For ten years, she had constantly strived to prove she was no worse than Eleanor, to prove thatn''s choice had been a mistake.


    And now, she had seeded. She had sessfully made Eleanor andn divorce, and turnedn into the person Eleanor hated most. Even though she herself hadn''t secured the position of Mrs. Goodwin, seeing Eleanor in pain andn''s family fall apart filled her with a sense of grim satisfaction.


    She had used everything she could to maken personally destroy Eleanor''s trust and love for him.


    "Eleanor, have you tasted pain?" Vanessa murmured with a cold smile. "The day you stole him from me, I swore I would make you two see this day."


    Of course, she hadn''t truly won yet. Eleanor still had her daughter and her career. But at leastn had lost Eleanor for good. They would never love each other again, never be a family. In a way, wasn''t that a victory?


    Now, Eleanor was shining in her field, soaring to new heights. Her future choices would no longer includen. Perhaps she would choose that military officer, leave Ashford City, and spend her golden years doing research at his base.


    Now, she actually hoped thatn loved Eleanor, loved her madly.


    Only then could he be punished by loving someone he could never have, living the rest of his life in regret.


    As for her, she now had fame, status, and family background. Unattached, her choices now included all the wealthy men in the world.


    So what ifn and Henry had given up on her? At this point, they were merely stepping stones in her sessful life.


    Suddenly, Vanessa felt dizzy and swayed. The intense emotions left her feeling lightheaded. This dizziness had been happening since she started the blood donations, but it had be more frequent recently.


    She had to get her health back. She was only twenty-eight, still young, with her whole life ahead of her.


    Vanessa bit her lip, a hateful glint in her eyes. If she had one regret in life, it was that she had never truly hadn.


    Not the title of Mrs. Goodwin, not a hollow, transactional rtionship, but to secretly have that aloof, ascetic man lose hisposure for her, to submit to her charms.


    Vanessa turned to the full-length


    mirror in her walk-in closet, studying


    her reflection. An exquisite figure, captivating aura, and a face of. sophisticated beauty she believed that, given the chance, no man could truly resist her charms.


    Butn was the exception.


    For ten years she had used every excuse to get close to him, creating


    an ambiguous atmosphere, even throwing herself at him on various asions. But all she ever got?n return was his cold rejection and warnings.


    Only in her dreams could she touch him, fantasize about him satisfying her twisted desires. Once, she had thought of letting Henry be his substitute, but he was not him.


    Over the years, to ensure her willing cooperation as a donor,n had not treated her poorly. He would show her consideration on specific


    asions. When shed


    birthday gifts, he would grantthem. When she was weak after a


    donation, he would personally care for her. And whenever she fainted, he would carry her himself.


    It wasn''t that he didn''t trust others to carry her; it was because Vanessa had insisted it must be him, or she would refuse to cooperate. To save his mother,n had topromise time and again.


    Those moments in his arms, pressed against his firm chest, breathing in his fresh, pleasant scent, had once deluded her into thinkingn wasn''t entirely heartless.


    She had deceived herself and everyone else, ying the part of his girlfriend in a self-directed drama. She had relished it, but all that warmth was ultimately fake.


    She knew that the dayn no longer needed her blood, he would ruthlessly take it all away.