Love's Bitter Edge (Eva and Leonard)

"What do you want, then?" Anne gritted her teeth and looked at me.

I raised an eyebrow. "Can you call the shot on this?"

Then, I looked at Mr. Finnley. "Don't you think the company has to give me an explanation?"

Jack pursed his lips. It looked like he was massively displeased. It was understandable, though. He told me he wanted to stand up for me yesterday, but I turned down his offer.

I gave Jack an apologetic look before I turned my gaze back to Mr. Finnley. "I guess I can come back, but don't you think you have to deal with the comments on the forum? Moreover, I haven't reported to work for a while. Does that count as paid leave or absence from work? How's the firing process coming along?"

Mr. Finnley seemed to be pissed off. It was evident by his chest, which was rising and falling rapidly. Eventually, he shook off Jack's hand and walked toward me.

He took several deep breaths before he slowly said, "I'll delete the posts on the forum, and the company will not take legal actions against... No, you're innocent. So, you won't be fired. As for your recent absence from work, it'll be counted as paid leave. I want you to rest assured that you'll receive every penny of your salary and bonus!"

Mr. Finnley thought he had made a great compromise, but I didn't respond to him. Did he think this was enough to make up for the false accusations he hurled in my face? No, not by a long shot.

Mr. Finnley felt a bit embarrassed when he saw the icy expression on my face. What was worse, this was happening in front of Jack, the owner of the company. That made him angrier. "What more do you want?"

"Someone is slandering me. Obviously, they're trying to paint the company in a bad light." I raised my head and looked at Jack. "How can the company not pursue legal rights for this, Mr. McLennan? I didn't realize you were this forgiving."

Mr. Finnley's expression darkened when he heard what I said.

Meanwhile, Anne's expression also shifted. "Know when to quit while you're ahead, Rinatta. Mr. Finnley has made concessions. What more do you want?"

"I need to ensure the company is well taken care of. After all, I have the company's best interests at heart."

Anyone could say flashy words. I had firsthand experience of this in Harmon Group, after all. In any case, Mr. Finnley and Anne made quite the team. At first, they slandered me. Now, they wanted me to suffer their mistreatment and not say anything about it.

Meanwhile, it seemed like Jack was

a little impatient. He stopped

between us and looked at Mr.

Finnley coldly. "Since this mess

Vol

originated from the design department, I'll let Mr. Finnley handle it. You have a day to find the culprit hiding in the back scenes. Then, you are to give Rinatta and the company a satisfactory explanation. That'll be all."

Jack swept his eyes across everyone before resting his gaze on me. "You, come to my office."

He didn't give me any chance to retort to him. Instead, he turned around and entered the elevator.

Then, Ms. Tanness gave me a pleading look. I sighed in response. Then, I hung my head and went into the elevator as well.

Jack seemed to be pissed. He didn't say anything until after we arrived at his office. He said to Ms. Tanness, "Leave us alone and close the door."

Ms. Tanness bolted out of his office without a second thought. Then, she timidly closed the door.

I could feel a storm approaching, and I instinctively stood upright. "Actually, they didn't really pick on me. You didn't have to..."

"Are you close to Willis?"

The question came out of the left field, leaving me dazed.

"Not really. I've only ever chatted with him."

"Is that why you two were working overtime together? Erewhonians rarely do that." Jack was seated on his chair, and his eyes lacked emotions.

Be that as it may, I could sense his anger. I gulped and responded, "I have no idea why he was working overtime..."

I trailed off into silence before I

added, "Actually, he saw Ms.Exclusive © content by N(ô)ve/l/Drama.Org.

Tanness taking me to the HR department. So, maybe he just wanted to strengthen his bonds with

her through me."

en

I looked at Jack gingerly. He seemingly snorted coldly before he turned on his computer and started working on something.

Several minutes later, he said, "Go-

back to your workstation. I've taken

down the post. From here on out, you're forbidden from working overtime at the company."