Vivian’s face instantly soured.
“Amelia, seriously?
You think just ’cause you’ve been by his side for a few years, he’s yours now?
He’s been single all these years, you know that better than anyone.
Don’t kid yourself—do you even know where you stand?”
Those words hit Amelia like a punch to the gut.
Of course she knew.
Better than anyone.
But when facing Vivian, showing weakness was never an option.
“He’s not mine, sure.
But he’s definitely not yours either.”
Vivian’s expression twisted, like Amelia had poked right where it hurt.
Her eyes darkened with a cold, venomous glare.
“Don’t get ahead of yourself, Amelia.
Simon’s going to be mine, sooner or later.
I came back this time to talk marriage with him, so stop clinging to him like some pathetic homewrecker.
Your mom was one, and now you?
Like mother, like daughter—you both make me sick.”
Amelia’s temper snapped.
Her palm landed across Vivian’s cheek in a sharp slap.
“Amelia!”
The voice came from behind like a splash of ice water.
Her fingers froze midair, still trembling.
She stood motionless, afraid to even turn her head.
“What do you think you’re doing?” Simon’s voice was lower and colder than she had ever heard.
Amelia turned her head to glare at him.
“Didn’t you see who hit whom first, Mr.
Johnson?”
“I asked you why you hit her!”
Amelia stared hard at the man in front of her, whose icy expression could freeze someone in place.
“She insulted my mom.
What, I was supposed to just take it and smile?”
“She randomly insulted your mother out of nowhere?”
Amelia let out a short, sarcastic laugh.
“Maybe you should ask Miss Collins.
Maybe her mouth was just too itchy today, thought dragging my mom into this would be fun.”
Simon’s gaze slowly shifted to Vivian.
Vivian looked about to cry, pitiful and fragile.
“I didn’t…
I just came to apologize to Miss Clarke.
I’ve been feeling bad ever since I kicked her out of the car.
All I wanted was to say sorry, that’s all.
I never thought she’d react like that and hit me…”
Amelia knew exactly the kind of person Vivian was, but her phony act still made her scalp tingle.
Simon’s cold gaze settled calmly on her.
Amelia met his eyes head on.
“You don’t believe me, do you, Mr.
Johnson?”
His silence and distant expression said it all.
And right then, Vivian chimed in softly with her pitiful tone.”
She’s your manager after all.
If she doesn’t wanna admit it, fine.
It’s just a small thing — I can take the hit.
I mean, I did kind of go overboard kicking her out of the car earlier.
Maybe I did deserve that slap.”
Amelia let out a short laugh.
Honestly, she kind of admired Vivian in that moment.
No wonder this woman could get Simon’s attention.
Just a few seconds.
And somehow Vivian had managed to flip the whole narrative.
From the one who threw the first punch, to a poor pitiful little victim.
And to top it off, she even put on that forgiving act like she was being graceful about the whole thing.
Now it just made Amelia look like the unreasonable one.
“Miss Collins really did deserve it,” Amelia said casually.
Simon lifted an eyebrow.
His eyes flitted over Amelia briefly, then his voice dropped like a gavel.
“Amelia, apologize.”
A sudden sting hit Amelia’s chest, bitterness rising in her throat.
“And if I don’t?”
Simon’s gaze narrowed slightly, sharp and cold, pressure rolling off him like a tide.
He wasn’t used to being defied.
“Check the cameras,” Amelia said, still unflinching.
Simon’s face gave away nothing.
He stood silently between them, detached but undeniably the one holding all the power.
Vivian still wore that fragile, injured look.
“Simon, seriously, stop pressing Miss Clarke.
I’m kind of in the spotlight lately — wouldn’t want a small thing like this to end up as scandal fodder online.”
Amelia couldn’t help but let out another soft, ironic laugh.”
Aren’t public figures supposed to get the facts straight first?
Once the truth’s out, who could possibly smear Miss Collins?”
When it came to fights between women, it was never about who was right—what really mattered was which side the man took.
And clearly, right now, Amelia was losing—badly.
She knew chasing this down wouldn’t change much.
Once Simon decided she was in the wrong, no amount of proof would make him change his mind.
Still, she just wanted him to see what really happened.
“There’s nothing left to check, Miss Clarke.
I already said I won’t hold it against you.
What else do you want?” Vivian was getting impatient.
Amelia stared at her.
“Why wouldn’t we check?
Wouldn’t it be unfair to you if we didn’t clear things up?”
Simon stood to the side, his gaze unreadable, but there was a heaviness to it.
“Miss Clarke, the shoot’s about to start.
You sure you want to keep wasting everyone’s time?”
Yep, things were obviously tilted to one side.
Just like that, all the fight drained from Amelia’s chest.
“I’m sorry.”
Those two words took everything she had.
She turned and walked away, feeling cold, inside and out.
On the surface, it looked like she was just going against Vivian.
But deep down, only Amelia knew—she just couldn’t accept that after being by his side for three years, this was all she was left with. Find the original chapter at g.com.
She just wanted him to see who Vivian really was.
But she didn’t consider one thing—whether this man even cared to look.
Maybe he knew exactly what kind of person Vivian was.
He just didn’t give a damn.
When someone’s your favorite, nothing else matters.
Right or wrong?
Not even on the table.
After Amelia left, Simon finally spared Vivian a glance.
She looked up at him, face full of grievance.
“Simon, it really hurts.”
He stared at her for a moment before calmly saying, “Come on, I’ll take you to the doctor.”
*
Though they said it wouldn’t mess up the schedule, Vivian’s shoot got canceled anyway because of the bruise on her face.
She trailed behind Simon, still looking aggrieved.
Before leaving, she had her assistant hand out cupcakes and drinks to the crew.
“Really sorry for all the trouble today, thanks for your time.”
But when it came to Amelia—
The assistant gave a cold laugh.
“Not sure what Miss Collins was thinking.
You’re the one who hit her, yet she still told me to apologize to you.
She’s honestly too kind for her own good.
Too soft.
Unlike someone who hides behind seniority and bullies others.
Honestly disgusting.”
With that, the assistant walked off without another word.
Everyone stared at Amelia, faces full of mixed emotions.
Without even glancing back, Amelia grabbed her stuff and walked out.
Lily quickly followed, whispering behind her, “Boss, maybe just stop going head-to-head with Vivian.
No matter what, she’s probably gonna be the future Mrs.
Johnson.
There’s no way you’re gonna come out on top.”
Amelia stayed quiet.
Her chest felt tight, bitter.
It wasn’t like she had a say in any of it.
Even if she backed off, would Vivian really let her go?
Yeah, right.
Vivian wasn’t the type to show mercy.
As long as she was still working near Simon, Vivian would always be looking for a way to get at her.
Back at the office, Amelia had just sat down when her phone rang—it was the executive secretary.
“Miss Clarke, Mr.
Johnson said you should head home right away.”
She paused for a second.
“There’s an issue with the new product proposal.
I need to work on it tonight.”
The secretary’s tone was still calm and polite.
“Mr.
Johnson said, don’t make him come get you himself.”