Zoe Lancaster slowly turned around. It wasn’t until this moment that she realized just how complicated these prominent families were. Everyone had their own agendas, and anyone could become a pawn in their schemes.
She found it a little hard to swallow.
And the question Simon Hawthorne had asked? She found it utterly ridiculous.
"It’s important. In this place, it’s my only family." She looked straight into his eyes, which were as deep as the sea, stating a simple fact. "Besides, I’m the one raising it. You have no right to dispose of my pet."
Simon narrowed his dark eyes, his aura turning even more chilling. "You keep saying how much you care about it, but have you given it a stable life? You’re forcing your own needs onto it. If something like this happens again, can you protect it?"
A dull ache throbbed in Zoe’s heart.
He was right about one thing.
She could barely even fend for herself. It was only because Simon had broken her heart back then that she had brought Heartbreaker home, completely disregarding the responsibilities involved. At the time, she knew full well that Simon disliked all furry animals and that the Hawthorne Family never kept cats or dogs.
The root of the problem was still herself.
Seeing the woman’s trembling lips, Simon stubbed out his cigarette. He lifted his long eyelashes, his voice rolling from his throat with a husky, post-smoke sexiness. "It will be given to someone who can take responsibility for it. No matter the reason, that dog did hurt someone. That outcome won’t change."
Zoe’s chest heaved, but she couldn’t offer a single word of rebuttal.
In this place, who cared about human affection? Ruthlessness and cold-bloodedness were the true nature of this world!
She felt suffocated. She had once thought the Lancaster Family was a den of wolves, but the path she had chosen for herself now was even worse. This was the true abyss. Bound by love, tied down by profit, and crushed by the heavy responsibilities she had to shoulder, what leeway did she have?
Zoe stopped arguing. She was truly glad that she hadn’t let the fleeting illusion go to her head the moment Simon slipped the ring onto her finger. Otherwise, she would have fallen into his tender trap. If that had happened, just how miserably would she have lost in the end?
She turned and walked away.
She knew in her heart that since Simon had said so, he would definitely make good arrangements for Heartbreaker. At the very least, she couldn’t forcibly take the dog back at this critical juncture.
Watching the woman’s retreating back as she left in a huff, Simon remained motionless for a long time.
His hand, resting in his suit trousers pocket, rubbed against that flawless square-cut diamond ring. He was gripping it so hard that his fingertips turned white.
As the annual holidays approached, Simon didn’t return to the Hawthorne Residence for an entire night.
Zoe kept looking for a chance to ask about Heartbreaker’s situation, but no opportunity arose. Cecilia Sloan had been acting much more well-behaved lately, and Sean Hawthorne was going to be sent to Britain after the new year. Zoe didn’t want to stay at the Hawthorne Residence, but leaving at this juncture would look exactly like she was throwing a tantrum over how the matter was handled. She had no choice but to endure it.
Nearing noon, Zoe received a call from the company. It was Director Carter. His tone was filled with pity. "Lancaster, the results are out. The leak definitely came from your email. Whether it was an accident or something else, considering your hard work over the past two years, the higher-ups won’t pursue the matter further. But... if you ever need any help in the future, you can give me a call."
At this point, what was there left to not understand? She had been fired.
She originally had a three-year contract, but because she was the party at fault, the company didn’t have to pay any severance or breach-of-contract compensation.
Taking a deep breath, she accepted the situation. "Alright. Thank you, Director Carter."
From her very first day in the PR department, she had anticipated this outcome. Ken Lowell would never let her thrive in the PR department and properly develop her own wings. Even without this incident, her future would have been ruined by something else.
As for her email leak... She had gone through her inbox and outbox. She had never sent the email, nor were there any traces of deletion. Where exactly did things go wrong?
Not long after, Zoe received a call from Linden. "Madam, I heard what happened. The waters in the PR department are too deep. Why don’t you... consider coming over to the headquarters?"
The headquarters? Wouldn’t that mean seeing Simon day in and day out?
Zoe pursed her lips, unable to hold back a light scoff. "There’s no need. He doesn’t want to see me at all. Going there would only make him unhappy and cause trouble for myself. I’ll interview at other companies. Thank you for thinking of me."
"No! How could that be, Madam? Mr. Hawthorne, he..." Linden protested.
Zoe was simply too clear-headed. If she went to the headquarters, her situation wouldn’t actually be much better than in the PR department. In front of Simon, she would still be playing the role of someone begging for scraps. She would just be walking down the same old path, and there was no need for that.
