Chapter 1

For 12 years, Eloise Loughlin had acted like a tomboy to stay by Jeremy Gibson's side.

She was with him when he played truant, and she learned to drink when he started to go to bars.

When he commented that her long hair was too eye-catching, she cut it off without hesitation, even after having spent years taking care of it.

One day, Jeremy came to her. He was done with the pressure from his family to get married.

"I'd rather marry you than any of those women. Are you gonna marry me or not?"

Eloise nodded without thinking further.

Everyone around her praised her for being a good friend to Jeremy, which was the truth.

In the day, she played the role of his good friend. At night, she satisfied all his needs and kinks in bed.

They whispered sweet nothings to each other, using up boxes of condoms.

This all ended when Scarlett Slater reported to work at Jeremy's company. She was an incompetent secretary who repeatedly messed up his plans, but not once did he get angry at her despite his hot temper.

When Jeremy came home, he'd often bring up Scarlett in his conversation with Eloise.

One day, when Jeremy was on a business trip, he arranged for Scarlett to join Eloise's project team.

On the day of the project handover, a devastating event occurred—999 private photos of Eloise were displayed on the screen.

When Eloise saw them, her mind went blank, and her skin turned cold. Those photos were Jeremy's.

Everyone gasped when the photos were leaked.

In tears, Scarlett rushed to the middle of the stage to apologize while quickly pulling out the USB drive.

Eloise's face was exposed in those HD photos, confirming her identity.

She felt the blood rushing to her head as she trembled uncontrollably all over.

The judgmental looks on her made her feel like she was stripped naked in public.

Eloise's client immediately got up to leave, but not before leaving a few sarcastic comments that stung. Even then, all she could do was endure the humiliation and apologize profusely.

Feeling numb, she waited for Jeremy's explanation.

Yet, the first thing he said to her was, "Scarlett is young. Don't yell at her. You'll only scare her."

At that moment, Eloise felt exhausted. She had poured so much energy into trying to win a man's affection.

"Eloise, is there anything else you want to say?" Jeremy cast a cold glance in her way, but she didn't even look up.

She hadn't eaten anything. Filled with endless anger, bitterness, and hopelessness, she realized that she had nothing left to say.

The first thing Jeremy did was to shift the blame onto her in an attempt to divert the attention from Scarlett. Not only that, Jeremy repeatedly reminded the meeting attendees that Eloise was the subject in those photos.

In her silence, he looked away and announced, "From today, Scarlett Slater will take over as the director of Team A."

The members of Team A inhaled sharply. Feeling confused, one of them attempted to speak up for Eloise, only to be silently stopped by colleagues who shook their heads at her.

Jeremy left with Scarlett after making the announcement.

Once they were gone, a heated discussion broke out in the meeting room.

"Why did you stop me from speaking up? Scarlett hasn't been here for long, but she's already brought us great trouble. Now, even Ms. Loughlin has to shoulder the blame for her. This is unfair!"

Another colleague gave Eloise a sympathetic look. Lowering her voice, she whispered, "That's because Mr. Gibson favors Scarlett."

"Alright now. Let's leave. We have a lot of things to worry about from now on!"

Soon, only Eloise was left in the meeting room. She stayed there for a long time until only she and the security guard remained.

Rubbing her stomach to ease the pain, she drove home. To her surprise, she was greeted by the sight of Jeremy and Scarlett teasing and flirting with each other at the dining table.

Scarlett was wearing a pair of matching slippers with Jeremy. She put on the shirt that Eloise had recently bought for Jeremy. Jeremy had only worn it twice, but now, he had given it to another woman.

When Scarlett saw Eloise, she immediately flinched like a deer in the headlights.

Jeremy smilingly pinched her cheek. "What are you afraid of? Eloise is not gonna bite you. She's my 'bro'!"

He acted as though the incident from that afternoon never happened.

Pain shot through Eloise's body, and her face paled.

She froze at the entrance.

An idea struck Scarlett. She quickly got up to apologize. "Ms. Loughlin, I'm sorry. I forgot I was wearing your slippers. I'll return them to you now!"

Jeremy stopped Scarlett, who had bent over to remove her slippers. "You should have dinner first. You've been on edge all day. Eloise knows there are disposable slippers around."

Indeed, Eloise knew, but she chose to put aside her bag and walked back to her room barefoot.

She had pursued Jeremy for 24 years, including this year, which made it 8766 days.

At first, she thought she'd never give up on loving him. However, she found out that she would grow tired as well.

She pulled out the drawer and retrieved the divorce papers at the bottom of the stack.

She signed them without hesitation.

Chapter 2

After that, Eloise carelessly tossed the divorce papers aside. Slumping on the bed, she revisited a memory from her wedding night.

