Shattered Illusions

"Ethan, I…" Emma began, her discomfort evident as she tried to explain herself, but Ethan Turner closed the distance between them in just a few steps. 

Ethan, filled with anger, pointed at Emma Hart's forehead. "Emma Hart, I never thought you could be such a woman. I truly misjudged you!" His eyes were bloodshot, and his usually pale face was marked by veins of anger.

"No, it's not like that!" Emma tried to reach for Ethan, hoping to calm him down and explain, but Natalie Black casually brushed her hand away.

"Emma, I can't believe you're this kind of girl. What's wrong with Ethan Turner that you'd go behind his back with someone else?"

"Emma? You…" 

The tone of Natalie Black finally made Emma realize that her suspicions were correct. The night before was all a setup by Natalie, designed to lead her into the wrong room.

"Natalie Black, it was you…" Emma wanted to confront Ethan with the truth about Natalie's scheming. But before she could finish, Ethan grabbed her…

In that moment, the soft skin of her arms exposed by the towel and the marks on her chest were revealed to everyone present…

Witnessing this, Ethan Turner couldn't help but roar in disbelief. 

He looked at Emma Hart with utter incredulity. 

"Slut! So you're just the type of woman who'd sleep with anyone for money! To think I've held you dear all this time, I must have been blind! Emma Hart, don't ever say you know me again! We're through!" 

With that, he flung Emma's arm away as if discarding trash and stormed out furiously.

Emma Hart was forcefully pushed to the ground by Ethan's violent shove. 

She weakly reached out her hand towards Ethan's retreating figure, tears streaming down her face, "Don't go, Ethan, please... listen to me explain..."

Behind her, Natalie Black watched the pitiful scene unfold with arms crossed and a satisfied, cold laugh. 

Emma, overwhelmed with pain and anger, glared at Natalie. She couldn't believe that her close friend, her confidante, had orchestrated everything. "Natalie Black, why would you do this?" 

But at the door, Natalie's laughter grew more unrestrained. 

"Can't figure it out? After all these years together! Emma Hart, I simply can't stand to see you doing better than me. Are you happy with that answer?" 

With those final words, she looked down on Emma with disdain and walked away with her head held high.

Impossible… In that moment, Emma felt as if her world had completely collapsed. 

Her tears seemed to dry up, and her frail body lay cold against the floor, but it was nothing compared to the chill in her heart... 

Her once peaceful life was shattered in an instant, thinking of Ethan's departure, his accusations, and Natalie Black's betrayal, Emma felt utterly despondent.

Meanwhile, the person who wrote the check was staring at a screen, listening to a project manager present the latest model candidates for the Sterling Group's new commercial. 

Each candidate seemed charming and well-known. 

Damien Sterling, somewhat bored by the project manager's endless chatter, felt an underlying annoyance.