Semua Bab I Stepped Aside for Best Friend and My Husband, They Regretted It: Bab 1 - Bab 10

Nicole wiped her tears and jumped in."Sophie, our hard days are almost over. Let's start fresh together, okay?""Derek really does love you..." She twisted the hem of her top. "If it bothers you that much, I... I'll be the one to leave!""No."Derek immediately pushed back, reaching for her hand before catching himself."You've poured everything into this company. Where else are you going to find an opportunity like this on your own?"He couldn't bear to see her upset.And she, apparently, couldn't bear to make things difficult for him.I couldn't stomach their lovesick little performance. My stomach turned.I looked up and took back the pen."Enough. Stop the act.""If either of you actually cared about what we had, you wouldn't have done something this disgusting!""Do you really want me to stay? Or do you just want to keep your lead researcher on staff?"I wrote a number one on the page."I said I want a divorce, and I mean it."Derek gritted his teeth and sat down across from me.

Before the company was officially established, we'd rented a small factory on the outskirts of town and converted it into a cleanroom lab. A handful of our college classmates worked there with us and would eventually become minority shareholders.The building was empty at that hour. I disabled the security cameras, went inside, and carefully packed up all my research. Then I sealed everything in temperature-controlled cases and sent it to Vincent by overnight courier.I recreated every sample, including the leukemia drug they wanted most, but changed two colorless, odorless ingredients in the formula.Once everything looked exactly as it had before, I turned the cameras back on and left.The apartment was still a mess when I got back.I hadn't owned much over the past few years. I'd lived frugally.The only valuable things I owned were the wedding dress Derek had insisted on paying for and the necklace Nicole spent a month crafting by hand — engraved with the words "Forever and Always.

Everyone was already seated, looking uncomfortable.The restaurant's usual glassware had been replaced with gold-rimmed champagne flutes.Nicole wore a champagne-colored strapless mermaid gown. Derek's tie matched the gold-and-white decorations.Nicole spotted me and rushed over with exaggerated warmth, looping her arm through mine."Sophie, what took you so long?""I know you and Derek are over, but we're still friends. Make yourself at home. Sit wherever you like."She dragged me to a seat as if she were the hostess of the evening.My chair faced the enormous engagement portrait on the wall.I recognized the gown Nicole wore in it.The year Derek and I went to try on wedding gowns, Nicole had come along, of course.I'd picked one out for her and told her to try it on too.When she came out, she kept staring at me, her eyes red.I asked her what was wrong. She said, "I just realized my best friend is getting married. It hit me that we've suddenly grown up. I got emotional."I hugged h

The Ashton Biomedical Research Center was one of the country's top independent drug-development facilities. It conducted its own research and ran preclinical validation for companies preparing FDA submissions and patent filings.Only after a drug cleared this level of review could its data package move on to the FDA and support a formal patent application.Even our team's six formulations had been validated at this center."Vincent, you work here?"Vincent shrugged."I run the place. No big deal."He had far more authority than I'd imagined.Vincent brought me to his two-story house. I had the entire second floor to myself.Everything in the room was brand new, and the closet held several outfits that suited my style perfectly."Get some rest for a few days, then straight to work.""I pulled a sample from your shipment and ran a preliminary test. The results are excellent. I'm going to repeat the tests for a few more days, then personally prepare the FDA package and patent filing."He

Derek wore an expensive suit. The watch on his wrist had to be worth around $30,000.Nicole wore a white mermaid gown and a pearl necklace that clearly wasn't cheap.They looked less like wedding guests and more like they were there to steal the show.Nicole walked up to me with her chin raised and her hips swaying, looking down at me with undisguised contempt.Layers of foundation still couldn't hide the exhaustion on her face."Sophie, turns out you were the most calculating of the three of us.""So that's why you left in such a hurry. You'd already latched onto a rich man. You couldn't even bother to acknowledge an old friend like me. But then again, Derek and I made it on our own. We didn't need to cling to someone else.""Derek and I were invited to a pharmaceutical conference in Washington, D.C. We're on a tight schedule, so we didn't have time to buy a proper gift. But for old times' sake, we thought we'd stop by."Derek's eyes never once left me.He produced a ring from somewhe