=#### When Mrs. Cooper handed me a check for five million dollars and told me to leave Natalie Cooper, I didn’t hesitate for a second. I had spent five years by Emily’s side, giving her the best years of my life. Five million? It wasn’t nearly enough for what I’d sacrificed. Word of this reached Emily soon enough. I later heard that on the day she found out, she skipped the most important meeting of her career just to come find me. When Natalie Cooper stormed into the apartment she had bought for me, I was in the middle of packing my things. “What’s the meaning of this?” Her face was dark, her expression colder than I’d ever seen it. After years of being with her, I knew what this look meant—she was furious. “Ms. Cooper,” I said with a calm smile, trying to look composed despite the mess around me. “Five million dollars to leave you—what’s there to misunderstand?” That only made her angrier. Her jaw clenched, and I could see the fire behind her eyes. “Once you walk out that door,” she hissed, her voice low but sharp, “don’t come crawling back.” With that, she turned and slammed the door behind her. To be fair, Emily had been good to me over the years—at least, in a material sense. She showered me with gifts: luxury cars, designer watches, all the trappings of a kept man. If I’d stayed, those five million dollars would’ve been just a fraction of what I could’ve gotten. But lately, I’d grown tired of it all. And besides, word had it that Andrew was coming back from abroad. Andrew—the man Emily’s family had always wanted for her. Her fiancé. The man who was my reminder of what I really was: just a stand-in. It didn’t take me long to pack up my things. Within half an hour, I was out the door with nowhere to go. I ended up crashing at my buddy Matthew’s place. Unfortunately, his new girlfriend was there too. They were wrapped up in their little love bubble, making me feel like the third wheel. Matthew gave me an apologetic look, but I hadn’t called ahead, so I couldn’t really blame him. I excused myself and checked into a nearby hotel instead. This hotel wasn’t unfamiliar. Emily and I used to stay here often. On nights when her business deals turned into boozy work dinners, she’d book a room nearby to rest. Emily could hold her liquor well—she rarely lost her cool in public, no matter how much she drank. But on the rare occasions she did get drunk, she was impossible to handle. No one could deal with her when she was like that—no one except me. Her assistant would always call me to come and take care of her. As I checked in, the woman at the front desk recognized me. “Ms. Cooper didn’t come with you this time?” she asked with a polite smile. I shook my head and replied casually, “Emily and I aren’t together anymore.” She blinked, clearly taken aback by how easily I said it. After all, everyone in the city’s elite circles knew about us. Natalie Cooper, the famously unattainable CEO, and me, her kept man—a detail that had always been a source of gossip. Once I got my room key, I poured myself a drink and turned on some heavy metal—the kind of music I loved but rarely got to listen to. Emily hated rock music. She said it was too loud, too chaotic. Whenever we were together, I’d play the soothing acoustic tracks she preferred. But now, as I sat alone in the hotel room with an expensive drink in hand and the music blasting, I realized something felt… off. Something was missing. I stayed in that hotel for three days, doing nothing but drinking and trying to drown out the silence. On the third day, Matthew showed up. He’d heard about my breakup with Emily and had taken time off from his girlfriend to help me “get back on my feet.” His grand plan? A road trip. Just the two of us, hitting the open road to clear my head. But the day before we were supposed to leave, Matthew got called into work for some emergency at his company. And just like that, our “bro trip” turned into a solo adventure. So, I packed my bags and went to Emberwood, alone.
