All Chapters of Second Chance: Dismantling the Penny-Pinching Mother: Chapter 1 - Chapter 9

I seized the moment when Sadie was in the restroom and quickly brought the snacks over to our manager, Ian Rodriguez's office.In my past life, I had reported Sadie's appalling behavior to him more times than I could count, but he always encouraged me to be patient. After all, she'd been unemployed for over a year.This time, I was determined to let him witness Sadie's "generosity" firsthand."Mr. Rodriguez, these are the snacks our new colleague handed out. Since it's about afternoon tea time, I thought you might like some," I said.A bright smile spread across Ian's face as soon as he saw what I was holding. "Excellent timing. I was getting peckish. You can leave them here."I set the snacks down and left without saying a word. Just as I was about to step out of the office, I caught the sound of him ripping open the bag and eagerly digging in.I returned to my desk and got back to work. Before I realized it, the day had ended. One by one, my coworkers started packing up, gett

Two days later, the clients arrived right on time. George came out personally to welcome and host them.The meeting room had been set up early that morning, with steaming lattes, cookies, and nougats placed in front of each seat. I had reminded Sadie to buy some fruit too, but she probably thought it was too expensive.Once the clients were seated, Sadie pulled me aside. "Ms. Shepherd, how can I get reimbursed? I misplaced the receipt, and the Finance Department won't authorize the payment."I thought for a moment. "Do you have any proof of payment? If not, you'll have to speak with Mr. Wood. Maybe once the deal goes through, he'll be in a better mood and approve the reimbursement."Upon hearing that proof of payment was needed, Sadie's expression shifted uncomfortably. "I'll check with the Finance Department again. These items were expensive, so I'll need to get reimbursed."Since Sadie was just a junior staff member, her absence didn't make much of an impact. I closed the meetin

Sadie quickly piped up, "That's right, Mr. Wood. I was just following Cora's orders. She didn't give me any money, so I had no choice but to take matters into my own hands."I'm just a struggling mom, and yet she expected me to prepare a whole spread of refreshments. Isn't she purposely making things more difficult for me?"Tears began to stream down Sadie's face as she spoke. It was almost as if she considered serving her breast milk a heroic sacrifice.Being pushed into the spotlight, I listened to their absurd back-and-forth. With every second, my frustration deepened.I argued, "Mr. Wood, this is completely unfair. I've been working overtime every day on the proposal, while Sadie hasn't done a damn thing."I thought assigning her the refreshments would be the easiest task on the list. I even reminded her to keep the receipts so she could submit them to the Finance Department for reimbursement. Who could have guessed she'd be so stingy that she'd use her own breast milk?"And

Suddenly, Sadie sprang to her feet to stop Melissa. She snatched the menu from her hands and handed it back to the waiter."It's fine," she said. "I bought a voucher online. Just scan it for me."As the waiter checked the voucher, he noticed it was for a two-person meal.He kindly pointed out, "There are three of you. A two-person meal might not be enough. Would you like to add some more dishes?"Ian forced a smile. "Let's add a few more. Ms. Green, what would you like to have?"Sadie leaned in and whispered in Ian's ear, "There's no need to add anything. The company won't cover this meal. We'll be paying for it ourselves. The food's way too pricey here."Given that there were only four people in the room, everyone could clearly hear what she said.There was no denying the lack of sincerity with which Sadie and Ian approached their business negotiations. Melissa's expression darkened, and her voice turned sharp. "It's fine. Let's just leave it at that."The tension, however, wa