Ghosted By Him, Claimed By The Boss

Silas finally noticed I had stopped running every little detail of my life by him.

When my firm offered a major relocation package, I signed the contract in ink before his opinion even crossed my mind.

Brooke’s wedding invitation clearly stated a plusone, but I showed up alone and booked her a luxury honeymoon suite as a wedding gift.

I even scheduled my own surgery, locking down the consultations and the hospital bed without breathing a word to anyone.

When Silas, a toptier surgeon, found out, he tugged at his tie with obvious impatience. "Why didn't you tell me you were sick? Give me the medical files.

I'll have my personal assistant sort out the arrangements." The response slipped out of my mouth on instinct. "I can handle it myself.

Don't bother, thanks." The air in the room flatlined the second the words hung between us.

After all, just two weeks ago, I was still the stagefive clinger he always complained about.

I was the girl who used to text him for approval on everything, right down to what dress to wear for a date or what to order for lunch.

Chapter 1 "You're rushing into surgery tomorrow?" The attending physician handed my file back, his tone laced with confusion. "I thought Dr. Silas was returning from his trip soon.

You could wait for him to be here with you…" "I'll handle my own affairs," I cut him off softly. The doctor blinked in surprise.

After all, I was notorious around this hospital for being highmaintenance. Even for a minor headache or a slight fever, I used to cling to Silas, demanding he stay by my side.

The moment I stepped out of the consultation room, I bumped into a familiar silhouette.

Silas was dragging a carryon with one hand, looking like he had headed straight to the hospital the second his flight landed.

Piper trailed behind him, a permanent fixture as always. Draped over her white coat was a black cashmere overcoat—the exact one I had gifted Silas for our threeyear anniversary.

Silas frowned. "What are you doing here? Are you sick again?" Again. The familiar impatience clipped his voice, treating me like a bothersome task he needed to cross off his list.

He snatched the medical file from my hands, scanned the pages, and issued an order. "I have plans tomorrow. This isn't critical.

Reschedule the surgery for next week, and I'll go with you." "I can handle it myself. Don't bother, thanks," the words slipped out purely on instinct.

The extreme, polite distance made Silas freeze. After all, the old me used to whine and text him over a paper cut.

I would blow up his phone just to have him pick out my outfit for a date. From what to eat for three meals a day to major life choices, I consulted Silas for every single detail.

Now, I was booking a surgical procedure without batting an eye. If we hadn't bumped into each other by chance, my own boyfriend wouldn't have even known. I snatched my file back.

In the process, my elbow knocked a small box out of his hand. It hit the floor, the label flashing crystal clear under the hospital lights.

A pack of birth control pills. "Don't get the wrong idea." Silas bent down to pick it up, his voice coated in a strictly professional, detached chill. "Piper has severe cramps.

This is a standard prescription for the pain." Piper deliberately pulled the black cashmere coat—my coat—tighter around her shoulders, tugging the collar down a fraction.

She feigned a flustered, highpitched innocence. "I'm so sorry, Hazel. Dr. Silas was actually on his way home. It's my fault for being so useless.

The cramps were so bad I couldn't even stand, so I had to bother him to come get my prescription." She paused, layering her voice with thick, artificial admiration. "I wish I could be as fiercely independent as you, Hazel.

Then I wouldn't have to make Dr.

Silas run around taking care of me all the time." I remembered a time when I had severe abdominal pain and asked Silas which department I should make an appointment with.

What did the youngest Deputy Chief of Surgery at a toptier hospital say to me? He said he didn't know.

When I complained about him brushing me off, he had pinched the bridge of his nose in exhaustion, staring at me like an annoying burden. "Can't you just look it up online for something this trivial?" he had said. "You're an adult.

Can't you be a little independent? Stop clinging to me like a giant toddler." "I'm not your parent. It's not my job to teach you basic life skills." How hilarious.

He hoarded his words like gold when it came to his actual girlfriend, but he would personally escort his junior colleague through the pharmacy line.

Anyone walking by would assume Piper was the girlfriend. The old me would have lost my temper and caused a massive scene right there in the hallway.

But now, I just let out a cold laugh, sweeping a razorsharp glare over the two of them. "Pills aren't going to cut it.

Why don't you massage her stomach, hold her to sleep, and warm up her hands and feet yourself?

I certainly don't need you dictating my medical files." Piper's face flushed a deep, embarrassed red. "Hazel, that's not what I meant…" Silas misinterpreted my sarcasm as a petty tantrum.

His tone turned frigid. "Are you still throwing a fit? Just because I didn't report my business trip itinerary to you?" Chapter 2 Two weeks ago was his birthday.

