Chapter 2

Naomi snapped, "On purpose? Don't be ridiculous. I'm following the finance rules to the letter. You can complain all you want, but I'm not wrong. The choice is yours, but get out now!"

My blood boiled, and I could feel my pulse spike. I glared at Naomi, but my manners kept me from swearing at her outright.

After a moment of thought, I grabbed the expense report from my desk and pushed open the finance office door.

"Fine! Stick to your precious rules. I'm going straight to Mr. Gray to see whether this receipt can actually be reimbursed!"

Naomi showed no fear whatsoever. Instead, her expression was pure challenge. "Go ahead! Don't think I'm intimidated just because you involve Mr. Gray. Someone like you should have been kicked off the company roster a long time ago. I'm curious whether Mr. Gray would really choose to offend the company's lifeline for a nobody like you."

Back at my desk, I clutched my pillow, trying to calm the storm of anger and frustration surging inside. But I failed.

I headed straight for David's office, carrying all the reports. Before I could even reach the door, Naomi's whiny voice carried out from inside.

She sounded ridiculously pitiful. "She's here! Madeleine, perfect timing!"

Before I could speak, David frowned and interrupted, "What's going on? If there's a problem between you, deal with it face-to-face. You're coworkers."

Naomi's eyes were red and swollen as she sniffled. "Mr. Gray, I didn't… The supervisor made it very clear in a recent meeting that we have to review every reimbursement carefully. Finance work demands extreme caution, but I think Madeleine misunderstood me…"

She paused, then dropped her head and sobbed softly, looking utterly forlorn.

My blood boiled. I ignored her theatrics and slammed the expense reports onto David's desk. "Mr. Gray, I understand that financial work requires precision, but please take a look at this report. What exactly is wrong? I've already redone it exactly as Ms. Lane instructed, using the pen, paper, and formatting she demanded. And now she's insisting I replace every single receipt…"

Before I could finish, David slammed his hand on the desk and shot me a sharp look. "Enough! I know the whole story. Madeleine, tell me—what exactly has Ms. Lane done wrong? Any company expects receipts to be complete and neat. Reissuing them is a minor task. Your reluctance makes me wonder—have you been using company money for personal matters?"

The accusation hit me like a bucket of ice water, freezing me to the core. In this line of work, distrust was the gravest sin.

Sales was a job with high freedom and constant gray areas. If David started seeing me through suspicious eyes, what would be the point of continuing?

Before I could even form a response, David's expression softened, and he turned to Naomi with a smile. "Naomi, you did the right thing! This is exactly how a company should operate, by following the rules. Finance is the core of this company, and strict compliance with regulations is mandatory."