Keeping his temper in check, Simon asked, "What do I have to do for you to accept a private settlement?"Cordy sneered. "Why are you so eager to settle it privately? I'd be half-dead if John Levine didn't take that blow for me.""I know you suffered, but I'm doing this for Starstream Group," Simon said, his tone turning soft gradually. "It's going to affect the company negatively if this gets out, and we're still family, right? I naturally feel sentiment for Starstream after working there for so many years—I don't want our scores of employees to get hurt over this."Cordy sneered again—despite Simon's pretty words, he was just afraid that they would connect the incident to him.Still, she relented. "Well, since you've put it that way, it's not as if I can't settle it privately.""Really?" Simon was clearly thrilled."But I have several conditions.""What conditions?""Firstly, the culprit must cover all of John's medical expenses, including the fee for his medication, his hospi
Noel had called Simon immediately after she left Cordy's office before driving straight to the hospital where John was staying.She had certainly been waiting for this day.Without any chance to get close to John and worried that she might repulse him, she now had the perfect excuse to approach him after he was hospitalized.And when it came to men, she had always bewitched them with relative ease.She knocked on the bedroom door and entered, a bouquet of flowers in her hand and a bright smile on her face. Seeing the man who was ridiculously handsome even as he lay in bed, she greeted him. "Hello, Mr. Levine."John, however, was looking at her coolly, so she quickly introduced herself. "I'm Noel Sachs, Cordy's sister.""Same father, different mother," John added.It left Noel feeling a little awkward, but she soon regained her composure. "You see, my sister is busy, so she sent me here to visit you. Also, allow me to apologize on behalf of Starstream Group after one of the wor
Noel was left frozen stiff for a moment, but she quickly changed her expression, looking miserable and teary-eyed. "I'm so sorry," she said. "I didn't know you were allergic to lilies—I'll be careful next time.""I'm not allergic to lilies—I'm allergic to you," John said icily, every word a threat. "Just be careful not to show your face around me."Noel's face abruptly turned pale.She could not believe what she was hearing!No man had insulted her like that ever since she was a child, because they all loved her shy, delicate nature…It must be Cordy's fault! John must have said that for her benefit! Still, Noel withstood her distress and picked up the bouquet of lilies before running out of the ward.Cordy watched as Noel left, and she must admit that she felt a little exhilarated.Boys would hover around Noel ever since they started attending school, and Cordy had no idea why they all liked Noel so much.Did the scent of hypocrisy not stink enough? In fact, Cordy felt
Cordy stayed in John's ward, keeping him company while working on her laptop—there was still a lot of work to do.She was so engrossed on the occasion that she did not hear what John was saying. Still, he did not disturb her, even picking up an apple nearby and starting to peel it.Randy Martin was just passing by when he happened upon the scene, his jaw dropping right then!Who was the patient there?! To think that his boss was quite the domestic goddess!Still, he quickly fled, afraid to disturb them just then.Meanwhile, Cordy was still reviewing several letters asking for instructions. Then, she suddenly spotted the plate of peeled apple slices beside her laptop, and each had a toothpick as a skewer. She picked one up and ate it offhandedly.It had been a while since she had apples, and she almost forgot that they could be so sweet. And after the first slice, she took a second, her eyes fixed on the screen… until she realized something unusual while eating.There was
Before Cordy could speak, John added sharply, "And don't tell me you weren't being distant. I have a heart; I can feel it."In other words, he was telling her not to lie to him. Cordy stared at him in silence for a while before asking, "I thought you knew?""No, I don't," he replied, not bothered to play around."I don't believe in love, and I've rejected you before already," Cordy said, lowering her gaze in fear of meeting him. "It's just your stubbornness talking."She did not want to admit that it was because of Zoe York.There would be no 'other woman' if he never wanted to be with her."So you mean to say that my effort was bearing fruit, which was why you're deliberately distancing yourself?" John asked, as if to confirm it.Cordy was taken aback, but she admitted it with her silence. What other reason was there?!John was too dangerous—she must not get too involved with him."So, I failed to offer you a sense of security," John said. "I will restrain myself as best
Noel was left staring fixedly at Cordy, completely unable to read the latter's mind. Noel had presumed that Cordy had asked for her to talk about her visit to John's ward. She doubted that Cordy would not know what she was up to, and she was not even hiding it.Naturally, Noel could not admit it… but the issue was that Cordy had not mentioned it at all! And it was impossible that Cordy didn’t mind it!Cordy of all people would know that men always hovered around Noel ever since they were children, but now, all she talked about was work.Most importantly, Cordy had done everything she could so that both Fabian and Dean were ousted. That was just to ensure that Cordy herself could take charge of production, was it not? Cordy obviously knew that those men were loyal to Simon and would not really work for her.And yet, Cordy was delegating all authority on production to Noel, who would unquestionably side with Simon. That meant all of Cordy's efforts were wasted, no? Had her brai
Be that as it may, none of the heads of departments and executives believed that Cordy was stupid after working for her for a while.But before they could speculate about Cordy's thought process, she proceeded to the next agenda. "It has been over two months since I've come to Starstream, and thanks to everyone's help—especially my sister Noel—I'm now familiar with the company's operations and management. For that, I thank everyone here."No one applauded her—not even Noel—even if Cordy was clearly being nice to her.Even so, Cordy continued nonchalantly. "Having grown to learn about this company, I've also noticed certain glitches, which naturally means that we need to fix them. As such, I'm announcing a complete shuffle of positions—and that includes everyone here."Her words sent the conference room into an uproar.Shuffling positions was a huge deal, but Cordy said it as if it meant nothing!"And now, I will present the list of personnel to be shuffled—of course, if anyone he
Noel was in shambles.It took her great difficulty to finally send the disgruntled employees congesting her office away. However, just as she prepared to leave work, Hank intercepted her at the door!Flinging his phone straight at her desk, he bellowed, "Noel Sachs! I've been completely loyal and did everything your father and you asked of me! But now, I'm losing my job just because Cordy Sachs said so?! You better explain yourself, or I'm not letting you out this door!" Left utterly terrified by Hank's outburst, Noel scrambled to get her phone and ask for help. However, even though she could unlock her phone, Hank snatched it out of her hands."Calm down, Mr. Rogers!" Noel quickly tried to calm him down. "I really didn't know you would be shuffled, and I have no idea why my sister did it. She never told me about it beforehand, and I would've stopped her if I knew—""Quit lying to me! I finally got it now… It's all a conspiracy by your family!" Hank snarled viciously, completel