The billionaire heir of Sterling Enterprises, Julian Sterling, was caught having a steamy hookup in the backseat of a car! As the internet erupted in fury, Julian called a sudden press conference and announced to the world: “The woman in the video is my fiancée, Chloe Henderson. It’s completely normal for a couple to have intimate moments. I hope everyone can give us some space.” With that single sentence, I was branded as “thirsty,” “shameless,” and “loose.” Fans abandoned me overnight. Brands canceled my contracts. Endless black-PR flooded the internet. No matter how much I screamed my innocence, nobody believed me. Ultimately, unable to withstand the relentless cyberbullying, I swallowed a lethal dose of sleeping pills. At my funeral, Julian stood before my portrait, whispering with hypocritical grief: “I’m sorry, Chloe. We had an arranged marriage… I had to let you take the fall.” “Gemma is just an ordinary girl. If a scandalous video like that got out with her name on it, she would have been destroyed.” “But you’re a top star. You’re used to being hated. I thought you could handle it… I didn’t expect you to be so weak.” “Just look at this as our sacrifice. I promise I’ll make it up to you in our next life.” After my death, he rebranded Gemma Brooks, launching her career as a rising star with endless premium resources. Meanwhile, my parents fell into severe depression from the endless harassment and passed away shortly after. When I opened my eyes again, I was back to the morning of Julian’s press conference.
“Oh my god! Did you hear? The heir of Sterling Enterprises was caught hooking up with some girl in the backseat of his car in the basement parking lot!” “Are you serious? Today is the launch party for the movie his family funded. With so many industry insiders here, that’s just insane!” “Who is the shameless slut? Creeping into his car at an event like this? How cheap!” Representatives, producers, and actors scrambled toward the parking lot to catch a glimpse of the drama. A black Maybach sat with its door slightly ajar. Victoria Sterling stood nearby, her face pale with rage, flanked by two executives from entertainment companies allied with Sterling Enterprises. Inside the car, a woman was disheveled, wrapped tightly in Julian’s suit jacket as he held her protectively in his arms. She was trembling in his embrace. Beneath the jacket, her bare legs and ankles bore obvious, flush-red marks. It didn’t take a genius to figure out what had just happened. Julian held her tight, his voice low but loud enough for the onlookers to hear: “Mom, this is all my fault. It has nothing to do with Chloe!” “Chloe and I were about to announce our relationship anyway. I just couldn’t help myself tonight… please, support us.” “Don’t be scared, Chloe. I’ll call a press conference tomorrow and make our relationship official.” The moment those words left his mouth, the crowd on the edge of the parking lot went wild. “What? Chloe Henderson? She’s the female lead of this movie!” “If this gets out, her agent is going to lose their mind. Her sponsorships are done for!” “Doesn’t she always play up that ‘innocent, sweet girl-next-door’ image? Who knew she was so wild in private?” “Please. How do you think she got those top-tier roles? She slept her way to the top.” “Once her fans find out, they’re going to riot.” While the gossip was reaching a fever pitch, I casually pushed my way through the crowd, looking perfectly confused and curious. “Hey, guys. What’s everyone crowding around here for?” Everyone whipped their heads around. A collective gasp echoed through the garage. “Chloe Henderson?! Why are you here?!” “Aren’t you supposed to be in the car?” “If you’re out here… then who the hell is in the car?!” In an instant, every single eye locked back onto Julian and the trembling girl in his arms. I looked over, and Julian’s face instantly drained of all color. He never expected me to be here. Yesterday, I had told him I wouldn’t make it to the launch party because of an overseas shoot. Yet here I was, standing before him, wearing flawless makeup and a stunning gown. In my past life, I was shooting a commercial abroad when this happened. By the time I found out, Julian’s bots had already pushed the headline “Top Star Chloe Henderson Caught in Backseat Scandal with Billionaire Heir” to the number one trending spot. By the time I tried to clear my name, no one believed a word I said. This time, I had rearranged my entire schedule just for this moment. I was going to rip off his hypocritical mask in front of everyone.