That night, Jeremy brought her to the study, dashing her joy by handing her a set of divorce papers he had signed.

"You're like a friend to me. There's no way I will sleep with a friend. I've pre-signed the divorce papers. When I'm free from my family, we'll get divorced."

Years later, she had slept with Jeremy countless times. By now, he was the head of Gibson Group.

He never brought up divorce, which made her think that her years of effort had worked on him. Today, she realized that he only kept her around out of habit. Her presence made no difference to him at all.

She fell asleep with tear stains on her face.

In her sleep, someone suddenly turned on the lights.

Jeremy yanked her blanket aside and shook her awake. She looked exhausted with her dark eye circles.

"Scarlett made a feast as an apology to you. What are you doing? Giving her the silent treatment?"

He dragged her limp body out of the bed.

Her knees slammed into the corner of the closet from his rough handling, causing her to wince, but he hauled her to the dining table without so much as checking on her.

Scarlett remained fearful and obedient in Eloise's presence.

"Ms. Loughlin, I'm sorry for grabbing the wrong USB drive. I-I had no idea that it was Mr. Gibson's. I feel so ashamed of myself."

Looking tired, Eloise blinked to alleviate the dryness in her eyes. She wondered aloud, "Was that really a mistake?"

Jeremy always made sure that all sensitive information was password-protected. Eloise did not know the password, yet somehow, Scarlett knew it.

Eloise knew that Scarlett's apology was half-hearted. If Scarlett felt truly guilty, she wouldn't have applied for leave from Jeremy—surpassing middle management—right after that incident and left her colleagues behind to clean up the mess.

Scarlett's tears welled up. She turned to Jeremy with an aggrieved expression.

"Enough. Scarlett has admitted to her wrongs. Don't be too hard on her," Jeremy addressed Eloise with irritation.

After that, he pulled Scarlett over to sit next to him. He reminded her, "Silly woman. Did you forget? Eloise is no longer the director."

Blushing, Scarlett hung her head. "Mr. Gibson, is that appropriate? Everyone respects Ms. Loughlin more because she's been a director for a long time."

"What's inappropriate about it?" Pouting, Jeremy looked at the pale Eloise. "Eloise, do you have any objections?"

Eloise stood there without a word. She had taken in the way he tenderly gazed at Scarlett.

Despite feeling pained, she replied slowly, "No objection."

After all, she had decided to leave. From now on, she couldn't care less about Jeremy or the Gibson Group.

Scarlett joyfully pushed a few plates of food toward Eloise.

It was then that Eloise noticed the dishes were practically inedible for her, as they were spicy. Frowning, she replied, "Go ahead and have dinner. I'm not hungry."

Eloise was hungry, but she couldn't possibly eat the spicy food on an empty stomach. She knew she'd suffer.

However, Jeremy slammed his fork on the table when Eloise turned around to leave.

"Eloise, that's enough! If you don't finish dinner today, I'll fire you and everyone on Team A!"

Chapter 3

Eloise gave Jeremy a look of disbelief.

Those employees had worked for him for at least three years. How could he consider firing them just because she refused to eat Scarlett's cooking?

She clenched her fists and steeled herself. She forced herself back to the dining table.

Scarlett placed some food on Eloise's plate with a smile, making sure that they were all coated in the spicy gravy. Her smile deepened when she faced Eloise.

Jeremy's frustration finally subsided when Eloise obeyed him. He got up and poured her a glass of water.

"I can't believe I had to force you to eat. You've gotten out of hand."

Although Eloise felt a burning pain in her stomach, she remained calm on the outside and stiffly shoveled food into her mouth.

Satisfied, Jeremy went back to flirting with Scarlett.

At night, Jeremy sent Scarlett home, leaving Eloise alone in her bed and pressing on her stomach in agony.

Drenched in sweat, she scrambled to grab her phone and accidentally dialed her emergency contact.

Jeremy picked up in no time, but he urgently said, "Scarlett twisted her ankle. I'm sending her to the hospital. We'll talk later."

Then, he hung up on her.

Tears fell down her cheeks. Holding in the pain, she called the ambulance.

When she arrived at the hospital, the medical staff rushed her to the operating theater to save her life.

The blinding lights flooded her vision. Through the pain, she drifted in and out of consciousness.

The illusion of Jeremy, who had protected her since they were kids, showed up before her.

When Eloise was a child, her parents were often busy and left her in the care of a nanny. However, at best, the nanny could only take care of her home life.

In school, Eloise was severely bullied. Her schoolmates locked her in the toilet cubicle, threw filthy water over her, and continued the bullying off campus.

Her nanny was of no help, and it was hard to reach her parents.

In the depths of her desperation, Jeremy had defended her. With a bright smile, he rescued her from the dire situation. He firmly put an arm around her shoulder and set his phone number as her emergency contact.

