The Billionaire’s Unwilling Captive

Serena’s POV “She’s so shameless.” “I didn’t imagine she would come here. Does she not care about her reputation?” “Well, Serena is a good digger, so of course she doesn’t.” I took a deep breath and ignored the comments; everything would end today after Kian’s announcement. I only need to endure the whispers for a couple of hours. Everyone thinks I’m the secretary after the boss. That I’m a shameless woman after his money. Of course, that’s all a lie, but I don’t waste my time with those baseless rumors. After his announcement, they will realize how wrong they all are. “Oh, Sera, didn’t expect to see you here.” What’s she doing here? I wondered. “I can say the same thing, Miss Hayes. This is an event only for the Lancer group,” I replied, keeping my voice steady. Elowen Hayes, the future heir of the Hayes group. She has been after Kian for almost a year. She constantly barges into the office like she owns the place. I’ve asked my boyfriend several times to keep her away. The rumors became worse after she came into the picture. But Kian assures me nothing is going on between them. I wonder why she’s here? As I said, this is a private event. “Well, you see…” Clink… clink… clink That clicking sound caught everyone’s attention. Kian stood in the middle of a platform. “Welcome to the anniversary of the Lancer’s group. It’s a pleasure to have you all here,” he began. “I would first like to thank the person who made all of this possible.” He smiled and looked straight at me. I smiled back; finally, all my work would pay— “Elowen, could you please step forward?” My smile faltered as she glanced at me and then walked to join his side. Once they were together, Kian wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her closer. “Elowen made this dream possible. She has been there by my side, helping this company grow until we became one of the biggest in the continent. If it weren’t for her, I wouldn’t have become a CEO, so today I want to publicly announce our marriage.” The public immediately clapped. They were thrilled to hear that their CEO was going to marry and merge with Hayes Group. My fists clenched at my sides. I waited until he finished and walked to a room upstairs. The same room we were supposed to meet after his announcement. I looked through the window and took a deep breath. Three years… I worked from the shadows, and this is what he does to me. I didn’t want Kian to think his success depended solely on me, so I hid my real last name. But I never expected him to stab me in the back like he did today. I was there when he had nothing. When this company just started. I lent him all my savings. And of course, he never paid me back. I was such a fool for thinking he loved me the same way I did. All his promises were lies. Now I know for sure that he has been cheating on me with her. He stayed away from home some nights, and when I asked, he told me he was working, that he needed to focus on growing the company so one day we could marry. Now, I’m sure that he spent them with Elowen. “Serena,” I closed my eyes for a second and turned around. “Thank you for coming; I think you and I need to talk.” I glanced at the woman beside him. “Is she staying?” I asked flatly. Kian frowned. “Of course, she is my future wife.” My heart clenched. I love him; I truly did. I didn’t even ask for much. All I wanted was to marry him. To form a family and, finally, to introduce him to my father. Kian was the first love of my life. My college sweetheart. “Very well, since all your success is due to her, I want to resign.” Kian clicked his tongue. “And why would you do that? We can keep working as we’ve had before. Elowen is going to help the company; you can work under—" “I refuse,” I cut him off. “We made a promise three years ago, and you didn’t keep it. I won’t be coming to the office on Monday.” Kian shook his head. “Very well, if that’s what you want.” I nodded. The fact that he asked me to say shows how shameless he is. “Why don’t you stay, Sera? We could make a great team,” Elowen said, with that fake and sweet tone of hers. I shook my head. “I prefer not to since you’re the one behind the Lancer’s group's success. So, I’ll take my leave.” I already lost three years of my life. I didn’t want to waste any more, so I started walking towards the door when Kian grabbed my arm to stop me. “Are you really leaving?” he asked. “You’re not going to start a scandal, are you?” I snorted at the absurdity of his suggestion. I could never do that. To him, I may be Serena Lewis, but if my father saw me in a scandal, he would probably drag me back home. I could picture his face turning red. “Of course not. I wish you all the best and a happy marriage.” Elowen had a smug smile on her face; she thought she had won. I quickly left the building, ignoring all the comments about me. For three years, I kept my identity hidden. But now I had to return home. I had lost the bet, so I took my phone out and called my father, whom I hadn’t spoken to since I dated Kian. It only took two rings for him to answer. “Serena. Are you okay?” He asked. Even after everything, he still worried about me. I took a deep breath. “Yeah, daddy. I’m…” I trailed off for a second, glancing back at the venue. “I’m ready to get married.”