I stared at the scene inside the car, my face turning pale as if I were in deep shock. My voice trembled: “Julian…? What… what are you doing? And who is this girl?” Beside me, my close friend Mia Crawford—a legendary actress with massive clout in the industry—let out a cold laugh. “Oh, you’re finally here, Chloe. This bastard Julian just claimed the girl in his arms was you, and he even promised to announce your relationship tomorrow to save your ‘reputation’!” I took a step forward, pointing at the woman in the car who still didn’t dare to show her face. “She is Chloe Henderson? Julian, what is the meaning of this? Why are you slandering me in front of all these people?!” “Do you have any idea how important a female artist’s reputation is in this industry?” “If I hadn’t shown up tonight, would I have been branded a slut for the rest of my life?!” “Julian, I have never done anything to hurt you. Why are you trying to destroy me?!” Victoria Sterling’s face was now as black as charcoal. Julian stammered, scrambling for words: “Chloe… didn’t you say you had an overseas shoot? That you couldn’t make it tonight?” I immediately raised my voice, making sure every single person in the garage could hear me clearly: “So, because you knew I wouldn’t be here, you decided to throw this dirt on me?!” “Who is this girl? Why are you two conspiring to ruin me? Why did you call her by my name in front of everyone? What is your sick plan?!” “If Mia hadn’t known my schedule and insisted on driving me here to make a quick appearance, I would have had absolutely no way to clear my name!” Flustered, Julian tried to backpedal: “No, Chloe, that’s not it… I just… I just said your name because I panicked. I swear I didn’t mean to hurt you…” I stopped looking at him and turned to Victoria Sterling. My expression softened into pure, vulnerable grief. “Mrs. Sterling, you watched me grow up in this industry. Please, you have to do what’s right.” “My team and my parents are currently out of the country. I have no one here to defend me.” “Mrs. Sterling, for the sake of the long friendship between your family and my mother, please help me.” I bowed my head, looking like I was about to break down. Several prominent female producers and brand executives immediately rushed forward to support me. “Don’t worry, Chloe. We are veterans in this industry. We won’t let you be bullied.” Eleanor Thorne, the powerful head of Galaxy Pictures, spoke up in a commanding tone: “Mrs. Sterling, your son committed this disgusting act and then tried to destroy the reputation of an A-list actress to cover it up.” “Don’t you think the Sterling family owes Chloe, and all of us here, a proper explanation?” Mia immediately backed me up, pulling out her phone. “Don’t be scared, Chloe. I’m calling the editors-in-chief of the major media outlets right now. This needs to be cleared up tonight! Nobody is throwing dirt on you and getting away with it!” Victoria Sterling knew that if this wasn’t handled perfectly, it would deal a fatal blow to Sterling Enterprises’ stock. She stepped forward, tightly grasping my hands, her voice dripping with urgent reassurance. “My dear girl, you have been deeply wronged tonight. This is all Julian’s fault, and I will make sure he begs for your forgiveness.” “He must have lost his goddamn mind, getting seduced by some cheap trash!” She whipped around, glaring at her bodyguards. “What are you idiots standing there for?! Drag that little slut out of the car! I want to see exactly who had the audacity to pull this stunt!” At her command, several bulky bodyguards lunged forward to drag the woman out.
