A year had passed.
Vera Wills pulled into the parking lot of TITANHORIZON PLC and killed the engine. Letting out a deep breath, she unbuckled her seatbelt and reached for her bag on the passenger seat.
"Feels good to be back," she murmured.
A quick glance at her wristwatch sent her heart racing.
"Oh no!" she gasped.
She was fifteen minutes late.
Snatching her bag, she flung the car door open and rushed out. The morning traffic had already ruined her first day back, and now she had to run.
"Good morning, Miss Vera!" the receptionists chimed as she bolted past them.
She managed a quick smile and a wave before diving into the elevator.
2…3…4…5—click! "Come on, open!" she muttered impatiently as the doors finally slid apart.
Stepping onto the fifth floor, she hurried toward her office, checking her watch every few seconds.
8:15. Not again.
She reached her office, pushed the door open, and stepped inside, only to freeze in place.
A woman sat comfortably in her chair, lazily popping gum, a smug smirk curling her lips.
Vera's stomach tightened.
"Who the hell are you, and why are you in my office?" she demanded.
The woman drew her brows in displeasur. "Are you daft?" she snapped.
Vera blinked.
"You barge in here and question me?" The woman's tone was sharp.
Vera's eyes darted around the room. The furniture was the same. The framed pictures on the wall were exactly where she had left them.
This was her office.
"What kind of nonsense is this?" she fumed, stepping forward. "If you don't explain yourself right now, I'll call security!"
The woman remained silent for a moment, then suddenly, her eyes gleamed with recognition.
"Wait… you're Vera Wills?"
"Obviously!" Vera snapped. "Now get out of my chair!"
The woman leaned back with a nonchalant shrug. "My bad. I'm the new project manager, and if I'm not mistaken… this is my office now."
Vera felt her world tilt. Her office. Her job. What the hell was going on?
"You're talking nonsense," Vera said, her eyes cold as ice.
The woman didn't flinch. "Well, Miss Vera, maybe you should go meet the director instead of wasting my time," she said indifferently, before turning her attention back to her computer.
Vera's blood boiled, but she didn't waste another second. She stormed out of the office, heading straight for the director's. Without knocking, she pushed the door open and stormed inside.
"Good morning, Mr. Drake," she said, cutting straight to the point. "Can you tell me why a woman is sitting in my office claiming to be the project manager?"
Drake's face twisted into a frown, his eyes narrowing with annoyance. "I know you're rude, Vera, but I didn't think it was this bad." He set the pen down gently on the desk and locked his gaze on her. "You barged into my office, no respect for anyone or anything."
Vera fought back the urge to snap. She was running out of patience. "I don't need a lecture, Mr. Drake. Answer my question."
His lips curled into a sneer. "As you've been told, she's the new project manager."
Vera's heart dropped. "And what happens to me?"
Drake leaned back in his chair, a smug smile playing at his lips. "You may be uncultured, but you're not stupid. It means you're no longer the project manager."
Vera's stomach clenched. No longer the project manager? How had this happened?
"Why? What did I do wrong? And why wasn't I notified about any of this?" Her voice was firm, demanding answers.
Drake scoffed, his gaze sharp. "Your offense? It's simple. We don't need someone who takes a week off and isn't available to do her job."
Vera's mind raced. So this was about the sick leave she'd taken, which had ended only yesterday.
"And as for the letter," Drake continued, "you weren't here to get it. That's why you didn't receive anything."
Vera's frustration was barely contained. "I got official permission for that leave. What the hell are you talking about?"
He gestured for her to leave. "Leave my office, Miss Wills."
Vera stared at Drake, her eyes narrowing as a small chuckle escaped her lips. "Is the interim CEO aware that you replaced me with your girlfriend?"
A flash of something, guilt, perhaps, flickered across his eyes.
Vera raised an eyebrow, her gaze sharpened. She hadn't expected such a reaction, but it seemed her guess had hit the mark. The woman was, indeed, his girlfriend.
