He Helped Me Fail 99 Times

The explosion wiped out my parents—and their company.

All I had left was some insurance cash and a pile of patents nobody cared about. I begged their old partners to back me. Crickets.

Then Alex Ross strolled in, played the hero no one asked for, and proposed.

Five years deep into our marriage, after my 99th FDA rejection, I finally cracked. I was in the garage when I heard his phone on speaker.

Mark's voice came through: "Dude, you're still handing Lily Emma's blueprints before she even files? How many times has she flopped now? Girl's relentless, huh?"

Alex? Straight-up ice.

"Ninety-nine. She'll quit soon."

"You're really tanking your wife to boost Lily's brand? Worth it?"

"Lily's launching her new product tomorrow at the Boston Medical Summit. Patent number 100. Watching her blow up from nothing... makes me proud."

"But it's all Emma's stuff. Your dad made you marry her for her brain, didn't he?"

"Don't bring up my father." His voice turned sharp. "He forced me to dump Lily. I just played along."

I sank into the driver's seat, frozen.

I wasn't a partner. Just a pawn—revenge bait for his dad and backup fuel for his ex.

Alex stole my work 99 times to make his girlfriend famous.

What he didn't know? The girl he worshipped killed my parents. And the one who saved his life when he was circling the drain? Yeah—that was me. The same girl he wrecked for five straight years.

***

Mark wouldn't drop it. "Emma's actually a good person. Don't you feel even a little guilty?"

"Guilty?" Alex started the car. "I gave her a cushy life. She should be grateful."

"Lily blew you off when you tried to help her before, and now she's making bank off stolen tech. You really think she loves you? She's going after Emma on purpose."

"Shut up!" Alex slammed the brakes. "She only said no to save face. Now we're equals. When the timing's right, I'll ditch Emma and go public with Lily."

Mark shot back, "And Emma? You nuked five years of her life. She'll fall apart."

"She won't know," he said, all calm now. "I've got it mapped out. After the divorce, I'll throw her enough cash to coast.

"In the end, it was just a trade. She got security. I got to tick off my dad's box."

The engine quieted. I sat there in the dark, vision swimming.

Five years ago, I was kneeling by Mom's hospital bed when the monitor flatlined. The blast took her. Dad didn't last much longer.

Then Alex showed up. All soft words and perfect timing.

"Marry me," he said. "I'll take care of you."

I thought it was love. Turns out, it was a setup.

And me? I handed him everything like a total idiot.

My phone buzzed. Alex:

[Darling, there's a charity dinner tonight. Wear that blue gown. I'll pick you up at seven.]

I stared at the screen, hands heavy. Then typed:

[Okay.]

***

Twenty minutes