My Uncle Made Me His Ex’s Replacement

Chapter 1

I fell in love with my father's adopted younger brother—a man 15 years older than me.

The first time he saw me, he stared and couldn't look away.

People said he was ruthless, and everyone feared him. But with me, he was impossibly gentle.

By day, I was his assistant. By night, he pinned me to the bed and kissed me breathless.

For four years, we were a secret. He made me grow my hair long and picked out dresses for me, molding me into the woman he liked most.

Then, on the night of our anniversary, while he had me pinned beneath him, he got a call from his first love.

"I'm back in the country. Will you come pick me up?"

The desire in his eyes vanished instantly. He pulled away and left.

I chased him to the airport. When I saw the woman's profile, I finally understood—he had been treating me as a stand-in for her all along.

When Adrian saw me, his expression shifted. He pulled me aside.

When I confronted him, he laughed dismissively.

"Ivy, you were the one who insisted on being with me. I never promised I would marry you. Throwing a tantrum now is honestly just tiresome."

I swallowed my hurt and texted my father, telling him I would accept the Hart family's marriage proposal.

When I looked up again, I smiled.

"All right. Then goodbye."

My father called seconds later. "Are you sure about this? You're done waiting for that man?"

I stood outside the airport, listening to suitcase wheels roll over the pavement behind me, and quietly said yes.

He sighed in relief. "You should have made this choice long ago. Noah is a good man—I trust him. He would never let you suffer."

I almost laughed, but the sound never came.

Four years ago, when he sent me to Adrian, he had said the exact same thing. "He's your uncle. He's family. I'll have peace of mind knowing he's looking after you."

He had no idea I'd been secretly seeing the man he trusted most for four years—the man whose name I'd never dared reveal.

After hanging up, I returned to the office and submitted the resignation letter I had written long ago.

When I left the HR department, I saw a missed call from Adrian.

I still needed to go home, pack my bags, and take my things, so I called him back.

The phone rang for a long time before someone finally answered.

"Looking for Adrian? He's in the shower." Vivian sounded sleepy and lazy, like she'd just woken up in his bed.

My fingers tightened around the handrail.

The shower. I could hear the water running in the background, and a horrible thought crossed my mind—had they already slept together?

A dull ache spread through my chest, yet my voice was strangely calm.

"Never mind. Thank you."

I ended the call. The dark screen reflected my pale, shaken face.

A while later, Adrian called me back.

"Why didn't you answer when I called earlier? What were you doing?"

Looking at the resignation request already making its way through the approval process, I replied, "Nothing. I was taking care of some work."

He didn't press.

"Don't come home tonight. Vivian's staying here. You shouldn't be around. The apartment in Westmere is empty, so stay there for now," he said. "I promised your father I'd look after you, and I won't break my word."

I looked down. He always had a reason.

When he refused to make our relationship public, he said it was because my father was his adopted brother and our affair would disgrace the family.

When he sent me away, I was my father's daughter, and he had a duty to fulfill as my uncle.

But whenever I asked whether he loved me, he never had an answer.

The whole thing felt ridiculous. Worse, it felt pointless.

"No, thank you."

"Ivy, don't be childish."

"I'm not. I'm 26 now. I can take care of myself."

Besides, once this resignation was approved and I completed the final handover, those four absurd years would finally be over.

I was going to get married, too.