Chapter 1

"Everyone, come look! Stop what you're doing and come see this!"

The woman dragged me all the way from the elevator entrance to the large open office area.

She raised her voice, ensuring every head in the room turned. "This new employee is a homewrecker! She actually had the nerve to throw herself at my husband in the elevator—right in front of me!"

Over 100 employees dropped what they were doing and poked their heads out to see what was going on.

The woman's husband stood beside her, his face red with anxiety, and quietly tried to explain, "Honey, it really wasn't like that. She was just helping me—"

"Shut your mouth!" The woman backhanded her husband and pinched him again.

The man hissed in pain and promptly kept his mouth shut, too scared to say anything else.

The colleagues around me began pointing, their whispers sharpening into contempt as they leaned in for the thrill of a good show.

"Isn't that Carmen Woodward? That new staff member must be blind. Of all the people to mess with, she had to pick Carmen."

"Exactly. Everyone knows Carmen runs this place. That woman looks like a vixen. She probably really did something shameless."

"Doesn't she know getting that close to Patrick Griffin is just asking for trouble? Serves her right for getting busted."

Vicious chatter buzzed around me from all sides.

So, this woman was the infamous Carmen.

I took a deep breath and looked coldly at Carmen.

"Are you done making a scene? Let go of me."

"Let go of you? A vixen like you has no business in this company! If I don't teach you a lesson on behalf of your parents today, you'll suffer much worse out in the real world."

Carmen raised her hand, ready to strike me across the face.

Just as I was about to lose my temper and fight back, a commanding roar erupted from the far end of the office.

"What's with all this racket during office hours? Did I say you could all stop working?"

The crowd parted, and a middle-aged man with a beer belly strutted over with his hands clasped behind his back.

The moment Carmen saw him, she immediately released my collar and sashayed over to him coyly.

"Mr. Farrell, you're finally here!" Carmen jabbed her finger at my face and ranted, "She just joined the company and is already trying to take shortcuts! I caught her red-handed in the elevator trying to seduce Patrick.

"You need to fire her immediately, before a shameless slut like her corrupts the company culture."

Bruce Farrell narrowed his eyes and looked me up and down.

His gaze lingered sickeningly, sliding from my face down to my legs with undisguised lechery.

"She's easy on the eyes, I'll give her that," Bruce said with a snort, his face twisted in contempt. "Too bad her mind isn't on work. Miss, if you want to climb the ladder, you'd better realize where you are. This branch doesn't have room for damaged goods like you."

I was so exasperated by the phrase "damaged goods" that I actually let out a short, dry laugh.

I took a moment to smooth my rumpled collar before standing tall, meeting Bruce's gaze with a cold, level stare.

"I take it you're the assistant manager, Bruce Farrell? For a company executive, hurling insults without a shred of evidence is a bold move. I'd suggest you show a little more respect."

Bruce froze for a moment, apparently having never encountered a newcomer who dared to talk back to him like that.

Carmen, even more so, latched onto it as if she'd caught some damning piece of evidence.

"Mr. Farrell, see how she's not even fazed? That right there proves she's pulled this kind of stunt before," she shrieked. "She's probably been coasting along using her slutty little tricks.

"And today of all days is the new chief executive's first day on the job. I hear she runs a tight ship, so we absolutely cannot let her catch a lowlife like this in the company!"

At that, Bruce's expression turned ice-cold, and he snapped, "Then let's not waste any more words. You're fired."

"Bruce, terminating an employee requires a process," I replied flatly. "Today is my first day reporting for duty, and I have committed no disciplinary violations. So, on what grounds are you dismissing me?"

"On what grounds?" Bruce sneered. "Seducing a colleague, breaking up a family, seriously violating Article 3 of the company's employee handbook, and creating a hostile work environment. Are those grounds enough?

"Miss, I can see you've never experienced the hardships of the real world. Around here, I'm the one who decides who stays and who goes. And I'm telling you, you're fired. So, get out now!"

I looked him straight in the eye and said emphatically, "Is that so? But I'm not someone you can just dismiss on a whim, for I am the branch manager sent by headquarters to take over this branch. My name is Rene Norton."