Free Web NovelChapter 51: Chapter 51: Thoroughly Offending Chloe Lee
###Chapter 51: Completely Offending Chloe Lee
Chloe Lee watched the cheerful Hazel Hawthorne, remembered Hazel’s insults and provocations in the meeting room, and couldn’t stop herself from stepping forward to block Hazel’s path. "Hazel Hawthorne, what kind of trick did you pull to make even Director Shaw look at you in a new light?"
Hazel Hawthorne didn’t even want to spare Chloe Lee a glance. She had seen plenty of people like Chloe before, and the best way to deal with them was to ignore them.
Chloe Lee was Holly Shaw’s secretary. While the company didn’t exactly treat her like royalty, no one dared to show her any disrespect—except for the woman standing before her, Hazel Hawthorne.
"Move," Hazel Hawthorne said coldly.
The office atmosphere instantly froze again. Sharon Winters, standing beside her, had been at the company a few months longer than Hazel. She knew Chloe Lee was well-connected, and if Hazel truly offended her, life at the company would not be easy for her.
Chloe Lee had plenty of ways to make things difficult for Hazel Hawthorne. Although Sharon Winters didn’t like Chloe either, she didn’t want to get on her bad side at the company.
But Hazel Hawthorne paid no mind to Sharon Winters’s silent warning. This was how Hazel acted even when facing Aiden Xavier when she was provoked; even he couldn’t get the better of her. Why should she give a damn about a mere Chloe Lee?
If Chloe Lee had been willing to get along peacefully, Hazel could have let everything go. But Chloe was making it perfectly clear that she was targeting her.
Hazel Hawthorne spoke again, her voice glacial. "A good dog doesn’t block the road."
When had Chloe Lee ever been so humiliated in front of everyone? Seeing Hazel Hawthorne’s smug arrogance, she refused to be outdone. She crossed her arms, looking down her nose at Hazel. "And what if I don’t move?"
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Hazel Hawthorne immediately raised her hand. Thinking Hazel was about to strike her again like in the meeting room, Chloe Lee instinctively took a step back, which made Hazel laugh.
Hazel Hawthorne merely flicked her hair, then smiled faintly at Chloe Lee. "Secretary Lee, what could I possibly do to you in front of all these people? Why are you so scared you’re stepping back? Anyone who didn’t know better would think I’d actually done something to you."
Hearing this, Chloe Lee could no longer stand Hazel Hawthorne. She raised her hand, ready to teach this insolent woman who didn’t know her place a lesson.
But Hazel Hawthorne was no pushover. Before Chloe Lee’s hand could reach her face, she grabbed Chloe’s wrist, shoved her away hard, and stepped forward until she was right in front of her. Seeing the hateful glare on Chloe’s face, Hazel laughed instead of getting angry.
"I call you Secretary Lee out of respect for the position. But if we weren’t at Sterling Group, you wouldn’t be worth shit to me." Hazel Hawthorne snorted. "We’re all colleagues here, so why make things difficult for each other? Do you think picking on me is going to advance your career?"
Someone must have gone to get Holly Shaw, because she came out to see them at each other’s throats. "Don’t you have anything better to do?" she demanded. "What kind of place do you think this company is? A playground for you to fight in?"
Chloe Lee looked at Holly Shaw with a wronged expression, about to pin all the blame on Hazel Hawthorne, but Holly cut her off. "Everyone, disperse. Get back to whatever you were doing. Chloe, you, come with me."
Chloe Lee was led away, and Hazel Hawthorne returned to her desk as if nothing had happened, ignoring everyone’s appraising stares.
Sharon Winters had been on edge ever since the argument between Hazel Hawthorne and Chloe Lee started, worried that Hazel would end up on the losing end.
