Chapter 23
After Rachel brought Edward lunch twice, Cecilia became completely invisible to the department.
No one dared get too close to her, except Ariana.
"It's all my fault for opening my big mouth in the elevator that day," Ariana sighed. "Got you called out by the big boss in front of everyone. Now I'm branded as a 'Cecilia faction' traitor—my career prospects are looking grim."
Cecilia continued reviewing a contract on her screen, not even lifting her eyes.
"You can still escape," she said flatly. "Go pledge your loyalty to Ms. Thomas. Tell her you were deliberately trying to embarrass me that day."
"No way!" Ariana slapped the desk, then quickly covered her mouth. "You didn't do anything wrong."
Monday morning, Cecilia received an urgent call from Teddy: "Ms. Mellon, Mr. Clifford requests your immediate presence upstairs."
As Cecilia put down the phone, colleagues who had been pretending to work perked up their ears.
"What now?" Ariana peeked over the divider. "Don't tell me Ms. Hughes is stirring up trouble again?"
"No idea."
Cecilia headed to the elevator under the watchful eyes of the entire office, her expression revealing nothing.
On the top floor, the door to the CEO's office wasn't fully closed.
As Cecilia raised her hand to knock, she heard Rachel's voice from inside.
"Eddie, I've heard several reports of Cecilia at nightclubs, always surrounded by men. I was worried you didn't know."
Cecilia paused, then pushed the door open.
Edward sat behind his massive ebony desk, his expression dark. Rachel perched on the sofa across from him.
Seeing Cecilia enter, he spoke: "I gave you a card last week for your brother's medical expenses."
"Yes." A sense of foreboding rose in Cecilia's chest.
Edward turned his laptop around to face her.
"Log in," he commanded.
Cecilia's breath caught.
"Cecilia, don't blame Eddie," Rachel interjected smoothly. "People are saying you're using his money to keep other men, all under the pretense of your brother's medical bills... And that perfume you were wearing—Eddie never uses that scent."
Her insinuations were vague but effectively painted Cecilia as keeping lovers with Edward's money.
Cecilia finally understood.
"You suspect I've misappropriated your funds?" she asked, her voice remarkably steady.
Edward impatiently tapped his knuckles on the desk. "I only care about results."
Humiliation crawled from the depths of her heart, wrapping around her until she could barely breathe.
She had signed that agreement, sold herself.
So now she deserved to be treated like a criminal, forced to expose her financial privacy in front of another woman.
Her account balance and recent transactions appeared clearly on the screen.
Edward's gaze swept over them, landing on the single large expenditure.
Recipient: Serenity Health Center.
The amount matched exactly what her brother needed for his next phase of treatment.
Besides that, every transaction was ordinary—convenience stores, cafeteria meals, subway fares.
Edward withdrew his gaze. Rachel, who had clearly seen the screen too, quickly pivoted: "I knew those rumors couldn't be true. Cecilia would never do something like that."
Cecilia stood up, looking down at Rachel's carefully performed expression.
"Ms. Hughes."
"Yes?"
"You performed your role well today, but unfortunately, the script was lacking."
Rachel's face instantly soured.
Cecilia turned to Edward.
"Mr. Clifford," she said with a tight smile, "now that you've completed your investigation, may I leave? Or would you like me to print out my PayPal and Venmo statements too, so you can verify every single transaction?"
Her gaze was direct and cold.
"That won't be necessary."
"Good," Cecilia nodded. "Mr. Clifford, to my knowledge, our contract doesn't stipulate that I must disclose my personal finances to anyone at any time."
Her voice was soft. "This is the first time. I hope it's also the last."
With that, she opened the door and walked out.
Rachel stood frozen, her expression utterly dark.
She hadn't expected Cecilia to speak to her that way, much less dare to mock Edward.
She wanted to say something to salvage the situation.
"Get out."
Edward's gaze was cold as ice.
Rachel opened her mouth, but whatever she'd planned to say died on her tongue. She obeyed and left.
After she was gone, Edward rubbed his temples.
The results were as he expected, but surprisingly, he felt unusually irritated.
Why?
---
That afternoon, Teddy arrived at the legal department. Everyone instinctively perked up.
He stopped at Cecilia's desk.
"Ms. Mellon, the company is hosting a business dinner next Thursday evening. Mr. Clifford requires you to attend as his companion."
The announcement was met with what sounded like a chorus of jaws hitting the floor.
Ariana's eyes widened as she excitedly kicked Cecilia's chair under the desk.
Before Cecilia could process this news, an even more significant figure graced the legal department the next day.
Rachel, dressed in a high-end business suit, had cake distributed to everyone.
She asked with feigned casualness, "It's so hard to choose a dress for Thursday's dinner. I had several pieces flown in, but none seem worthy of Eddie. What do you think—the silver stardust gown or the white feathered one?"
Having enjoyed her cake, the staff eagerly flattered her.
"Ms. Hughes looks gorgeous in anything!"
"Definitely the stardust one—standing next to Mr. Clifford, you two are a match made in heaven!"
Amid the chorus of compliments, Rachel smiled with satisfaction before turning to Cecilia with mock surprise. "Oh, Cecilia, you probably won't be attending such an event, right? People in our circle don't really welcome mistresses."
Before Cecilia could respond, Rachel received a phone call. Her voice instantly softened, "Eddie? I'm in the legal department. I'm still looking at dresses, trying to find the perfect one to accompany you... What?"
Her voice shot up, then quickly lowered again: "You've already chosen someone? Cecilia?"
Rachel gripped her phone, scanning the office to find that no one looked surprised.
They all knew this news before she did.
Had she just made a fool of herself?
Rachel's expression twisted momentarily before she forced another perfect smile:
"So Eddie chose you because he's worried about my health? Look at him, not even telling me in advance after all my preparation."
Cecilia didn't even raise an eyebrow.
Seeing her complete indifference made Rachel feel even more awkward.
Her eyes darted around, then she suddenly linked arms with Cecilia, as affectionate as a sister.