The Light I Lost, The Love That Stayed

Claire had not expected that on only her third day back home, her father would corner her outside her apartment.

Victor left no room for argument. "Mr. Brooks just lost his wife, and he's very interested in you. This marriage alliance will decide whether the Sterling Group gets the port project."

Claire did not want to go, but with one order from Victor, the bodyguards dragged her straight to the private room.

All she could do was pray he would not like her. But the moment Harold saw her, his eyes lit up.

"Ms. Sterling, you're even prettier than your photo." He gave her a greasy smile and reached for her hand. "I heard you studied journalism overseas. Why don't you come work as my personal assistant? I'll pay you five hundred thousand dollars a month."

Five hundred thousand dollars a month?

That was not a job offer. He was looking for a mistress.

Claire jerked her hand back at once. "Sorry, I'm not the right person for that job."

"Come on, don't be in such a hurry." Harold grabbed her wrist with a grip brutal enough to hurt. "Your dad already agreed, so what are you acting all high and mighty for?"

She struggled against him. "Let go of me!"

Just as she was about to cry out for help.

The private room door was kicked open.

Ethan strode in. His gaze swept over Harold's hand clamped around her wrist, and all warmth vanished from his eyes.

The next second, he seized Harold's wrist with such force it felt like he might crush the bone. The moment Claire broke free, she moved behind Ethan without thinking.

Ethan glanced at the way Claire had hidden behind him and gave a faint smile. "Mr. Brooks, sorry, but she's with me."

Harold froze for a second, then flew into a rage. "Who the hell do you think you are?"

Ethan slowly turned his head, a cold smile tugging at his lips. "I'm her fiancé."

Claire went still and looked up at his back.

Her fiancé?

Harold had been ready to curse him out, but the instant he recognized who it was, all the color drained from his face. His knees nearly gave out beneath him.

Ethan ignored him. He took out his phone, dialed a number, and said in an icy voice, "Suspend all cooperation with Brooks Group."

At that moment, Victor and Monica hurried over, clearly having rushed there after hearing what happened.

Victor forced out a smile. "Mr. Quinn, this is a misunderstanding. It was just a normal blind date..."

Ethan cut him off, murder in his eyes. "You're forcing her to marry an old man who just lost his wife, and you call that a normal blind date?"

He advanced one step at a time, the force of his presence driving Victor backward. "If anyone so much as lays a finger on her again, I won't mind wiping the Sterling Group out of this country for good."

Monica clapped a hand over her mouth in fright. Victor's face turned deathly ashen, and he did not dare say another word.

Ethan was no longer the nobody he had been five years ago. Now, Quinn Group could crush Sterling Group as easily as stepping on an ant.

Ethan turned, took hold of Claire's wrist, and though his grip was not harsh, it carried a resolve she could not break free from. "Come with me."

Silence filled the car.

At last, Claire could not hold back anymore. Her voice was so soft it was almost impossible to hear. "Why did you help me?"

Ethan's grip on the steering wheel tightened sharply, the tendons standing out across the back of his hand.

He did not look at her. His voice came out hoarse, as if forced from somewhere deep in his throat. "You may be cold and heartless, but I'm not like you. We're not the same. At least I still know how to care."

Claire could not understand it. He was the one who had abandoned her back then, so why did he look at her now as if he hated her to the bone?

Bitterness welled up inside her, and she could not stop herself from shooting back, "If you're really so loyal and so full of feeling, then why were you the one who, five years ago..."

Before she could finish, the passenger-side door was suddenly pulled open.

Sophie climbed in, clutching a stack of documents, panic written all over her face. "Ethan! Emergency meeting! There's a problem with the acquisition!"

The second she spotted Claire in the back seat, jealousy and spite flashed through her eyes.

Ethan frowned. "Push the meeting back."

"No!" Sophie grabbed his arm anxiously, leaning so close she was nearly pressed against him. "They're already here, just waiting for your signature. This deal is everything you've worked for over the past five years!"

She looked up at him, her eyes rimmed red. "You can't ruin yourself over one woman."

From the back seat, Claire watched Sophie's hand clutching Ethan's sleeve, and watched him not shake her off right away.

Little by little, her heart sank.

So the one who had stayed by his side these past five years was Sophie.

So he had already moved on with someone else.

She quietly wiped away her tears and said in a low voice, "I can get back on my own."

Ethan turned to her. "Claire..."

"No." She cut him off, her voice calm in a way that was almost frightening. "Thank you for helping me today. But from now on, stay out of my life."

She pushed open the door and got out. Rain was already pouring down outside, but even without an umbrella, she walked away without a second thought.

Ethan moved to go after her, but Sophie clung desperately to his arm. "Ethan! If you leave now, the acquisition is finished! Five years of work will go down the drain!"