The Summer Heat Was Thirty Degrees And His Lie Was A Hundred Chapter 04

The Summer Heat Was Thirty Degrees And His Lie Was A Hundred Chapter 04

Julian introduced himself to the entire company as the boyfriend who’d been with me for four years.

I stared blankly at the rapidly scrolling Slack messages.

Blood roared in my ears.

I knew, with absolute certainty, that no one would ever believe me now.

Savannah was sweet-talking and universally liked in the office.

Predictably, everyone in the channel immediately rallied to her defense.

[I heard about this. I was wondering how a sweet girl like Savannah could ever steal a project.]

[Wow, Chloe went way too far. Even her own boyfriend couldn’t stand it and had to step up for Savannah…]

[He really is her boyfriend. The pinned post on her profile is still a photo of them.]

[No wonder she suddenly resigned. She must have felt guilty…]

Julian had publicly crucified me to protect Savannah, willingly standing completely opposite to me.

This was the man I’d poured four years of my life into loving.

He was willing to destroy my reputation just to soothe Savannah’s tears.

With shaking hands, I dialed Julian’s number to confront him.

“Why did you do that? Why on earth would you film a video like that?”

“Because Savannah hasn’t been able to sleep a single wink at night because of this whole mess.”

“Chloe, when you do something wrong, you have to apologize. The poor girl was sobbing uncontrollably right in front of me. I didn’t have a choice—I had to do something to calm her down.”

Julian’s voice softened, attempting to sound gentle.

“Are you still mad, Chloe? Let’s meet up and talk through this properly.”

He texted me the address of a restaurant.

I actually went.

Emotion overrode my sanity, leaving me consumed by a single, desperate thought—I needed Julian to clear my name in that Slack channel and issue a public apology to me.

When I arrived at the restaurant, Julian wasn’t there yet.

The minutes ticked by slowly.

I drained my first glass of ice water.

It suddenly hit me that this was the exact restaurant where Julian and I had first made our relationship official.

Back then, he’d looked into my eyes with absolute sincerity and promised, “Chloe, don’t worry. I’ll treat you right for the rest of my life. I’ll always have your back.”

I tilted my head back and swallowed a second glass of water.

The rage in my chest cooled into a heavy, frozen weight.

I drank countless glasses of ice water as the hours bled away.

Julian never showed up.

The restaurant staff began putting chairs on top of the tables, preparing to close for the night.

I pulled out my phone and called Julian.

It rang for a long time before someone finally picked up.

“Hi, Chloe. Is something wrong?”

It was Savannah.

Her tone was dripping with smug, piercing satisfaction.

“Julian is tied up right now. He’s been keeping me company all night.”

“He’s completely exhausted and just fell asleep. If you need anything, you can just tell me.”

I gripped my phone tightly as my scattered logic locked perfectly back into place.

“I don’t need anything from him, but I do have a quick word for you.”

I let out a soft, effortless chuckle.

“Savannah, you are truly disgusting.”

“You like collecting garbage? Congratulations, he’s all yours.”

Before she could utter a syllable, I hung up.

I didn’t waste a breath trying to explain myself further. I immediately left the company Slack workspace.

The truth didn’t need me to fight for it.

That emergency campaign was scheduled to launch in ten days—and Savannah was now fully responsible for executing it.

When the time came, I couldn’t wait to see how she’d manage without my master files.

I opened my Instagram, systematically deleting every single post, photo, and memory that featured Julian until my profile was completely cleared.

I’d already settled everything with my landlord regarding breaking the lease early.

I shot her a quick text letting her know I was leaving ahead of schedule.

Back at my apartment, I grabbed my packed suitcase and headed straight for the train station.

I managed to exchange my ticket for the earliest morning Amtrak home.

The exact moment I stepped past the platform gates, my four-year relationship with Julian ended.

As the train jolted to life and pulled away, I powered off my phone and finally let myself fall into a deep, peaceful sleep.