The Light I Lost, The Love That Stayed

Claire returned to the office and sat at her desk, staring at the computer screen, her fingers cold to the touch.

Her whole body trembled with anger, but the weight of her workload pressed down on her, forcing her to rush through the report.

The day after the data submission, the annual key account she was responsible for, Aurora Group, flagged irregularities and accused her of falsifying the data.

The penalty for breach of contract was thirty million dollars. If she failed to clarify the situation today, the company would pull out immediately, and her career would be over.

"Ms. Sterling, are you certain these user growth figures are real?" The client representative asked coldly, "We checked the backend. The numbers don't match at all."

"I'll check it again," Claire said, biting her lip.

But she knew very well the data had only been uploaded yesterday, and she had personally verified it three times.

Unless someone had tampered with it.

Suddenly, she remembered Sophie "kindly" offering to back up her files yesterday.

It had to be her.

But if she said it now, no one would believe her.

The only person Claire could think of now was Ethan.

If Ethan was willing to believe her and pull up the original backup data, it would clear her name.

Claire walked into Ethan's office, her heart pounding. "Mr. Quinn, could you pull up the data backup? I think someone tampered with my data..."

Ethan lifted his head from the documents and looked at Claire without a trace of emotion, yet it still sent a chill down her spine.

"Your mistake, why should I be the one to pay for it?"

Claire froze for a second. "It's not a mistake. Someone altered my data..."

Ethan cut her off. "Where's your proof?"

Claire's face turned ashen. He didn't believe her.

Ethan noticed the change in her expression and spoke slowly, almost like a reminder. "I'm the CEO. It wouldn't be appropriate for me to interfere in disputes between employees. But you could always go to your ex-boyfriend. I hear he's loaded. He could cover the penalty for you, as long as you're willing to ask."

Her ex-boyfriend.

That was Ethan.

Claire understood now. All of this was just to humiliate her.

Claire shoved the door open and walked out. She would rather quit than lower herself to beg Ethan.

At that moment, the assistant walked in. "Mr. Quinn, Aurora is preparing to withdraw their investment. Ms. Sterling's project probably won't survive."

Ethan recalled the way Claire had walked out without looking back. His fist tightened, then slowly loosened.

He remembered what she had said last night when she slapped him. "I must've been blind to fall for someone like you five years ago."

He actually let out a quiet laugh. It didn't matter. She loved him.

That was enough.

The assistant hesitated. "This is Ms. Sterling's hard work. If it's destroyed..."

Ethan turned away, his tone casual. "I already told her how to solve it. She can ask her ex for money. He has plenty. As long as Claire is willing to ask, her ex would give everything to help her."

The assistant froze. "Isn't that... a bit much?"

Ethan's lips curled slightly. "But if she's willing to bow her head just once, I'll forgive her for leaving without a word five years ago."

But Claire never came.

3 p.m., meeting room. The client representative stood up, his tone final. "Ms. Sterling, unfortunately, we've decided to terminate the partnership."

Claire's face went deathly ashen as her nails dug into her palm.

At that moment, the meeting room door was pushed open.

Ethan walked in slowly, followed by the legal and finance teams.

"The original data is here. This wasn't Claire's mistake." His voice was calm, yet carried undeniable authority. "Quinn Group will fully fund this project and assume all risks."

The room erupted in shock.

The client representative stammered, "Mr. Quinn? Why would you..."

His gaze swept over Claire's ashen face, and for a brief moment, his tone softened. "I trust her ability."

Claire stared at him in a daze. He was about to get engaged to Sophie, so why was he helping her?

She wanted to go thank him, but the moment she stood up, Ethan was already surrounded by investors asking about the next steps.

She would have to thank him another time.

As Claire walked out of the meeting room, a man stopped her.

"Ms. Sterling!" Adrian Cole, the investor, smiled as he draped an arm over her shoulder. "The project's safe! Dinner tonight to celebrate?"

She hesitated. Adrian had helped her a lot. It was only right to treat him to something.

"Let me buy you a coffee instead."