The man she abandoned is the boss now
Chapter 4 - The Life She Borrowed
Vanessa discovered the investigation the next morning.
She exploded.
“You're letting Ethan humiliate you!”
Ryan was packing clothes into a suitcase.
“No.”
“What are you doing?”
“Leaving.”
Vanessa stared.
“This is my apartment too.”
Ryan stopped.
“No, it isn't.”
Her expression changed.
The penthouse belonged to the company.
It had been assigned to Ryan temporarily because of his executive position.
The Mercedes downstairs was also corporate.
So was the membership at the private club.
Even many of the expensive dinners Vanessa proudly posted online had been charged to Ryan's expense account.
She felt a familiar panic.
“What happens if you lose your job?”
Ryan looked at her.
“We lose all of this.”
“Then don't lose it.”
He laughed.
“You think I planned to?”
“Go apologize.”
“I already did.”
“To Ethan.”
“I did.”
“No. Really apologize. Tell him you'll do anything.”
Ryan stared at her.
“Anything?”
“You know what I mean.”
“No, Vanessa.”
He closed the suitcase.
“I don't think I do anymore.”
She followed him.
“You can't throw everything away.”
He stopped at the door.
“That's what you've been teaching me to do.”
“What?”
“Everything became about looking richer.”
He pointed around the penthouse.
“This place. The car. The clothes. The parties.”
“I wanted a better life for us.”
“You wanted people to believe we had one.”
Vanessa's face hardened.
“You sound like Ethan.”
Ryan almost laughed.
“Maybe that's why he's worth hundreds of millions and I'm stealing dinner receipts.”
He left.
Two days later, Blake Technologies terminated Ryan's executive privileges while the internal review continued.
He was not fired immediately.
Ethan gave him an opportunity to repay the unauthorized expenses and cooperate.
Vanessa received no such consideration.
Because she was not an employee.
She simply lost access to everything that came with Ryan's position.
The company car was returned.
The penthouse access ended.
Corporate event invitations disappeared.
Then Vanessa's own credit card was declined.
She had spent most of her personal savings maintaining an image she assumed Ryan's future wealth would support.
She called him.
No answer.
Finally, she did the one thing she had sworn she would never do.
She called Ethan.
He answered after five rings.
“Hello?”
“Ethan.”
Silence.
Then:
“What do you need?”
Vanessa hated the question.
Not How are you?
Not Why are you calling?
What do you need?
Like he already understood her.
“I want to talk.”
“We're talking.”
“In person.”
“No.”
Her pride cracked.
“Please.”
Ethan remained silent.
Vanessa whispered:
“You've destroyed my life.”
This time Ethan laughed.
Not cruelly.
Almost in disbelief.
“Vanessa, I haven't done anything to your life.”
“Ryan lost everything because of you.”
“Ryan misused company funds.”
“You could forgive him.”
“I might.”
She froze.
“What?”
“Ryan came to me before the audit found him. He admitted what he did.”
Vanessa said nothing.
Ethan continued.
“He's paying it back. He'll lose his executive role, but I'm giving him another position.”
Vanessa's anger disappeared.
“Then we'll be okay.”
Ethan understood immediately.
“We?”
Silence.
“Vanessa.”
His voice became colder.
“Ryan asked me not to tell you where he's moving.”
Her face went blank.
“He left you.”
“No.”
“He did.”
“You convinced him.”
“I didn't need to.”
Ethan paused.
“He finally realized the same thing I did five years ago.”
Vanessa tightened her grip on the phone.
“What?”
“You don't love struggling people.”
His voice stayed calm.
“You love successful ones.”
The call ended.
