I Swapped His Fake Gift for a Real Life novel Chapter 10

Ethan immediately let go of my hand, his voice tombling out in a much

‘Don’t overthink it–I’m done with her. I swear. The hid was just throwing

time. If I’d refused, she would’ve made a scene forever. You get that, right?

He reached for my hand again, desperation in his eyes

Zoey stepped in, her tone sticky–sweet

“Yeah, don’t misunderstand. I was the one clinging to Ethan–it’s not his fault

I pulled my hand away, putting a deliberate distance between us.

“We’ve been divorced for ages. Who you date has nothing to do with me

My voice was flat. I turned to leave, but Ethan blocked my path.

egging me to hang out one

“Jane, yell at me, fight with me, anything–just don’t shut me out like this. Please, give me a chance to make things

right.”

“I know I messed up. But at least give me some warning before you slam the door in my face. I can’t take you disappearing on me like this.”

“Even if you’re going to sentence me to death, at least give me a heads–up. Don’t just suddenly treat me like this–I can’t

take it.”

I shook my head, wordless. This wasn’t his first betrayal–or his first apology. I’d stopped believing him a long time ago.

As I walked away, Ethan shoved Zoey hard.

“This is all your fault! She’s never going to believe me again.”

A flicker of triumph crossed Zoey’s face. She wrapped her arms around him, her voice syrupy.

“It’s okay. She’s gone now. You still have me.”

“I’ll stay by your side forever. No matter what.”

He froze.

The words hit a nerve–because once upon a time, I’d said the same thing.

Back then, his life was a wreck. He grew up in a broken home, surrounded by hostility. No one dared get close.

But I did.

Chapter 10

0.71%

1 fought for him Werly When he rates and the dice du se to doge podes the bad to bat no o of the station that right. When he saw the brides on my fave the produced with dry

That was the thement we wow or Baske

I made him a promise under the days that i’d love how day a fani ya what help him bute

a better future. He made the same wow, trang web pen

But time wears down everything, even low

Now, as he watched me walk away, trays welled to his eyes

Those days were gone for goo

Reluctantly, he reached for Zoey’s hand

He hated being alone. The thought of emptiness territed kim

And with me gone. Zoey became the last thing he had left to hold on to

After that day, Ethan barely showed up again, ffis company was fit with a massive cosis, and the was top overwhelmed to chase me. Day after day, he was buried in disaster control.

Meanwhile, Zoeyrose through the ranks and secured a real executive position

And power went straight to her head

She surrounded herself with flatterers, promoting only the smooth–talkers Anyone with real skill either got pushed out

-or walked out.

Even as the company spiraled, she proposed across–the–board salary cuts, claiming the payroll was unsustainable

“Take it or leave it, she said. And dozens did.

Soon, the veterans–the ones actually holding things together–were all gone. In their place were bootlickers and clueless

rookies

The empire I’d helped Ethan build collapsed in months.

He filed for bankruptcy, the company shut down.

Meanwhile, 1 kept rising–steady and unbothered

One day, while heading into a meeting, I overheard voices coming from the lounge.

Farmiliar voices.

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Zoey’s old sycophants–people who used to mock me to my face.

“That Jane Rivers is such a witch,” one muttered. “All we did was speak the truth and she held a grudge. Got HR to wipe us

out!

“Didn’t even pass the first screening‘ another snorted. “God, I was blind to back Zoey.–useless pretty face with nothing

going on.”

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