Ditching Me for His 'Soulmate'? His Loss. Next Stop: My New Life novel Chapter 65

Chapter 7

The room was silent, all eyes fixed on me as I stepped forward to unveil my latest venture: a cutting-edge media studio paired with our newest farm-to-table influencer campaign. Every word I spoke had been meticulously practiced countless times in my mind, yet now, facing the crowd, it felt both exhilarating and raw.

After laying out the campaign details, I called for the leftover organic cranberries from my recent livestream to be brought forward. Without hesitation, I grabbed a handful and popped them into my mouth one by one, savoring their tart sweetness in front of everyone.

Then, with a deliberate motion, I rolled up my damp sleeve, revealing the jagged scar etched across my forearm. The room seemed to hold its breath.

“That man just said I’d do anything for money,” I said, voice steady. “And you know what? He’s not wrong.”

I recounted how, just two weeks earlier, I’d pulled seven consecutive overnight shifts, fueled by nothing but sheer determination, all to secure a spot at that prestigious New York networking event. When my car caught fire after the crash, I’d used this very arm to save the proposal I had been working on.

“I’ll do whatever it takes to reach my goals,” I declared, meeting the eyes of the audience. “No apologies. No regrets.”

Scanning the crowd, I caught Ryan’s gaze. His face was a mixture of shock and something else—perhaps regret. But I wasn’t finished yet.

If people wanted drama, I was ready to give them all of it.

We were going to make this studio a household name, and if that meant turning a wine fight into a spectacle, so be it.

As the conference drew to a close, I left with a thick stack of business cards clutched tightly in my hand. Outside the banquet hall, Ryan was waiting. He removed his jacket and offered it to me, but I refused it with a curt shake of my head.

His tone shifted instantly, colder and sharper. “Your whole chest is soaked. Everyone’s staring. Enjoying the attention?”

“Ryan!” Lauren stepped protectively in front of me, jaw clenched tightly. “If you don’t have anything helpful to say, just shut up and disappear.”

“What she does from now on has nothing to do with you!” she added fiercely.

The tension between them was about to boil over into a public argument, and I felt my energy draining fast.

Grabbing Lauren’s hand, I pulled her toward the car we’d called. Inside, she sighed deeply, shaking her head. “You have the worst luck—ending up with someone like him.”

I squeezed her hand, determination hardening inside me. “Not anymore. He won’t take up a single second of my life again.”

Time moved forward, slow but steady. I came to realize that life doesn’t pause for anyone.

Months passed, and with the help of a friend’s investment and the relentless effort of our team, our little studio began to carve out a respected place in the industry. The weight of the past started to lift from my shoulders, and I was finally learning to let go.

—

Then, one day, I saw Jessica again.

We were scouting locations for a shoot in East Meadow when I noticed her company was there for a team event. From a distance, I saw her surrounded by a crowd, egged on by onlookers, and then—without a hint of shame—she leaned in and kissed a man deeply, right there in front of everyone.

Lauren didn’t hesitate. She whipped out her phone, snapped a quick photo, and sent it off with a smirk.

“Done. Wonder how your ex-husband will feel when he sees this.”

I kept my focus on setting up the gear. “Don’t care. Not my problem anymore.”

A few days later, on my birthday, a massive bouquet of blue roses arrived at the office. The entire team gasped at the unexpected gift.

But then I saw the card—Ryan’s name scrawled across it.

Ridiculous.

I turned to the receptionist. “Throw them out.”

That evening, in the dimly lit parking garage, Ryan stepped in front of me, blocking my path.

“Why’d you toss the flowers? Didn’t like them?”

I stepped back, my face cold and unreadable. “That’s not the point. What matters is—I don’t know what kind of stunt you think this is.”

“You’re in love with Jessica, yet you still find time to send flowers to your ex-wife? Is this some twisted game you’re playing?”

I snatched it from his hand. “You went through my phone?”

His voice trembled. “If I hadn’t, I wouldn’t have known you’ve loved me since you were eighteen.”

“You wrote love letters that ended up in the trash. You kept notes on what foods helped my stomach.”

“You even found dirt on the guy who tried to sabotage me—”

“Enough!” I shouted.

“You forget how you told me I wasn’t good enough to compete with Jessica.”

“You thought she wrote those letters.”

“You said I was too stupid and plain to match her.”

“All those homemade meals I sent to your office—ninety of them—you gave them to her.”

“And when I got dirt on your rival, you said I was just being manipulative because she used to date him.”

With every word, Ryan looked more and more like he was about to break.

“My love was real. Raw. Pure.”

“It didn’t need to be tested or compared to anyone else’s.”

With that, I climbed into the car and pressed the gas.

In the rearview mirror, I saw him standing there, shoulders slumped, alone and defeated.

Exactly where he belonged.