Eager to hear what had happened during the meeting, Olivia perched outside Ivy's cabin, vibrating with nervous energy. A wide smile erupted on her face as she spotted Ivy's approaching figure.
"Miss Hill…" She opened her mouth to say something, but a sharp and sudden slap landed on her face. Olivia became frozen like a statue, her mouth forming a big 'O'. Her hand instinctively flew to her throbbing cheek.
Ivy loomed before her, face contorted with a venomous mixture of fury and wounded pride.
"You fool!" she hissed. "You can't do a simple job properly! Zack praised her right in front of me – never even looks at me the way he looks at Bella!" The last sentence was laced with a bitterness that made her wince. "We had the chance to make him hate her and fire her, but we lost it because of your carelessness."
"But... I deleted the file myself," Olivia stammered, confusion clouding her features.
"Keep your mouth shut now," Ivy warned in a hushed tone. "You are lucky that the security cameras are down. Otherwise, Zack would have fired you faster than you could blink." Her eyes narrowed. "Next time, be more careful. Don't disappoint me again. Or else, you know what I can do to you."
With a final glare that made Olivia's spine tremble, Ivy whipped open the cabin door and slammed it shut behind her, leaving Olivia alone in the sterile hallway.
A surge of fury contorted Olivia's face. Her fingers clenched into fists. "Bella! How could you manage to escape every time?" She muttered, frustrated.
Amy continued to praise Bella for her hard work. "Keep this up, Bella," Amy beamed, "and I'll personally recommend you for a promotion."
Bella's beaming smile seemed to light up the room. "Thank you, Amy," she gushed, then took a deep breath. "Actually, I have a bit of a request."
She hesitated for a moment and then added, "There's a rumor floating around about the company hiring the famous designer, Miss Willow, for this new project. I'm a huge admirer of her work. I was wondering if you could let me work for her."
She expectantly looked at her.
For Bella, fashion design had always been a burning dream, but because of circumstances and family issues, she stopped pursuing a career in fashion design and started doing a clerical job at this company.
When she heard that Willow, her idol, was going to be the head designer for this project, a spark reignited within her. This was a chance, perhaps her only chance, to learn from the master herself.
Amy furrowed her brow, a touch of hesitation flickering across her face. "Bella," she began, "you're incredibly valuable to my team. I need you in my office."
"I understand," Bella pressed, a hint of desperation creeping into her voice. "But I want to learn from her, work alongside Miss Willow even for a short while. I promise I'll give my priority to the work here."
Amy sighed. "Alright, then," she finally conceded. "Don't forget what you said."
"I give you my word." Relief flooded Bella's features.
"Wait for Mr. Reid's reply," Amy reminded her. "Miss Willow is ready to take on this project because of him. If he doesn't come on board, she won't work for us."
Bella nodded understandingly. ''Looks like I have to talk to Theodore,' she thought.
Bella's resolve solidified. This opportunity was too precious to let slip away. She wouldn't rest until she persuaded Theodore to invest in this project.
As she came back to her desk, she ran into Olivia. Her mood suddenly turned bitter. "What are you doing here?" she asked curtly.
"Back from basking in the glory?" Olivia drawled with saccharine sweetness.
Bella swiveled in her chair, her eyes narrowing.
Olivia fluttered her eyelashes innocently. "Just congratulating you. I heard you gave an impressive presentation at the meeting. You did a fantastic job. You impressed both the boss and the mighty Mr. Reid."
Crossing her arms across her breastbone, she continued, her tone turning sarcastic mockery, "You are something, I must say. You have the ability to attract rich guys. Everyone doesn't have this talent."
Bella's jaw clenched. If she revealed she was actually married to Theodore, Olivia's head might explode from sheer disbelief. "You have so many misconceptions about me," she said coolly. "Instead of gossiping, why don't you focus on your own work? Maybe you too can impress the boss."
"Oh, please," Olivia scoffed, rolling her eyes. "Unlike you, I don't need unsolicited career advice." With a pointed dig to Bella's shoulder, she sauntered away.
Bella sighed, exasperated, reminding herself she had bigger priorities than dealing with petty issues. Pushing the unwelcome encounter aside, she settled back into her work.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
Theodore steepled his fingers, listening intently as Skyler recounted the morning's events.
"Without the CCTV footage, we can't pinpoint the culprit who tampered with Bella's computer," Skyler concluded. "Amy, however, mentioned Bella suspecting Olivia."
"Olivia," Theodore murmured, the name triggering a memory of a woman harassing Bella, scalding her with hot coffee. "Yes, I caught her bullying Bella that day."
"She's Bella's colleague in the secretary's office," Skyler confirmed. "There is some underlying tension between them. However, Amy does not believe Olivia is responsible for today's incident. She believes Olivia would not go so far as to cause losses for the company because of her trivial disputes with Bella. In her opinion, Bella likely just forgot to save the file before leaving yesterday."
Theodore, however, dismissed that notion entirely. He believed that Bella was not careless enough to make such terrible mistakes. Someone was deliberately targeting her. "Keep a close eye on Bella," he instructed, a steely glint in his eyes. "Find someone within Brico, someone who can watch her back if necessary."
'En?' Skyler's eyebrows shot up in surprise. He hadn't anticipated such protectiveness towards his contract wife. This was a good sign, though. This way, his feelings might develop for Bella.
"Understood," he said, a hint of a smirk playing on his lips. "Is there anything else?"
Theodore glanced at his watch. "Inform Bella to join me for lunch," he said, dismissing Skyler with a curt wave of his hand.
Skyler left the office, a mischievous grin plastered on his face, amused by the evident shift in his boss's attitude toward Bella.
The shrill ring of the phone sliced through Bella's concentration. Glancing at the screen, she saw Skyler's name flash on the display. With a forced sigh, she answered the call.
"It's Skyler. Mr. Reid would like you to join him for lunch at the Imperial Restaurant. Please don't be late; Mr. Reid isn't particularly fond of waiting." With those curt words, the call ended.
The brief conversation left Bella reeling with annoyance. Every time, it was Skyler who contacted her. Theodore never called her directly, not even a text message.
"Why couldn't he just call me himself?" she muttered with frustration as she tossed the phone onto her desk.
It felt as if there was always a barrier between them, preventing any genuine connection. This pattern of indirect communication only added to her growing irritation.