Chapter 1I was boiling pasta when my husband dropped the divorce bomb.
"Here's the deal. We split the money. House is yours. The fragrance company? That's ALL mine. I paid for it. Built it from nothing. You get ZERO."
I didn't stop stirring. Didn't even look at him.
Just grabbed a handful of cilantro and tossed it in.
He made a face.
"You hate cilantro."
I finally looked up.
"Yeah. Because YOU hated it. Not anymore."
His face changed. Like he'd never seen me before.
What he didn't know? That company he was so proud of?
Every single formula was copyrighted under MY name.
He thought he was walking away with everything.
Funny.
I'd already screwed him first.
---
The second I pulled the pasta out, the doorbell rang.
Caden rushed to get it, voice all soft and sweet.
"Babe, I told you to wait downstairs."
A sugary voice purred back.
"I missed you though."
I walked out with my bowl just as Caden was helping some girl through the door.
Sutton Brenner.
His new hire. Twenty-three. Fresh out of some fragrance program at UC Davis or wherever.
From day one, Caden couldn't shut up about how talented she was.
Sutton flashed me this fake-ass apologetic smile.
"Didn't mean to crash your... dinner, Harlow."
Harlow. Not "Mrs. Hale."
Just... Harlow.
I ignored her, went back to eating my pasta.
Caden saw me not reacting and jumped in.
"Don't get the wrong idea. Sutton's just here to help me pack."
She walked right in like she owned the place, kicking off her shoes.
That's when I smelled it.
My perfume. The one I'd just finished developing.
I put my fork down.
"You gave her my new formula?"
Sutton froze mid-hair-flip. Looked at Caden like a deer in headlights.
But Caden? He just shrugged.
"You made it, sure. But you work for the company. Legally, it's company property."
He said it so casually.
"Business is business, Harlow."
I kept eating.
Ten years. Ten years I'd worked for free to help him build this company. Gave up a six-figure job. Never asked for a single paycheck.
Now he's pulling the "business is business" card.
Sutton chimed in, all sweet venom.
"Harlow, you only provided the formula. The R&D, the production—that was all the company."
Only the formula.
I almost laughed. Looked up at Caden.
"I spent months digging through old books for that formula. Put it together bit by bit."
Caden's jaw clenched.
"So? Those books are out there for anyone. Someone was gonna find it sooner or later."
Sutton chimed in.
"Exactly! I've seen those books too. You just got to Caden first."
I actually laughed.
Caden's face went red. Grabbed his jacket.
"Courthouse. Tomorrow. Nine AM."
While I was washing dishes, my phone buzzed.
The old company group chat. Someone posted a photo.
Full team shot. Caden and Sutton front and center, wearing matching outfits, raising champagne glasses like some power couple.
The caption:
[Celebrating Essence & Co. going public!]
[Thanks to our CEO Caden and our lead nose Sutton!]
I gripped the edge of the sink.
Essence & Co.
That was the name of MY very first fragrance.
I started typing something, anything—
[You cannot send messages in a group you've left.]
Chapter 2
Caden texted me directly.
"Send over the formula notes."
I stared at my phone for a long time.
Finally, I called him.
"Why'd you kick me out of the group?"
Background noise. People laughing, music playing.
"We're getting divorced. You being in there didn't make sense."
"Plus, I'm moving Sutton into your role. She'll handle R&D from now on."
I was about to respond when I heard someone in the background.
"Yo Caden, who you talking to? Don't leave your lady hanging like that!"
Sutton giggled. "Stop it, you guys."
Caden laughed.
"Be right there."
He hung up.
I just stood there.
Caden always kept work and personal stuff separate.
I worked there ten years. Nobody knew we were married. They all thought I was like, his cousin or something.
Sutton? She'd been there six months.
Everyone was already calling her "his girl."
I pulled the bowl out of the sink and threw it straight into the trash.
Next morning, I went to the office instead of the courthouse.
Employees were still buzzing from the night before.
"Dude, I didn't know Caden was such a softie. Sutton just batted her eyes and boom—everyone got a ten-grand bonus."
I stopped walking.
A hundred employees. Ten grand each.
That's a million dollars.
I thought back to when I got poisoned testing a fragrance ingredient. Ended up in the ER.
The doctor asked Caden:
"We've got the imported antidote or the generic. Imported works faster. Which one?"
Caden didn't even blink.
"Generic's fine."
I thought it was because we were broke.
Now I get it.
He just didn't think I was worth it.
I swiped my key card at my old office.
Access Denied.
Sutton appeared out of nowhere, unlocked it for me.
"Oh, Harlow. This is my office now. Caden had them change the code."
She led me inside like she was giving a tour of her new apartment.
The whole place had been redecorated. Minimalist chic, white and gold everything.
My awards and certificates? In the trash.
Sutton followed my gaze.
"Yeah, sorry about that. Caden said those old trophies didn't match the new vibe, so I tossed them. Hope you don't mind."
I pulled them out, wiped them off, and headed for the back room.
At least that was still untouched.
Shelves full of rare ingredients I'd collected over the years.
I started packing them into my bag.
Sutton stepped in front of me.