"Hazel, I’m really impressed. You actually dared to challenge Chloe Lee publicly. Before you came, I don’t know how many new hires were given a hard time by her. But everyone was too scared to speak up, so they just had to swallow their grievances." freewebnovёl.ƈom
Sharon Winters’s admiration for Hazel Hawthorne grew, but her next words wiped the smile from Hazel’s face. "That’s why I say it’s good to be rich. Money gives you confidence. If Chloe Lee dared to hurt you, Aiden Xavier would never let her get away with it."
’So Sharon thinks the only reason I dared to stand up to Chloe is because I have Aiden Xavier backing me up?’
Hazel Hawthorne stared intently at Sharon Winters, who was still vividly describing all the people Chloe Lee had bullied in the past and how those who couldn’t take it eventually quit.
’None of this has anything to do with me, and I don’t feel like explaining myself to Sharon. Even without the title of Mrs. Xavier, I still wouldn’t have gone easy on someone like Chloe Lee.’
’Being merciful to your enemies is being cruel to yourself.’
Hazel Hawthorne knew very well that Chloe Lee wasn’t the type to back down. Even if she had just gritted her teeth and endured it, the only result would have been Chloe pushing her luck even further; it certainly wouldn’t have earned her Chloe’s friendship.
’Since I was going to offend Chloe Lee one way or another, why should I be the one to suffer?’
’If I can’t stay at this company, then I’ll just quit and find another one.’
’It’s not like Sterling Group is the only place in Kenport where I can pursue a bright future.’
Sharon Winters kept chattering on beside her, and Hazel Hawthorne just listened in silence. It wasn’t until Sharon realized Hazel hadn’t responded at all that she seemed to notice she might be bothering her. She finally shut her mouth, returned to her desk, and focused on her work.
For Hazel Hawthorne, the argument with Chloe Lee was just a minor incident. But for everyone else in the company who found out that Hazel had clashed with Chloe, it became the subject of intense gossip behind her back.
"Hazel Hawthorne probably doesn’t know who she’s really crossed to be acting so brazenly."
"Exactly. If she knew Chloe Lee’s real identity and still dared to talk to her like that, then I’d really be impressed."
"Just you watch. Before long, Hazel Hawthorne will definitely ’voluntarily’ resign. Think about the people who offended Chloe Lee in the past. How many of them lasted more than three months here?"
"Young people these days are just too impatient; they can’t even handle a little hardship. Who doesn’t have to suffer a bit when they’re out in the working world? Sigh. I think these kids need to get out more and get a taste of the real world, learn how big it really is."
Hazel Hawthorne had always marched to the beat of her own drum. As for the office gossip, she simply pretended not to hear it.
She went to and from work as usual. The matter between her and Chloe Lee was gradually forgotten as new office gossip appeared each day, which wasn’t surprising.
But peaceful days always felt unreal. Aiden Xavier was probably staying by Raina Lowell’s side to take care of her, and he hadn’t contacted Hazel Hawthorne recently. Hazel, in turn, wouldn’t take the initiative to contact him.
This continued until a set of photos suddenly went viral online, completely shattering the peaceful life Hazel Hawthorne had only just regained.
In the photo, a woman was nestled happily in Aiden Xavier’s arms, and Aiden’s gaze was exceptionally gentle. One look was all it took to know he must deeply love the woman in his embrace. Furthermore, the angle and lighting of the shot were perfect.
Every detail, every nuance of the atmosphere, allowed any onlooker to feel that the two people in the photo were a couple deeply in love.
Hazel Hawthorne slowly scrolled down. The second photo showed the two of them entering and leaving a residential complex together.
She recognized the complex at a glance—it was the one Aiden Xavier had bought for Raina Lowell. Of course, the eye-catching headlines meant Hazel didn’t have to waste any effort guessing who the two people in the photos were.
"Aiden Xavier, Brazen as Ever, Photographed Returning to Residence with Woman."
"Aiden Xavier’s Secret Lover Revealed; Woman Suspected to be the Eldest Daughter of the Lowell Family, Who Disappeared Three Years Ago..."
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