no future plans for her?

What had they been doing for two years then?

All Tessa could think about was getting married to him and having many babies. But she got a check instead. Was it only her wishful thinking?

When Aaron was done, he glanced at her and said, “You can keep the apartment, I won’t be coming here anymore.” 

Tessa’s heart sank further to her feet. 

“You’re breaking up with me? What did I do?” She questioned, her voice rising. 

Aaron frowned at her tone but he looked unbothered by her question as he fixed his tie. 

“We’ve had our fun. Isn’t money what you wanted? You were too quick to open your legs so I assumed it was the money you were after.” 

Tessa felt like a bucket of ice-cold water was poured over her head. When she met Aaron two years ago, he was gentle and sweet. She would often find him staring at her for a long time so she thought he was interested in her. 

Being a young woman, straight out of college with no relationship experience, Tessa easily fell in love with Aaron. And one day, on a drunken night, they ended up getting intimate and that’s how it all started.

And since he was so passionate with her in the bedroom, she assumed he loved her too. Was the two years a lie? She didn’t want to believe it. She couldn’t. 

After all, she had invested a lot of her time and emotions in the relationship. And although it was a secret to her colleagues at work, she believed it was because Aaron didn’t want them to gossip about her. 

Hot tears made her eyes glassy as she stared at Aaron. 

“Fun? I thought you loved me.”

Hearing this, Aaron paused and scoffed coldly. “Miss Hilton, aren’t you getting ahead of yourself here? At which point did I say that I loved you?” 

His response made her speechless. The pain that rippled through her at his words felt like someone brutally slashed her heart with a blunt knife. 

The painful lump in her throat became bigger and no matter how much she swallowed, it wouldn’t go away. 

She glanced at Aaron with watery eyes, feeling like her world had come crashing down on her. 

“B-but I love you. I’ve been devoted to you for two years! I gave myself to you, doesn’t that mean anything to you?” Her lips quivered as she asked, pain gripping her heart tightly. 

She never knew love could hurt like this. How was she so foolish to fall for him? How couldn’t she see that he was just using her?

“I’ve given you enough money for your services. Don’t let me see your face again.”

 Those were the last words Aaron said before he turned and walked out the door, taking Tessa’s heart with him. 

The last thing Tessa saw was his broad back as he left just after shattering her heart into a million pieces.