I had pulled consecutive allnighters for a solid week to bank my PTO, meticulously arranged an expensive candlelit dinner, and picked up that custommade luxury watch, fully prepared to give him the ultimate surprise.

I waited until midnight. Silas never came home.

It wasn't until I scrolled past Piper's Instagram story that I realized he had flown out of the country for a medical exchange program.

When I confronted him, Silas brushed it off like it was nothing. "It's just a business trip. There was no need to consult you.

Birthdays happen every year, but this fellowship is a onceinalifetime opportunity." "I thought you had enough sense to prioritize what actually matters.

Don't you have your own life to focus on?

Why are you constantly tracking my schedule?" Months of suppressed disappointment shattered my composure. "Silas," I demanded, "in your grand list of priorities, am I always going to be dead last?" In stark contrast to my breaking voice, Silas delivered one flat, emotionless sentence before hanging up. "You're acting hysterical right now.

We'll talk when I get back." Once the dead air settled in the apartment, my mind turned terrifyingly clear.

I pulled out the corporate relocation agreement and signed my name on the dotted line with a single, decisive stroke.

The last time I changed jobs, I brought him two competing offers and asked for his input. Silas barely glanced at the paperwork. "It's your life.

Don't make me decide for you." Yet, he had spent hours patiently tutoring Piper, meticulously helping her perfect her college applications until she got accepted into the country's top medical school, officially becoming his precious junior.

Silas was always lecturing me about my lack of independence. He called me a clingy burden.

When I eagerly shared a funny story about my day, he would slip on his noisecanceling headphones and turn up his medical podcasts, shutting me out.

When I was running late for work, he refused to drop me off, aggressively emphasizing that his morning routine could not be derailed by my poor time management.

When I wanted to join his friends for drinks, he coldly suggested I build my own social circle. I used to justify it.

I told myself Silas was just naturally aloof and emotionally guarded. I convinced myself that if I just tried hard enough, I would eventually be the exception to his rule.

That was until Piper showed up. She was the daughter of old family friends, entrusted to his care when she moved to the city. I thought he would hate the burden.

Instead, he agreed without a second of hesitation. And the punchline? She was the real exception. When Piper complained about her roommates, Silas replied to every single text.

When she craved some viral dessert on a random Tuesday, he drove across town to deliver it.

When she started her clinical rotations at his hospital, he introduced her to every elite surgeon in the wing. "This is my junior.

Look out for her." Whenever I picked a fight over his blatant double standards, he would furrow his brow in deep disappointment. "She's practically a kid.

Are you a kid too?" "I'm only looking out for her out of obligation. Are you seriously jealous of this? Look at her age, then look at yours.

Why don't you start competing with actual newborns while you're at it?" But the "kid" he kept defending was only three years younger than me.

All the pathetic excuses I had fed myself—that it was just his personality, that he was swamped with surgeries, that he naturally despised clinginess—shattered the moment I saw him hand out endless patience to another woman.

Whatever. Once I got my surgery tomorrow and relocated, Silas would be officially dead to me.

Brooke, knowing about my surgery, immediately took time off work to stay with me. "You better have the guest room prepped and ready for your premium livein nurse!" she had joked over the phone.

I laughed, twisting the key in my apartment lock. "I deepcleaned the guest room twice and bought brandnew silk sheets just for you.

I guarantee you'll sleep like a—" I pushed the front door open. The words died in my throat.

Chapter 3 The brandnew silk sheets I had meticulously prepped were crumpled into a careless heap on the floor.

The guest room was crammed with unfamiliar junk, dominated by a massive, halfhumansized teddy bear sprawled across the mattress. It was a blatant, unapologetic territorial claim.

The front door clicked open behind me. A sickeningly sweet giggle drifted down the hall. "Dr. Silas, thank you so much for taking me to that restaurant.

The food was absolutely amazing.

All my bad vibes from my toxic roommates are totally cured by that dessert!" Silas caught sight of me and offered a flat explanation. "Piper had a fallout with her roommates.

She can't stay in the dorms, so she's moving out.

She hasn't found a place yet, so she's crashing in the guest room for now." I let out a dry laugh. "Silas, I told you a week ago that Brooke was coming to stay here." Silas froze.

The microscopic twitch in his jaw told me everything I needed to know. The detail hadn't even registered in his mind.

When I had asked him about it, his voice had dripped with irritation: "Just handle these trivial things yourself.

