Chapter 4

"Sorry, Rina. I got so worked up. I thought you were heartbroken and that Scumstin had hit you." After returning to her place and getting the full story, Lauren finally managed to stop crying.

"But he's still horrible. You encountered a creep, and he was hanging around with his mistress? This kind of scumbag should be castrated and thrown into the sea!"

"Candice is his girlfriend," Serena said calmly.

"That's bullshit! She's Justin's girlfriend, so what does that make you?"

Serena's face looked faintly melancholic under the light. "Yeah, what does that make me? Probably just a pet he doesn't care about."

One he could call whenever and dismiss without a second thought. When he was done with her, he didn't even need to formally let her know.

"Forget Scumstin. Just think of it as all those years of real love wasted. There are plenty of men out there. You'll find someone new for sure."

Serena gave a faint smile. Right now, she had no desire to think about a new relationship.

After walking into the bathroom, she removed her rain-drenched clothes and took a quick shower. After that, she sat on the edge of the bed to dry her hair.

She often stayed over at Lauren's, so half of her things were here, which made it easier.

Just then, her phone rang on the bed. It was a message from Zane.

"Ms. Judd, Mr. Farrow has a meeting with a potential partner this afternoon. You need to join him. Please come back ASAP."

Serena picked up the phone, typed a response, and hit send. With that, she turned off her phone and lay down on the bed.

She hadn't slept well the night before, and now, with Justin's words still piercing her heart, she felt mentally and physically exhausted.

As soon as she pulled the thin blanket over her, Lauren came out of the bathroom.

While walking over, she chattered away with her phone in hand, "My dumb boss keeps asking me where I've been. I told him I had something urgent. Does he think the company can't run without me?"

"Laurie, just go to work if you're busy."

"I'm not busy. I'm staying here with you." Lauren crawled into bed beside her. "Rina, I know you seem calm on the outside, but I can tell you're hurting inside. Please don't do anything stupid."

"I'm not going to die over Justin. He doesn't deserve that kind of attention," Serena said.

"Exactly. If you died, he'd be able to enjoy his life with that mistress. You need to live until the day Justin's in the ground, and then we can dance on his grave!"

After a soft chuckle, Serena turned over and slowly closed her eyes.

Lauren lay down on the pillow and then sighed.

"Honestly, even though I don't like Scumstin, part of me always thought you'd end up marrying him. After all, that guy's been surrounded by women for so many years, but he never really cared about any of them.

"You know how your colleagues always say—endless girlfriends, but Ms. Judd always stays. It's been 19 years, Serena. You've known him for 19 years. How could that asshole hurt you like this?"

Lauren's voice faltered as she said the last part.

Turning around, she saw Serena lying with her back to her. Her long hair was spread out on the pillow. It looked like she had fallen asleep.

Lauren sniffled and held back the words she wanted to say.

Serena lay still, but her eyes were wide open. Her fingers clenched tightly beneath the blanket.

The ache in her chest grew stronger with each passing second.

Lauren was right. How could Justin do this to her?

…

It was well into the afternoon, and Serena still hadn't returned to Farrow Corporation.

Justin glanced down at the expensive watch on his wrist and grew more impatient by the minute. "Where is she?"

Zane hesitated before speaking. "Ms. Judd just messaged me."

"Tell her she has half an hour to get back here."

"She just sent in her resignation letter… She quit," Zane said.

Zane showed Justin the resignation letter from Serena.

As Justin glanced at the screen, his face darkened.

Was she trying to make her discontent known? This was a whole new level of tantrum. However, he wasn't falling for it.

Justin stood up. "Let's go."

"Where to, Mr. Farrow?" Zane asked.

"The meeting, of course."

Zane said anxiously, "But Ms. Judd isn't here."

Justin stopped in his tracks, his expression growing sharp. "You think this deal can't go through without Serena?"

"I didn't mean that. I'll go with you, Mr. Farrow." Zane hurriedly grabbed the materials and followed.

Serena had been the one handling this deal from the start, so without her, it wasn't going to go as smoothly.

But with her detailed prep, Zane could at least manage for the time being.

Suddenly, a soft voice interrupted, "Mr. Farrow."

Candice stepped up. "Since Serena's not here, I can go with you. I could learn something from the meeting."

Justin's voice softened. "Sure."

Zane froze for a second. Just as he wanted to protest, he saw Justin's expression, so he held back.

…

By evening, the rain had gotten heavier. Most of Nocturna was submerged under a downpour.

When Justin stepped out of the conference room, his face was even darker than the stormy sky.

Zane trailed behind him, apologizing, "I'm sorry, Mr. Farrow. I take full responsibility. I'll reach out to Daniel and ask him to give us another chance."

Justin tugged at his tie. Frustration boiled in his chest. "How can you mess up something this simple? Why am I even paying you?"

Zane lowered his head, too scared to speak.

What was supposed to be a one-hour international meeting dragged on for three.

Since Zane had taken over at the last minute, he sounded awkward during the presentation. Daniel Perez, their potential partner, began to lose patience.

While introducing the product, Candice pushed him aside and stepped forward to demonstrate the company's newly developed features.

However, she mispronounced several Velrithian technical terms, which led to an embarrassing moment.

Daniel was now questioning the company's competence, and the deal had been postponed.

As soon as the video call ended, Justin's face turned stormy.

Zane lowered his voice. "Mr. Farrow, Ms. Judd has always handled this project. I was in such a rush today, and I really wasn't prepared."

"You become a waste without Serena?" Justin shouted.

Zane didn't respond but glanced over at Candice, who was standing a short distance away.

If she hadn't stepped in, things wouldn't have gotten so messy. At least they might have gotten the contract signed.

"It's all my fault, Mr. Farrow." Candice's voice trembled. "I just wanted to help. I'm sorry."