*On the top floor of the Hawthorne Group.*
Linden stared tremblingly at the disconnected phone. He turned to look at Simon, who was sitting in his chair, holding a fountain pen but hadn’t signed anything for quite a while.
Obviously, Simon had heard Zoe’s reply loud and clear.
His eyes looked as if they had been soaked in ice water. Ink from the fountain pen bled onto the document, and his expression grew even more gloomy.
Linden braced himself and said, "Madam is going to interview at other companies..."
She was unwilling to come.
Linden knew she was too smart for that. If she came to the headquarters right under Mr. Hawthorne’s nose, her husband would become her boss. Bringing work conflicts home every single day would undoubtedly send them straight to the divorce registry.
Simon lowered his eyes, looking at the ink bleeding across the document. His brow furrowed even tighter, and his voice held not a trace of warmth. "Then let her try. Let’s see if her precious backbone can actually help her take flight!"
Linden caught on. "Mr. Hawthorne, do you mean..."
Simon shot him a cold glare.
Linden shivered. "Understood!"
Zoe didn’t stay depressed for long.
She quickly pulled herself together and organized her resume, submitting it to several promising companies in Kingsford one by one. She needed to find a way out for herself quickly; she had no time to wallow in self-pity.
Yet, within just one day, Zoe received replies from the companies one after another. All of them had rejected her.
Zoe didn’t understand. She was a graduate of Kingsford University, for crying out loud. Was the job market really this terrible? Refusing to give up, she lowered her standards and sent her resume to a few small and medium-sized enterprises.
This time, she was still rejected by the majority of them. Only one architectural firm replied, inviting her for an interview.
Zoe wasn’t in a position to be picky; she just felt a glimmer of hope. She quickly changed into a professional suit and applied light makeup. Wanting to secure a job before the holidays if at all possible, she drove straight to the company for her interview.
As her car entered the area near the Global Trade Concourse, the first thing Zoe saw was the skyscraper standing tall in the very center. On its top floor sat Simon, the man who controlled the vast majority of Kingsford’s economic chains. And here she was, running herself ragged just to make a living.
Zoe looked away, not wanting to be affected. Just as she fixed her eyes on the road ahead, her phone rang. She tapped her Bluetooth headset. "Hello?"
"Zoe Lancaster, is it Miss Lancaster?"
"Speaking."
"I’m sorry, but our company replied to the wrong person. You don’t need to come in for the interview anymore."
The other party hung up immediately after finishing their sentence, not giving Zoe the slightest chance to react.
Zoe’s expression slightly changed.
Had it fallen through again? How could they possibly reply to the wrong person?
Over the past few days, she had been successively rejected by over a dozen companies. Their excuses were all more or less the same. But she was a graduate from a prestigious university with solid professional skills. How could she not have a single opportunity... Zoe suddenly shuddered as a terrifying suspicion leaped into her mind.
Every single thing was just too bizarre. With her educational background and her two years of work experience at the Hawthorne Group, how could she fail to even get into a small or medium-sized company?
The heater in the car was running on high, yet Zoe couldn’t stop shivering. It felt as if she had been forcefully plunged into an icy pool, the chill seeping deep into her bones.
Everything that had happened recently hadn’t broken her. But today, this single suspected thought made Zoe’s eyes turn red. She bit her lip hard as her vision quickly blurred with mist. She raised her hand and rubbed her eyes haphazardly, but she couldn’t wipe them clean. Instead, the more she wiped, the more her tears flowed.
Simon Hawthorne was seriously sick in the head! Forcing her to go back and beg him? He could keep dreaming!
Heartbreaker being taken away, losing her job, and being suppressed by Simon—all these reasons made it impossible for Zoe to hold back her emotions any longer. Tears rolled down like pearls from a broken string. Her eyes were covered in a watery mist, making everything on the road ahead completely indiscernible.
Until—
CRASH!
Zoe crashed into a car.
Her entire body jolted violently. Fortunately, she wasn’t driving fast, so she wasn’t seriously hurt.
Zoe stumbled out of her car, took a business card from her bag, and walked over to the other driver’s window. She knocked on it. When the driver rolled down the window, Zoe shoved the business card inside. "I’m sorry. This is my phone number. You can contact me if there are any issues. Let’s just go through insurance."
She was just about to leave when the car door opened.
The person suddenly hugged her from behind. Startled, Zoe was about to raise her leg and kick him, but the man’s tall frame bent down, resting his chin on her shoulder. Having anticipated Zoe’s move, he complained with a hint of grievance,
"I missed you to death, Zoe Lancaster."