Chapter 1

Before the person on the other end could reply, my supervisor, Tom Menzie, snatched my phone and hung up, glaring at me as if he wanted to eat me alive.

"Are you trying to tattle? You should know that this was Ms. Booth's decision."

I smiled lightly. "Are you sure about that?"

Tom let out a nasty grin and patted my shoulder.

"People need to know their place. Take a good look at yourself. You're just a bottom-level employee. What makes you think you can go up against me? Either you stay and work, or you pack your stuff and get out."

Seeing me humiliated like that, a few coworkers couldn't stand it and spoke up for me.

"Isn't this a bit much? Most of our clients came because they know Jake. If he really leaves…"

At least some people knew I was the backbone of the place.

"Jake's eye and craftsmanship are top-tier in the industry. Assigning him to handling routine luxury deals is unnecessary. Mr. Menzie, you should show him some respect. If you chase him out, we'll all be eating dust."

Tom's face darkened, his eyes sharp with anger.

"How dare you talk back! I'm taking you all on a trip, and you still won't shut up? Ungrateful, the lot of you. You're the reason he's so spoiled and lazy."

I waved a hand and smiled at my coworkers. Most of the staff here still had a conscience.

Only a small handful were ingrates like Tom.

"That's okay. You don't need to speak up for me," I said.

Gavin Blair, who usually greeted me with a fake friendly smile, suddenly looked eager to kick me when I was down. He sighed dramatically.

"Jake, you've gotten plenty of benefits playing the pretty boy. Just apologize to Mr. Menzie, and this will blow over."

"Oh? Afraid I'm taking your job?" I shot back without hesitation. "Go take a look at yourself in the mirror. Do you think you're even qualified to tell me what to do?"

Please. When he needed help, he was all smiles, but the moment someone took the lead, he couldn't wait to pile on.

"What did you just say?" Gavin flew into a rage, as if someone had stepped on his tail.

I looked at him with open contempt, then swept my gaze across the shop. Even the interior design was done by me.

"Luxe Atelier became an industry leader because of me. Get rid of me, and it'll come crashing down in less than two weeks."

Several coworkers close to me nodded in agreement.

Tom and Gavin burst out laughing, clutching the wall just to steady themselves.

Gavin laughed so hard that tears came out. "Jake, you only got those numbers by using your face to charm rich women! Lying to us is one thing. Don't lie to yourself."

"Alright." Instead of feeling upset, I felt strangely relaxed.

If I really had no value, this dump wouldn't have grown the way it did in just three years.

It was my connections and my skills that pushed it to the top of the industry, step by step.

I guess I had been too easygoing, letting these parasites forget who they really were.

Tom didn't bother arguing anymore. He waved everyone toward the tour bus.

Just then, a cab stopped in front of Luxe Atelier, and a familiar-looking man stepped out.

He greeted Tom like an old friend and said loudly, "Hey, everyone. I'm Luxe Atelier's new luxury restoration engineer. Name's Stan Ford. Just call me Stan. Let's take this trip and get to know each other. When we're back, everyone gets a 200-dollar raise on top of their current salary."

I broke into a grin.

This guy was interesting.