Chapter 4

On the other end, Henry sounded groggy, barely awake, mumbling a reply. "I knew you'd still be stubborn about going home, so I canceled your ticket. Stay in Rivergate and handle the reception. That's your real job now."

My voice cracked with panic, and tears welled up in my eyes. "Henry, my grandma fell. She's in the hospital. I need to go back right now!"

There was a brief silence, then a quick, dismissive snort from the other end. "Bea, when did you start lying to me like this? I can't believe you'd make up your grandma being sick so you could go home."

"I'm not lying. It was Martha—"

"That's enough," he interrupted me, sounding completely fed up. "Quit the drama and focus on the reception. I was out all night with clients and barely got any sleep."

But right before the call ended, I distinctly heard a woman's soft, lazy moan in the background.

Tears splashed onto the screen, blurring everything in front of me.

I was pacing frantically around the train station hall, my hands shaking as I opened every ride-hailing app I could think of.

My hometown was nearly 186 miles away.

I kept bumping up the price, from one hundred, two hundred, three hundred, but the app kept saying "No drivers available."

Desperate, I called Henry again, hoping he'd take me home.

He cut me off after two rings.

His reply came instantly, colder than ever. [I've got a business dinner soon, so don't bother me. Figure out the reception on your own.]

But the latest post on his wife's profile told a whole different story.

Henry was out with her, watching the hottest movie and dining at that trendy restaurant that had to be booked out months in advance.

He catered to her every need.

But for me? He didn't bother.

I bit my lip, forcing back the sting in my eyes.

I wired Martha some cash right away, asking her to take good care of Grandma.

After what felt like forever, Martha finally called me on video.

On the screen, Grandma was lying in her hospital bed, looking a little pale, but she seemed to be in good spirits.

She managed a smile for me, her face creasing with wrinkles. "Bea, don't worry about me. The doctor says I'll be home in a couple of days. You take care of your work. No need to hurry back for me."

Seeing her trying so hard to smile, my throat felt tight and sore. I could only nod desperately, unable to say a single word.

After hanging up, I opened the ticket app again, and to my surprise, I actually managed to book a ticket home for the fifth day of holiday.

My fingers paused for a moment, and a plan slowly started to take shape in my mind.

On the third day of the holiday, I pushed all my emotions aside.

As Henry asked, I personally hosted Khalid and his wife from Aurora Group, handling every detail with meticulous care.

I greeted them with a smile the entire time, made sure every detail was perfect, and didn't slip up once.

Henry was really pleased with how I handled things.

He messaged me first, saying he'd reimburse my train ticket home. [See? It's not like I don't want you to go back. If I did, I wouldn't have bothered to pay you back for your ticket.

[Having you stay in Rivergate a few more days is all for our company, so we can actually build a good life for ourselves later on.]

I didn't reply at all. I just accepted the money.

On the fifth day of the holiday, I boarded the train home right on time with my ticket.

Back at the hospital in my hometown, I never left Grandma's side, looking after her as best as I could.

Over the next few days, Henry kept sending me messages here and there.

On the surface, he acted like he was worried about my grandma's health, but really, he wanted me back at the office as soon as possible.

I ignored every single one of his texts.

He didn't seem to care at all.

After all, no matter how much we fought before, I was always the one who came crawling back to him in the end.

But this time, he was wrong.

It wasn't until the eighth day after the holiday that I finally went back to the office, and only after he'd begged me to come back time and time again.

I'd barely stepped into the office when he rapped his knuckles on the desk, his face icy. "Late these many days? Forget about your attendance bonus this month. As per company rules, you're getting a pay cut too."

I smiled, not caring at all.

I pulled a piece of paper from my bag and slapped it down on the desk with a loud smack. "I'm quitting.

"And I want you to pay me every dollar you owe me for overtime, performance bonuses, and year-end bonuses from the past few years."

He gripped the paper, and it made a faint, crisp sound in his hand.

He stared at the number at the bottom for a few seconds, and then burst out laughing. "1.21 million dollars? Bea, you really think you can get away with throwing a fit like this?"

When he saw I was completely serious, his expression turned cold. "You really want to quit? Go ahead. The company won't fall apart without you. But you're not getting a single cent of that money."

Before he could finish, the office door burst open, and his assistant rushed in, her face ashen. "Mr. Palmer, bad news.

"All our partners from last year are pulling out, and Mr. Morris, whom we were supposed to sign with before Christmas, said he's not signing the contract."