Chapter 185

Chapter 185 I offered a textbook HR–approved smile.“No objections, Mr. Jones.”

Zach also replied, “Me neither.”

What mortal dares object? He always does as he pleased.

Evan’s eyes darkened slightly. His gaze lingered for a moment on my overly fake smile like acid testing counterfeit gold.

After a while, he waved his hand.“Fine. Off you guys go.”

Zach and I turned to leave. We were nearly at the door when his voice halted us again.“We’re working overtime tonight. Zach, order dinner. Olivia, bring your laptop to my office later.”

་་ ་

Our eyes met in silent despair. Is this corporate marathon ever going to end? I wondered if Mr. Wayne had left yet–we desperately needed his pills for this soul–crushing grind.

“Steel yourself,” Zach muttered in the hallway.“Mr. Jones will keep us past midnight.”

I smiled faintly.“I’m not afraid of overtime.”

It’s overtime with him that frays my nerves.

I rubbed my temples. With my stress levels spiking, I poured myself another cup of coffee. After drinking it, my stomach rebelled.

Dusk gradually settled, and the lights of the city flickered on, illuminating the most dazzling and extravagant urban landscape.

The food arrived. Zach placed it in the outer rest area. Except for drinks, Mr. Jones didn’t allow any other food in his office.

Anyone who dared to eat snacks or leave crumbs in his office would be reprimanded severely.

“Get Olivia to join us,” Evan said casually to Zach.

“Okay, I’ll go get her.”

Zach went to my office and asked me to have dinner with them. I grimaced.“...Actually, I’m on a diet.”

Zach gave me a knowing look. Who would want to eat with their boss? The terror was comparable to eating with a headmaster.

He tried to persuade me,“Just nibble something. Otherwise he’ll send a memo about team cohesion.”

The lounge hummed with uneasy silence as the three of us sat down. I took a container of steamed rice and picked at it like a forensic analyst dissecting evidence. The coffee’s acidic aftermath turned each grain into lead pellets..

“Loss of appetite, Olivia?” Evan glanced at my barely–touched rice.

“...A little bit. Maybe it’s because I had some cookies earlier,” I shoveled a tactical mouthful to shut down inquiries.

That was a mistake. Forced swallowing triggered gastric warfare. By the fifth performative bite, my stomach staged a coup.

Why did I have to eat!

Annoyed by myself, I slammed the chopsticks down. “I’m finished. Enjoy your meal.“.

I returned to my office.

Evan also put down his chopsticks, the atmosphere inexplicably tense. He coldly looked at Zach, who was eating heartily.“You enjoy it?”

Zach’s noodle–slurping halted mid—sip.“It’s decent... You praised this place last week, so I-”

“Don’t order from here again. Add it to the blacklist.”

Evan wiped his mouth with a napkin and got up to leave.

Zach was speechless.

He took another bite of the crab roe noodles.

It’s quite delicious!

I went back to have some water, hoping to soothe my stomach, but it only amplified the gastric uprising. The liquid sloshed like storm surges against a seawall. I pressed a fist below my ribs, cursing the obedient fool who’d forced down that rice.

My mood was gloomy. Seeing that it was almost time, I took my laptop and went to the CEO’s office. His office had a desk and a set of sofas. I sat on the sofa.

Evan first gave me a pile of work, then another, and another. I had just finished the financial reports when the legal documents were handed over...

I squeezed two drops of eye drops into my stinging eyes. The instant the liquid hit my pupils, Evan’s voice sliced through the quiet.