Chapter 12
Coy’s voice was ice–cold as he said, “Please leave. Now.”
Charlene’s eyes brimmed with tears, her hands trembling as she held the tray. The coffee sloshed out of the cup, scalding her fingers. Despite the pain, Charlene didn’t make a sound and turned to leave.
But she had only taken a few steps when Thorne’s voice followed her from the office. “don’t bother coming to work again if there’s a next time.”
She had resigned. Even without this incident, she would have left the company when they found someone to replace her.
But she knew no one there cared about her story. Speaking up seemed pointless.
Without a word, Charlene turned and walked away, carrying the tray.
Before she left, she overheard Vesta soothing Thorne. “There, there, dear Thorne. I’m sure she didn’t mean it. Let’s not stay angry, okay?”
Charlene dumped the coffee down the sink, ran cold water over her reddened fingers, and skillfully applied ointment from her purse to the burn.
She scoffed in her heart, ‘It’s funny. I’m now quite the cook and barista.‘
Before marrying Thorne, she couldn’t do household chores, cook, or make a decent cup of coffee. But after the marriage, she
Tearned for Thome and their child.
The time and effort she put into learning, turning from a total disaster to nearly perfect, was a journey filled with hardships that only she knew about.
As for the ointment in her purse, it was the first aid for their child from a mother. However, since Jasmine went to live with Thome in Goldland, she scarcely used these ointments. Thankfully, they hadn’t expired yet.
After treating her burn, Charlene pushed down the sharp pain in her heart and returned to her desk to continue working.
She had finished sorting the documents on her desk when she overheard some colleagues whispering.
“Did you hear? Mr. Henderson’s girlfriend showed up at the office!”
“Girlfriend? Mr. Henderson has a girlfriend, huh? Who is she? Is she pretty?”
“Nobody knows her background, but the receptionist downstairs said she’s from a wealthy family, super pretty, and has an amazing
aura!”
Realizing Charlene was about to stand up to go to a meeting with them, the colleagues quickly shut their mouths and approached her with forced smiles. “Work first, gossip later.”
Charlene knew they were talking about Vesta. But she showed no reaction, turned away from the office, and joined her colleagues in the elevator.
Exiting the elevator, they were about to head to the meeting room when they saw Vesta and four senior executives walking toward them. The executives were all over Vesta, acting cautious and sucking up to her.
Draped in designer brands, Vesta exuded the aura of a wealthy heiress with every move. Despite her polite words, she acted like she already owned the place, treating the executives like subordinates with detachment in her politeness.
The executives were all smiles. “Considering your relationship with Mr. Henderson, this is the least we could do, Ms. Hawkins. You’re too kind.”
“Indeed.”
As they spoke and saw Charlene and her colleagues step out of the elevator, the executives frowned upon seeing them even though they had made their way.
“Watch where you’re walking! What if you bumped into Ms. Hawkins? Have you no manners at all?”