Grinning, he pinched her cheek. "Eloise, I'll back you up from now on. Stay by my side!"

And she did. She stayed by him for 24 years.

Whatever Jeremy did, she followed. When he was in need of a wife, she agreed to marry him without hesitation.

When he first took over the Gibson Group, he had no trusted colleague within the company. For him, she gave up on her dreams and helped him succeed in business.

One of her best friends once asked her, "Eloise, aren't you tired? Jeremy only sees you as a friend. Even after you two were intimate, he still plays dumb and calls you his 'bro'!"

A tear trickled down her cheek. She had finally sobered up.

On the third day of her hospitalization, she could finally walk around.

The nurse, upon noticing her wedding band, grumbled, "You've been here for a while. Why hasn't your husband come around to take care of you?"

Eloise's attention was drawn to her ring finger. Then, she calmly removed the wedding band, explaining, "We divorced."

Feeling awkward, the nurse offered some words of comfort. A thought struck her, and she told Eloise, "Men are scum in general, but I came across a gentleman recently. This guy called the retired orthopedics specialist back into service just because his partner twisted her ankle! He caused quite a stir."

Another nurse, who happened to enter the room, walked over quietly and joined the conversation. "Oh, he caused a stir, that's for sure. Do you know that he's the head of Gibson Group? That was the first time I saw our hospital director fawning over someone else."

"I envy that woman! Not all wealthy men are insincere. She's so lucky."

"I heard he's married. Could she be his wife? She must have a lot of good luck!"

All the while, Eloise quietly sat in her bed with an expressionless face despite feeling bitter deep down.

After years of marriage, Jeremy still treated her like a friend. He'd never worry about her when she got hurt, and he'd never look after her when she was hospitalized.

"Why are you here?"

Jeremy's familiar voice rang in the air.

Chapter 4

The door to Eloise's room was wide open. Jeremy stood there, looking bewildered.

Eloise stared at the lunchbox in his hand. She never thought he'd one day look after someone else, and too bad she'd never get to enjoy it.

The mix of stomachache and heartbreak drove her crazy. Meanwhile, the nurses looked embarrassed. They didn't expect Eloise to be acquainted with the subject of their gossip.

Jeremy wandered over with a frown. He asked the nurses, "What happened to her?"

One of the nurses blinked in surprise but gathered herself soon. "She suffered from acute gastritis. She nearly lost consciousness when she arrived at the hospital. Thankfully, we managed to stabilize her."

Jeremy looked like he was choking on something. Memories of that dinner came into his mind.

He looked at Eloise, who stayed calm.

Puzzled, he furrowed his brows.

"Why didn't you tell me that you can't handle spicy food?"

Eloise heard him ask.

She could never handle spicy food, but since Jeremy loved it, she pretended to like it as well so that they'd have more in common.

It was easy to see through her pretense if only he had cared more about her.

Lowering her head, she smiled bitterly. "I told you before, but you didn't take me seriously."

Jeremy had no words. His phone started ringing when he was about to say something.

He answered his phone. "Do you need water? Wait for me. Don't get out of your bed, you hear me?"

Jeremy quickly hung up. He had no time to waste on Eloise. He told her, "I'll bring you some food later."

He left after that.

The nurses exchanged a look and silently sneaked out of Eloise's room.

She was alone now.

Her phone started to ring, and she took the call.

"I've made arrangements with the lawyer. I told you, didn't I? You and Jeremy are incompatible."

She lowered her gaze. For the first time, she did not argue against it.

…

Jeremy never showed up again. Late at night, Scarlett came to Eloise's room in a wheelchair and knocked on the door.

When Scarlett entered the room, she fell on her knees before Eloise in a dramatic fashion.

Eloise frowned at Scarlett.

Scarlett started crying before Eloise could say a word.

"Ms. Loughlin, I… I had no idea you couldn't handle spicy food. You fell sick because of me. It was all my fault.

"And, clumsy as ever, I twisted my ankle. Mr. Gibson felt so guilty that he ended up neglecting you to care for me.

"It was all my fault. Don't blame it on Mr. Gibson!"

Eloise couldn't bring herself to look at Scarlett, who was sobbing pitifully.

"Scarlett, Jeremy isn't around. You don't have to put on a show."

Everyone on Team A knew that Eloise could not handle spicy food due to her gastric problems. Yet, Scarlett played dumb and repeatedly flaunted Jeremy's thoughtful actions in her face.

Scarlett burst out laughing. "Eloise, I want him to hate you. I want him to get tired of you!

"But I didn't even need to do anything. He's abandoned you now. He doesn't love you. What makes you think you're my competition?"

