In A City's bustling business district stood the towering Langston Group building. Right at its base, a slim figure dragging a suitcase came to a slow stop.

She was tall, wrapped in a sleek black trench dress that hinted at luxury. Her alabaster legs extended gracefully beneath the hem, heels a cool silver-gray. Black hair flowed down like a waterfall; smooth, pale skin paired with a calm, composed aura.

That was Evelyn Greene—the same woman who'd been forced to flee this city three years ago.

She slowly looked up at the top of the building. Brushing aside a strand of wind-blown hair with slender fingers, her hand accidentally brushed against a faint scar above her right temple. Her clear almond-shaped eyes instantly sharpened with hatred.

“I’m back. And this time, no one’s taking what’s mine.”

Muttering the vow deep inside, Evelyn drew her focus back, didn’t hesitate for another second, and strode straight into the grand doors of Langston Group.

Moments later, she appeared on the 38th floor.

Three knocks. Click-clack—her heels echoed as she stepped into the CEO’s office. Evelyn glanced around the spacious, elegant room. Looked empty… until she turned and froze.

There he was.

Her heart skipped.

Right in front of her stood a tall, sharply dressed man, features chiseled like a sculpture—refined and mature. But the cold, piercing gaze from his obsidian eyes felt like a slap of winter wind.

“Miss Greene, long time no see.”

Victor Langston’s voice was cool, his tone distant as his eyes locked on the woman who’d disappeared without a word and now showed up on her own. Same face, but time had only made her look more polished, more magnetic.

“Hey, Victor. Been a while.” Evelyn kept the flutter in her chest on lockdown, offered him a warm, soft smile.

“Victor?” he echoed, brows arching slightly. There was a bite in his voice. “Shouldn’t it be ‘brother-in-law’ now?”

“My bad,” she replied sweetly, her tone still light. “But since there’s no marriage certificate involved, I think I’m still allowed to hold off on that… Mr. Langston.”

Of course Evelyn had heard about Victor’s engagement to Megan Mitchell, her half-sister. It was half the reason she came straight here the moment she landed.

As her pretty eyes sparkled with that sugar-coated barb, her smooth fingers lightly brushed Victor’s face.

“It’s been three years, Victor. I really missed you.”

Victor looked down, eyes narrowing at the hand on his cheek. His brows sank into a frown, and he grabbed her wrist firmly.

“Evelyn Greene,” his voice oozed mockery, “don’t tell me showing up now is your way of flirting with your sister’s fiancé?”

Evelyn chuckled low, lips close to his sharp jawline. “Flirting? Nah. I’m just here to take back what should’ve been mine.”

Victor snorted, his grip tightening.

“If by that, you mean me… then let me save you the trouble. You missed the deadline.”

He flung her hand aside with a sneer, the anger from her sudden vanishing act three years ago still simmering clearly.

“If that’s true,” Evelyn shot back as he walked past, "then why did you let me in today the second you heard my name?”

He stopped.

Turned around slowly, eyes cold and sharp.

“You seriously think I invited you up here to reminisce?”

“Didn’t you?” Evelyn asked with a half-smile, looking up at him, her eyes shining. “Even if you didn’t miss me these past three years… you must’ve at least wondered why I disappeared before our engagement, right?”She still held onto a sliver of hope—maybe, just maybe, she’d get the chance to finally tell him what hell she went through that night three years ago when she had to leave. But the second she brought up her sudden disappearance, Victor Langston’s eyes turned glacier-cold.

A firestorm of rage erupted inside him, the kind of fury that only comes from a buried humiliation—the kind that had haunted him for the past three years. He looked at her like she was some kind of joke, his voice wrapped in a cutting sneer.

“So? Ran off with your high school sweetheart and now you crawled back? Got dumped, huh?”

“What high school sweetheart?” Evelyn Greene froze, totally blank. No one knew better than her—Victor had been her first and only love. But seeing nothing but rejection and sarcasm in his eyes, she suddenly got it.

“It was Megan, wasn’t it? She told you I ditched you to run away with a high school ex?” Evelyn’s tone cracked, and of course it made sense—Megan Mitchell would’ve used any excuse to cover her tracks. She always knew Megan had schemed to get rid of her.

“No,” Victor said, spitting the words out one by one, “Your mother told me. Herself.”

“My mom…” Evelyn’s heart took a sharp hit. She clenched her fists. Her own mother? The woman who supposedly loved her but always bent over backwards to please Megan?

All her memories came rushing back—she was five when they moved into the Greene household, and for the next seventeen years, it was always Megan this, Megan that. Her mom never hesitated to raise her voice or her hand at her.

She’d finally managed to win some dignity when she got engaged to Victor, but Megan ruined that too, out of pure jealousy.

If her mom had shown even an ounce of love, she wouldn’t have had to run like some criminal. Three years overseas, and all that time she’d tried to convince herself not to hate her mother. “She’s just trying to hold on to her life as a rich man's wife,” she told herself.

She'd even believed her mom would miss her, worry, maybe even regret. But now? Knowing her own mother spun a lie to Victor’s face that she’d run off with another man? That was the final nail in the coffin.

“Ha…” Evelyn let out a dry, bitter laugh, mocking herself more than anyone. If not a single soul believed in her, what was there to lose?

Revenge. That was the only reason she was here.

“What are you laughing at?” Victor's face tightened, darkening further. But Evelyn, instead of backing down, smiled even wider. Her red lips curved, and she looked him dead in the eyes as her fingers wandered up to the collar of his crisp shirt.

“Fine, I’ll admit it—I regret leaving. My so-called high school crush? Please, he couldn’t even hold a candle to you.”

Her voice dropped to a teasing purr as she undid a gem-studded button on his collar. At the same time, the belt on her trench coat slipped free, revealing the plunging neckline of a little tweed dress hugging her curves like second skin.

Victor stared down at her, at the way she leaned into him. Her smug little look, those bedroom eyes—completely different from the shy girl he remembered. Or maybe he never really knew who she was at all.

His eyes were icy, but down below… his body wasn’t listening. Evelyn’s hand kept moving, one button after another.

Suddenly, he grabbed her waist tight, fingers digging into her flesh.

“Three years and somehow you’ve learned a lot. But I’m not the type to pick up someone else’s leftovers.” His tone was cruel, each word soaked in scorn.

The words barely hit before he shoved her onto the couch. A second later, the office door slammed with a boom that echoed in her chest.

Evelyn sat there, stunned, anger and heartbreak tangled in her gut.