Chapter 452

Bernadette screamed at Evelyn mercilessly.

Evelyn's face burned with humiliation, but she had no choice but to endure the verbal assault. She had made a mistake, after all.

She wanted to slap herself for such a careless error—one that could have had disastrous consequences.

How could I be so distracted? After all this time working here, how did I let this happen?

Clenching her fists, Evelyn forced herself to meet Bernadette's furious gaze. "I'm sorry, Bernadette. I swear this won't happen again. Please give me another chance."

Bernadette scoffed, her voice dripping with disdain. "You think your looks and connections make you untouchable? Just because you have someone backing you doesn't mean you can slack off. My department isn't a charity for incompetents like you!"

Olivia couldn't take it anymore.

She shot up from her seat, eyes blazing. "Bernadette, everyone here knows Evelyn's track record. She's been nothing but dedicated since she joined. In six months, she hasn’t made a single mistake—until now. And let’s not forget how many clients her designs have brought in. You’re acting like she’s some useless intern!"

Abigail stood as well, crossing her arms. "The higher-ups are well aware of Evelyn’s contributions. But you? You’re tearing her apart over one slip-up. Meanwhile, other new hires have messed up way worse, and you never humiliated them like this."

Her words carried a sharp edge.

It was true—every new designer at T Corporation made mistakes at some point. Bernadette usually reprimanded them, but never with this level of cruelty.

If an outsider walked in, they’d think Evelyn and Bernadette were sworn enemies, not colleagues.

Olivia and Abigail fired off their arguments like rapid gunfire.

They knew speaking out against their boss was risky. Bernadette could dock their pay, make their lives miserable—or worse, get them fired.

But they didn’t care.

For one, Evelyn had Dominic’s backing. More importantly, they knew she was an asset to the team. Seeing her publicly shamed for a single error was unacceptable.

The entire design department had stopped working to watch the drama unfold.

Everyone knew Evelyn was involved with Mr. Blackwood.

So why was Bernadette daring to scream at her like this? Was she trying to get fired?

Bernadette’s face twisted in fury at being challenged. "Oh, so now you’re all ganging up on me? Defending incompetence instead of correcting it?"

With that, she slammed a folder onto a desk and stormed toward Vivienne’s office—only to find it empty.

Fuming, Bernadette hated Evelyn even more. And now, she despised Olivia and Abigail too.

Once Bernadette was gone, the office slowly returned to work.

Olivia turned to Evelyn, baffled. "Why didn’t you fight back? You just let her walk all over you!"

Evelyn gave a tired smile. "I messed up. I deserved the criticism."

Abigail opened her mouth to argue, but seeing Evelyn’s defeated expression, she nudged Olivia to drop it.

They gave Evelyn space to collect herself.

Evelyn couldn’t shake the feeling that something bad was coming.

That unease had distracted her, leading to the mistake.

She tried to refocus, but her mind kept wandering. For the first time, she considered going to Dominic’s office.

Usually, he was the one who summoned her.

Should she go?

Finally, she decided to text him.

She scrolled through a cute sticker pack and sent him a playful GIF with "Love and Kisses" written in bold letters.

But even that didn’t lift her mood.

Meanwhile, in the CEO’s office...

Vivienne stood before Dominic’s desk, delivering her report on the Western Europe projects.

"Mr. Blackwood, the deals are finalized. Last month, my team secured a $700 million contract with the British AC Design Group. A strong start to the year."

Dominic nodded. "Impressive. Name your reward—within reason, of course."

He always rewarded excellence.

Vivienne hesitated, then took a breath. "I’d like to be transferred back to headquarters. Permanently."

She’d worked tirelessly, not just to prove herself, but to return to him.

Her desperate gaze locked onto his, making him narrow his eyes slightly.

Why was she so eager to come back?

Then, a memory surfaced—the lace panties mysteriously appearing in his car months ago.

The incident had nearly destroyed his relationship with Evelyn.

His voice turned probing. "Ms. Laurent, the last time you were in my car... did you leave anything behind?"

Vivienne’s pulse spiked.

Does he know?