Love conceals a knife, ultimately in vain
Chapter 1
My home was gone.
The bulldozer that flattened our house also crushed my mom.
All because Hunter Vance’s fiancée, Sarah Jane, wanted the land for her rose garden.
Sarah Jane offered me a million dollars through her company, but I refused.
Instead, I asked for a job at Hunter’s company.
My relatives called me a heartless opportunist, profiting from my parents’ deaths.
I never argued, letting them yell and even hit me.
Because I wanted more than just a job.
I wanted Sarah Jane to pay.
Everyone knew Sarah Jane was a workaholic.
Vance Corp and Hunter were her life.
And I was going to take that life away from her.
Men, who really wants an ice queen?
A sweet, innocent flower is their true destiny.
And that’s my specialty.
1
I was assigned to sales in the marketing department, nowhere near Hunter.
From day one, I was ostracized.
“Heard she traded her mom’s life for this job. Sick.”
“Totally. And those deals she supposedly closed? Probably slept her way to the top.”
I ignored them, secretly hoping the bullying would escalate.
I needed a reason to make a lasting impression on Hunter.
One night, my team leader took me to dinner with a client, a total creep who kept touching my leg.
My team leader pretended not to notice, just kept laughing.
He also forced me to drink shots, so I kept excusing myself to the restroom to avoid him.
After dinner, they were heading to a bar. I tried to leave, but the creep grabbed my arm.
“Come on, sweetie, loosen up.”
I faked a smile, then threw up all over him.
He recoiled in disgust. “Get away from me! You’re disgusting!”
My team leader shoved me. “You’re an embarrassment. Go home.”
They drove off and left me there.
I went back to the office.
It was almost midnight, deserted. I reached my desk and turned on the lamp.
Tears streamed down my face as I scrubbed my leg with a dishcloth.
I chugged two beers.
The sobs racked my body, getting louder and louder.
“What are you doing?” a deep voice said from behind me.
I didn’t turn around, just kept crying.
“I’m practicing drinking. They all bully me. I can’t hold my liquor. My team leader hates me. The client groped me. I just want to do a good job! Why is it so hard?”
He grabbed the beers and threw them away.
“Which team are you on?”
I sobbed, digging in the trash. “Who are you? Are you bullying me too? Everyone bullies me because I don’t have parents, or a home. Am I just supposed to take it?”
He pulled me up and sat me down. “Tell me which team you’re on. I’ll help you.”
I looked at him, tears blurring my vision. “Really? Are you the department manager? Please don’t tell my team leader. He’ll fire me. I need this job.”
Everything went black.
I woke up in a plush hotel bed.
A note on the nightstand: “I’ll look into this. Take the day off. Rest.”
Signed, “H.”
A smile crept across my face. I was completely sober.
My dad owned a brewery. I practically grew up in a fermenting tank. Last night’s alcohol was nothing.
It was all an act. The client, the team leader, being at the office late.
I’d heard Hunter, who rarely came in, had a video conference scheduled last night.
Perfect timing. Perfect performance.
My revenge play had begun.
2
I showered, turned off my phone, and left the hotel.
I took a cab back to my crummy apartment.
I tidied up and waited.
Around 3 pm, I turned my phone back on.
Missed calls and texts flooded in, mostly from my team.
I opened a message from Jenny, the only other person on the team who got bullied.
“Bethany, where are you? The team leader’s freaking out!”
“Heard the CEO’s assistant demanded your file. He told the team leader to start looking for a new job.”
I smiled.
Next, my team leader’s messages.
“Bethany, how dare you turn off your phone!”
“What’s your relationship with the CEO? What did you tell him?”
“Call me back or I’ll blacklist you from this entire industry!”
I laughed. The idiot had even used everyone else’s phones to send threats.
My phone rang. An unknown number.
“Bethany? This is Lincoln, Mr. Vance’s assistant. Could you come to the office?”
My voice trembled. “I… I’m scared. My team leader yelled at me. I don’t know what’s happening.”
A deeper voice came on the line. “This is Hunter Vance. Do you know the Cloud Nine Club?”
I stammered. “Y-yes.”
“Take a cab there. We’ll meet.”
I splashed water on my face, skipped the makeup, put on a modest dress, and left.
3
At the club, I was led to a private room where Hunter was waiting alone.
“Mr. Vance,” I murmured, bowing slightly.
He gestured for me to sit. “Tell me everything you know. About your entire team.”
I bit my lip, looking apprehensive.
“I told you I’d help. Trust me.”
His gaze was intense, making my heart skip a beat.
But there was something else in his eyes, some other meaning.
I hesitated. “Everyone on my team is nice. My team leader gives me lots of opportunities. The other team members are friendly.”
He cut me off. “My investigation tells a different story.”
