?Chapter 321:


    Elliana’s gaze dropped to the name tag pinned neatly on Helga’s chest. Thebel gave her pause—Helga was no bottom-rung staffer. She headed the secretarial department. That detail hit hard. This woman reported directly to Cole. Was Cole really this rxed about his team’s professionalism?


    Still processing, Elliana barely registered Helga’s movement until they made brief eye contact. Helga’s smirk came sharp and smug, like a challenge tossed into the ring without warning.


    With an almost theatrical turn, Helga strolled toward Cole’s desk, her confidence practically leaving footprints on the floor.


    Cole, however, remained focused on his documents, his head never lifting.


    Helga stopped at his side, offering a file with the exaggerated grace of someone serving tea to royalty. Her tone was thick with sweetness. “Mr. Evans, this one’s waiting on your signature.”


    Not bothering to look up, Cole reached for the file, scrawled his name across the bottom, and pushed it back in her direction—all without blinking.


    Helga epted it with a tight grip, but the way her lips ttened said enough. His indifference had clearly struck a nerve.


    Determined not to walk away empty-handed, Helga pivoted. “Mr. Evans, we’ll be cing a new order for staff uniforms soon. Got any preferences?”


    Eyes still on his papers, Cole dismissed her with a t reply. “You handle it as you see fit. If you can’t make the call, ask Myles.” She hovered near his desk, clearly out of professional reasons to stay but unwilling to walk off just yet.


    A beat passed before Cole, still immersed in his files, asked under his breath, “You need something else?”


    Helga clenched her jaw. An ache of annoyance bloomed quietly inside her. All she wanted was for Cole to look at her, just once, but he never did.


    Off to the side, Elliana had seen enough to piece it together. With a mischievous spark in her voice, she chimed in, “Mr. Evans, Ms. Garza’s makeup is intense. Is this the Evans Group’s new image campaign?”


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    That cracked Cole’s focus. His head finally lifted. The second his eyesnded on Helga’s overdone look, his whole expression shifted to ice. “What kind of circus is this, Helga? You’re a director of the secretarial department, not a backup dancer. You think this is eptable?”


    Thementnded like a p. Helga instinctively recoiled, thrown off by the sudden bite in Cole’s voice. She had taken a gamble by mimicking Elliana’s style to impress, but it looked like she had just stepped into a bear trap. Fast on her feet, she scrambled for a save.


    “Mr. Evans, here’s what happened. A few of the women saw Mrs. Evans and thought she looked so bold and stylish. They wanted to try something simr… I just joined in, that’s all.”


    Elliana didn’t bother hiding her amusement. A smirk tugged at her lips. If Helga was really such a fan, then why did Helga’s eyes throw daggers at her the minute she walked in? She didn’t need long to figure out what Helga was really up to.


    Elliana could read Helga like an open book, and clearly, Cole could too. His reply cameced with venom. “My wife? She’s cool, sharp, and effortless. You’re not even in the same universe. Your mimicking is pathetic.”


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