Chapter 3

Anne, however, snorted dismissively.

"Fine. Go ahead and resign. I’ll be sure to approve it.

"You're so full of it these days."

Then she turned and went back to the bedroom.

The view of her back told me she didn’t believe a word I said about leaving.

Early next morning, I had just arrived at the office when I heard a few new hires gossiping about the celebration last night.

"Leo, you weren't here at the party yesterday, so you didn't see how pleased Shawn was.

"He mixed up the banner and nothing happened. He even spent the whole night sitting next to the boss, closer than Sean did."

"You'd better be careful lately. Don't accidentally offend him."

"When do you think he'll officially move up the ladder?"

I set my mug on the desk and replied, "Soon."

They looked as if they'd seen a ghost and one of them laughed awkwardly.

"Hey Sean, we were just joking around. Don't take it seriously..."

I only smiled.

Clicks of shoes echoed down the hallway.

Shawn walked over carrying a stack of files.

His voice was deliberately loud, as if he wanted everyone to hear.

"Sean, please hand over the Cloudview project to me. Anne said I'll be handling it from here on out."

I looked at the mocking expression on his face and said nothing.

I transferred all the documents to him and signed the handover form.

He leaned in and lowered his voice.

"Sean, I didn't want to steal your credit, but Anne insisted on giving it to me. I can't help it."

Then he turned and walked away, satisfaction practically radiating from his back.

I turned on my computer, printed the resignation letter I'd written the night before, and headed for Anne's office.

Whispers followed behind me.

I could imagine what they were saying. Surely nothing more than I’d lost again and I wasn’t as good as Shawn.

In the past, those comments would have hurt, but now, I just didn't care anymore.

When I entered the office, Anne was explaining the project to Shawn.

I found it somewhat amusing, because everything she was telling him was information I'd reported to her myself.

She was handing someone else the fruits of my labor, piece by piece.

I handed her my resignation letter.

The moment she read it, her eyes narrowed.

"You're jealous of Shawny, no? You're really going this far over it?"

Even now, she still thought this was about jealousy.

My voice remained calm.

"Please sign it, Ms. Nash."

She picked up a pen with a cold smile.

"You think quitting will give you leverage over me?"

She scribbled her name across the page and threw it back at me.

"As you wish!"

Having achieved what I came in for, I turned and left.

As soon as I returned to my desk, a notification popped up in the company group chat.

[Notice: Effective immediately, due to Sean Reed's recent unstable condition, the Cloudview project is being reassigned to Shawn. All departments are to cooperate fully.]

I gripped my phone tightly as I read “unstable condition.”

She couldn't even be bothered to invent a decent excuse, and deliberately made a spectacle out of me in front of the entire company.

Everyone looked at me, but I kept my composure.

I was the first to reply in the group chat, [Got it.]

After work, Anne didn't come home, so I sat on the sofa waiting for her.

Then I saw Shawn's new social media post.

[My godsend boss stayed up late helping me sort through the project. I’m sticking with her forever!]

I let out a cold laugh and went straight to bed.

Anne didn't return until early the next morning.

As she took off her shoes, she said, “Worked too late last night, so I just slept at the office. It's been a whole day. You must be over it by now, right?

“Don't act out anymore. Since you've already resigned, let's go register our marriage later. I'll support you from now on."

By the time she finished speaking, she'd walked over to the sofa and bent down to hug me.

A strange perfume hit me first. It was Shawn's scent and it made me feel sick to my stomach.

I raised a hand to stop her.

"Anne, let's break up."