Pov: Elizabeth

The next morning, I stood outside Jason’s office, clutching a manila folder so tightly my knuckles turned white. The door loomed before me like the entrance to a tomb.

I knocked twice and stepped inside.

Jason stood by the window, his broad shoulders tense beneath a tailored suit, hands clasped behind him. The sunlight sliced through the blinds, tracing golden lines across his frame.

For one treacherous moment, my heart lurched.

Why wasn’t I enough? Why her?

Then my gaze swept across the office and my heart turned cold.

The walls were bare.

Every photograph that once held a piece of us was gone. The candid shot from our engagement, the picture from the gala where I’d worn the emerald dress he loved, even the small frame from our first date.

Had he really erased me so easily? Or was I still too foolish to stop hoping I’d misunderstood everything?

A quiet clearing of his throat shattered the silence.

“Are you going to stand there all day,” he said coolly, “or do you plan to do your job?”

Right. Claire’s job.

I swallowed hard and walked forward, forcing my shaking legs to obey. “The files you requested, Mr. Collen.”

He turned then, slowly and those blue eyes that once looked at me with warmth were now shards of ice.

I kept my gaze fixed somewhere near his collar, not trusting myself to meet his stare.

If I did, I might break. I might tell him who I was and watch his world burn.

He took the folder without a word. His fingers brushed mine for half a second.

A jolt of electricity shot up my arm.

“Nervous?” he asked.

“No, sir.”

His mouth twitched, but he said nothing more. He opened the file, skimming through it as if I were invisible.

I turned to leave. Relief washed over me until his voice stopped me.

“What was your name again?”

I froze. Slowly, I turned halfway. “Claire Hart.”

For a long, unbearable moment, he just looked at me. Then his expression hardened.

“Miss Hart,” he said, voice dropping a few degrees colder. “Focus on why you’re here. Leave your emotions outside my office. This is a professional environment. Act accordingly.”

The words were a slap.

I forced a tight smile, masking the sting. “Understood, Mr. Collen.”

Then I walked out before he could see the fury in my eyes.

---

The hallway felt suffocating. I pressed my back against the wall, my chest heaving. Unnecessary emotions. As if I were just some intern pining after her boss.

I started toward HR, heels clicking sharply against the marble floor. I needed to collect my paperwork and—

I stopped dead.

Through the glass wall of the HR office, someone was sitting behind my old desk.

Jessica.

Legs crossed, scrolling through her phone, looking like she owned the world.

I moved closer until I stood at the doorway. She looked up, eyes narrowing, lips curving into that venomous smile I’d once mistaken for charm.

“Well, well,” she said, standing with a slow, mocking grace. “You must be the new assistant.”

I didn’t answer. My gaze had locked on the glint of silver and sapphire at her throat.

A brooch.

My brooch.

The one Jason had given me on our six-month anniversary. The one he’d clasped around my neck, whispering that it was as beautiful as I was.

Now it hung on hers.

Something inside me snapped.

I stepped forward and yanked it from her neck. “Where did you get this?”

Jessica’s eyes widened in disbelief before narrowing in rage. “Are you out of your mind?” she hissed, snatching at it. “That’s mine!”

“Yours?” I scoffed.

Her tone sharpened like a knife. “Who do you think you are, touching my things? You’re just an employee. You don’t walk into my office and start acting crazy!”

I smiled thinly. “Then let me show you what crazy really looks like.”

For a second, I stared at it. This beautiful, cursed thing that represented everything I'd lost.

Then I hurled it to the ground.

It shattered against the marble floor.

I watched her gasped. “Are you insane?! Do you have any idea how much that cost, you stupid—”

She raised her hand to slap me, but I caught her wrist midair.

Her eyes widened, shock and fury warring across her face.

She yanked free and shoved me backward. “You have no idea who you’re messing with!”

I stumbled, trying to catch myself—

Until a firm hand caught me by the waist.