Stop asking me about everything, it's annoying." Silas pressed his lips into a thin line, lowering his voice. "Sorry." He lifted a branded takeout bag, softening his tone like he was coaxing a toddler throwing a tantrum. "The restaurant we went to today is right up your alley.

I'll take you there this weekend." I glanced at the logo on the paper bag. It was the exact spot I had begged him to take me to for months.

The one he kept swearing he was too slammed with work to visit. I took the bag from his hand and dropped it straight into the trash can.

The relieved breath Silas was about to let out hitched in his throat. Piper squeezed past him, her voice pitched to a pathetic squeak. "Hazel, this is all my fault.

I can just squeeze in with your friend.

I really don't mind." I walked over, my face entirely blank, and began stuffing Piper's sheets, her clothes, and that ridiculous teddy bear into a heavyduty black trash bag.

I dragged it to the front door and tossed it straight out into the hallway. Piper stood paralyzed, tears welling up in her wide eyes. "Hazel, I need those for tonight!

What am I supposed to do now?" I flicked my gaze toward the master bedroom and offered a razorsharp smile. "You can squeeze in with Silas.

I really don't mind." Piper's face burned a furious, mottled red. "If you didn't want me here, you should have just said so!

There's no need to humiliate me like this!" Acting as if she had just suffered the ultimate injustice, she choked out a sob, spun on her heel, and ran out the door.

Silas didn't chase after her. Instead, he glared at me, a deep crease forming between his brows. "Hazel, she's always been clumsy and a bit immature.

She didn't mean to mess up your things." "If you didn't want her staying here, all you had to do was say the word. I could have booked her a hotel.

There was absolutely no need for you to deliberately attack her twice in one day." The smile dropped from my face. "This is our home.

Shouldn't you have discussed it with me before moving a stranger in?" Silas's scowl deepened, his gaze pinning the blame squarely on me. "Piper is being bullied at school.

She's emotionally vulnerable right now.

I thought you possessed at least a shred of human empathy, but your first instinct is to obsess over the fact that I didn't consult you." "Besides, she was only going to crash here for a couple of days.

Do we really need to hold a summit over every temporary arrangement?

Just like you didn't need my permission to have Brooke stay over." In the past, those words would have driven me to call up a guy friend and invite him to sleep over that very night, just to see if Silas would react.

But now, I just nodded calmly. "You're right. There's really no need to discuss it." Fair is fair.

By that logic, packing up, relocating to a new city, and dumping him didn't require a conversation either.

Chapter 4 "Go book a hotel for Piper." I obligingly held the front door open for Silas, then turned around, unzipped my suitcase on the floor, and began throwing my clothes inside.

He clearly didn't like my reaction. His hand clamped down on my wrist. "She's an adult. She can book her own room. What I want to know is why you're suddenly packing.

Where are you going?" I yanked my arm free. "Don't you have your own life to focus on? Why are you constantly tracking my schedule?" Silas froze.

A flicker of recognition crossed his eyes—he realized I was feeding his exact words back to him. He fell silent for a beat. "Not telling you about my flight last time was my fault.

From now on, I'll keep you updated on my itinerary." "Tomorrow, I have to swing by her campus.

Piper got herself into some serious trouble and even got hauled into the campus police station. She's terrified.

I need to go bail her out." "Push your surgery to the day after tomorrow. I'll go with you." It seemed I was still dead last on his list of priorities.

I kept my face entirely blank. "I don't need you there. It makes zero difference whether you show up or not." Silas genuinely seemed to think I just didn't grasp the logistics.

He broke it down with agonizing patience. "I can pull strings with the specialists and translate the lab reports for you.

At the bare minimum, I can stand in the pharmacy lines and handle the paperwork." My next refusal was abruptly cut off by his ringing phone.

Piper's shrill, sobbing voice blasted through the speaker. "Silas, someone is violently slamming against my hotel room door… Please, you have to come save me…" The color drained from Silas's face.

He immediately spun around and headed for the door. "Wait," I called out. Silas slammed to a halt.

He whipped his head around, his features twisted in harsh irritation. "Hazel, do you seriously expect me to file a written request with you before I go save someone's life?

This isn't the time to throw a petty tantrum." "She could be in real physical danger.

Can you drop the vendetta against her for just one second?" He paused, as if suddenly remembering my situation, and let out a heavy sigh. "I will be there for your surgery.

But right now, I expect you to have enough sense to prioritize an actual emergency." Silas completely misunderstood.

I only stopped him to reiterate that my surgery was offlimits to him. But he bolted out the door before I could even open my mouth.

Despite everything, my surgery schedule got completely hijacked.