The moment I boarded the plane, my phone started buzzing. It was Natalie. The call rang for what felt like an eternity. I didn’t pick up, even as a flight attendant politely reminded me that the plane was about to take off and I needed to turn off my phone. Right before shutting it down, a text came through from her: “I’ll only say this once—stop being dramatic and come back when you’re done.” I stared at that single line of text, and suddenly, memories from four years ago came rushing back. Four years ago, I’d been with Natalie for just over a year when I first heard about Andrew Shen. Her Andrew. That night, I drank too much at a bar, and for the first time, I lost my temper with her. She was in her study, working as always. Sitting behind that massive desk, she was conducting a video call for some international meeting. The glow from her monitor lit up her sharp, elegant features, making her look as distant as she was breathtaking. I stumbled in, drunk and reeking of whiskey. Natalie had a strict rule: no one was allowed to bother her while she worked. But that night, emboldened by alcohol and jealousy, I wrapped my arms around her waist, pulling her close. I kissed the sensitive curve of her collarbone, then asked, half-resentful and half-petty, “What’s more important, Natalie? Work or me?” For the first time, she got angry. She looked up at me with those cold, piercing eyes and said, “Get out. I’m working.” When I didn’t move, she called her bodyguards. They dragged me out of the house, and I was left standing outside in the middle of the night, furious with myself for pushing her. The gated community was isolated, the kind of place where even streetlights felt like a luxury. My phone was dead, and my only company was a pack of cigarettes I burned through one by one. By the fifteenth cigarette, Natalie showed up. She walked toward me in nothing but a silk camisole, her expression unreadable. “Have you had enough?” she asked sharply. I bit down on the cigarette she hated most and opened my mouth to say something snarky—only to sneeze. That must’ve been the breaking point. She laughed. A real, unguarded laugh. For the first time, she reached out to me, her hand extended. But my pride got the better of me, and I brushed her off. Her hand froze midair before she pulled it back, her face hardening. “I’ll say this one more time,” she said. “When you’re done acting like a child, come home.” And then she turned and left. I called after her, “Give me my car keys!” She didn’t even glance back. “Jonathan, the car is mine. If you’re not coming back, don’t even think about taking it.” That was the moment I realized what I was to her. The car I drove, the watch on my wrist, the designer suits in my closet—they were all hers. When she turned back again and extended her hand a second time, I took it. That night, I became the perfect, obedient companion she wanted. And I stayed by her side for the next five years. I deleted her text and turned off my phone. Two hours later, I landed at Emberwood International Airport. Of course, my bad luck didn’t end there. No sooner had I arrived than my wallet was stolen. At the police station, the officers eyed me suspiciously, their gazes lingering on my expensive clothes and accessories. Their expressions practically screamed, If someone’s going to get robbed, it might as well be you. Without money, proper ID, or any way to prove who I was, I was stuck. The officers handed me a phone and told me to call someone to help. But who could I call? My parents died when I was young, and my grandmother raised me on her own. She passed away before she could enjoy any of the success I might’ve brought her. Natalie had entered my life that same year, a radiant light piercing through the darkness of my world. With no other choice, I called her. The sound of the international dial tone stretched on, each ring a cruel reminder that the light she once brought into my life had long since faded. Matthew’s number escaped me, and the police officers’ patience was wearing thin. Just as I was about to give up, a young woman approached me. Her name was Helen. She was at the police station by chance that day, and when she saw me sitting alone, looking lost and out of place, she decided to help. Helen helped me sort everything out with the officers. When we left the station, I got a new phone number and made the decision to cut all ties with Natalie. But even then, I couldn’t escape her entirely. Every so often, I’d see her name online: Natalie, shopping with Andrew, his gaze soft and adoring. Natalie and Andrew, cutting the ribbon at the grand opening of a new hotel. Natalie and Andrew, preparing for their upcoming wedding—a match made in heaven. I stayed in Emberwood. Helen and I became friends. With her help, I found a job at a trading company. It wasn’t easy. After five years of being Natalie’s kept man, I’d forgotten how to fend for myself. The language barrier was frustrating. The work was grueling. But Helen was always there, supporting me. We were two lonely souls in a foreign land, leaning on each other to survive. But no one tells you that when two broken people come together, the loneliness doesn’t just disappear. One night, during Emberwood’s lantern festival, I asked her, “Why did you decide to stay here?” She looked at me, her eyes heavy with sorrow. The night sky was filled with glowing lanterns, their golden light reflecting off her sharp features. Finally, she told me her story. She had come to Emberwood with her boyfriend. He’d always wanted to see the lanterns. But he never got the chance—he died in her arms before they could experience it together. “People say if you make a wish to the lanterns, it’ll come true,” she said softly. I knew she was thinking of him. For the first time, I wanted to believe in something greater than myself. I clasped my hands together, gazing up at the endless sea of lanterns, and made my wish: I wished to forget Natalie.
Life went on. Work was hectic, and sometimes I had to deal with my sleazy boss. He was gay and made no attempt to hide his interest in me. He’d find any excuse to touch me or crack inappropriate jokes under the guise of “work.” One time, Helen came to pick me up from the office and, seeing the situation, casually introduced herself as my girlfriend. From that day on, the harassment stopped completely, and I finally had some peace. I’d been living in Emberwood for nearly two years when my company assigned me to a project in Starfall. Within days, I packed my things and boarded a flight with a few colleagues. The moment the plane touched down, representatives from the partner company were already waiting for us at the airport to escort us to the hotel. When we arrived, I froze at the entrance. It was the same hotel Natalie and I had stayed at countless times. The memories I thought I’d buried surged forward like a tidal wave, overwhelming me. It wasn’t until I saw the receptionist behind the front desk—a stranger, not the familiar face I dreaded—that I finally relaxed. “Welcome, Mr. Baker. Welcome, Ms. Cooper…”
🌟 Continue the story here 👉🏻 📲 Download the “NovelMaster” app 🔍 search for “295353”, and watch the full series ✨! #NovelMaster #浪漫Romance #魔幻Magic #现实主义Realistic #励志Inspiring #惊悚Thriller
Leave a Reply