A sudden loud bang came from one corner of the cafeteria.


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    A few employees were crowded around a table; when they noticed everyone’s surprised looks, they hurriedly waved them away.


    “We’re just talking here, nothing for you to worry about. Go ahead and eat,” one of them said.


    Some folks from the design team who couldn’t stand Noelle were sitting together, gossiping.


    They all knew Noelle had connections, but nobody realized she was the adopted daughter of the Garcia family.


    “I used to see Noelle hanging around Mr. Garcia’s office every single day. Loads of people said she was trying to get his attention. Turns out she’s the Garcia family’s adopted daughter! Why would she even bother trying to seduce him if they’re basically family? That’s just messed up!”


    “Well, it might not be like they’re really family. I heard from someone in the secretary’s office that when Mr. Garcia’s girlfriend showed up before, Noelle actually got into an argument with her, and Mr. Garcia took his girlfriend’s side.”


    “Honestly, she knew he had a girlfriend and still tried getting close. That’s just sad–and kind of shameless, honestly.”


    “Right? She used to use her chief designer title to meet with Mr. Garcia about projects, but he didn’t even care to see her. Still, she kept trying to get close to him every chance she got. Now she’s just another regr designer, plus the Executive Office is back in Aaron’s hands. In the end, she’se up empty.”


    Office chat always came back to rtionship gossip anyway.


    Noelle was already having a rough day when she came to the cafeteria for lunch. She ended up overhearing all the smack these people were talking behind her back.


    Fed up, she grabbed a steaming bowl of soup, marched straight over, and drenched the gossip crew with the whole thing.


    “Ah!”


    The


    soup was scalding hot, and the unlucky employees clutched their faces, howling in pain.


    “Noelle, what the hell are you thinking?!” one of the soaked employees blurted out, voice rising in confusion and anger.


    The whole cafeteria erupted–people scrambled to call an ambnce<b>, </b>some tried to pull Noelle away, and others just watched, stunned by the wild scene.


    “You bunch of losers! Gossiping about me behind my back? I swear, I’ll shut your mouths for good!” Noelle snapped at them, fire in her eyes.


    :


    Normally, Noelle would never have let her emotions get the better of her in a ce like this.


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    But after feeling down for days, then overhearing people saying Joshua didn’t care about her, her anger boiled over–she snapped, unable to hold herself back any longer, and stormed over to set them straight.


    “What, did we lie about anything? Back when you were chief designer, you always acted all high and mighty, looking down on us. Whenever you threw a tantrum, you found any excuse to yell at us. And everyone knows the only reason you won that award was because you bribed the judges! You tried to get Mr. Garcia’s attention, but he never even looked your way. Now you’re in a bad mood, so youe after us? Listen up–if my face gets ruined because of you, trust me, I’ming after you!” one of the employees yelled, her voice shaking with rage.


    “Go ahead, sue me if you’ve got the guts!” Noelle snapped right back, defiant as ever.


    Things quickly blew up into a full–on shouting match.


    The cafeteria was in total chaos, and as soon as Aaron got wind of it, he had his assistant rush the injured staff to the hospital, then had Noelle called into his office.


    Noelle, who’d just been fierce and unstoppable a few minutes ago, found all that bravado instantly wiped away when she faced Aaron.


    With Joshua, she could risk a few soft words even when he had his icy look on–throw out a little sister act, and most of the time, he’d just let her off the hook.


    But with Aaron, it was a whole different ballgame.


    He had that kind of quiet authority, built over years, that filled the room even when he was just sitting there. Just one calm look from him could send a chill right down your spine.


    Right now, Noelle felt an uneasy dread starting to creep up inside her.


    “Noelle, rx. Take a seat,” Aaron said, his voice calm but firm.


    Noelle sat down on the couch, her hands shaking. She was about to apologize when Aaron spoke first.


    “Do you hate Joshua?” he asked, his tone steady.


    “What?” Noelle blinked, caught off guard.


    She’d been bracing herself for a lecture, not this out–of–the–blue question.


    After a moment, she shook her head quickly.


    Noelle shook her head earnestly, her voice a little anxious. “Of course not! How could I possibly hate Joshua?”


    “Then you must hate Xylia,” Aaron said, his gaze unwavering.