Silas went way back with my attending physician, and he had personally pulled some strings to interfere. "You really need to stop picking fights with him over every little thing." The attending doctor chuckled, giving me a knowing look like he had seen right through a teenager's childish stunt. "Dr.

Silas already filled me in. He said all that talk about you handling the surgery alone was just you throwing a fit." "He really loves you, you know.

He's incredibly swamped, but he still went out of his way to swap his shifts just to be by your side for a minor procedure like this." I opened my mouth to argue, but the words died in my throat.

A crushing wave of absolute exhaustion pinned me down.

Under my original timeline, I was supposed to have the surgery today, recover, catch a flight to my new city tomorrow, and report to my new corporate office the day after.

Now, with a single phone call, Silas had effortlessly derailed my entire exit strategy.

I dialed his number to demand an explanation, but Piper picked up the line. "Silas is exhausted and finally fell asleep.

If you need something, just tell me." Piper kept her voice locked in a hushed, breathy whisper, dripping with fake apology. "Oh, by the way, weren't you supposed to have your surgery today?

I'm so sorry, but Silas probably won't be able to make it." She choked on her words, stumbling into a transparent backpedal. "Hazel, please don't get the wrong idea…" I stabbed the end call button.

As if she was genuinely terrified I might "misunderstand," Piper’s Instagram feed updated a second later. Chapter 5 [It feels so good to be protected.

I have the best big brother in the whole world!] The attached photo was taken inside a hotel room.

Silas was leaning back in an armchair by the window, his arms crossed over his chest, his eyes closed. Dark circles shadowed the skin under his eyes.

It looked like he had sat vigil by her bed all night without sleeping a wink. I pulled up their contacts and tapped block.

Then, I booked an appointment at a private clinic in City S. Thankfully, it was an outpatient procedure that didn't require an overnight stay.

If I couldn't get it done at this hospital, I would just find another one. I stuck to my original plan and boarded my flight the next day.

However, my onboarding process at the new corporate office didn't exactly go smoothly.

The second I walked in, my director dumped a total trainwreck of a project on my desk—one with a multimillion dollar budget on the line—and slapped me with a completely impossible deadline.

It took me a few days to figure out the office politics. The official head of our department was the heir to the entire conglomerate, parachuted in to gain experience.

Everyone secretly called him "The Emperor." But the guy actually holding the reins was the senior director who had been clawing his way up for years—privately dubbed "The VP".

On the surface, they played nice. In the shadows, they were constantly at each other's throats.

My specific role historically reported directly to The Emperor, which meant I had been drafted into his faction without even realizing it.

Once again, my budget approval got gridlocked in another department, left on read with zero response. I tapped open my pinned chat thread.

My fingers moved faster than my brain, and I hit send on a [Crying Cat] meme.

I was just about to type out a massive paragraph complaining to Brooke when a reply popped up instantly. [I'm here.] [What's wrong?] I froze. Why would Brooke reply like that?

She usually fired back with a [Spill the Drama] sticker. My eyes flicked up to the contact name at the top of the screen. My hand jerked. I texted the wrong person.

It wasn't my best friend. It was The Emperor—my boss, Roman, who was currently out of state on a business trip. The rumors said The Emperor was utterly ruthless.

He had a face that rivaled a toptier Hollywood leading man, wore perfectly tailored haute couture suits, but walked around with a permanent icecold glare, holding absolute lifeanddeath control over the entire conglomerate.

I hadn't even met him in person yet, but his legendary exploits echoed through the cubicles. At a corporate dinner, a male colleague was bragging about twotiming his girlfriends.

While everyone else laughed awkwardly and pretended not to hear, Roman cut through the noise: "You're proud of being treated like a free gigolo?" During a departmentwide meeting, some boomer executive started reminiscing about the good old days, preaching about how "we need to learn from the youth and just be ourselves." Roman interrupted him, his voice freezing the room: "Stop trying to be yourself, and start trying to be a decent human being." When the VP's team made a rookie mistake, Roman slammed their report onto the conference table in front of the entire department.

His voice was absolute zero. "If stupidity were a felony, you'd all be serving life sentences right now.

Redo it, or pick up your severance packages tomorrow." …I was dead in the water.

This was the first time I had ever encountered a boss who replied in milliseconds, destroying any window I had to unsend the message.

While I was sweating over how to do damage control, the top of the chat switched to [User is typing…] Then came my boss's third message.

Two brutal words. [Wait for me.] [Me: ?] Three hours later. The man who was supposed to be out of state was sitting at the head of the conference room.

A sleek black carryon stood next to his chair. He lifted his gaze as the door clicked.

