He Blamed Me For His Assistant's Mess!

That eight-million-dollar deal I'd bled to secure? My boyfriend's assistant completely messed it up.

But Asher, my boyfriend and also my boss, publicly reprimanded me in front of the entire office.

If you can't handle the job, Harper, do us all a favor and stay home playing housewife. At least there, your incompetence would be free!

When we got home, he adopted a chillingly business-like demeanor.

"You were in charge of this project, so you have to take responsibility for ruining it. Even if I'm your boyfriend, I have to handle this fairly! Understand?"

Before I could even respond, his assistant, Chloe, sent me a text.

"Harper, it's all my fault. Asher bought me a cupcake to cheer me up, it was really good! Should I order one for you too?"

A bitter laugh escaped my lips as I glared at Asher.

"Oh, you're so fair and unbiased!"

That night, I called my long-time rival.

"You wanted to be my boyfriend, didn't you?"

One moment, I was submitting my resignation to HR.

The next, I was summoned into Asher's office.

The instant I walked in, a cup of coffee was flung directly at me.

The force of the splash felt like a harsh slap across my face.

It stung.

Beside him, on the plush leather sofa, Chloe sat with red-rimmed eyes, the picture of pitiful misery.

"Asher, don't blame Harper. It's my fault. The deal fell apart on my watch. If anyone should leave, it's me."

Asher's voice trembled with a fury he rarely showed. And it was always because of Chloe.

"Are you so upset about yesterday that you'd storm into HR just to pressure Chloe?"

"As her superior, the failure is?your?responsibility. How dare you try to pin it all on her?!"

"Do you have any idea what they're saying about her out there? That you couldn't stand the disruptive intern' and were forced out. Get back out there and set the record straight. Now."

I'd thought he was distraught because he was losing me, his girlfriend of seven years. But no, he was just worried that after I left, people would look down on Chloe and give her a hard time.

Chloe continued to sob, pulling out a tissue to blow her nose, then casually tossing the snotty wad onto the other end of the sofa.

Asher's brow furrowed almost imperceptibly. Three seconds later, he walked over, picked up the tissue, and dropped it into the trash can.

I froze, my heart clenching, a dense ache spreading through my chest.

In the second year of dating Asher, we watched a romantic movie at home.

There was a scene that wrecked me. I cried so hard I couldn't stop, tears and snot streaming down my face.

He pushed me out of his embrace in disgust.

"Sorry, I'm a germaphobe. Please clean yourself up."

Then he walked into the bathroom. I could hear the water running as he scrubbed himself from head to toe, three times over.

As if he'd just touched something vile.

A cold laugh escaped me.

So his germaphobia was selective.

I met Asher's gaze, unwavering.

"I'm resigning because I no longer wish to work here. That's all."

Asher didn't buy it.

"Then why not sooner, or later? Why?today? It's obviously about the deal."

"Harper, drop the mind games with Chloe. Or I might just forget we ever had a past."

I sighed. The old urge to argue with him, to defend myself, was gone.

Facing Asher, I felt nothing but a hollow emptiness. There was nothing left to fight with.

He was there when the deal collapsed.

We were on the brink of closing. The client had verbally agreed. Then Chloe barged in, insisting on toasting the CEO.

The CEO was already visibly annoyed.

She chose not to see it. A brand-new intern, pressuring a CEO to drink. I still don't know where she found the nerve.

The CEO's anger was instant. I pulled Chloe back, forcing a smile, my apologies already flowing.

I told her to apologize properly and fix this. Instead, she burst into tears, louder and more dramatic than anyone in the room.

"Harper, why are you so hard on her? Why do you always force me to do things I don't want to do?"

His face had been thunderous that day, murderous. I'd thought it was over the lost deal, a contract that had been within our grasp.

Turns out, it was because I'd made?Chloe?apologize. Because I'd held?her?accountable.

I was truly tired.

"This isn't a scene, Asher. We're done."

Ignoring the storm gathering on his face, I gathered the last of my things and walked out of the company.

Back home, I started packing my suitcases again.

Breaking up is such a tedious chore. There's always too much stuff, and it never fits back the way it came.

My hand stilled. Inside the drawer, I found a pair of red stockings that weren't mine.

