The Girlfriend He Didn’t Save

The room went very quiet.

Cole tilted his head back and laughed. "You want to break up with me?"

I nodded. I turned to Vivian. "And you. As of this moment, we are not friends."

Cole sneered. "Who do you think you are? You think people are lining up to be your friend?"

I did not answer him. I watched Vivian. The corner of her mouth tugged up, smug, despite the tears.

After ten years, she still did not know who I actually was.

When I had met her, she had been a girl from the mountains on a financial-aid scholarship. The wealth gap would have made her uncomfortable, so I had never mentioned my family.

I had planned to tell her in time. I had planned to buy her a small place she liked.

I was glad I never had.

I held my ground. Cole grabbed Vivian's wrist and turned for the door.

"Selena, I am the GM of Hartline Mall. After the holiday, corporate is giving me equity in the branch. You broke up with me, don't come back."

I let out a cold laugh. "Aren't you suspended?"

He froze.

He had not thought I would know. He fumbled. "That's temporary. After a stampede, corporate has to do something for optics. You don't understand."

Vivian turned wide eyes on me. "Selena, are you breaking up with him because he's been suspended? You're so… so shallow."

Cole's face darkened. "Selena, so you're a gold-digger after all."

"You wait. Tomorrow's hearing is just a formality. The minute they reinstate me, you'll be sorry."

I watched his back disappear down the hallway. I finally let out a breath.

Equity? My father had floated that for him because he was my boyfriend. Without me, there was no equity.

After they left, I pulled up the floor surveillance from the night of the stampede. The corner where the foam cannon had been triggered was a blind spot for the mall cameras. I could not see who had operated it.

That was not a problem.

I forwarded the comms earpiece audio to Daniel Pierce, my attorney.

The next morning, I rolled my wheelchair to the meeting room.

Vivian was there too.

Pierce leaned in and lowered his voice.

"She's here as a witness for him. She's claiming the stampede was caused by insufficient on-site staffing."

I almost laughed.

Cole was trying to clear himself, but he did not realize this only made the mall more liable. As GM, he wouldn't escape responsibility anyway.

And I knew better than anyone. The staffing that night had already exceeded industry standards.

I was not going to let Cole and Vivian smear the company or push the blame onto innocent staff.

I signaled my assistant to push me forward.

The next second, Cole stepped in front of us.

He looked at me with clear disgust, then smiled. "You said you wanted to break up, and now you've followed me to the office anyway."

"Selena, don't you have any shame?"

My assistant looked between us. "Ms. Hart, he is your boyfriend?"

Cole answered before I could. "Yes, she's my girlfriend."

He straightened slightly.

"During the stampede, she threatened to break up with me unless I rescued her first. As a senior manager, I had to uphold fairness and prioritize the guests."

He spoke with conviction, as if he had rehearsed it.

My assistant frowned.

"To my knowledge, Ms. Hart was also attending the event that night in a personal capacity. She was a guest as well."

Cole was momentarily speechless.

Vivian quickly cut in. "Selena… she was actually fine."

"She only fell because she saw Cole rescue me first and felt upset. I saw it with my own eyes."

She glanced around nervously.

"She came here today… probably because she wants Cole to change his mind and get back together with her."

The employees nearby immediately started murmuring.

"So that's what happened! Mr. Cole is really impartial."

"Exactly. Putting guests before his own girlfriend, that's professionalism."

"His girlfriend is too selfish. Causing trouble at a time like that, even pretending to fall. She probably made the stampede worse."

Cole's eyes lit up, as if he had found a way out.

"That's right!" He pointed at me sharply.

"A big reason the situation became so chaotic was that she was making a scene and deliberately falling to obstruct the rescue!"

He glared at me.

"Selena, if your actions delayed the rescue and caused deaths, I would personally send you to prison!"

"And now you still have the nerve to come here asking to get back together?"

Pierce stepped forward.

"You must be Mr. Quinn.

"Ms. Hart is indeed here today because of you–but not for reconciliation."

Cole looked at him coldly.

"Not for reconciliation? You seem to know a lot. What, are you her new boyfriend?"

I took a deep breath and met his gaze.

"Cole, today's accountability hearing cannot proceed without me.

"Are you sure you want to keep blocking the way?"

He froze for a moment, then burst into exaggerated laughter.

"Can't proceed without you? Selena, who do you think you are?

"Today's hearing is being chaired by major shareholders. It's just a formality!

"What status do you have? What gives you the right to talk like that?"

The mockery on his face deepened, his tone turning condescending.

"Selena, I don't have time to deal with your nonsense.

"If you really want me to forgive you, get out of that chair right now and kneel in front of Vivian. Apologize."

As he spoke, he actually reached out to grab me from the wheelchair.

My assistant immediately stepped in front of me.

"Mr. Quinn, don't you dare!"

"Get out of my way!" Cole shoved her aside and roared.

"What wouldn't I dare do? I'm the general manager of this mall!"

"Today, I've found the person responsible for the stampede. Making her kneel and apologize is already being lenient!

"If anyone had died and the mall's reputation was damaged, I'd make her pay with her life!"

His hand reached toward my collar.

At that moment, the boardroom door opened, and my father's cold, authoritative voice rang out.

"You dare lay a hand on a Hartline shareholder? I'd like to see who has the death wish."