Chapter 1572: I’m taking Cassandra Smith’s case.

The next day in Prime Group...

"Good morning!" Penny greeted everyone with a smile, earning different reactions from people who had received the morning greeting. Some bowed in shock and greeted her in return, while others simply jolted, not even hiding their surprise.

Hence, everyone who had seen this couldn’t help but follow her figure with their gaze.

When Penny disappeared around the corner, they exchanged looks and shrugged. Penny rarely used the main entrance of the company, which was why, even until now, many other employees — especially those who were hired recently — hadn’t seen their big boss.

Reaching the CEO’s floor, Penny stopped by the department. They were all already inside except for Patricia. But knowing it was still early, Penny didn’t even think about the woman.

"Good morning!" she greeted, causing the three to almost flinch in surprise.

Slowly, Hayley, Teddy, and Shawn turned to the entrance. Deep lines quickly appeared between their brows, noticing the strange glow on Penny’s face. Over the past several days, Penny had still been pretty, but the slow exhaustion on her face had grown more evident.

But today, there was no trace of exhaustion on her face.

"Uh, good morning, Miss Penny," Shawn blurted out, blinking.

Hayley snapped back to reality, sporting a smile. "Miss Penny, you seem like you woke up in a good mood today!"

"I am always in a good mood, but yes." Penny grinned. "I’m in a better mood today — thanks to my husband."

The second those words slipped past her lips, their breaths suddenly caught in their throats. It was an answer they didn’t expect at all.

"Anyway, I’m leaving early today as well," she said, unaware of the shock she had just dropped right in front of their faces. "I have some things to do and a date. If you need anything today, let me know. I’m leaving at noon."

She then snapped her eyes at Teddy. "Ted, put that in my schedule."

"Ye—yes, ma’am."

"Good." Satisfied, Penny turned around and took a step. But before she could leave, Teddy spoke in a hurry.

"Miss Penny!" Teddy jumped from his seat, watching Penny take a step back and lean back. "Miss Grace is in your office. She’s waiting for you."

Penny furrowed her brows before she rocked her head in understanding. "Sure. Thanks!"

With that, Penny resumed her steps and headed to her office.

Meanwhile, the three she left behind kept their gaze on the entrance before Hayley’s gasp broke the building silence.

"No way..." Her eyes widened as she shifted her gaze to the other two. "See? I told you! I was right! That’s her husband!"

And by "guy," she meant the man they had seen the other day. Who was apparently Penny, in disguise.

The three of them had debated who the guy was, but Teddy, as usual, had tried to shut her up. However, Hayley’s curiosity was continuously piqued. She had even asked Patricia, but Patricia simply said she "didn’t see this husband."

But today, Penny had mentioned her husband out of the blue!

Wasn’t that the answer they all sought?

"You really are hopeless," Teddy shook his head, but even though he ignored her, he kept his ears wide open.

Is that really her husband? he wondered, having conflicting feelings about it. I guess she isn’t perfect as she should be. Miss Penny might be good at business, but not in love.

Either way, Penny’s personal life had nothing to do with Teddy. Therefore, he didn’t dwell on it that much. As long as Penny was happy, that was good enough for him.

Shawn shared the same sentiment as Teddy, but with Hayley dragging him into this, he had no choice but to engage in the conversation.

"Hayley, you can’t judge your boss’s husband like that," Shawn awkwardly commented. "I don’t think Miss Penny would be happy to hear all of that. Also, who knows? Maybe he has qualities that Miss Penny liked."

Hayley arched a brow. "Like what?"

"Like... he is caring and kind despite his strange sense of style?" Shawn shrugged. "There must be something Miss Penny saw in him that made her marry him. We live in the 21st century, and men aren’t just about providing and bringing home the bacon."

Her face twitched, not really agreeing with Shawn. However, she did agree that there might be some qualities Penny’s husband had that made the ever-beautiful, smart, talented, and successful businesswoman fall for him.

"Well, Miss Penny didn’t seem the type to like money that much," she muttered, nodding.

If only they knew how much Penny loved money.

Teddy glanced at the two, not stopping them from talking, as it was still too early for office hours. As he did, he caught a figure from the corner of his eye. Turning his head, his face twitched.

"Sir, Teddy Arthur?"

There, standing at the entrance of their department, was the first delivery guy for the day, holding a handful of boxes. The delivery guy’s call also made Shawn and Hayley turn to him. Just like Teddy, their faces twitched before they caught sight of the second delivery guy appearing behind the first one.

"Miss Hayley Rogers?" called the second delivery guy.

"Don’t tell me..." Hayley whispered, her lips quivering. "... it’s still from Father?"

More than thankful, they now felt very concerned and terrified. This, after all, felt like a creepy stalker’s way of paying for their lives before taking them.

****

Meanwhile, in Penny’s office...

When Penny walked in, she quickly searched for Grace. The latter wasn’t on the couch where she usually would be. Rather, Grace was standing near the desk by the window, leaning against it.

Penny closed the door behind her. It clicked faintly, enough to reach Grace’s ears. However, Grace didn’t react and kept staring outside.

"Let me guess..." Penny hummed, placing her bag on top of her desk. "It’s Uncle Haines?"

Grace chuckled and looked back at her. "If I’m having boy problems, isn’t it more obvious for me to go to Allison and Jessa?"

Penny gasped in disbelief, hands on her chest. "Oh, my God. You just called my mother and auntie by their first names. That’s so weird."

"Haha. I’m kidding," Grace chuckled. "Though I must agree, it’s really weird because that’s not what I’m used to. At least, even when I hadn’t met your auntie in person and had only met your mother once."

Grace then pulled away from the window, marching over to Penny until she was at the other corner of her desk.

"This is not about that, Penny," said Grace, her smile fading as it slowly became solemn. "I’m taking Cassandra Smith’s case."