The atmosphere between them grew more and more awkward. Out of embarrassment, they
subconsciously made several small movements. Finally, the elevator stopped. The two of them moved
forward at the same time, and their shoulders touched.
It was indeed awkward. As they walked out of the elevator, an employee standing outside greeted
Emily.
"Good morning, Miss Bai.
How come you arrived here with Estelle today? Did you two come from the same direction?"
Stunned by the question, Estelle chose to look away.
As for Emily, she just nodded hastily and then walked toward her office, pretending that nothing had
happened. She had mixed feelings. Estelle had come clean to her and told her the truth. But although
she could understand the reason for Estelle's betrayal, she could not forgive her, not yet at least.
Estelle had promised her that she had turned over a new leaf and was completely a new person.
Perhaps she had really made up her mind to repent. 'Should I trust her again?' Emily asked herself.
What if Estelle betrayed her again? Could she survive it a second time? Emily had no answer to that
question. A part of her wanted to give Estelle a second chance. If Estelle truly regretted what she had
done, then she truly deserved Emily's forgiveness. Also, if Emily chose to cling to the past, she might
end up making Estelle resent her and turn Estelle's repentance into a grudge.
Emily scratched her head, trying to make a fair decision. "Forget it. I don't need to doubt her. Since I've
decided to let Estelle return to Love and Dream, I'll have to trust her again," she murmured to herself.
After making this decision, Emily felt a little more relaxed. She was confident that getting along with
Estelle would be the best move. She just hoped that things between them would not be so awkward
anymore.
Perhaps it was because of the awkwardness in the morning that Estelle did not come and deliver her
progress report to Emily the entire morning. In the afternoon, she hesitated to knock on Emily's office
door to discuss her designs with her. She wanted to consult with Emily regarding the designs she had
drawn up just like before, but because of the tension between them, staying in a room together would
not be so pleasant.
Emily had persuaded herself that she should forgive Estelle, but Estelle was still drowning in guilt and
walking on eggshells around her, making the air hang heavily above them.
Finally, it was time to get off work. Emily was ready to head out. As soon as she walked out of the
company's gate, she saw Jacob's luxury car parked by the side of the road. Jacob was leaning against
the door while fondly gazing at her as she walked up to him. His tall figure and handsome face made
many passers-by turn their heads to look at him.
But in Jacob's eyes, there was only Emily, who was slowly walking to him. His cold face slowly turned
into a warm smile as he gently said to her, "Let's go. I'll take you out to eat something good."
"Don't we eat well every single day?" Emily muttered to herself and went straight to Jacob.
Suddenly, Jacob's gentle face became cold and hard, and his loving eyes were filled with coldness and
cruelty. He strode toward a woman and yelled at her. His attitude was cold and tough. "You don't
deserve to be in Love and Dream! Beat it!"
It was time for the employees to go home. The gate was full of passers-by. People were minding their
own business as usual. When they heard the shouting, they all looked over. Seeing that it was Jacob,
they did not dare to stop and gossip blatantly. They only stared from a distance.
Seeing Jacob, Estelle clenched the straps of her bag uneasily and explained in a low voice, "No, I
came back to help. I will never do anything that will harm Love and Dream ever again. Please trust
me."
Jacob laughed mockingly. "You dare ask me to trust you? Do the words that come out of your mouth
sound truthful to you? No traitor has the right to ask others to believe in her again. What, do you think
I'm stupid? Don't ever show up at Love and Dream again, or I swear you will not like the
consequences."
Jacob looked sullen and cold. Had his beloved Emily not suffered enough because of Estelle? Estelle
was the reason Emily's depression had grown so serious. So when he saw Estelle's face again, Jacob
did not care about his CEO demeanor or his manly charisma anymore. He just wanted to drive her
away as soon as he could so as to not remind Emily of the past.
It had not been easy to calm Emily down. Why on earth had Estelle appeared here again? To mess
things up even further?
"I didn't mean to hurt her."
Estelle stood there, helpless and running out of words to say. She did not dare to explain, fearing that
her explanation would come across as defensive and insincere. She was scared that Emily would not
believe her anymore and consequently would not allow her to work in the company. Being yelled at by
Jacob in public, she felt so humiliated. Her face went all red. Grief and regret welled up in her heart.