"Who was there during her interview? To my knowledge, a panel is supposed to handle these things. There's no way they could've conducted an interview and hired her without sending me a formal letter," she pressed, her eyes never leaving his.
Drake's jaw clenched, his patience visibly wearing thin. "Get out!" he barked.
Vera smiled, the corners of her lips curling into something between amusement and resistance. She stood tall, not giving him the satisfaction of seeing her falter. "Of course, I'll leave. But can I have the letter?" She extended her hand.
Grudgingly, Drake opened his drawer, pulled out an envelope, and handed it to her.
"Thank you," she said with a cool nod before turning on her heel and walking out of the office.
The elevator doors closed behind her as she pressed the button for the seventh floor. The interim CEO's office. Even if she'd been fired, she would make sure it was official. She wasn't leaving until she had the truth.
When she arrived on the seventh floor, she walked straight to the secretary's desk.
"Good morning," Vera said, her voice steady. "I need to see the interim CEO, it's urgent."
The secretary, her smile wide and warm, nodded. Vera wasn't a stranger to her, she had been the project manager, after all.
"He's alone, you can go in," the secretary said, gesturing toward the office.
"Thank you," Vera replied politely.
She knocked lightly on the CEO's door, waiting for his voice to call her in.
"Miss Wills," he greeted her warmly when she entered, a broad smile spreading across his face.
"Good morning, Sir," Vera said, nodding respectfully.
"I heard you took a week's sick leave. Hope you're feeling better?" The CEO's tone was soft.
"Yes, Sir," Vera replied smoothly. "I'm feeling much better now."
"Did you hear? We landed another contract with Kens and Drills," Mr. Kent's voice was filled with excitement as he spoke.
"All thanks to you, Miss Wills. You did an exceptional job on the last project for them," he continued, his tone dripping with appreciation. It made Vera wonder if he know about her replacement?
"My duty is to ensure the success of this firm, Mr. Kent," Vera replied with a polite smile, her mind still racing with unanswered questions.
"Of course!" he beamed. "So, what brings you here today?"
Vera took a deep breath, gathering her thoughts. "The manager gave me this letter this morning," she said, walking over and placing it in front of him.
There was no point in explaining the situation. Once he read the letter, he would understand everything.
Mr. Kent opened the letter carefully, but as his eyes scanned the contents, his expression darkened. A deep frown crossed his face. "Who authorized this? And on what grounds?"
Vera couldn't hide the inward sneer that tugged at her lips. She had been right. Kent wasn't aware of what had happened.
"I came to verify with you, Sir," she said, keeping her voice calm but firm. "The woman who's supposedly the new project manager is sitting in my office, in my chair, as I speak to you."
Kent's eyes scanned the letter again, his face growing darker. "I'm sorry about this, Miss Wills, but rest assured, I'll get to the bottom of it immediately."
"Thank you, Mr. Kent," Vera said, her tone polite, then, turned on her heel and left the office.
The moment Vera exited, Kent placed a call immediately, "Send the PR manager to my office immediately!"
Back at her office, Vera opened the door and stepped inside. Since her chair was still occupied, she sat down in the visitors' chair, crossing her legs indifferently.
The woman occupying her seat shot her fierce glare. "What are you still doing here?" she demanded, her voice loaded with anger.
Vera didn't flinch. She simply glanced at her, then turned her gaze forward, ignoring the woman completely.
The lady huffed in frustration, sighed heavily, and stormed out.
Not long after, she returned, this time with Mr. Drake, whose expression was darkened with anger.
"Didn't I give you the letter?" he barked, stepping into the office, his eyes flashed with anger.
Vera didn't look at him right away. "You did, Mr. Drake," she said, her tone cool, "and I've handed it over to the CEO."
Drake flinched, his face draining of color as he processed her words. His eyes widened in shock.
Vera finally met his gaze, a cold smile on her lips. What a foolish director. He couldn't even hide his surprise.
"And it seems the CEO isn't aware of my replacement," she added, enjoying the shock which have refused to leave his face.
