Anxiety consumed my entire body as I stood in front of the conference room. I can't seem to muster enough strength to push the door open, fearful of what might welcome me upon opening the door.
But after a few deep breaths and another sigh, I was finally able to wrap my hand around the doorknob.
Once I opened the door, almost everyone instantly turned their heads towards me. I was rather prepared to see the cold expression on their faces again, not quite confident that they would immediately change their attitude towards me just because I helped them once.
But instead of the cold expression that I was expecting, the project team members looked at me with a mixture of both shock and awe.
Paul immediately went to my side once he saw me enter the conference room. "Our savior is finally here!" Paul exclaimed, the coldness and slight irritation from his voice yesterday was gone and was replaced by friendliness and enthusiasm.
Last night, as I was watching a television drama with my mother, Luke sent the message of approval from the Rivers Shipping Company. Although knowing that his father would not be able to turn down a request made by Luke, I was still quite nervous about the negotiations as they might not be able to come up with an agreement because of the schedule and budget restrictions.
Fortunately, it all ended well, and as soon as I read the message, I instantly forwarded it to Paul, and Paul after receiving it, immediately arranged a meeting between the two companies in order to finalize the details of the arrangement.
Last night, Paul was not hesitant to express his gratitude to me after I sent the approval message from the Rivers Shipping Company. He kept thanking me to the point that I felt rather awkward responding to him, and he also insisted that I attend the meeting with the two companies as I was the bridge who connected them.
I don't exactly understand why I had to attend the meeting, especially since the negotiations were already done, still, I agreed to Paul's request since I was curious as to how everything would pan out.
Hence, here I am, standing in the middle of the conference room with all eyes on me.
I still cannot get over how these eyes that were looking at me with contempt the other day could look at me with such friendliness and awe as if nothing happened, and as soon as I saw them, I instantly felt a bit irritated.
I thought I would feel glad once I knew that I was able to help them, and once I heard a word of gratitude from them, but instead of those warm emotions, I suddenly feel annoyed, and I struggled to contain the irritation from showing on my face.
It was just a few days ago when they were treating me as if I was a villainess based on those groundless rumors they did not even think twice believing, but now, they are treating me as if I was their savior and as if they did not treat me with contempt just a few days ago.
Yet despite the irritation that I felt, I knew that these people meant no harm and that they are just very dedicated to their job that once they thought someone might harm their hard work, they suddenly felt the need to pull up their defenses against the aggressor.
And honestly, my conscience is not that clean as well since I'm doing this partially in order to once again gain their trust to my advantage.
***
The video conference meeting with the two companies went on for about two hours before all the details were finalized. All the parties were able to agree with the schedule of the delivery of the six batches of pipes within three months.
Though the cost of the project increased, it was not as much as they had initially assessed, and most importantly, it did not go over the reserves. Furthermore, the delay was also minimal and within the slack period, hence, after all the discussion, the project team was able to avoid any massive damage on their side.
"Again, thank you so much," Paul said once the meeting ended. I was sitting beside him the entire meeting, and this was probably the hundredth time he thanked me since yesterday. "You were such a great help."
"It was nothing." I forced out a smile once again in response to his words. "I wanted to see this project completed without any problem as much as you guys do."
Paul smiled at my reply, and for the first time today, I saw a hint of remorse behind his smile. Perhaps, he finally realized that there was no truth behind the rumors about me, and this small change may be the chance that I have been waiting for.
I knew that right after the meeting ended, there were already eyes on me. Even though the members were trying their hardest not to show that they were intrigued by our conversation, I knew that they were listening, and this may be the time to make use of my acting skills to turn the tide.
Before Paul could say another word, I said, "I saw how the members were very passionate about this project, and as a business partner, and also as a friend, I wanted to help you with everything that I can."
My words were not entirely empty. The project team welcomed me with both arms the first time we met, and even when they assumed the worst about me because of the rumors, I still wanted to help them as much as I could.
But still, I knew deep down that I'm simply saying those words right now because of a hidden agenda.
I need all of them to listen to every bit of what I am saying because I know that the source of all the rumors is here, inside this conference room.
Christina may be the one behind the revelation about my past with Ansel, but she was not the one who took the pictures of me and him. Those pictures were the source of all the rumors, and Christina just used them to her advantage and merely added the fuel to the fire.
As far as I know, the project team were the only ones from the Chadwick Group in that restaurant at that time, and seeing the scene in front of them, the person who took the pictures may not entirely be doing it out of malice, but once the photos went out to the entire company, and the identity of the woman in the picture was revealed, that was when everything went spiraling.
And if a single photo could spiral out of control in a blink of an eye, surely, my words would reach farther than I could expect.
It will not be easy to bury the rumors about me, and the best I could do is to use the people who spread them to my advantage.
"Honestly," Paul spoke, a hint of hesitance can be heard in his voice, but I can see from his eyes that they were filled with remorse. "There were rumors going around about you and Sir Caesar," Paul trailed off, letting his words hang in the air, but I know exactly what he wanted to say.
I did not expect that he would open that topic immediately, especially with what transpired a few minutes ago, but still, Paul's inquisitiveness might be of help right now.
I furrowed my eyebrows a bit, looking as if I am confused with what he was attempting to say, and upon seeing it, Paul continued, "There were rumors that you and Sir Caesar were married before."
I can sense that the members immediately stopped what they were doing upon hearing Paul's words. Perhaps, same with me, they did not expect that their team manager would just up and ask me about the rumors as it would be rather unprofessional of him.
"Ah, yes," I replied, a smile replacing the confused expression on my face. "Well, it's not exactly a secret so there's nothing wrong with it getting out."
Paul nodded at my reply, and said, "And it seems like you still have a friendly relationship with him from what I saw the other day at the company dinner."
Paul might be thinking that he was being discreet with his words and inquisition, but I knew exactly what he wanted for me to say. He wanted to know why and how Ansel and I divorced, and he wanted to confirm if any of the rumors were true.
As much as I hate sharing personal stuff, especially in this kind of situation, still, I should at least say something to alleviate my reputation.
"Well, it's not like we had a messy divorce like those in television dramas," I replied, my tone a bit light-hearted to dismiss the rumors about our divorce. "We were both just too young when we got married, and we had our differences, but right now, we're just friends and business partners at the same time."
I know that I'm lying big time. To say that our divorce was messy is an understatement, and I'm pretty sure my relationship with Ansel right now is far from being mended, but the truth is not something I could easily share.
'Lying, at this moment, might be the better option.'
Upon hearing my words, it seems like relief washed over Paul. Perhaps, because I offered my hand when they needed it the most, they immediately regarded my words as truth and dismissed the rumors that they once believed, and I honestly cannot complain as that was exactly what I was hoping for.
"You can't really believe rumors." Paul sighed, shaking his head in disapproval. "I instantly knew that those rumors were bogus."
"Rumors?" I furrowed my eyebrows, looking as if I was confused with his words. "Are there other rumors?"
Paul widened his eyes upon hearing my question, and he immediately stammered out, "I-I mean, people really like to gossip, and you never really know what to believe. Sir Caesar is already engaged, and you're also successful in your field, I don't know why they are making a big deal out of someone's past."
I guess Paul does not want me to know how the rumors painted me as the villainess, and since I already found out about them through Rachel, I decided to ignore his remark and offered a friendly smile at him instead. "That's true, and I'm also glad that Ansel was able to find such a lovely fiancée."