The stray strands of hair falling over his forehead were slightly damp from the season's first snow outside.

His eyes locked onto me. "What kind of trouble did you run into?" The rumors weren't exaggerating.

Roman definitely possessed the kind of face that could make a girl forgive mandatory overtime. But right now, he wasn't radiating the venomous, icecold aura from the legends.

If anything, he actually looked… gentle.

After I frantically explained that I had texted the wrong person, Roman flashed a smile that didn't reach his eyes. "Funny how you never accidentally deposit your paycheck into my account." Okay.

Never mind. The rumors were entirely correct. Chapter 6 I took the opportunity to pledge my loyalty, bringing up the gridlocked budget approval.

Instead, I accidentally wound up in a oneonone career mentoring session.

The paperwork that had been stalled for days was approved in milliseconds after Roman made a single phone call.

I let out a breath. "Thank you, Little Emp—" The nickname nearly slipped out.

I slammed the brakes just in time. "Thank you, Roman." Roman raised an eyebrow, his gaze sweeping over me for a slow two seconds.

The corner of his mouth ticked up in a faint, barelythere smirk. "Hazel.

You really wiped me from your memory, didn't you?" On the commute home, I dug through my brain, trying to match Roman's face to any past memory. Nothing. My phone buzzed.

I swiped the screen to answer without checking the caller ID. Silas's voice clipped through the speaker, tight with friction. "Hazel, why didn't you show up for your surgery today?

I waited at the hospital all day!" I stared out the window. "I went to a different clinic." Silas let out a harsh breath. "Why didn't you run that by me first?

And your closet is completely empty." "Your suitcase is gone. Did you go on a trip with Brooke?

Why wouldn't you tell me?" I kept my voice entirely flat. "Do we really need to consult each other over something this trivial?" The line went dead silent.

I had just giftwrapped his favorite, mostused excuse and handed it right back to him.

When he spoke again, his tone dropped, mimicking a peace offering. "My friends are hosting a dinner the day after tomorrow. It's a plusone event.

Haven't you always wanted to meet my inner circle?" "I'm busy." Back when I was desperate to fit into his world, he called me clingy and demanded his personal space.

Now that I was halfway out the door, he was suddenly rolling out the red carpet. Silas paused, clearly shortcircuiting at the flat rejection. "Why are you always glued to Brooke?

You're dating me, not her." "If you want to travel, go shopping, or catch a movie, I can go with you.

You don't have to drag her everywhere." I used to beg him to do those exact couples' activities.

Silas always brushed me off, claiming he was too slammed with surgeries and telling me to wait. But the popup events closed, the dresses sold out, and the movies left the theaters.

He never magically found the time. I had zero interest in digging up ancient history to start a fight. I went straight for the kill. "I transferred offices to a new city.

I'm not coming back." The other end of the line flatlined. He chewed on the words like they were made of glass. "Transferred? When did this happen?

Hazel, why wouldn't you tell me something this massive?" "I forgot." Silas clearly couldn't process that answer.

I could picture him pinching the bridge of his nose. "What happened to you?" He started rattling off his grievances like a prosecutor. "You used to blow up my phone with a hundred texts a day.

You told me everything." "You consulted me on absolutely every minor detail of your life. But now?" A sliver of actual betrayal cracked his voice. "You ghosted me.

You blocked my number without a word, and you packed up and moved to an entirely different city.

And as your boyfriend—your future husband—I'm somehow the last person on earth to find out." "Hazel." He dropped my name like a gavel. "Don't you think you're taking this way too far?" Chapter 7 I kept my voice perfectly even, stating it like a fact. "You told me to stop clinging to you like a giant toddler.

You said I was annoying, that I needed to learn how to be fiercely independent.

So, I started making my own decisions." "I stopped running everything by you, and I stopped bothering you. Isn't this exactly what you wanted?

I molded myself into exactly what you asked for, so why are you throwing a fit now?" Silas choked on his words.

The only sound coming through the receiver was his heavy, suppressed breathing.

After a long pause, he finally forced out, "That's not what I meant…" "It doesn't matter," I cut him off. "I've already settled down in my new city, and I'm not coming back." I checked my watch impatiently, needing to wrap this up so I could get ready for an exclusive dinner banquet with Roman. "As for your little dinner party, you can just take Piper.

She's your precious junior, after all. That practically makes her your plusone." Silas opened his mouth, a reflexive instinct to argue. I didn't give him the chance.

I delivered the final blow with absolute precision. "There's one last thing I forgot to consult you about, so I'm officially notifying you right now. Silas, we're done.

We are over." I hit the end call button