"Harlow. That's not yours. You can't just take it."
I kept packing.
"This stuff is mine. I collected it myself. It's not company property."
Sutton opened her mouth—
Then suddenly slapped herself across the face.
Caden burst through the door two seconds later.
"What the hell? Why'd you hit her?"
He rushed over to Sutton, cradling her face like she'd been shot.
I looked at him, this man I'd spent fifteen years with, and just felt... tired.
"Caden, I used to think I was the blind one. Now I know it's you."
I tried to leave.
He blocked the door.
"Apologize. Or you'll regret it."
I didn't.
But a few days later, I found out what "regret it" meant.
Chapter 3
My best friend Mira called, voice shaking.
"Did you and Caden actually get divorced?"
"Why is the internet saying Sutton's the co-founder of Essence & Co.?"
"And that signature perfume—I know you made that. How is her name on it now?"
I dodged her questions and opened Twitter.
Trending #1: #EssenceCoFounderLoveStory
It was a video interview. Caden and Sutton, sitting close, hands intertwined.
The interviewer asked about the company name.
Caden smiled.
"The name? It comes from my wife's love. Without her, none of this would've happened."
He wasn't lying.
The perfume was inspired by his wife's love.
Too bad he wasted it.
He squeezed Sutton's hand, gazing at her like she was the only person in the room.
Comments were going insane. People were obsessed with them.
Some investigative account dug up Sutton's credentials—top of her class, award-winning nose, total genius.
My name? Gone.
Nobody mentioned the original co-founder.
Nobody mentioned the wife he threw away.
I gripped my phone so hard my knuckles went white.
Caden was deleting me. Wiping me out of the story piece by piece.
Panic crept in.
I opened my laptop, logged into the copyright database, and searched my formulas.
Thank god.
Every single one was still registered under my name.
I'd always been paranoid about protecting my work. Since I never signed a contract or took a paycheck, the IP was 100% mine.
Caden texted me again.
[Why haven't you sent the core formula yet?]
[We're presenting at the Fragrance Founders Summit tomorrow. I need it tonight.]
I ignored him.
Then got a text from Rhys Wilder.
[Heard you got screwed over at Essence. Wanna team up?]
Rhys and I met years ago in the mountains of Oregon, both digging for rare plant extracts.
He was another fragrance obsessive.
I thought about it. Checked my savings.
Then replied.
[I want equity. 50/50 split.]
[Deal. I already found a space. Meet tomorrow?]
[Yeah. Just gotta handle something first.]
Caden called me that night, furious.
"Why haven't you sent me the formula?"
I let the silence hang.
"Caden, I developed that formula. It's mine."
"You developed it while working for the company. That makes it company property."
I smiled. Really smiled.
"Caden, did we ever sign a contract?"
"Did you ever pay me a single dollar?"
He went quiet.
"You chose not to sign a contract."
Yeah, back then I thought we were partners. Figured we didn't need contracts and all that formal stuff.
Never thought my trust would make it easier for him to erase me.
Caden tried to say something else. I hung up.
Later, he texted me.
[Look, we were together ten years. Just give me the formula. Name your price.]
I turned off my phone and went to bed.
Best sleep I'd had in months.
Woke up to fifty missed calls and a hundred texts.
All from Caden.
[Harlow, I messed up not giving you a contract. I'll pay you back for everything. Just send me the formula.]
[You really gonna ice me out like this?]
The last one, sent an hour ago:
[Fine. I'll see you in court.]
I didn't reply to any of them.
Instead, I met Rhys and we headed to the Fragrance Founders Summit together.
When Caden saw me walk in, his face went white.
"Harlow. You're making a huge mistake."
"I'm not backing down on the formula."
I smiled at him.
"Good luck with that."
Sutton stepped in front of me, blocking my path.
"Harlow, you're not an Essence employee anymore. You can't be here."
The door attendant looked uncomfortable.
Caden straightened his tie, put his arm around Sutton, and walked past me.
"Without me, Harlow, you're nothing."
"You think I can't figure out that formula myself?"
The door started to close.
Through the gap, I watched Caden and Sutton take the stage, all smiles and confidence.
Rhys jogged up, out of breath.
"Sorry I'm late. Let's go in."
I grinned.
"You're right on time."
He led me through a side entrance, straight to the VIP section.
I raised an eyebrow.
He explained. "My dad's the one hosting this thing."
Oh.
Onstage, Sutton was going on and on about how she "spent months researching old texts" to create the Essence signature scent.
People were eating it up.
Someone asked if she could show them how it's done.
Caden jumped in.
"My wife's three months pregnant. Can't have her around strong chemicals right now."
The room went silent.
Then erupted in applause.
I stared at them.
Three months pregnant.
Three months ago, Caden and I were still married.
Three months ago, I was in the hospital recovering from poisoning myself testing a formula.
Cool.
One of the judges suddenly frowned.
"Wait, this formula's off. The scent's not right."
I looked down, hiding my smile.
Caden thought he'd found my notes.
He had.
He just didn't know I'd left out the most important ingredient.
Sutton started panicking. Caden's face went pale.
I stood up.
"That's 'cause she's missing part of the formula."
