Chapter 07

Victória intended to defend herself and deny everything, but when she caught the stormy look in Jackson's eyes, her courage wilted.  

He would probably kill her if she stood her ground.  

She should just tell him she had done it on purpose.  

What was the worst that could happen? He would hate her even more.  

She had long given up on earning his attention or interest!  

Since she was already in hell, she might as well embrace the devil.  

“Yes, that's right, I did it on purpose!” Victória held back her tears and bit her lip. “Now, can you let me leave?”  

He knew it!  

She had done all of this on purpose. But Victória's confession didn’t make Jackson feel any better. In fact, he felt a discomfort settle in his chest.  

“And what about what happened two years ago? You planned that too, didn’t you?”  

“Yes.” Victória answered fearlessly. “I planned that too. I was trying to seduce you, satisfied?”  

When Victória said this, Jackson immediately released her wrist, and his face darkened.  

“Perfect. Now leave, and don’t let me see you again.”  

“I’m not leaving. I work here now!” Victória replied with determination, cradling her wrist with her other hand tenderly. “President Carson, I’ll stay away from you from now on, but please, leave me alone!”  

When Victória mentioned she worked there, something flickered in Jackson’s eyes as he analyzed the young woman before him.  

That explained why she was in the elevator this morning.  

“You’re working at my company?” Jackson asked in a voice that sent shivers down everyone’s spine.  

“I’m not working at your company; I’m working at JB Digital!” Victória quickly clarified before grabbing the remaining can of milk.  

What a waste!  

That was for her children.  

Only one can of milk remained, which meant less milk for her precious babies.  

“Sorry, President Carson!” Victória stuffed the empty can into her bag and pulled out a tissue, thinking she should help Jackson clean some stains off his suit.  

She truly didn’t want to upset him, but Jackson misunderstood her gesture and thought it was another attempt to get her hands on him.  

He roughly pushed her hands away, removed his expensive suit jacket, handed it to one of his assistants, and then, with an infuriated expression, marched into JB Digital.  

Victória merely watched him leave and sighed in relief.  

She had to try harder to stay out of Jackson’s way. Honestly, he was the embodiment of the devil.  

After exhaling, a strange and inexplicable feeling came to her mind. Jackson truly hated her. She didn’t understand why he detested her so much. It was as if she were a monster he couldn’t even stand to look at.  

She didn’t care about Jackson Carson, and all she needed to do now was keep her distance from him, focus on her work, and find a way to reclaim what was originally her mother’s property.  

She had to make her stepmother and half-sister pay for what they had done to her. Besides all that, she also had her two precious children to care for, so she couldn’t afford to get distracted now.  

Victória took a deep breath and composed herself.  

She walked to the other end of the hallway, and when no one was around, she pulled out her phone and called Valentina.  

The call was answered instantly, and Valentina’s gentle voice came through the line.  

“Vic, is something wrong?”  

“Don’t worry, Aunt. I’m just calling to let you know I’ll be home for lunch, and I’m bringing milk for the kids,” Victória whispered, not wanting anyone to overhear.  

“Alright!” Valentina replied. “I’ll take the kids to the supermarket for groceries, so I’ll see you at lunch.”  

“Deal. I have to get back to work now. See you soon!”  

Victória ended the call, then hurried back to JB Digital with her bag.  

She sneaked into the pantry, stuffed the can of milk into a bag, and placed it at the back of the refrigerator while no one was looking.  

Her heart finally calmed down, and she returned to her desk, throwing herself back into work.  

Nearby, Jayric was with Jackson, who had taken the manager's seat, his legs crossed as he listened calmly to Jayric outline his plans for the company’s expansion.  

“Mr. Carson, we plan to expand our target audience to luxury consumers. We’re talking tailored services for celebrities and socialites, collaborations with international designers, and entering the global market. These are our current expansion plans.”  

“And?” Jackson asked, his fingers tapping against Jayric’s smooth desk.  

Jayric stared at him as if asking what was missing, growing desperate.  

What did Jackson mean by that? Was he dissatisfied with the plans Jayric had just presented?  

“That’s all we have right now, President Carson.”  

“Perfect. Let’s proceed as planned, but I want updates every six months. And remember, if the results aren’t satisfactory, I’ll withdraw my support from your tailored services initiative.”  

“Don’t worry, President Carson; we’ll do our best to ensure its success!” Jayric replied confidently.  

But Jackson wasn’t interested in Jayric’s promises. He simply stood up, then remembered a detail.  

“I heard you made a new hire?”  

“Yes, President. We’re short on designers. In fact, we hired one today. Her name is Victória Lazer,” Jayric responded. “Do you know her by any chance?”  

So, she wasn’t lying. She really was working for JB Digital. But what if she had gotten the job here because she hadn’t given up on him yet?  

Jackson fell into a deep silence, thinking. After a moment, he remembered to respond to Jayric.  

“No, I don’t know her.”  

Having said that, he marched out of the office quickly, with his personal assistants hurrying after him.  

At lunchtime, the JB Digital staff headed to the building's cafeteria. But Victória couldn’t join them—she had to go home and bring milk to her children.  

As everyone headed to the cafeteria, she ran to the refrigerator, grabbed her milk, stuffed it in her bag, and rushed downstairs to catch the bus.  

Luckily, Ellie’s apartment was near her workplace—just a fifteen-minute distance.  

As she hurried to the elevator, she ran into Ciara, her sister.  

Since the incident, she hadn’t seen her sister, and she felt anger burning inside her.  

When Ciara noticed Victória’s presence, her eyes widened in shock as if she’d seen a ghost.  

Ciara walked up to Victória, slapped her face, and spoke in her syrupy voice.  

“It’s been a while, hasn’t it, dear sister? Where have you been all this time? Honestly, you have no shame, do you? This is the building where Jackson’s office is. Don’t you value your life?”  

Victória didn’t care about Ciara, but she wouldn’t let herself be mistreated or trampled by someone like her.  

“What I do or don’t do is none of your business, and don’t forget, I’m not your sister—I’m no longer part of the Lazer family!” Victória replied indifferently.  

“True, Victória, I can’t tell you what to do, but I must admit I’m shocked you’re here, in this building, even after what you did to President Carson. Are you trying to seduce him again, by any chance?” That was all Ciara wanted to know.  

She needed to know if Victória was interested in Jackson. After all, she had disappeared for a year, and now she suddenly showed up again. Ciara was genuinely worried that she might have thrown all decency and shame aside and decided to seduce Jackson into marrying her!