Soon, tears were rolling down her cheek. She looked pitiful.
"I allowed her to work here. She had her own difficulties before. I'll explain the details to you later."
Seeing the tense situation between the two, Emily walked up and held Jacob's arm. She nodded at
Estelle to leave. As she gently pulled her husband into the car, she smiled. "Didn't you say you were
going to take me out to eat something delicious? Let's go then. I'm starving."
Estelle nodded at Emily gratefully. Feeling guilty, she felt even more determined to work for Emily and
make things right.
Back in the car, Jacob started the car and drove away in silence. Suddenly, he asked, "Why did you
allow her to work for the company? Aren't you afraid she will stab you in the back again? I don't want
you to be fooled again." It was a nightmare for them both. During that time, Emily had not been the only
one in darkness. Jacob had been in the darkness, too, and his life had not been joyful at all. He had
just wanted to make her happy despite all the difficulties.
Thanks to his effort, Emily finally looked and felt better. He would never allow a woman like Estelle to
ruin Emily's mental health and peace again.
"I'm not a fool. I won't be tricked twice. She's a different person now." Emily could not help defending
Estelle to Jacob, but deep down, she also understood where Jacob was coming from. After all, Estelle
had played a bad part in her psychological struggles.
"You can't be sure of that. She already betrayed you once, and she's completely capable of doing it
again, and it won't come with a warning." Jacob sighed helplessly. His beloved was too naive. She was
literally giving others a second chance to hurt her. She was too softhearted.
Emily's expression changed into cold seriousness. After careful consideration, she said carefully, "Don't
worry. I won't let her get her hands on core confidential information again. If she so much as thinks of
tricking me again, I'll kick her out the door myself. I won't repeat the same mistake."
"You better not." 'You silly little fool, ' Jacob thought to himself as he pinched the bridge of his nose and
sighed.
"Can we not discuss this anymore? Where is this restaurant you're going to take me to anyway? I'm
starving."
"We're almost there."
Meanwhile, a posh black car pulled over slowly in front of a manor. Darren stepped out of the car with
his two long legs. As soon as he entered the living room, he smelled the faint but tempting aroma of
delicious food in the air.
Was that woman cooking today?
Darren touched his forehead helplessly, but an amused smile tugged on the corner of his lips.
He followed the aroma to the kitchen and saw Bonnie in a cute apron, busy with cooking. She had a
spatula in her hand, and she seemed to be quite enjoying herself. Bonnie had on a determined
expression, which she rarely showed. It was obvious that she was facing a formidable situation as to
how to deal with the sweet and sour spareribs in the pot.
Darren thought it was funny, and his eyes softened.
Bonnie's delicate and beautiful face was shining in the faint light of dusk, as if she was coated with a
layer of golden aura, rendering Darren unable to look away.
Bonnie was about to put the sweet and sour spareribs into a bowl with her spatula. Maybe because she
was too anxious, she accidentally spilled some broth on her hand. The broth was freshly cooked and
quite hot. Therefore, her white and tender skin was immediately scalded with red marks.
Bonnie recoiled and bit back her scream. She was so engrossed in what she was doing that she did
not notice Darren come in. She ignored the pain and proceeded to put the cooked spareribs into the
bowl. She then took the bowl to the dining table. After that, she went to the sink to put her scalded hand
under cold running water to ease the pain.
A big hand reached for her hurt one.
Bonnie was stunned. She looked up and saw Darren's handsome, frowning face.
"Why are you home so early today?"
To her surprise, Darren did not respond to her. He just carefully raised her scalded hand and asked in a
serious tone, "Why are you so careless?"
Bonnie blushed. How could he witness such an embarrassing scene? She did not want him to see the
clumsy side of her at all.
Bonnie was stunned. She looked up and saw Darren's handsome, frowning face.
"Why are you home so early today?"
To her surprise, Darren did not respond to her. He just carefully raised her scalded hand and asked in a
serious tone, "Why are you so careless?"
Bonnie blushed. How could he witness such an embarrassing scene? She did not want him to see the
clumsy side of her at all.
62fb1bb41dcb31934bd49bda