They were torn to shreds-evidence of a frantic encounter. I tossed them in the trash, snapped a photo, and sent it to Asher.

His texts were still flooding my phone with excuses. I didn't reply. Instead, I dialed a different number.

"That offer to be my boyfriend. I accept."

On the other end of the line, I could practically hear Jax's grin.

He offered to help me move, but I refused.

If Asher saw him, Jax would probably put him in the hospital. I didn't need the extra drama.

I still had the apartment on the west side. Once this month's bonus cleared, the final mortgage payment would be gone.

I'd finally have a home of my own.

The thought lifted a weight I hadn't fully acknowledged.

The doorbell rang. Assuming it was the movers, I opened the door.

It was Asher.

I was startled for a moment, wondering if I was imagining things.

Last year, my appendicitis flared up. I was home alone, pain so sharp I nearly blacked out. I called him, voice trembling, begging him to take me to the hospital.

His tone was ice. "I'm at work, Harper. You're an adult. Figure it out. Call 911."

But last week, when Chloe at the office yelped after spilling?warm water?on her leg, he scooped her up in front of everyone and drove her to the ER himself.

He never left work early, unless it was for Chloe. She was the only one who could break his rules.

I never thought I'd be lucky enough to make him break his rule for me.

He scanned my packed luggage, a hint of something resembling panic escaping in his voice.

"What are you doing?! What's this all about? Are you deliberately saying 'break up' to force me to back down?"

"Didn't I text you an explanation? Those are Chloe's. She accidentally left them at our place. She got caught in a downpour that day, and I told her to come up for a hot tea. Her stockings happened to get torn, so she changed into fresh clothes at our place before she left."

I narrowed my eyes, replaying his words in my mind.

That was the week before last when I was on a business trip. I was abroad for a deal, and on my way back, I ran into a massive storm. I asked Asher to pick me up.

He said he was working late at the office and was too busy, telling me to take a taxi home.

When I got back, I saw the unfinished ginger tea on the coffee table. I'd thought he'd prepared it specially for me. Turns out, I was just getting leftovers.

Perhaps recalling that incident, Asher's face looked a little uneasy.

"Don't overthink it."

I shook my head, my expression calm.

"I'm not overthinking anything. It doesn't matter anymore."

Asher looked at me strangely, staring for a long time.

After a moment, his voice was hoarse, tinged with a testing quality.

"Why aren't you angry?"

So, he knew I'd been angry before.

But he never cared.

Instead, he always scolded me, called me petty, said I saw dirt everywhere.

I was about to tell him I was moving out.

Then Asher's phone rang.

Chloe was on the other end, sniffling and crying, claiming someone had bullied her.

Asher glared at me, his eyes blazing, and sneered.

"So this is what you were waiting for. Harper, you're quite cunning."

Before I could even process what was happening, Asher grabbed my wrist with a strong grip and practically dragged me into the car.

Inside the car, there was a faint scent of women's perfume.

It was similar to Chloe's.

A plush bunny charm hung from the rearview mirror-just like Chloe's SnapChat avatar.

After I started working at Asher's company, I never rode in his car again. He said he was afraid people at work would gossip, which was also why we kept our relationship under wraps.

The areas I was no longer allowed to tread had long since been occupied by someone else.

There was no longer that familiar ache in my heart, just a grim sense of "I knew it."

As soon as we arrived at the company, Asher roughly pulled me out of the car.

My heel caught, and I stumbled to the ground.

He acted as if he didn't even see it, letting out a scoff.

"What are you trying to pull?"

He grabbed the back of my collar with one hand and dragged me into the company like a piece of trash.

He dragged me all the way to my old desk.

My wrists and knees were already raw, bleeding. I huddled on the floor, feeling like a beaten dog.

Asher pulled Chloe into his arms, protecting her, and warned in a low voice.

"I don't care who ordered you to bully an intern, but this company isn't Harper's to run anymore."

"If you want to stay, show some respect."

Brenda's face was pale, and she didn't dare move an inch.

On the way here, Brenda had already texted me.

After I left, Chloe worked under her.

What could a lazy, conniving intern accomplish?

Brenda had only said a few words to Chloe when she messed up a client's lunch order. Chloe immediately ran straight to Asher to complain.

Chloe buried her head in Asher's chest, openly affectionate and ignoring everyone else.