It was Gemma Brooks—a rookie actress who had just signed with Sterling Enterprises, the very girl the company was planning to heavily promote. Gemma let out a sharp shriek, falling weakly to the ground, sobbing, “Julian, save me!” Before anyone could react, she scrambled on her hands and knees toward Victoria Sterling, grabbing her leg and begging desperately: “Mrs. Sterling, please believe me! I didn’t seduce Julian… we… we love each other!” “Please, let me stay by his side. I don’t need a title! Even if I’m just his assistant, I’ll be happy!” Victoria was shaking with rage. She kicked Gemma off her leg and roared: “Shut up! Who gave you permission to call me that? You are nothing but a low-tier girl signed to my company. I only gave you a chance because I thought you had potential and heard your family was struggling. How dare you pull this trashy stunt?!” With that, she raised her hand and delivered a brutal slap across Gemma’s face. “As of today, your contract is terminated. You are banned from this industry, and you will have absolutely nothing to do with the Sterling family ever again!” Seeing this, Julian panicked. “Mom! Why are you doing this? Gemma is just an independent girl with no backing. Where is she supposed to go if you fire her? It was my fault. I had too much to drink and lost control…” “Mom, please let her stay. Even… even if she just stays with me.” Victoria took a deep breath, completely ignoring her pathetic son, and grabbed my hand with a warm, fake smile. “Chloe, look at this mess… You are the only one the Sterling family recognizes as our future daughter-in-law, the future lady of Sterling Enterprises.” “I’ll let you decide what to do with this girl. We will do whatever you want.” I sneered inwardly. They wanted to dump this toxic garbage fire into my lap? In their dreams! In my past life, they hooked up and threw the blame on me, leaving me ruined and dead. Meanwhile, they enjoyed wealth, fame, and a happy life together. Not this time. I gently but firmly pulled my hands back, taking a step away from her. “Mrs. Sterling, other than potential business collaborations, I have no personal relationship with the Sterling family. Let’s not throw around terms like ‘future daughter-in-law’ or ‘future lady of Sterling Enterprises’.” “As for Gemma, she is an artist under your company who has crossed professional boundaries with Julian. Her fate should be decided by you, her boss, or by Julian’s actual future girlfriend.” “I am merely a guest invited to tonight’s launch party. I have no right to interfere with your company’s internal affairs, nor do I have any interest in Julian’s private life.” Julian panicked, his voice rising in frustration. “Chloe! I apologized for calling out your name earlier! But we both know our families are social matches. An arranged marriage is inevitable anyway. It shouldn’t matter if people think it was you. I was fully planning on taking responsibility and marrying you!” “But Gemma is different! She’s a helpless girl. If this scandal gets out, she’s done! Her career will be ruined! How is she supposed to survive?!” Before he could finish his pathetic speech, I stepped forward and delivered a swift, hard slap across his face. “SLAP!” The entire garage fell into a stunned silence.
My voice shook with righteous fury as I interrogated him: “Her career matters, but my reputation and future can be casually trampled on?!” “I built my career brick by brick with my own hard work! My fans and my projects brought me here! You know how vicious the media is, yet you slandered me in front of everyone just to save yourselves. Were you trying to force me to commit suicide?!” “Furthermore, when did the Henderson family or my studio ever agree to an arranged marriage with the Sterlings? I have never promised you anything! Our families haven’t even had basic discussions about it! How dare you try to force this narrative on me?!” “Just because I told you yesterday that I couldn’t make it to the party, you thought you could play this sick game because I ‘wouldn’t be here’ to defend myself!” “You wanted to destroy me! Expect a lawsuit from my lawyers. I will see you in court!” With that, I turned around to leave. The whispers among the guests erupted instantly. “Oh my god, Julian is disgusting… He got caught with a rookie and tried to use Chloe as a shield?” “Chloe is so unlucky to be targeted by such a toxic, spoiled rich kid.” “Thank God she showed up tonight. Otherwise, the headlines tomorrow would have destroyed her, and she would have never been able to clear her name!” Eleanor Thorne quickly held me, and I leaned onto her shoulder, letting fake tears slip down my face. “If Mia hadn’t forced me to come tonight… I… I would have been ruined forever!” “They only did this because my parents are abroad. They think I’m easy to bully because I’m on my own!” Julian held his bruised cheek, looking incredibly desperate. “Chloe, why are you being so dramatic? Our families have so many business partnerships. Marriage is good for both of us… I admitted I was wrong! I only did it because I knew I was going to marry you anyway.” “Even if you had to take a little hit to your reputation temporarily, we would end up together. I would have made it up to you.” “But now you’ve ruined everything! How is Gemma supposed to show her face again?!” I snapped my head back, cutting him off with icy disdain: “You got caught in a trashy backseat scandal with your employee, tried to use my name to cover it up, and now you have the nerve to blame me?” “Let me make this crystal clear, Julian Sterling: I will never, under any circumstances, have any relationship with you or Sterling Enterprises outside of basic, mandated business contracts! Stop dreaming!” Victoria Sterling’s face turned completely cold. She stepped up, using her intimidating presence as a powerful business matriarch. “Chloe, watch your words. High-society marriages and corporate partnerships are not something a young actress like you can simply dismiss on a whim.” She was trying to use her status and background to crush me. But the moment she finished her threat, a powerful, booming voice echoed from the back of the crowd, shattering her intimidation: “The Sterling family thinks they can humiliate my daughter just because we aren’t in the country?!”
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