Chapter 1

That year, when loneliness gnawed at me the most, I became the benefactor of a college student who soon became my boyfriend.

Later, I went overseas to recover from an illness.

He cried all night by my bedside, begging to come with me, but I refused.

"Your career here is paramount. When I return, I hope to see you crowned as an A-list star."

Three years later, he was indeed crowned.

But I didn't get the reunion I was promised.

Instead, I found his little mistress, Chloe Miller, wearing my clothes, lording over my estate.

Chloe Miller twirled my diamond ring on her finger.

"I pity you. I'm letting you glimpse the kind of luxury your pathetic life could never afford.

"But just look, don't touch anything. Otherwise, you'll be paying for it the rest of your life."

I snatched my ring off her finger and slapped her across the face.

"I touched it. What now?"

Chloe Miller froze.

This was a reality show filming celebrity homes.

On camera, I just slapped a guest.

The live comments section absolutely exploded in fury:

【Who is this lowlife! How dare she slap Chloe in her own home!】

【Where's the on-site fan club? Are you all dead?! Go up there and get that hussy!】

【Don't worry! We're already arguing with security. We'll avenge Chloe once we break through the cordon!】

"You... you dared to hit me!"

Chloe Miller seemed utterly spoiled, her eyes wide with disbelief, her voice trembling on the verge of tears.

"Do you know who I am?!"

"What's going on?"

A tall, familiar figure walked in through the doorway.

Chloe Miller spun around and threw herself into his arms.

"Liam!"

Liam Blackwood frowned, gently touching the slap mark on her face. He turned, and his breath caught the moment he saw me.

"You... you're back?"

I stared at him coldly, waiting for an explanation.

A crew member anxiously asked Liam Blackwood, "Mr. Blackwood, do you know this lady?"

"Yes."

Liam Blackwood admitted.

Chloe Miller looked up at him through tear-filled eyes.

Chloe Miller's fan club members also stared, dumbfounded.

"Just some obsessive fan of mine. She used to be a supporter, but after I turned her down, she kept following me."

Liam Blackwood's words hit me like a physical blow. I thought I'd misheard him.

But everyone else visibly relaxed.

"Damn! I thought there was actually some history! You scared me; I thought that hussy was trying to steal Chloe's man!"

"I'm dying of laughter. Liam Blackwood's fan? She actually followed him all the way here."

"Our Liam Blackwood fought his way to the top and found Chloe, who has been fighting alongside him. Does she think stalking him will get her anywhere?"

I looked at Liam Blackwood, a cold smile playing on my lips.

"Fought his way to the top himself?"

He knew that if I hadn't spotted his potential back in film school that year, he wouldn't have even gotten a foot in the door of the entertainment industry.

During his darkest hour, he knelt before me, clutching his mother's urgent medical papers.

"Please, help me..."

That support continued until I went overseas to recover.

Even though I hadn't been by his side for three years, every single opportunity that came his way was by my explicit instruction.

Including this high-profile reality show.

But Liam Blackwood only froze for a split second before pulling Chloe Miller closer into his embrace.

"I owe my success today to myself alone. Do you even understand actors?"

Fury twisted into a bitter laugh.

I don't understand actors? How else would I know exactly which resources were best suited for him?

"Liam Blackwood."

My gaze was a warning.

"Get Chloe Miller and all these irrelevant people out of my house. This is your last chance."

Three years had passed, but my influence still held.

He still seemed to get inexplicably nervous when I looked at him with a cold expression.

But it was only for a moment.

"I think you're the one who needs to leave."

He narrowed his eyes.

"This house belongs to Chloe, not you."