Everyone looked at each other, not sure what to say.
Reba was a total pro; no one could ever doubt her work skills.
(50
55 vouchers
All eyes turned to Derek, and suddenly, everyone realized just how much one passingment could shape their opinion of Reba.
“I just said it offhand. Why are you taking it so seriously?” Derek never really got along with Jane anyway. “Besides, wasn’t I just thinking of Reba’s best interests<b>?</b><b>” </b>
“Why don’t you ask them if this is actually good for Reba?” Jane said, ncing over at the other women in the office.
They all shook their heads in unison.
Derek choked back her retort.
“No matter who Reba is or who greeted her tonight, she’s still just Reba,” Jane said, shutting down anyone looking to stir up drama. “She’s our Reba from Team Eight.”
Reba had no idea how much Jane had done for her.
If it weren’t for Jane, all her dedication and talent would have been erased by Derek’s words.
Everyone would’ve forgotten how outstanding she was, and instead remembered her only as someone with a privileged background who was just here for a taste of ordinary life.
“Come on, sit here,” Jason said, guiding her over to Stephen.
Reba nced at the open seat beside Yannie and instinctively said, “I can just sit over there.”
Before she could react, Jason practically nted her right beside Stephen. He leaned in and whispered, “Stephen’s here to back you up. Just stay put.”
Reba could only pause, momentarily lost for words.
‘Back me up? For what?‘ she wondered. Stephen and Jeffrey had never seen eye to eye.
Reba was about to speak, but as soon as she nced up, everyone at the table was watching her. Yannie and a few others were giving her curious looks.
Sitting next to her, Stephen looked both ssy and distant in his gray suit, his silver–rimmed sses adding a refined touch. Leaning back, he softly called her, “Reba?”
“Huh?” Reba felt a bit weirded out by the way he addressed her.
“Did anyone give you a rough time just now?” Stephen’s tone was soft, but his gaze swept across the table with a silent pressure. “Just say the word. I’m backing you up.”
<b>14:58 </b>Mon<b>, </b><b>Sep </b><b>22 </b>
Reba blinked, a little confused by his sudden protectiveness. “No one.”
Stephen said, “Seriously, you don’t need to worry. I’m here.”
Reba could only pause, momentarily lost for words.
、(50 )
EL 56 vouchers
Reba took a second to rify, “I really haven’t interacted with them much. No one’s been mean to me.”
Yannie and Alexander, who’d been basically dragged into the private room, finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Sure, they’d only thrown a bit of shade at Reba, but if Stephen actually held it against them, they’d be in for a world of trouble.
“So I heard Mr. Kendall tried to give Reba some trouble this afternoon,” Stephen said, shifting his icy gaze straight onto Alexander.
Alexander froze, totally caught off guard.
Alexander nervously protested, “No way. I would never bother her,” his heart thumping in his chest. “How could I possibly pick on her?”
Stephen didn’t reply, which only made Alexander’s heart thunder even louder. His palms were slick with cold sweat, and he was kicking himself for evering here.
The atmosphere in the room dropped a few degrees.
“Ms. Barton,” Stephen said, his gaze lifting behind those silver–rimmed sses. Even though it was just a polite address, Yannie’s heart skipped a beat, and a chill ran down her spine.
She swallowed hard, struggling to calm herself before meeting his eyes.
Stephen pushed up his sses, voice still gentle. “Was it you who got Reba’s clothes wet?”
“Yes,” Yannie confessed, barely keeping herposure under all that pressure.
“Jeffrey’s been a little out of ittely and causing some drama with Reba,” Stephen said, his eyes sweeping over the group–including Bary and Sterling with a cold, intimidating pressure.
“But that doesn’t mean any of you get a free pass to mess with her,” he added.
Reba was stunned for a moment, confused. ‘Wait, is he actually taking my side right now?‘ she thought, disbelief scribbled all over her face.
“Do we all understand?” Stephen scanned the room, eyes sharp.
Alexander and Yannie, startled, replied at once, “Yes, we understand.”
Bary and Sterling, still shaken, quickly added, “Yeah, we get it.”
“Didn’t I tell youst time toe to me if anything happened?” Stephen’s tone softened as the pressure faded away. “Why’d you try to take it all on yourself again?”