Uncrossing her legs, Vera leaned back in her seat, in a relaxed posture. "The PR manager should be with him now, so I'm patiently waiting for an explanation," she said, pulling out her phone and scrolling through it.
Drake stood frozen, his eyes blinking in disbelief. The lady next to him eyed him curiously. "Is everything okay?" she asked, her voice stained with confusion.
Just then, his phone rang. He pulled it out of his suit pocket, his breath catching when he saw the caller.
"Get to the CEO's office!" The voice on the other end thundered, and Drake's face paled.
He quickly ended the call and motioned to the lady, "Wait in my office," before rushing out of the room.
The lady, clearly confused, glanced at Vera, then back at the closed door, unsure of what to do next.
"Didn't you hear him?" Vera mocked, a smirk at the corners of her lips.
Confused, the lady shot Vera a killing glare before quickly exiting the office, leaving Vera alone.
Sighing in relief, Vera rubbed her forehead, in mental exhaustion. She glanced down at her phone, then reached into her bag to put it away when her eyes caught sight of a sealed packet.
Her gaze locked onto it, and her heart skipped a beat. "Oh, I forgot," she muttered under her breath.
It was the pregnancy test kit she had bought earlier on her way to work, intending to use it as soon as she arrived. But with everything that had happened with Drake, she'd completely forgotten about it.
"I hope it's wrong," she whispered to herself, her mind flashing back to the past. Stan's harsh words, his anger, the dangerous expression he wore that day.
Her hands trembled slightly as she stood up from her chair and made her way out of the office.
Shutting the door behind her, she headed to the restroom, making sure the room was empty before locking herself inside.
Steadying her breath, she took the kit out of her bag. She read the instructions carefully, then broke the seal and pulled out the contents. Her eyes fixed on the test, her heartbeat quickening with every second that passed.
"Hope this isn't it," she whispered again, almost to herself, as she anxiously watched the test in her hands.
The past few weeks had been rough. She'd been feeling unwell, so she took a sick leave from work. She'd gone to the doctor, who had suggested that her symptoms might be due to pregnancy. But the doctor had assured her that it was just a possibility.
Despite being on birth control and having regular periods, the doctor had mentioned that some women still bleed in early pregnancy.
"It might just be stress," the doctor had said with a comforting tone.
"But we can only confirm with the necessary tests," he added.
She'd had the tests done, but when her symptoms suddenly disappeared, she had convinced herself it was just stress and didn't bother to return for the results.
That morning, as Vera awoke with the familiar symptoms again. She had hoped it was just stress, but she was deeply worried at the same time. Since she was scheduled to return to work after her sick leave, she decided to rule out one possibility once and for all. She would take the test, hoping for some kind of clarity.
She carefully followed the instructions, her hands trembling slightly as she peed on the kit and placed it on the sink, anxiously counting the seconds. One... two... three... four... five... Then, with a sharp intake of breath, the result flashed before her eyes: two lines. Positive.
"No way!" she whispered, her heart pounding in panic. She quickly rummaged through her bag, pulled out another test, convinced the first one must have been wrong.
She repeated the process, her pulse quickening. Once again, the result was the same.
"This can't be... please," she muttered, her voice barely a whisper as tears welled in her eyes. The reaction of Stan, the last time returned to her memory.
Pregnancy was the last thing she needed right now. And Stan, her boyfriend, wasn't ready for this. He would be furious. If he had reacted so badly the last time when the test had been negative, how would he respond now that it was positive?
"Did the pills fail?" she thought, her mind racing as fear set in.
She shoved the kits back into her bag, and left the restroom, her thoughts in combat with each other.
The rest of the day dragged on, her mood heavy and gloomy. The lady, who had taken her seat earlier, didn't return to the office except to grab her bag. Even when she came, Vera barely noticed. She was lost in her own worries, her mind consumed by the dilemma of what to do next.
What would she say to Stan? Should she even tell him? The thought of going through this pregnancy without his support was unbearable, but how could she hide it from him?
"I'm not willing to tamper with this pregnancy," she took a decision.