The Day His Demands Broke My Water novel Chapter 73

Why would a newcomer in the company have the CEO's number?

I clicked on her profile and, as expected, saw a familiar face.

It was the same girl who had been kissing Ryan in the bar earlier that night.

I noted down the phone number from her profile and added her on my secondary account.

She accepted the request quickly.

I got straight to the point, "This is Mannie Lindsay."

The company was something Ryan and I had built together, brick by brick. As one of the founders, there was no way she didn't know who I was.

Even though I had been absent from the company for the past year due to health issues, she should still have been aware that Ryan wasn't single.

She responded almost immediately.

"I know who you are. You're Mr. Ryan's girlfriend."

Her tone was far too casual and normal, not at all the kind of tone one would expect from someone who had just wronged another.

Suppressing my anger, I clicked through to her Moments.

As expected, there were several posts from Wendy Snow that had intentionally hidden Mr. Ryan from view.

"Met my crush in the elevator today. He complimented my new dress. So sweet."

"Ugh, my aunt's stomach hurts, and he had someone bring me ginger tea. So thoughtful, I just want to stick to him forever."

I clenched my fist, almost self-flagellating as I scrolled down.

"He's amazing. After hearing about my mom's illness, he dropped everything and stayed with me at the hospital all night."

There was a photo attached: A man sitting next to a hospital bed, carefully peeling an apple.

The man's face was pixelated, but after years of knowing Ryan, I knew it was him the moment I saw the photo.

Several employees from the company commented below.

"Wendy, stop feeding us dog food, we're suffocating here!"

"Looks like little Wendy's getting married soon. When's the wedding? Can't wait for the invite!"

I stared at the date the post was made and felt my breath catch in my throat.

March 11th.

Ryan realized something was off. His eyes darted to the coffee table, and he frowned. "Mannie, what's going on? You seem upset. Why aren't you eating the wontons I brought you?"

"I'm just tired from working late tonight. Please understand, we can talk about it tomorrow," he said, picking up his phone and heading upstairs.

I felt something inside me crack, like an entire corner of my heart collapsing.

Ryan, I gave you a chance.

"Mannie, let's break up."

The room fell silent, except for the sound of our breathing.

After a long moment, Ryan turned to look at me, his voice tinged with both surprise and anger. "Do you even know what you're saying?"

I stood up, meeting his gaze slowly.

He looked at me with disbelief, like I was a madwoman.

"Mannie, I admit I've been neglecting you because of work lately, but you need to understand, the company is about to go public, and I don't have time to be with you all the time."

Maybe the sarcasm in my eyes made him uncomfortable, because he frowned deeply, his tone shifting to something sharper.