<b>14:58 </b><b>Mon</b><b>, </b><b>Sep </b><b>22 </b>
“Nothing came up, so I didn’t need to bother you,” Reba replied politely.
<b>50 </b>
55 vouchers
Stephen pressed his lips together, holding back whatever he was about to say. Instead, he said, “Let’s talk more after the celebration.”
Reba stared nkly. ‘Wait, are we actually that close?‘ she thought, a little skeptical.
Still, with all these eyes on her, there was no way Reba was saying it out loud.
Aside from the usual trust fund heirs and socialites, the ce was packed with Primey Technologies‘ major shareholders and higher–ups–pretty much the same crowd as that dinner with Jeffrey.
Charles, thepany chairman, stood up with his ss. Thinking back to how careful he’d been at that dinner with Jeffrey, he put on his most respectful tone. “Stephen, we’d like to raise a ss to you.
“Having you here at our tenth anniversary is a real honor for Primey.”
“Let’s skip the drinks,” Stephen replied, his vibe much warmer now. “We don’t drink.”
Everyone shot each other knowing looks; they all realized Stephen was talking about himself and Reba.
Just like that, the whole dinner turned into a proper sit–down meal. Even when Stephen said, “Go ahead, drink if you want,” nobody dared touch their ss.
Even Bary and Sterling, who were usually the loudest troublemakers around, just sat there obediently.
Reba couldn’t help but sigh.
In this circle, having power and status changed everything.
With a sharp ding, Stephen’s phone lit up. He grabbed it, unlocked the screen, and read a message: [Mr. Stephen Hanson, we’ve stopped Mr. Jeffrey Hanson.]
Stephen scanned the text, then switched off the disy and went right back to acting like nothing at all had happened.
Reba nced over, but she didn’t catch anything.
Meanwhile, from the moment a few cars started deliberately blocking his path, Jeffrey knew this was Stephen’s handiwork.
Even though he’d driven as carefully as possible, those cars kept forcing the issue until, in the end, a crash was inevitable<i>. </i>
“Mr. Hanson,” said the driver, ncing at the car that rammed them and then checking the rearview mirror.
Jeffrey opened the car door and got out. “Call the police. Just tell them everything exactly as it happened.”
The driver asked, “What about you, Mr. Hanson?”
<b>14:59 </b><b>Mon</b><b>, </b><b>Sep </b><b>22 </b>
A0
50
<b>55 </b>vouchers
But before the words were even out of his mouth, a ridiculously expensive motorcycle pulled up right in front of them. The rider tossed a helmet to Jeffrey. “Mr. Hanson, get on.”
The driver stared inplete confusion. ‘Wait? Was that Gregory?‘ he thought, stunned.
The look on Stephen’s crew was pure WTF. ‘Can you even do that?‘ everybody thought, still reeling.
Jeffrey caught the helmet and eyed Gregory.
Gregory just stared,pletely lost.
Jeffrey said coolly, “Get off.”
“Traffic checks on this road are pretty tough during rush hour,” Gregorymented as he obediently stepped off the bike. “Mr. Hanson, you sure you’ve got the license for this?”
Jeffrey didn’t answer a single word. He just slipped on the helmet and swung himself onto the motorcycle.
From how naturally Jeffrey handled it, Gregory could immediately tell he was no rookie. Deep down, he was seriously impressed by how Jeffrey always seemed to have a backup n ready.
If Jeffrey hadn’t prepped for this, they’d really be in a tight spot right now.
Jeffrey’s gaze was cold and brooding. Ever since Stanley tipped him off that Stephen was headed this way, he’d known tonight was anything but routine.
Stephen had waited for him to leave before making his move–definitely not a coincidence, and clearlying in with a purpose.
Still, Jeffrey couldn’t figure out how Stephen nned to pull off anything meaningful in that kind of situation, let alone achieve whatever goal he was after.
As his anxiety kept mounting, Jeffrey just couldn’t shake the uneasy feeling, so halfway through the ride, he tapped his Bluetooth and called up Stanley.
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<b>14:59 </b><b>Mon</b><b>, </b><b>Sep </b><b>22 </b>