Chapter 5
Katherine stepped into the city like a new woman.
She didn’t have much—just a folder of old contacts, a few years of forgotten work experience, and the quiet fire that had started burning inside her the moment she signed those papers. But it was enough.
She knew people. People who had once dismissed her as Julian Nash’s shadow, yes—but some also remembered the smart, driven woman who used to handle negotiations behind closed doors while the men took credit at the table.
It didn’t take long before doors started to open.
A boutique tech startup needed a branding consultant. Katherine walked into the meeting with nothing but a clear pitch and her calm, no-nonsense confidence. By the end of the day, she had the job.
For the first time in years, she was working on something she believed in—not because it helped someone else’s empire, but because it was hers.
She started building a name for herself again. Quietly. Patiently.
Each paycheck she earned felt like a brick added to a foundation that couldn’t be knocked down by anyone—not even a man like Julian.
Meanwhile, she kept her distance from anything and anyone tied to the Nash family. She didn’t need closure. She didn’t need apologies. And she certainly didn’t need Julian to understand what he lost.
But fate has a cruel sense of timing.
Two months later, while reviewing a campaign at a quiet café, she heard a voice behind her that made her heart pause.
“Miss Clarke?”
She turned.
It was Cayson Price—Julian’s assistant.
He looked surprised, even impressed. “Didn’t expect to see you here.”
Katherine closed her laptop, her expression unreadable. “I don’t work for Nash Group anymore, remember?”
“I know,” Cayson said, awkward. “That’s not why I’m here. I was just passing by… but Julian’s been asking about you.”
She didn’t react.
“He’s been… different lately,” Cayson added, shifting his weight. “Quiet. Distant. He signed the papers, but honestly, I don’t think he thought you’d actually leave.”
Katherine gave a small, cold smile. “He underestimated me. A lot of people did.”
Cayson hesitated. “Would you… be willing to talk to him? Even just once?”
“No,” she said softly but firmly. “I don’t owe him anything.”
With that, she stood, grabbed her things, and left.
Outside, the breeze caught her hair, and she walked down the street with her head high.
She had once waited every day for Julian to notice her. To want her. To love her.
Now, she didn’t even look back.