Chapter 1
Chapter 1
Broken Trust
What is love?
No one truly has a clear definition of love. Love can exist between a mother and her child, between parents and their children, between siblings, and even between friends. There are many kinds of love that we experience throughout our lives.
But the love we feel for a lover or a spouse exists in a completely different dimension. This type of love is much harder to find. The love between two lovers is often pure and beyond the world around them. It is difficult to define because the feelings we have for our partner are deep, powerful, and sometimes unimaginable.
When we find our soulmate, we become attached to them. They become our top priority. We share everything with them—even our deepest secrets and desires. We talk about our dreams, our goals, and the future we want to build together. We try our hardest to make them understand how much we love them. We dedicate our time, our energy, and even our lives to them—not because we are forced to, but because we truly want to.
And that was the kind of love I had for my boyfriend.
I shared everything with him. I gave one hundred percent to our relationship. I was even ready to start a new journey with him.
But how wrong I was.
The love I felt for him turned out to be nothing more than a dream—a fantasy where I imagined him as the perfect man. The hatred and betrayal I felt now could never compare to the love I once had for him.
The man with whom I had shared everything was now in bed with another woman, wrapped together under a white sheet.
He looked shocked when he saw me, which was understandable. He had no idea about my surprise visit.
That morning he had called me, asking if I was planning to come over to his apartment. Now I knew why he had been so eager to know.
I had originally planned not to visit because I was busy with work. But when my meeting was suddenly canceled, I decided to surprise him. I thought it would make him happy.
Instead, I was the one who received the biggest surprise of my life.
I never imagined that my boyfriend of two years would cheat on me.
Yes, I admit that I had been busy running my company and trying to bring it to the top in Florida. But I never expected this from him. I believed he loved me.
How wrong I was.
Instead, he was wrapped in another woman’s arms.
“This is not what you’re thinking,” he said quickly.
I scoffed, disbelief written all over my face.
He hurriedly untangled himself from the woman and started getting dressed, while she remained comfortably in bed, the sheet wrapped around her body.
“Oh really?” I said coldly. “Then what is it? Are you two having a friendly conversation? Because last time I checked, friends don’t talk like this.”
My voice was calm, but my patience was slowly fading.
“Am I wrong, Chris? Because I’m really losing my patience here. I came here thinking I would surprise you so we could have a romantic evening together. Instead, I find you cheating on me with this woman.”
I let out a bitter laugh.
“What kind of person do you think I am? And here I was feeling guilty for canceling plans with you for the past three weeks. How naïve was I to believe you were different from other men? You’re the biggest asshole I’ve ever met. God, what did I even see in you to date someone so pathetic?”
Outwardly, I maintained my calm composure, but inside I was shattered.
How could he cheat on me?
I thought we loved each other. But now I realized that the love existed only on my side.
If he had ever truly loved me, he would never have betrayed me like this.
I had believed he was the man I would spend the rest of my life with. I was even planning to say yes to his marriage proposal.
But seeing his true colors now, I felt both hurt and betrayed.
Yet strangely, I also felt relieved.
Relieved that I discovered the truth before I said yes.
“Babe, she means nothing to me,” Chris pleaded. “You have to believe me. You’re the only one for me. I love you. I love you so much.”
I rolled my eyes at his pathetic attempt.
“Save it, Chris,” I said coldly. “Whether she means something to you or not doesn’t concern me anymore. You can marry her for all I care.”
I looked at him with finality.
“We’re done.”
My eyes moved between him and the woman, who seemed far too entertained watching us argue.
I swear I saw her smirk.
What a bitch.
“Babe, please don’t do this,” he begged desperately. “I love you. I can’t live without you. We were going to get married. Please don’t break up with me. This woman means nothing to me. I never meant to cheat. She came onto me, and one thing led to another. I didn’t even realize how things went this far. Please… just give me one more chance.”
I crossed my arms over my chest, refusing to show how deeply his betrayal hurt me.
“I don’t care whether you meant to cheat or not, Chris,” I said firmly. “You still did it. And God knows how many times. I cannot be with a man who cannot remain loyal to the woman he once planned to marry. I cannot be with someone who shows me so little respect.”
I turned to leave.
“Do you even know why I had to look for another woman’s touch, Raelyn?” he suddenly shouted.
My body froze.
“You never let me touch you. Not even after two years of being together. I thought after I proposed you would finally say yes, but you didn’t. I have needs, Raelyn. How did you expect me to stay celibate until marriage? For all I know, we might never get married anytime soon. I can’t wait my whole life.”
My fists clenched.
“Yes, cheating was wrong,” he continued, “but you made me do it. You made me a cheater.”
Before he could finish, my hand flew across his face.
The sound of the slap echoed through the room.
“How dare you?” he shouted.
“No,” I said coldly. “How dare you blame me for the sin you committed. You are pathetic. I was wrong to believe I loved you, because I could never love a man who thinks so little of me.”
I looked at him with pure disgust.
“I hate you, Chris.”
My gaze shifted to the woman still lounging comfortably in his bed.
“And you,” I said sharply. “He’s all yours. Make sure you keep him satisfied so he doesn’t get bored. Because if he does, he’ll move on to another woman just like he did with me.”
I gave her a cold smile.
“Good luck.”
With that, I walked out.
The moment I sat in my car, the tears threatened to fall, but I forced myself to hold them back as I drove toward my office.
Yes, I felt betrayed.
Yes, I was hurt.
But I had work to do.
I had spent three years building my career, and I wasn’t foolish enough to let a man destroy it.
My father made me the CEO of our company two years ago. Before that, I worked there as an intern, proving myself until he believed I was ready.
And I had never been happier.
Our company had become even more successful under my leadership, and I was proud of that.
I wasn’t going to waste my time crying over a man who didn’t deserve me.
Soon I arrived at my corporation building. I stepped out of my car, handing the keys to the valet before looking up at the tall building in front of me.
Mitchell Corporation Pvt. Ltd.
The company had been founded by my grandfather. Through years of hard work, he built it into a billion-dollar corporation.
I walked inside and was greeted by my employees. I simply nodded in acknowledgment.
Some people called me a cold woman—some even called me a cold bitch—but I didn’t care.
There was no place for softness in the business world.
If you wanted to succeed, you had to work hard and remain strong.
When I entered my office, I buried myself in work, trying to push Chris out of my mind. He hadn’t just broken my heart.
He had broken my trust in love.
Maybe love didn’t really exist.
Because if love was real, it shouldn’t hurt this much.
After finishing paperwork and attending two meetings, I checked the time.
11 p.m.
Exhausted, I finally left the office and drove home.
When I entered my apartment, the lights were already on.
My personal cook must have been waiting for me.
I sighed, realizing I had forgotten to inform him that I didn’t want dinner tonight.
My phone pinged with a notification as I walked toward the kitchen. I was replying to an email from my personal assistant when I heard a voice.
“Do you want dinner served here or in your bedroom, Ms. Mitchell?” Mr. Allen asked politely.
“I'm not in the mood to eat tonight,” I replied without looking up. “You can leave for the day.”
Then I paused.
“And please give the food to the poor on your way home. Good night, Mr. Allen.”
“Good night, Ms. Mitchell.”
Once I entered my room—my safe haven—the strong mask I had worn all day finally shattered.
The tears I had been holding back all day poured out.
I cried not only because he betrayed me… but because he never loved me the way he claimed.
To him, I was just something temporary.
Just a toy.
Eventually, exhaustion took over, and I fell asleep still wearing my office clothes.
Somewhere in the middle of the night, I faintly felt someone caressing my cheek.
But I was too tired to open my eyes and see who it was.
