Chapter 22

Chapter 22

Violet felt a deep sense of gratitude toward Patrick from the bottom of her heart. If it were not for Patrick’s timely intervention the previous night, she could not even bear to think about the dire situation she might be in now. If Henry and the others had succeeded in their plans, she would have been at the mercy of Veronica, enduring endless torment. The thought of this possibility sent shivers down her spine.

As she ate breakfast, Violet could not help but reflect on the unexpected events of the morning. She felt even more guilty now. Patrick had saved her life, and she had repaid him with a kick. Even though it was unintentional, she could not help but feel like she had crossed a line.

She glanced at Patrick cautiously while eating and mustered the courage to speak up, “Thank you for last night.”

Patrick glanced at her, his expression showing no interest in engaging in conversation.

Violet pursed her l*ps and blinked. “And I’m really sorry for this morning. It wasn’t intentional.”

Patrick emitted a soft snort and got up abruptly, saying, “I’m full.”

Violet sat at the table, feeling incredibly dejected like a bucket of cold water had been poured over her.

Patrick changed his shoes and asked in an icy tone, “Are you coming or not? I have to go to work.”

Upon hearing Patrick’s words, Violet quickly realized that he was offering her a ride to work. She immediately jumped up from her chair, saying, “Coming, coming. Let’s go now.”

Π

She swiftly changed her shoes, picked up her bag, and grinned at Patrick. “Ready to go.”

As they were about to leave, Violet even kindly handed Patrick a bandage.

Patrick raised an eyebrow.

Violet pointed at his chin. “For your wound.”

As she mentioned the wound, Patrick’s face darkened. “Do you think a bandage will keep others from figuring it out?”

With that, Patrick walked out without looking back, leaving Violet puzzled.

“What was there to figure out? Wasn’t it just a result of her morning mishap?” Violet thought.

Upon arriving at work, Violet learned that she would not receive her work badge until the afternoon.

She decided to head to the design department first. However, as soon as she arrived, a woman with exquisite makeup approached her. The woman was dressed in a light blue suit, exuding an air of confidence.

“Are you the new design assistant?” Joanna asked, her eyes sparkling with admiration.

Joanna’s expression shifted slightly. Without waiting for a response, she headed to

her seat.

Violet was about to explain that she was not the new assistant when Joanna handed her a stack of design drafts and said, “Find any available seat and start organizing these. We’ll need them later.”

Violet attempted to introduce herself, but before she could utter a word, Joanna interrupted her assertively, “Why aren’t you moving? Is this task too difficult for you?”

Violet frowned slightly but quickly found a seat and began sorting the design drafts quietly. She felt uncomfortable about the situation but did not want to start a conflict with her new colleagues at Foreverie Jewelry.

She efficiently organized the design drafts and handed them to Joanna, saying, “Hello, I’ve finished organizing the design drafts.”

Joanna took the drafts and glanced at them, surprised. She then gave Violet a brief look and said, “Not bad. You’re efficient.”

Violet nodded and was about to say something when Joanna handed her a cup and said, “Go get me a glass of water.”

Violet furrowed her brows but did not say anything. She noticed Joanna was getting annoyed. “What’s the matter? Are you not willing to pour me a glass of water?”

Violet did not want to argue with her, so she grabbed a glass. “No, I’m not.” With that, she went to get some water.

As she placed the glass of water on Joanna’s desk, she overheard some nearby coworkers talking about her.

“Where’s that Violet Webb? It’s pretty late now. Does she think she’s all that because she got some attention online yesterday? Is she trying to make a grand entrance and show off in our design department?”

“Who knows? She was personally recruited by Mr. Hersey, and remember, we’ve never had an exception like this at Foreverie Jewelry apart from Gloria.”

Joanna’s expression darkened upon hearing these discussions. “I don’t care what you say about Violet but don’t compare anyone to Gloria. Do you really think Gloria and someone like Violet are in the same league?”

Violet’s expression changed, but she remained silent.

Her coworkers immediately chimed in. “You’re absolutely right, Joanna. Violet is

nothing compared to Gloria. She’s not even fit to hold Gloria’s shoes. How could they possibly be compared?”

“Yeah, Gloria is now an internationally renowned jewelry designer, and who is this Violet? I’ve never even heard of her before.”

This group of people were all highly skilled in social dynamics, knowing exactly what to say in different situations. They were aware of Joanna’s close relationship with Gloria, so they intentionally played along with Joanna’s words. Gloria had originally worked at Foreverie Jewelry as well. In the design department, everyone had a great rapport with her, with Joanna being Gloria’s protégé. Consequently, Joanna regarded Gloria as her idol.

With Gloria gone, Joanna became the top designer at Foreverie Jewelry, and everyone treated her with a great deal of respect.

Violet had initially considered introducing herself, but upon hearing the conversations around her, she decided against it.

She sat quietly, listening to the discussions of her colleagues as they gathered together and began to chat about her.

“Do you guys think Veronica really plagiarized Violet’s work? The way they talked about it last night made it sound convincing.”

“Everyone is just jumping on the bandwagon with these things. We can’t say for sure what really happened. Maybe Violet clung to Mr. Hersey and turned the tables on Veronica.”

“Plagiarism cases are always tricky, and this lawsuit has been going on for two years. Who knows what d*rty tricks might be involved? By the way, has anyone actually seen Violet?”

“There was a press conference before. Didn’t you guys see it?”

“I mainly follow Twitter and don’t pay much attention to other platforms. I don’t think there were many pictures of her on Twitter.”

“I’ve seen her, but I have a bit of face blindness. Besides she wasn’t that famous before, so who can remember someone after just a quick glance?”

Suddenly, someone looked at Violet, who was sitting nearby, and said, “This new assistant kind of looks like Violet, doesn’t she? What do you guys think?”

They showed a blurry photo to the others, who were about to lean in to get a better look. Just then, a girl rushed into the design department, panting and clutching her chest, clearly out of breath.