McNeil was watching Gwh so closely, it was as if he was afraid someone might whisk her away at any moment.


    His own daughter, Victoria, on the other hand, didn''t seem to inspire any such concern. Apparently, her father trusted that she wouldn''t just run off.


    Violet''s expression was stormy, her annoyance in for all to see.


    "You''ve misunderstood me. I never said I wanted you toe with me to the newpany," she snapped.


    But Victoria didn''t even wait for her to finish. Covering her mouth, she quickly apologized, "Mr. Garcia, I''m so sorry-I think I caught a cold yesterday—"


    She couldn''t hold it in any longer. That wave of nausea hit hard, and she had no choice but to dash for the restroom.


    Violet''s face went through a whole spectrum of colors, none of them ttering.


    The whole point of this meeting had been to put Victoria on the spot-to embarrass her, make her ufortable.


    But McNeil had ignored Violet''s calls more than once, and even at the hospital, he''d sent his secretary or a nurse to check on her instead ofing himself. Even Simms and Yulia had started to notice something was off between Violet and McNeil.


    What infuriated Violet most was that, on the rare asion McNeil did answer her calls, Victoria always seemed to be around.


    Did they think she didn''t notice?


    Just like the rumors swirling around the office right now.


    If Victoria really was pregnant, Violet''s anger was so intense it was twisting her features. Her re was so sharp, the other executives couldn''t figure out why Ms. Marchand was suddenly so upset after just a few words with Victoria-especially since she was supposed to be leaving to take over as CEO of the newpany, not staying on as VP at Quantum Core Technologies.


    Now Violet was at a loss for words. Her original target was gone, leaving her without anyone to vent her ''victory'' on.


    “That''s enough for today''s meeting. Mr. Garcia, do as you suggested—prepare a test, and the best candidate can choose their position," Violet said, voice tight with frustration, before storming out of the room.


    Curtis rubbed his nose, sensing the undercurrent.


    Everyone exchanged nces. "Is Ms. Marchand upset with Victoria? Does she want to take Victoria with her to the newpany?"


    George, who had been silent until now, finally spoke up.


    "No way. Victoria''s one of our best in R&D. Mr. Garcia, she spent thest few days shadowing the lead engineer and picked up all the core tech. If you let her go, it would be a huge loss for thepany. We can manage without Ms. Marchand, but if Victoria leaves, half our projects wille to a standstill. Anyone else can leave, but I''m putting my foot down on Victoria."


    George''s opposition was adamant, and the rest of the execs quickly chimed in.


    "He''s right. Ms. Marchand''s just angry at Victoria-probably because she wants to recruit her. Top talent like that is hard to find."


    "She''s been making things tough for Victoria ever since she started at thepany. Anyone would think she''s treating Victoria as a rival, not a protégé."


    "That reminds me I heard some gossip the other day. I''ve got a cousin at Vertex Dynamics who said Victoria once spent over three hours in Mr. Langford''s office. When she came out, she could barely walk straight. You don''t think she and Mr. Langford...?"


    Curtis was listening from the sidelines, growing more exasperated by the second. He almost mmed his hand on the table.


    "That''s enough. This is a tech firm, not a tabloid newsroom. Get back to work. Meeting adjourned."


    His mood was foul, but he knew perfectly well that Victoria and McNeil were about as likely as oil and water.


    Still, someone just had to push their luck: "Come on, Mr. Garcia, don''t act like you don''t notice. With someone like Victoria, who knows how many people have their eye on her?"


    Curtis walked out faster, feeling like another minute in that room would give him a heart attack.


    "Don''t tell me Mr. Langford isn''t interested in Victoria. He was staring at her the entire time he was here for that training session."


    "Don''t be ridiculous. The lead engineer is Mr. Langford''s cousin—”


    Curtis finally made it to his office and chugged a full ss of water just to calm down.


    Still irritable, he picked up the phone and called Isaac.


    "Let''s grab a drink tonight. Bring Marcus."


    He thought for a moment about McNeil, but then let it drop.


    Isaac''s voice waszy, still tinged with sleep. "Forget it, man. I''m not going out again."


    Curtis frowned. "What''s that supposed to mean?"


    Isaac let out a dryugh. "Last night, I asked you to join us at the bar, but you said you had to work. You missed quite a scene."


    Curtis was still in the dark, so Isaac justid it out, halfughing.


    "You know Marcus, right? The woman he''s been into showed up with a whole group of toy boys hanging off her arms. But that girl... she''s something else."


    Curtis knew exactly who Isaac was talking about. The model car Marcus had given Victoria was disyed on his wall-Curtis wasn''t stupid.


    But Victoria with toy boys? He''d sooner believe pigs could fly.


    "Maybe you all had too much to drink or someone was just imagining things," Curtis said, unconvinced.


    If Victoria really was interested in Marcus, Marcus would have been over the moon and would''ve made a move ages ago. That''s why Curtis never got jealous.


    "Don''t cut me off. The best part''s stilling. Guess who showed up?"


    Curtis didn''t care about the rest-he only wanted to know about Victoria.


    "If you''ve got something to say, just spit it out."


    "Mr. Langford. McNeil. He called the cops, had the bar shut down for a ''purity inspection,'' and carried a woman out of there himself. I was too far away to see her face, but I recognized the outfit."


    Isaac wasughing so hard he could barely breathe. "If you ask me, the woman Marcus likes and the one McNeil carried out-they''re the same person. What a riot!"