Book3Chapter10.
Work became my solace. I threw myself into the family business, the one my mother had been grooming me to take over. For eight years, I’d neglected my own ambitions, focused solely on Ethan. Now, I had all the time in the world.
Within months, I was accepted into a prestigious MBA program in New York. I celebrated with my friends, determined to have one last hurrah before starting this new chapter.
But during dinner, my friend Maya kept checking her phone, a frown etched on her face. “Earth to Maya,” our friend Jenny said, waving a hand. “This is Anya’s goodbye dinner, remember?”
Maya shook her head, her eyes glued to the screen. “Anya, you’re not going to believe this. Chloe, she’s claiming you’re the homewrecker. It’s all over social
media!”
My stomach dropped. I grabbed my phone. Sure enough, my name was trending. “Heiress Anya Exposed as Homewrecker” screamed the headlines.
Chloe had uploaded a tearful video, a carefully crafted narrative of their star–crossed love story. She painted herself as the victim, forced to return home due to an injury, only to have me swoop in and steal Ethan away. According to her, they never stopped loving each other, and when she returned, they rekindled their romance, leading to their marriage. She conveniently forgot to mention that she knew about me all along, choosing to portray herself as the wronged party.
The court of public opinion was quick to pass judgment. People love a good scandal, especially when it involved the rich and the heartbroken. Hate comments flooded my social media, accusing me of being a gold–digging homewrecker, wishing me the worst kind of karma.
Maya put a comforting arm around me. “Don’t worry, our PR team will take care
Book Chapter 10.
of it.”
She didn’t understand. This wasn’t just about clearing my name. Chloe wanted to
play dirty? Fine. Two could play at that game.
I left dinner early, my head buzzing. I had evidence, hard proof of Ethan’s lies, his manipulation. I’d downloaded everything from his computer, their conversations, the photos, the videos, even his messages to me, reassuring me that we didn’t need a piece of paper to solidify our love.
I spent all night crafting my response, a carefully curated timeline of events, complete with screenshots, dates, and messages. Then, I called in a few favors. By morning, my side of the story was trending, fueled by my connections and a hefty donation to a few well–placed social media influencers.
The internet, always hungry for the next big scandal, lapped it up. Chloe’s lies unraveled quickly. Screenshots from her old social media accounts surfaced, posts filled with bitter jealousy about me and Ethan, proof that she’d been stalking
along.
us a
I posted a follow–up statement, claiming I had no idea about Chloe until I found the marriage certificate. I’d wanted to walk away quietly, to spare everyone the pain. It was Ethan who’d refused to let me go, who’d painted me as the villain to save his own reputation.
“Ethan made his choice, didn’t he?” I wrote in my final statement. “He chose to be with her, to marry her. Why are you still fighting a battle you’ve already won?”
Chloe, backed into a corner, finally cracked. She claimed Ethan had threatened to leave her, that she was pregnant with his child. The internet, quick to judge, turned on her with a vengeance. They unearthed her past, revealing the real reason she’d left school years ago: a string of bad decisions, debts she was running from. She became the villain, the true homewrecker, the one who’d knowingly inserted herself into our relationship.
Ethan, silent throughout the entire ordeal, was finally dragged into the spotlight.
Book Chapter 10
He lost his job, his reputation in tatters.
As for me? I came out unscathed, my name the eight
