He Gave My Reward to His Mistress

The company's fifth anniversary gala. As the top sales champion, I sat in the front row, waiting for the reward I'd been promised.

Instead, my boss called his first love up onto the stage. She'd only just gotten back into the country.

"A luxury apartment, for our model employee."

She smiled sweetly and bowed to the crowd as she spoke.

"Thank you all for your support."

Down in my seat, I bit my lip. When the gala ended, I went straight to him.

"We had an agreement. That apartment was this year's reward for the sales champion. Why did you—"

His face went cold.

"When you speak to me, use my title. This is a company."

His first love chimed in, all wounded softness.

"I do love that apartment, but for the company's sake, I'm willing to give it up."

He waved her quiet and looked at me with ice in his eyes.

"Get one thing straight. You get what I choose to give you. And you're only the sales champion inside this company. Step outside it, and you're nothing."

"Don't forget, if it weren't for me back then, you'd still be scraping for scraps in some gutter."

Hearing her drag up the past, I suddenly laughed.

"Thank you, boss."

If I was nothing, then I would simply leave.

1

Sebastian Barnes looked very pleased with my response.

"Consider this your advance notice. Letitia Fox is being promoted to vice president. The sales department falls under her now. You will give her your full cooperation. Understood?"

Letitia greeted me with a smile.

"Sis, you're older than me, so if I overstep anywhere, I hope you'll be patient with me."

Letitia was Sebastian's first love. I'd always known such a person existed.

Before this, I never thought she'd become an obstacle between me and Sebastian.

But that turned out to be exactly wrong.

"The sales department doesn't need an outsider telling it what to do. That only makes things worse and doubles the effort for half the result."

I knew Letitia's history. A useless pretty face, nothing more.

"Maud Henson, remember your place!"

Sebastian's brows drew together as he snapped at me. "I'm the one who owns this company. You're just an employee. Do you get that?"

With that, he took Letitia by the hand and walked off.

"Sebastian, if Maud really doesn't want to, you could just let her be the VP instead."

"What does she know about management? All she knows how to do is flash a smile and pour drinks at dinners…"

Listening to the two of them flirt without the slightest shame, my heart went cold.

The year we graduated, Sebastian proposed to me in front of everyone, out on the field.

"Maud, will you marry me? I'll take care of you my whole life, protect you…"

The vow still echoed. I remembered that I hadn't refused.

But a year after graduation, the cracks between us appeared fast.

Sebastian's career wasn't going well, while I was promoted to department head.

That night he drank far too much, clung to me, and wept.

"Maud, I want to start my own company. Help me… help me, okay?"

A week later I quit my job and set out on that road with him.

For those five years of building the startup, I drew a meager salary and gave up every commission by choice.

My office was practically a small library.

Keeping a startup alive is brutally hard. All I could do was throw everything I had into helping him.

Technical problems, negotiations, contracts, sometimes even the legal work.

I sent my resignation through the company system to HR. The HR director, Wanda Finch, called almost at once.

"Ms. Henson, you're joking, right?"

I'd trained Wanda myself.

Or rather, she was one of the company's old guard. Most of them were.

"Nothing to joke about. I'm tired. I want to rest for a while."

"Then take a long leave. You haven't taken a single day off in years. Is this because of that new girl, Letitia? I'll go talk to the boss!"

Wanda sounded more anxious than I was.

Warmth stirred in my chest, and I talked her down.

"Don't force it. No party lasts forever. Getting to work alongside all of you for so many years, that's a kind of fate too."

Wanda was quiet for a moment, then told me, word by word.

"I'll calculate all the commissions and bonuses that were never paid out these years, and I'll fight for the highest compensation I can get you."

I wanted to say there was no need, but she'd already hung up.

I gathered a few personal things, and came across a slightly yellowed denim backpack.

It was the gift Sebastian gave me the day the company was founded.

Just as I was about to leave, Sebastian called.

"Maud Henson, what the hell has gotten into you?"