My Secret Lover at the Bar

Isabella Bennett’s voice came from behind, shattering the strange tension.

“Are you hiding from me?”

Adrian Walker ignored Isabella, turning to stand by my side, blocking her view.

Was he afraid Isabella would see me?

“Why else? Mr. Walker, you’re a big shot now, standing with the real heiress. Why would you bother with this fake’s ex? Besides, you never really loved me, did you?”

For a moment, Adrian’s expression faltered. He opened his mouth as if to say something, but in the end said nothing. Instead, he pulled out a card from his pocket, slipped it into the basket of my motorbike, and walked back to Isabella.

I watched as Adrian and Isabella walked side by side toward the stretch limousine parked at the curb.

A perfect couple—handsome man, beautiful woman. Their love must be strong.

Suddenly I felt like a rat in the gutter, spying on someone else’s happiness.

From that day on, Adrian kept coming to the nightclub, urging me to quit. He said this wasn’t a decent job.

Of course I knew that. But my gambling-addicted father owed Mr. Davis money, and I was nothing but collateral to pay off his debt.

“Sophia… I’ll give you a hundred thousand dollars a month.”

I froze. What did he mean?

“Two hundred thousand. Three hundred thousand… Five hundred thousand. Is that enough? If not, I can add more.”

Clink! The bottle slipped from my hand and shattered. I stumbled back in shock. He… wanted to keep me, just like I once kept him.

Life was a cruel cycle. Everything from the past now pierced me like knives. I shut my eyes, letting silent tears fall.

“I apologize for what I did before. Please, just let me go.”

I wiped my tears and fled, broken.

Curled up in the tiny breakroom, I cried until I lost my strength.

I loved him. After all these years, I still loved him. But now, I was no match for him.

And his hatred for me… was only natural.

I stared at the card in my hand. At first I wanted to return it, but after some hesitation, I went to Mr. Davis’s office.

“There’s two hundred thousand on this card. My father’s debt is cleared.”

With the debt settled, I went back to my small apartment and packed away everything of mine. For my biological father, I had done more than enough.

It was time to start a new life.

In my closet, I found a family heirloom pendant—the Walker family’s gift to their future daughter-in-law. I had forced it from Adrian years ago. I decided to keep it as a memory.

I booked a flight three days later. From then on, I would be free.

But before leaving for the airport, I realized my ID was still being held by the nightclub.

When I went back to retrieve it, I saw Adrian at the bar counter, asking questions. I quickly hid in the shadows.

“Excuse me, why hasn’t Sophia Bennett been coming to work?”

“She resigned.”

“When?”

“Three days ago.”

I slipped out the back door.

“Sophia Bennett!”

I froze. Looking up, I saw Isabella in a luxury dress standing on a raised platform, arms crossed, gazing down at me with disdain. Her smug smile made my blood boil. I met her stare with equal arrogance, and her smile faltered.

“Sophia, I suggest you stay away from Adrian. He’s my boyfriend now.”

I laughed coldly.

“Isabella, what are you so proud of? Everything you have is secondhand. Our parents were mine first—and so was Adrian.”