Chapter 13
When Brad walked into the office, he was instantly surrounded by a handful of assistants.
“Mr. Tate, you’re finally here–this is the company’s latest profit and loss statement.“}]
“These are the partners who want to break off their contracts. It’s all really urgent.“}
“And here’s the recent staff turnover. Some of our senior employees are talking about leaving.”
Brad’s brow knit tighter with every word. He’d only been gone for a short while–how did everything fall apart so fast?
He grabbed the files, headache already pounding, and slammed them down on the floor.}
“What have you all been doing? I was gone for a few days and we’ve lost this much? Couldn’t any of you keep those partners on hold until I got back?”
The folders hit the ground with a loud thud. The room went dead silent. No one dared speak, until finally, someone quietly spoke up. “Ms. Sayles usually took care of these things, Mr. Tate.”
“Then Christ-” Brad started, but then remembered: Christine had already left. His face turned even darker, his tone icy.}
“If Christine could handle it, why can’t the rest of you?“}
No one said a word. Christine had always been the reliable one, and everyone knew it. None of them could fill her shoes.
The silence dragged on, until Ava’s light laugh broke through.
“Don’t be upset, Brad. It’s just a secretary. I can handle her work–probably even better than Christine. You should rest. Let me take care of these things for you.“}]
Brad managed a tired smile.
“Thanks, Ava. From now on, everyone listens to Ava.“}
He picked up the most urgent files and headed back to his office, leaving Ava and the others behind.
As soon as he was gone, Ava’s sweet smile dropped. She glanced over the assistants, then suddenly slapped one across the face, her voice sharp and cold.
“You all have some nerve, getting so close to Mr. Tate. What was that–trying to seduce him?“>
The assistants recoiled, shocked. One clutched her face, stammering,
“Of course not! We were just doing our jobs. You can’t accuse us of that!“}
Ava didn’t care. She waved security over and had every one of them dragged out, banning them from returning.
After that, she changed into a more provocative business outfit: black stockings hugging her legs, a tight skirt that barely covered anything–one bend and it left nothing to the imagination.}]
She knocked on Brad’s door, and when he called out, she sauntered in, swaying her hips.
“Mr. Tate,” she said, her voice honeyed and eyes full of suggestion.
But Brad’s mind was on the chaos around him, not her games. He barely looked up, frowning.
“Ava, what are you wearing? This isn’t the time. Can we just get back to work?”
Ava ignored him, sliding onto his lap, her curves right in his line of sight.
“Work can wait a little while, Brad.”
She wrapped her arms around him, soft and inviting. Brad’s self–control snapped–he lifted her onto his desk, kissing her with a hunger he couldn’t suppress
They didn’t stop until noon. Ava’s stockings were torn; her neck was marked with red kisses. Brad’s shirt collar was a mess. He checked his watch–lunchtime had come and gone, but his lunch hadn’t been delivered. If Christine were still here, she never would have forgotten something like that.
His face darkened. He called the assistant line.%
“What’s going on? You even forgot my lunch? Do any of you even want to work here anymore?”
“Mr. Tate, Ms. Smith kicked all of us out. We’ve decided we’re done. We’re not as patient as Ms. Sayles–we can’t just keep swallowing everything.”
The voice sounded tired, defeated Brad was stunned, blurting out,
“What about Christine?”
There was a weary sigh, then a file popped up in his inbox.
Chapter 13
“It’s all in there, Mr. Tate.”
And the line went dead.”
Brad’s chest tightened with dread as he opened the file. Inside was everything–proof of Ava’s plotting from the moment she returned. Every accusation against Christine, every so–called mistake, was just Ava’s setup.N
The more Brad read, the colder he felt. All the feelings he’d tried to ignore came flooding back. He never imagined Ava could be so cruel, or that Christine had suffered so much in silence.N
He sat there, staring at the words, heart pounding, feeling like the wind had been knocked out of him.
Ava lounged back in her chair, noticing Brad’s sudden silence.N
“Brad, what’s wrong? Didn’t you say someone was bringing lunch? I’m starving,” she said teasingly.M
Slowly, Brad turned to look at her–and there was no affection left in his eyes.
