Sophia's POV
The rejection email arrived at 9:47 AM.
Thank you for your interest in the Financial Analyst position. Unfortunately, we have decided to move forward with other candidates.
Fifty-one applications. Fifty-one rejections.
I closed my laptop before I threw it against the wall.
Three months since the engagement party. Three months of watching my life crumble while the world moved on without me.
My phone buzzed. Email from my father's lawyer.
Ms. Chen: Your employment at Chen Industries has been terminated effective immediately. Employees terminated for cause receive no severance. Do not attempt to contact Chen Industries or any employees. Such contact will be considered harassment.
Terminated for cause.
My own father couldn't even call me himself.
What happened? Maya rushed over from the kitchen of her tiny apartment—the apartment I'd been crashing in because I had nowhere else to go.
I handed her my phone, unable to speak.
Her face went pale. Those bastards.
He sent his lawyer. Like I'm a stranger. My voice sounded hollow. I've called him seventeen times. He blocked my number two months ago.
Maya pulled me into a hug. I wanted to cry, but I'd cried so much over the past three months that I had nothing left.
My phone buzzed again. A text from unknown number: Still pretending to be innocent? You should've disappeared when you had the chance. —M
Marcus.
Another text came through with a photo. Him and Vanessa at some charity gala, both glowing. Caption: Building our future together!
They looked so happy. So perfect.
Like they hadn't destroyed my entire life.
I tried calling my college friends, I admitted quietly. Jessica finally texted back. Said her firm can't hire anyone 'connected to ongoing investigations.'
Robert Wellington blacklisted you, Maya said grimly. He owns half of Wall Street. No one will touch you.
I pulled up my bank account. $287.43.
That was it. That was all I had left.
One month. Maybe less. Then I'd be completely broke.
There has to be something, I whispered. Some company that doesn't care about the Wellingtons' opinion
Wait. Maya grabbed her laptop. There's one place.
She pulled up a job posting and turned the screen toward me.
Cross Capital: Personal Assistant Position. Competitive salary. Immediate start.
My blood turned cold. No.
Sophia
Everyone knows Damien Cross. They call him the Devil of Wall Street. He destroys people for fun
And he's the only person in Manhattan who doesn't answer to Robert Wellington. Maya's voice was firm. This is your last shot. You know that, right?
I stared at the posting.
Damien Cross. The man whose hostile takeovers made headlines. Who'd built an empire on fear.
But what choice did I have?
As I filled out the application, a memory flashed through my mind—gray eyes looking at me like I mattered, strong hands making me feel powerful instead of broken, a dark voice whispering that I deserved better than the life that had shattered around me.
I wondered, briefly, what had happened to that stranger from the bar. The one who'd made me feel alive for one perfect, reckless night.
Probably living his life, having forgotten all about the crying woman in a wedding dress.
My cursor hovered over the submit button.
This was insane. Desperate.
I clicked submit.
Done, I said.
Maya's phone buzzed. Her eyes went wide. Sophia. The federal investigation into Chen Industries? It was quietly dropped last week. No charges filed.
My heart stopped. What?
It was never real. They made it up to destroy your reputation. And it worked.
Even with the investigation dropped, everyone still thought I was guilty. The Wellingtons had made sure of that.
My phone buzzed. An email.
From: Cross Capital HRSubject: Interview Request
My hands shook as I opened it.
Ms. Chen: Mr. Cross would like to meet with you regarding the Personal Assistant position. Tomorrow, 10 AM. Do not be late.
Tomorrow. They wanted to interview me tomorrow.
That was fast, Maya breathed. Too fast.
Normal companies took weeks. Cross Capital had responded in twenty minutes.
A cold feeling settled in my stomach. How many people applied for this job?
Maya pulled up the posting again. For a position at one of the biggest hedge funds in Manhattan? Thousands.
But they called me back in twenty minutes.
We stared at each other.
He knows who you are, Maya said slowly. He knows about the Wellingtons. About everything.
Then why would he want to interview me?
I don't know. But Sophia... be careful. Damien Cross doesn't do anything without a reason.
I should cancel. Should run.
But I had $287.43 and no other options.
I'll go, I said. Whatever he's planning, I'll deal with it.
I just hoped I wasn't walking straight into another trap.