“Bethany Claire, two months into the job, and you were the second-highest performer last month. You would have been first if your team leader hadn’t stolen your client.”
“You’re the team’s errand girl, fetching coffee and takeout. You do everyone’s reports. You work the most overtime. They call you ‘Blood Money’, am I right?”
Tears welled up, but I held them back. My pale, makeup-free face made me look even more fragile.
He handed me a tissue, his voice softening. “Don’t blame yourself. You did me a favor. You showed me I need to deal with these parasites.”
“You’re very capable. How about you become my assistant, working for Lincoln?”
I looked up, feigning innocence. “Really?”
“Of course. But are you up for my test?”
He quizzed me on company operations. I answered flawlessly, offering my own insights.
Truthfully, before my mom’s death, Vance Corp was my dream company. I’d planned to intern elsewhere first, then apply here.
Fate had other plans.
I spoke confidently, occasionally feigning ignorance to ask him questions. I already knew the answers, about his proudest real estate projects, but I asked about his motivations, not just the cold, hard numbers.
Maybe no one had ever cared about his true intentions, just the profits. He opened up, telling me more than I expected.
After each project he described, I looked at him with admiration and understanding.
A warmth flickered in his eyes.
As I left, I paused at the door. “Mr. Vance, um, this is pretty far from my place. Could I expense the cab fare?”
He smiled and offered his phone. “Add me on WeChat. I’ll transfer you the money.”
4
Just as I received the transfer, the door opened.
Sarah Jane strode in, wearing a sharp black coat.
“I heard you were here,” she said to Hunter, her face impassive. “Am I interrupting?”
I pretended to be startled, stumbling backward and falling against the table. Hunter instinctively caught me.
“I’m so sorry,” I stammered, righting myself. “I lost my balance. Ms. Jane, please don’t misunderstand.”
Hunter gently took Sarah Jane’s hand. “Don’t worry, Bethany. She looks cold, but she’s really very kind.”
Sarah Jane finally looked at me. “What are you doing here?”
“Just discussing some company business. This is Bethany Claire, my new assistant.”
I saw her brow furrow. “She can’t be.”
“Sarah, I know you don’t like me having women around, but after all these years, don’t you trust me?”
“Hunter, that’s not it. A woman, fine. But not this woman.”
“Why?”
Sarah Jane froze, speechless.
I smiled inwardly. She was clearly hiding what she did to my family. No man would stay with a woman who did something so cruel.
“Um, I’ll leave you two alone,” I said quickly, and practically ran out of the room.
Sarah Jane couldn’t lie with me present. It would ruin the fun.
Besides, I wasn’t worried Hunter would change his mind. Men hate being controlled.
Back home, I posted a picture on my WeChat Moments. A bowl of plain rice porridge and some pickles. Caption: “Tomorrow’s goal: add a steamed bun to dinner!”
Before I could eat, a knock on the door.
Sarah Jane.
She walked in, chin held high. “Don’t push it! Stay away from him!”
I choked back a sob. “Ms. Jane, even though you killed my mother, I still need to live. I can’t just be a low-level employee. I have dreams, I want to advance. Please, give me this chance.”
“You! Then go to a different department! Or you’re fired!”
She slammed the door.
I held up my phone. I’d been on a call with Hunter since I posted on WeChat Moments.
“I’ll buy you that steamed bun.”
He’d barely finished the sentence when Sarah Jane arrived. I hadn’t hung up.
I put the phone to my ear again. His voice was low, laced with anger. “Come downstairs. I’m here.”
He didn’t take me for steamed buns. He took me to an exclusive restaurant and ordered a feast.
“Eat your fill. She doesn’t have eyes here. Now tell me about your mother and Sarah Jane.”
We drank. He seemed agitated. Vance Corp was bigger than Jane Corp on paper, but Hunter relied on Sarah Jane, was practically under her thumb.
Humiliating for a successful man.
We were alone in the dim restaurant. We ended up sitting on the floor, backs against the table, gazing at the stars.
“Mr. Vance, do you have worries too, even though you’re so successful?”
He scoffed. “Successful? Hardly.”
I gave him a wide-eyed, innocent look. “You are! You have dreams, you stand up for what you believe in. You’re like a hero. Like you can solve anything.”
He turned to me, his eyes glistening. “You seem to understand me.”
Maybe it was the alcohol, or the beautiful night. He kissed me.
I froze, trembling slightly.
He pulled back, stroking my flushed cheek. “First kiss?”
I nodded shyly.
He scooped me up into his arms and carried me upstairs to a room.
As he pressed me against the bed, he whispered in my ear, “Don’t be afraid. I’ll be gentle.”
A sharp pain shot through my abdomen. Tears spilled down my cheeks.
He kissed them away.
“Be my bunny, okay? Be good, and I’ll give you anything.”