Right after that, Scarlett suddenly slapped herself in the face and cried loudly.

"It was my fault! I'll give up on the directorship. Ms. Loughlin, please don't be mad at me!"

Jeremy burst through the door amidst the chaos, the lunchbox in his hand falling by Eloise's feet and spilling everywhere. Soup splashed on her legs.

He lifted Scarlett from the ground with a somber expression. Then, he turned to Eloise, who was in bed.

"Eloise, apologize!" he demanded sternly and coldly.

Eloise placed a hand over her cramping stomach with a defiant look in her eyes. "Why should I? Scarlett slapped herself!"

This was one of the rare instances where Eloise talked back to Jeremy. As a result, she set him off, and Scarlett was happy to fuel the flames.

Scarlett said, "Yeah, Mr. Gibson. I slapped myself. Ms. Loughlin has nothing to do with it.

"Put me down. She's still mad at me. Let me apologize to her because it's my fault!"

Jeremy looked at her red, swollen face sympathetically. Sharp nails had left behind bloodied marks on her cheeks.

He looked at Eloise again with increasing hostility.

"Eloise, I am the head of Gibson Group. Know your place before you throw your weight about!

"How could you bully Scarlett over a directorship? Since you refuse to apologize, give up your 30 percent shares in the company to Scarlett as compensation!"

Her eyes wavered at the mention of her shares.

Chapter 5

Jeremy had given Eloise 30 percent in company shares as a wedding gift, which he now demanded to be transferred to Scarlett.

Scarlett was overjoyed. Nevertheless, she said sadly, "Mr. Gibson, I can't accept such an expensive gift. Besides, everyone knows that the 30 percent shares in your late grandma's will was for her granddaughter-in-law. I have no right to…"

"Of course you do," Jeremy whispered. "You're the most important woman in my life. Eloise was a placeholder in an emergency."

A placeholder in an emergency?

His description sent chills down Eloise's spine. Before she knew it, she had bitten down hard on her lip that it bled. The metallic taste filled her mouth.

In the end, she laughed. "Yeah. I'm just a placeholder in an emergency. Those shares don't belong to me.

"Jeremy bought me this bag for my birthday last year. It's yours too. So is this necklace. And this bracelet…"

Eloise thought about all the gifts she had gotten from Jeremy and took them off one by one.

She flipped her bag upside down, dumping her belongings onto the table and stuffing the gifts from Jeremy into it.

Holding the bag, she slowly made her way to Jeremy and Scarlett.

Scarlett watched in shock as Eloise placed the Hermes bag on her lap.

Drawing a deep breath, Eloise smiled. "These are all yours."

Even Jeremy.

Jeremy, on the other hand, stared at Eloise with a brooding look. "Eloise, what's gotten into you? Get help if you need it. Don't scare off Scarlett."

He swept the bag off Scarlett's lap. Just like that, the limited edition bag was tossed aside like trash.

When Jeremy left, Eloise felt her stomach acting up again. Crouching on the floor in a disheveled mess, she couldn't stop her tears from flowing.

She recalled her excitement when he agreed to marry her and how she spent the night giggling in bed.

On their wedding day, she closed her eyes as he kissed her, her lips quivering in excitement.

No one could imagine her feelings at that moment.

When Jeremy pressed his hand on her cheek, it felt warm.

Then, he grinned when he took in her shyness. "Eloise, your lips are surprisingly soft and kissable."

She humbled herself to pursue him. She treasured every one of his gifts, even if he didn't put much thought into them.

Now, the sight of those gifts felt like torture—a death by a thousand cuts.

After Eloise was discharged from the hospital, she immediately went to the law firm and had her lawyer draft a share transfer agreement. While she was at it, she inquired about the divorce progress.

The lawyer informed her that the divorce certificate would be ready for collection in ten days.

She nodded.

Holding onto the share transfer agreement, she made her way to Gibson Group. There, she handed her resignation letter and share transfer agreement to Jeremy.

He stared at the stack of papers. Leaning back into the chair, he crossed his arms. "Eloise, was it that difficult for you to apologize?"

Standing before Jeremy, she dug her nails deep into her palms.

She growled, "Jeremy, 999 of my private photos were leaked because Scarlett was neglectful. Even if you order everyone not to talk about it, my dignity has been crushed. People are gossiping about me.

"You are not affected in any way because we're in a secret marriage. Will I get a sincere apology from you and Scarlett?"

He fixed his dark eyes on her face.

A long silence later, he picked up the pen from the table and signed his name on the paper.

After that, he tossed the pen away and said icily, "You've changed."

She flashed a desperate smile but refused to engage with him anymore. Picking up her copy of the document, she turned around and left.

Eloise hadn't changed at all. It was Jeremy who refused to get to know the real her.