gripped her pen so tightly her fingers cramped. She forced her

. She sent out calendar invites, drafted timelines

the cramped desk every twenty minutes with incredibly basic,

question with a flat, professional tone. She immediately followed up e

cial data from the shared cloud spreadsheet. She approached Chloe

her monitor. She restored the deleted data in three seconds. Sh

ally apologized, her voice hitching loud

He heard the hitch in Poppy's voice. He strode over t

nearby team members. He accused her of bullying

zed defending herself with logic was utterly futile

the floor's productivity. He clapped his hands and announced a mandatory jo

wore her standard, unassuming black corporate blazer,

s to a private dining room in the back. A l

rchestrated by Arthur Finch, Chloe was seated d

to Chloe's right. He offered her a s

wine. Julian ordered the finest cuts of wagyu

He picked up his knife and began cutting Poppy's steak into small, bite-sized pieces fo

e table asked Chloe

made a pointed, cruel remark about how some women were on

wardly silent. The clinki

. She took a slow, deliberate sip of ice water. She used the freezing liq

d shoulder. She acted completely oblivious-or pret

ed up a warm dinner roll from the basket and

pered a terrible, corny dad joke about a

t strained, laugh. The sound was quie

nched so hard the muscle ticked visibly under his ski

e ignored the expensive wine and order

re. She turned her body slightly toward Ethan and eng

e swallow. His mood turned visibly darker, the

he dinner roll Ethan had given

t her eyes on her plate as she watched Julian, in her peripheral vision, g