Part 48

The three of them walked toward an empty table led by Claire, and once again Bella asked, "Why did you reject him? Was he really that ugly back then?" She inquired, showing no concern for Claire's feelings.

Harry smiled, glancing at Claire sitting beside him, then shook his head. "She's beautiful. She's always been beautiful," he said sincerely. "I rejected her because I was embarrassed," he added, his face turning red.

"Embarrassed? Were you embarrassed, or were you actually scared because she's a scary girl?" Bella asked again, ignoring the nudge from Claire under the table.

"Scary?" Harry asked in confusion, furrowing his brow. "What's scary about her?" he queried, baffled. "Claire is a nice person. But I think she's too smart, and that made me insecure since she and Gladwin were always the best in class," he continued.

"But do you actually like her?" Bella pressed, receiving a nod from Harry. "What about now? Do you still like her?" Bella asked, making Harry glance at Claire shyly. "Well, if you both are still single, you should just date," Bella suggested casually. "You're still single, right?" she asked, incorrectly following up her previous question.

Harry chuckled. "Of course I still like her. If not, I wouldn't be here now," he replied.

"Are you sure you're still single? I'm afraid there's a pregnant woman waiting for you at home," Bella joked, which Harry denied with a shake of his head.

"There's no one waiting for me at home, but maybe I could bring someone to my place," Harry joked back.

"Claire, did you hear that? Instead of dating some guy you don't know, why not date him? That way, your mom won't have to keep asking who your boyfriend is," Bella teased.

Claire looked at her friend with narrowed eyes. But instead of quieting down, Bella laughed happily.

Their conversation shifted to various topics without a clear theme. They returned to the office as lunchtime came to an end. Just like when they left, they ran into Antony and the audit team leader again. The three of them politely greeted their two superiors before entering the elevator.

"So what's the verdict? Have you decided to date?" Bella suddenly asked Harry.

Harry furrowed his brow at the sudden return to the topic of his relationship with Claire. He glanced at Claire briefly, but she merely looked back at him with one hand raised, drawing a diagonal line on her forehead, indirectly indicating that Bella had lost her mind. Harry was about to laugh but held back as the elevator door opened again.

"Dinner together?" he asked before heading toward the meeting room, where his team was ready to continue working.

In the late afternoon, Claire suddenly felt a headache. Her body also ached for no reason. Even her stomach felt uncomfortable while she was sitting. She sensed something was off with her body but chose to ignore it, as she was still busy with the mountain of reports. Later, she would ask Gladwin to check her out and prescribe some medicine if necessary.

Meanwhile, the dinner plans that Harry had arranged were abruptly canceled when the audit team leader decided that they had to work overtime that night to finish the reports as soon as possible. This frustrated the admin staff.

After the sun set, they were all surprised by a delivery of food set up on a long table near the door. Catering meals packed in boxes, cold drinks in cups, and snacks in another box made Bella exclaim and quickly grab her share. At the same time, Claire stood frozen, looking at all the food. She wasn't interested in any of it; she just wanted to go home and lie down as soon as possible.

"Aren't you hungry?" Bella asked when she saw her friend continuing to work and ignoring her meal. Claire shook her head and even pushed her food box closer to Bella, allowing her friend to eat it if she wanted.

At ten o'clock at night, the team leader finally dismissed them. Claire wanted to cheer in delight but held herself back. Bella had been packing up since earlier because her work was finished, and so was Claire's. They remained in the office since the team leader instructed them to stay, fearing they might need something.

The limited capacity of the elevator forced them to line up. Claire didn't want to take the stairs because she already felt dizzy and tired. So she chose to be the last one to leave.

"Are you okay?" asked the cleaning staff on duty with a worried tone.

Bella, still in her position, turned and observed Claire carefully. Claire just smiled and nodded her head slowly. It felt as if her head were being hammered by dozens of tiny invisible nails at that moment. Even her body began to feel hot and cold at the same time. However, Claire chose to pretend she was fine.

"Your face is pale," the cleaning staff reiterated what was on her mind.

"Maybe it's just because I'm too tired," Claire replied soothingly. But Bella moved her chair closer and deliberately placed the back of her hand on Claire's forehead.

"You're warm. Are you sure you're okay?" Bella frowned with concern, and Claire continued to smile reassuringly. She reached for Bella's wrist and lowered her hand. "Your hand is just as warm," Bella exclaimed worriedly.

"I'm fine," Claire answered softly. She stood up, grabbed her bag, and began walking toward the now-empty elevator. Only Claire and Bella remained in the room, with the rest being cleaning staff busy with their work. However, in another room, Shelly, their CEO, and the audit team leader were still present, not yet having left for the day.

They had just stepped into the elevator when a voice startled them with its call. "Hold the door!" Claire and Bella turned around simultaneously to see Shelly hurrying toward them. "Please hold the door for a moment," the middle-aged woman commanded.

Instinctively, Claire pressed the open button in the elevator so that Shelly and the two people walking behind her could enter.

"Are you just leaving, too? We thought you had left a while ago," Shelly said, making small talk.

"We were waiting for the elevator to be empty," Bella replied on behalf of herself and Claire.

"Are you okay?" Shelly glanced at Claire as Antony and the audit team leader stepped into the elevator.

"She's not okay. She's sad because her dinner plans got canceled," Bella teased, causing Claire to roll her eyes at her friend's chatter.

"Dinner with who? A special someone?" Shelly asked, curious, and Bella responded with an enthusiastic nod. "Are you dating someone?" Shelly inquired again, and once more Bella nodded her head. "Who? Do I know him? Does he work here?"

"Technically, yes. But for the official news, I'll let you know later," Bella continued ambiguously.

Shelly nodded with a mischievous smile on her face. The elevator doors opened, and they waited for Antony and the audit team leader to walk out first, followed by Shelly, Bella, and lastly Claire.

"Do you want me to give you a ride home?" Bella offered, which Claire answered with a shake of her head. Her head was still throbbing, and shaking it caused her to lose focus. "Why not? It's already late, and you didn't drive."

Claire shook her head again. She didn't want to make Bella tired by having to drop her off at home and then head back to her own apartment in the opposite direction. "Unless you plan on staying at my place, I will decline your ride offer," she replied.

Bella squinted her eyes and then shook her head. "I'll only drive you home, but I can't stay over."

"That's okay. I can take a taxi home."

"Then I'll wait for your taxi to arrive." Bella insisted because she was worried about Claire's condition.

"Don't wait for me. I know you're tired. Go home first; I'll wait here with the security staff," Claire insisted. Bella glanced at the security post and then nodded in resignation.

"If anything happens, call me immediately," she ordered. Claire nodded, and Bella walked away toward where her car was parked.

Claire chose to sit in the waiting area. The security guard, who was reading a newspaper, smiled politely at her. When she opened her phone to order a taxi through an app, someone suddenly stood towering in front of her.

"Come on, I'll give you a ride home," he said. Claire looked up and frowned immediately. What the man had just said wasn't an invitation; it was a command that needed to be followed by a subordinate.