Chapter 4

The moment I walked through the company doors.

I could feel several pairs of eyes glued to me.

Coworkers whispered among themselves:

"No wonder she made executive so fast. Turns out she got the position by seducing the boss."

"Manager Fox is so pitiful. Mr. Henson is her fiancé, isn't he?"

Once, I believed Damian Henson and I were a real married couple.

For the sake of running the company better and keeping tabs on the talk inside it.

In this company the two of us founded.

We had never announced our relationship.

He held the real power, out in the open.

I held the equity, in the shadows.

I looked at the overturned desk.

And at the giant word "mistress" scrawled across it in red ink.

The ache in my heart was even greater than my anger.

This was what I got for trusting Damian Henson.

For pouring my heart and soul into the fight at his side.

Still, thankfully.

I had already become a gold digger who only wanted the big payout.

Facing Doreen Fox, who stepped out of the crowd, smug and self-satisfied.

I said calmly:

"I am not a mistress."

To press her accusation.

Doreen strode forward, worked up.

Carelessly, she kicked a picture frame on the floor and sent it flying.

The old photo tore in two.

It was the only picture I had of me and my parents.

My parents had fallen in love against their families' wishes.

When I was three, to keep from being pulled apart.

They chose to run away with me.

A car crash on the highway left me an orphan.

The reason I got together with Damian Henson.

Was only for the courage he'd shown, for my sake.

To cut ties with all that rot.

But now, Damian Henson had changed.

And the only keepsake my parents left me was destroyed along with it.

For the sake of my big payout.

I had put on a lot of acts.

I should not have cared much about being branded a "mistress."

But now, I suddenly wanted to make a point of it.

"Candice Winfield, have you no shame? If a kept woman isn't a mistress, then what is—"

I cut her off calmly.

"Manager Fox, from what I understand, a 'kept woman' refers to a concubine that both husband and wife once acknowledged along the southern coast—a feudal custom that persecutes women."

"Are you saying that in modern society, a marriage alliance between the Foxes and the Hensons is still carrying on such a woman-devouring tradition?"

My being the mistress.

Had been settled before the Fox and Henson families sealed their marriage alliance.

I knew what Doreen was thinking.

She didn't actually want to drive me out.

After all, she was still counting on me to bear her a son.

She only wanted to win back the face she'd lost yesterday.

But now, Doreen herself realized how filthy the arrangement between the two families was, too shameful to say aloud.

She could only stammer and explain that she'd misspoken.

The standoff dragged on for a moment.

Just then a familiar voice spoke up:

"As his mother, surely a few words from me carry enough weight."

"Candice Winfield, Damian already has a fiancée. If you have any dignity, stop tangling yourself up with him."

Damian Henson's mother quietly came up to my side.

And, in a voice only I could hear, drove her point in:

"Doreen came to me to complain."

"Since you and Damian are so devoted, so dead set on being our family's mistress."

"I don't care how capable and formidable you are out there—in my house, even a dragon has to lie coiled."

Then she slapped a sheet of paper down in front of me.

And said, in a voice everyone could hear:

"Thirty million. Leave my son."

If she had actually meant to give it, I might have agreed.

But that contract plainly stated.

That I was to become the legal representative of Henson Group.

And to transfer, free of charge, all shares of the company under my name.

This was the most common tactic used against a mistress along the southern coast.

Strip her of her career and her rights.

Saddle her with the debts and liabilities of her husband's company.

That way, even without a marriage certificate.

A mistress could be turned into a mule pulling the millstone for the rest of her life.

If I signed.

My big payout and my whole life would be finished.

All around me was rustling, my coworkers condemning me for not knowing what was good for me.

Hearing the uproar, Damian Henson came out of his office.

Once he understood the whole story.

He silently placed me behind him, looking somewhat troubled:

"Mom, Candice is still carrying our son. If she doesn't want to sign, let it go."

"So what if she's carrying a son? When your own mother was pregnant with you, she still knelt and washed my feet."

"The Henson family, the Fox family, and Candice Winfield—you can only choose one."

Damian Henson's face went ghastly white in an instant.

And in the end he still stepped aside.

Abandoned by Damian Henson once again.

I could no longer summon even a flicker of feeling.

On my face I still managed a pleasing smile.

The very picture of a lovesick fool:

"Damian, I'll sign. I don't want you caught in a hard spot because of me."

"The baby needs rest. Handing over control is fine too. Don't blame yourself."

Seeing how deeply my understanding moved him.

I added softly:

"Mom, Doreen, I notice this contract forgot to have me give up the legal representative status of my original company."

"Shall I add it in?"

The two of them, mother-in-law and daughter-in-law, were chatting away and agreed without even glancing at it.

A blessing in disguise—I fought down my smile.

And, all reluctance, urged Damian Henson:

"Next week, before your wedding with Doreen, don't come looking for me."

"She's jealous, and I understand your difficulties and the position you're in."

"Ten years together—we won't miss these few days."

He praised me for being virtuous and considerate, when really I was just afraid someone would get in the way of my getaway.

He told me to wait for him at home with our son in my belly.

Little did he know the child he was longing for had long since become a clot of blood.

To comfort me, Damian Henson.

Wired a full year's rent from all the Henson family businesses into my card.

This parting gift toward my big payout, I liked very much.

····

Along the southern coast, wedding banquets run over two days.

Only after the previous day's feast, and the exchange of betrothal gifts and bridal gifts.

Comes the fetching of the bride the next day.

By the time Damian Henson held the first banquet.

I was already on the plane to New York.

When the Henson family was preparing to exchange the betrothal gifts.

Damian Henson's mother hurriedly pulled him into a corner.

"Henson Group made a big investment a few days ago. All the liquid capital is tied up in it for now."

"For the betrothal gifts, use the rent money first, and scrape together whatever you have from your own company."

A chill ran down Damian Henson's back.

Suddenly he felt a wave of panic.

He texted me—the guests were already questioning why the Hensons were so slow to exchange the betrothal gifts.

Candice, let me use that money I transferred you a while back—just an emergency. I'll pay you back in a few days.

Money? I don't have a single cent left. As for your wedding gift, that I do have.

And finally, thank you for the big payout you handed me.

Damian Henson's pupils dilated in an instant.

Cold sweat prickled.

?? You blew tens of millions? Candice Winfield, you're a goddamn gold digger—

Before he could send the text.

He'd already been blocked.

His "mother" urged him to hurry up and wire the money.

The banquet doors suddenly swung open.

Four men carried in a large box.

"So you'd set aside cash after all. Damian, you're starting to handle things with some of your older brother's thoroughness now."

"Mom, it isn't cash, don't open it yet—"

Damian Henson couldn't stop them; his mother had already thrown open the gift box in front of everyone.

A shrill scream tore through the hall.