Chapter 3

My heart skipped a violent beat. I looked at Vanessa and nodded without a second thought.

"Be my boyfriend and my photography assistant," she teased with a laugh. "If I ever make it big and become filthy rich, half of the credit will be yours!"

The sunlight kissed her glowing cheeks, and her gaze felt so honest, so pure.

From that very second, I surrendered my entire heart to her.

Looking back, youthful love was as reckless as it was blind.

Whenever she talked about conquering the photography world, her gaze would drift off toward the distant ocean, lost in private longing.

Carried away by youthful passion, I abandoned my status, walked away from my family in New York, and stayed in Miami to help her build her empire.

I was terrified of bruising her pride, so I quietly poured my own money and vast network behind the scenes to secure everything she needed.

I genuinely believed that one day, she would see my silent devotion and love me back.

Yet seven years of unwavering loyalty couldn't hold a candle to the memory of her college sweetheart.

I was a clown. A pathetic, humiliating joke.

What on earth had I been doing with my life? Spending seven prime years paving a golden path for another man to walk on?

Liam’s phone buzzed with an incoming call. After whispering a few hurried excuses to Vanessa, he prepared to leave. Before stepping away, he gave her another lingering kiss, then turned to me with an insolent smirk.

"Do me a favor and drive Vanessa home later. Here’s two hundred bucks for your trouble. Keep the change."

He slid two crisp hundred-dollar bills from his leather wallet and let them flutter to the floor right by my shoes, treating me like a street beggar.

Liam pulled Vanessa into a tight hug, ruffled her hair, and strode out into the night.

The moment the heavy studio doors clicked shut, Vanessa turned toward me, her eyes clouded with superficial guilt.

"Julian, you understand me, don't you? You've always understood me."

"I didn't have a choice. First of all, Liam was my first love; you never truly get over that. Second, Liam comes from a powerful family background. He can provide me with resources you could never dream of."

"His connections can fund my international exhibitions and support my grandest projects."

"We aren't naive teenagers anymore, Julian. A relationship can't survive on just companionship. Right now, I need someone with real power to elevate my career and fulfill my ambitions."

I stood completely still, watching her approach me, and took a deliberate step backward.

Her recent International Lens Award had only been secured because I pulled strings behind the scenes with the judging committee. To hear her utter these words made my stomach churn.

She had only ever viewed me as an emotional placeholder. She never once believed I had a real future with her.

Or, to put it bluntly, I was nothing more than a convenient stand-in until her true love returned.

And what made it even more ridiculous was that whatever Liam Sterling could offer, I could give her tenfold.

She abandoned me simply because she assumed I was an ordinary, penniless assistant from a working-class background.

I had to admit to myself: I had never truly known who Vanessa Vance was.

Perhaps she had changed along the way, or perhaps she had always been this calculating, and I had merely been blinded by the golden Miami sun seven years ago.

Seeing my stone-cold silence, Vanessa suddenly lost her temper.

"Julian King! I gave you a way out! I swallowed my pride to comfort you, and you're still giving me this cold attitude?"

"Don't forget that I am your boss! I pay your salary! If it weren't for me taking you in, what major firm would ever hire a college dropout like you?"

She swung her hand and slapped me hard across the face.

*Smack.*

"Julian, don't push your luck when I'm being generous!"

The impact made me stumble back a step. Then, a broken chuckle escaped my throat, building until tears formed in my eyes.

Seven years of pure devotion, repaid with a stinging slap across the face.

Seeing my bitter laughter, a fleeting flash of panic crossed her face, but she quickly masked it with cold authority. "Julian, just behave yourself. If you stay obedient, Liam will let you keep your job here. If you play your cards right and flatter him, Navigator Media might even toss you a few decent gigs out of pity."

Outside, rain began to patter against the windows. Liam returned early to pick her up.

As they walked toward his sports car, Liam’s teasing whispers drifted clearly through the cool night air.

"Babe, wear that black lace set for me tonight, will you? You look insanely hot in it."

"Your assistant really pissed me off earlier. You'd better make it up to me in bed tonight..."

I reached over and switched off the studio lights.

Stepping out into the pouring rain without an umbrella, I let the icy droplets soak through my clothes and run down my face.

I turned back to take one last look at the studio I had built with my bare hands.

My phone buzzed with an automated flight confirmation. I pressed my lips into a firm line.

I returned to my apartment, powered down my phone, and packed away every trace of Vanessa Vance.

It was time to bury her, along with seven wasted years of my life.

A few hours later, I boarded a first-class flight to New York. Watching through the oval window as the city lights shrank into tiny dots beneath the clouds, a sense of absolute clarity washed over me.

Back home, my parents were overjoyed to hear that their prodigal son was finally returning. Overnight, they organized a grand welcome gala, inviting Manhattan's highest echelon of business and high society.

The long-hidden heir to King Industries making his very first public appearance sent shockwaves across the entire financial district.

Every major publication scrambled to land the exclusive front-page story.

Before the initial buzz could settle, another massive headline dropped: King Industries was finalizing a strategic alliance and marriage pact with The Sullivan Group.

The entire corporate landscape trembled at the news.

Meanwhile, back in Miami, the high-profile wedding between award-winning photographer Vanessa Vance and Liam Sterling was drawing local press coverage.

Dressed in her bridal gown, Vanessa stared impatiently at her phone screen, repeatedly dialing a number that only led to a dead tone.

She couldn't fathom why Julian had suddenly vanished off the face of the earth.

Her makeup artist was touching up her foundation while a few hired bridesmaids gossiped near the vanity.

"Did you guys see the news about the King Industries heir? I thought the son of a mega-billionaire would be some out-of-shape snob, but he’s ridiculously gorgeous."

"I know, right? Word on Wall Street is that he's getting engaged to Claire Sullivan, the heiress to The Sullivan Group. Even though she's kept a low profile, my friends in high fashion say Claire is an absolute stunner. Talk about an elite power couple."

"God, what I wouldn't give to land a guy who’s filthy rich, drop-dead gorgeous, and runs an empire..."

Vanessa didn't have close female friends, so her bridesmaids were paid models who had never met me.

The moment Vanessa heard the name "King," her body shuddered violently.

"Let me see that phone," she demanded, her voice tight.

She snatched the phone from the bridesmaid’s hand. The moment her eyes landed on the article and the photo, the breath left her lungs.

It was a candid shot.

There I stood, clad in a bespoke charcoal-grey wool suit and refined gold-rimmed glasses, exuding effortless elegance, commanding authority, and aristocratic composure.

The headline below read:

*Julian King, Sole Heir to King Industries, Makes First Public Appearance Ahead of Historic Alliance with Claire Sullivan.*