Chapter 2

When Cyrus tore up that ten-million-dollar check and threw it in my face, I was checking my watch.

2 AM.

My birthday was over.

"Vivienne, who the hell are you trying to humiliate with money?"

Cyrus stood there shirtless, wine stains still wet on his chest, his handsome, hostile face full of aggression.

"I was with Meadow at the hospital today! She's afraid of the dark, and she had acute gastritis. What's wrong with me staying with her as her brother for one night? Was that worth throwing money at me?"

I calmly wiped the paper scraps from my face, my gaze settling on the dark red teardrop mole at the corner of his eye.

So similar.

Sebastian Ashford had a mole just like that too.

Except when Sebastian looked at me, that mole reflected gentle ripples.

Whereas Cyrus's only showed greed and impatience.

"I told you to come back and spend my birthday with me. Did you forget the rules?"

I leaned back on the sofa, my voice light but carrying an unquestionable coldness.

When I'd first kept Cyrus, the rules were clear:

First, come whenever called.

Second, play the role of Sebastian's shadow well.

Third, no emotional attachment allowed, especially not to that barely-related sister of his, Meadow.

Cyrus let out a cold laugh and kicked over the coffee table in front of him.

The cake I'd made myself was now a pile of ruined mess.

"Fuck your rules! Vivienne, you think having some dirty money makes you so great? Let me tell you, Meadow is priceless to me! What would a cold-blooded capitalist like you know about feelings?"

He bent down, bringing that face close to mine with vindictive pleasure.

"Besides, don't you love this face of mine? Even if I leave now, you'll still obediently buy me that Ferrari and send it over. Vivienne, you're just a pathetic woman who can't survive without a man."

With that, he grabbed his jacket and stormed out.

As he left, I heard him sending Meadow a voice message, his tone instantly turning sickeningly sweet.

"Don't be scared, Meadow. Cyrus is coming right back. That crazy bitch can't control me."

The room fell silent again.

I stared at the wreckage, my stomach cramping.

Three years.

To hold onto this last shred of memory of Sebastian, I'd fed this stray dog Cyrus until he became a wolf.

Not only had I filled his stomach, I'd emboldened him.

My phone vibrated. A message from my special assistant:

"Miss Sterling, there's movement from the Ashford family. The three-year lockdown... seems to be loosening."

My hand trembled violently, my heartbeat skipping.

Sebastian, is it you?