    Noelle clenched her fists on her knees. The moment Aaron mentioned Xylia’s name, a sh of pure hatred shot through her eyes.


    :


    If it hadn’t been for Xylia, Joshua never would have treated her so harshly.


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    Now she couldn’t even show her face in the industry, her whole life was a mess, and Joshua pretty much despised her. She med every bit of it on Xylia.


    I mean, how was she supposed not to hate her?


    ‘No, I don’t,’ Noelle replied, her voice soft and obedient in front of Aaron, even though deep down she was anything but calm.


    Aaron was silent for a long time, simply staring at her with that unreadable look. Finally, his voice was as chilly and measured as ever: “Go to HR and process your resignation.”


    Noelle’s eyes widened in disbelief.


    “Uncle Aaron, why?” she asked, her voice trembling.


    Aaron’s tone was ice–cold. “You haven’t done your job welltely, and your temper’s been out of control. The ones you sshed will getpensated, but their sries are getting cut too. It’s not just you taking the hit.”


    “Why?” Noelle’s voice trembled, all her calm gone.


    Those people talking smack about her were only getting a pay cut, but she was the one getting fired from Garcia Group.


    ‘How is that even fair?‘ Noelle thought furiously, her mind spinning.


    Aaron’s tone was icy and resolute. “Noelle, no matter how you feel, the Garcia family will always provide for you. Mrs. Garcia likes you, she feels responsible for you. I’ve ignored a lot of your past behavior, but threatening my son and his fiancée is where I draw the line. Even if that makes me seem heartless, I won’t let anyone hurt my family. Do you understand?”


    Noelle felt a cold shiver crawl down her spine under Aaron’s unblinking gaze.


    ‘So even the favor my brother did for Joshua means nothing now?‘ she thought angrily.


    She let out a scornfulugh. “My brother was an absolute fool for dragging Joshua off that damn battlefield!”


    That was all she dared to say before storming out of the office.


    After Noelle stormed out, David slipped into the office.


    “Mr. Garcia, about Ms. Coffey-” David began hesitantly.


    Aaron just replied coolly, “No need to mention this to Joshua.”


    David bobbed his head quickly, making it clear he understood.


    Working under Joshua made him a little nervous, butpared to Aaron’s unreadable poker <b>face</b>, it was honestly a lot more stressful.


    And honestly, Aaron was way more intimidating than Joshua ever was.


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    Noelle had just exited the building when she ran right into Tessa.


    She barely knew Tessa–they’d only exchanged a few words before–and with her mood at an all–time low, she nned to sidestep her and leave without another word.


    But Tessa blocked her way.


    “Ms. Coffey, can I have a word?” Tessa said, stepping in front of her.


    “No time,” Noelle replied coldly, not even sparing her a nce.


    Noelle couldn’t be bothered to deal with Tessa–not even sparing her a nce.


    But Tessa wasn’t letting up. “What if it’s about Xylia?” she pressed, her voice low and urgent.


    Noelle stopped in her tracks and turned to look at her.


    Tessa, thinking she’d finally gotten Noelle’s attention, moved in a little closer and kept pushing.


    “I won’t lie, Xylia totally messed me uptely–because of her, I lost a really important part. You know how it goes: the enemy of my enemy is my friend. So, Ms. Coffey, what do you say we team up and give Xylia a taste of her own medicine?”


    “Xylia.” Noelle practically spat out the name, barely hiding the annoyance in her voice. When she nced at Tessa again, she thought to herself, ‘Is this girl for real? What an idiot!


    Noelle scoffed. “Don’t tell me you haven’t heard–she goes by Xylia now. Seriously, you didn’t know?”


    Tessa just brushed it off, totally unfazed. She’d figured out Xylia switched herst name during that design contest a while back–probably just another ploy to run away from her past life over in Jupiton.


    Honestly, that’s ssic Xylia–always doing something totally useless, like it’s her signature move.


    “Of course I know,” Tessa scoffed. “But what does that change? I still want to take her down.”


    Noelle couldn’t help but roll her eyes; honestly, Tessa was such an idiot, running around like a clown,


    She leaned in close, her voice dropping to something cold and devilish. “The Sadler family of Norhill… You really think you can mess with her without getting tangled up with the family?”