"Asher, I don't know what I did... I just thought that client looked like they'd appreciate a healthier option, so I ordered them a diet meal, and Brenda just started yelling at me..."

Asher stroked her head and promised to make things right for her.

He swept his cold gaze across everyone in the office.

"I know Harper had good relationships with all of you, and you want to stand up for her because she resigned. But this was her own work error, and she had no face to stay in the company. It has nothing to do with Chloe."

"I'll say it again: if you want to stay, show me your attitude, or get out, all of you."

Everyone's face turned white. They all understood Asher's hidden threat.

Maya, whom I had personally mentored, walked up to me.

She squeezed her eyes shut, whispered a soft "I'm sorry," and then swung her hand, slapping me across the face.

Asher stood there impassively, only saying,

"What about the rest of you?"

Then the others came forward, one after another, jostling to take their turn, a slap after a slap landed on my face.

There were those I'd helped, those who'd helped me...

Blood trickled from the corner of my lips. My head throbbed, my eardrums buzzed, and my consciousness began to blur.

Chloe let out a small giggle.

"Asher, look at her. She looks so pathetic, like a swollen pig."

Asher's eyes were like ice, and his words were even more merciless.

"People like her, with deep schemes and only good at backstabbing, don't deserve to be in this company."

"Her resignation application is rejected. She's fired. And this year's bonus will be revoked and given to Chloe instead."

My eyes widened in disbelief.

Anger, like a spiderweb, spread layer by layer, constricting my entire heart.

"Asher! That's what I earned! How dare you?!"

It was company policy to determine the bonus amount based on the projects each person secured.

From negotiating deals to drafting proposals, finalizing contracts, and haggling with clients, I did it all myself.

To secure an extra percentage point, I drank late into the night.

That bonus was meant to pay off my mortgage...

When I was little, my parents divorced, and no one wanted me. I was shuttled back and forth like a package no one wanted.

I was thrown into my uncle's house, where my aunt made it clear I wasn't welcome. She often threatened to kick me out if I didn't behave.

Because of this, even as an adult, I was terrified of having nowhere to go.

After I got together with Asher, I clung to him desperately. I was afraid he'd kick me out.

No matter where he went, I had to keep tabs on his every move. But even the most burning love can fade.

I started to pin my hopes on money, to buy a place of my own, so that if Asher and I ever broke up, if I was kicked out, I wouldn't be homeless.

I worked like a madwoman, finally saving enough for a down payment.

All these years, I'd scrimped and saved every penny, making loan payments. The pressure was immense. I was losing hair and going gray prematurely from stress.

Asher saw all of this.

He knew how much I valued this bonus.

But now, his tone was mocking.

"Because this company is mine. And because you bullied Chloe, you owe her compensation!"

My throat closed up, choking off any words I might have said.

A wave of nausea churned in my stomach, threatening to make me sick.

Thirty thousand dollars in bonuses, he casually handed to an intern who had done nothing.

I gritted my teeth, enduring the dizziness, as the security guards Asher called threw me out of the company.

Just outside the office, Asher texted me.

"Today's events were your fault to begin with."

Perhaps because I didn't reply, he sent another message.

"Okay, maybe I went too far. But you showed Chloe zero respect. She's still my assistant. I saw red when I heard you had people bullying her."

"I'm flying to Paris for business tomorrow. Coincidentally, that limited edition bag you wanted is dropping there. I'll get it for you. A peace offering."

He had no idea Chloe had already bragged about it on her Ins a full minute earlier.

"Because I wanted to see the Eiffel Tower, someone invented a 'business trip' just to take me. My little puppy is so obedient."

I casually blocked both of them.

A week later, Asher returned from his business trip, a new designer bag in his hand and a pang of guilt in his heart.

He was only supposed to be gone for three days, but Chloe kept dragging him to shop and sightsee. He'd even forgotten to text me that he'd be late.

Coming home today, he wanted to surprise me.

Flushed with warmth at the thought of me waiting, Asher quickened his steps.

When he pushed open the front door, Asher called my name twice.

No answer.

The suitcases I had packed last time were gone.

All of my belongings in the house were gone too.

Asher's breath hitched, his face turning ashen as a terrifying thought clawed at his mind.