Chapter 2

"Ethan, does the company's management protocol include confiscating a project applicant's ID without their consent?"

The voice of the compliance manager came through the phone.

Ethan froze, then took my passport out of his jacket and tossed it back into the folder.

"Mr. Whitfield's misunderstood. We're engaged. This is just a family matter."

"Whether it's a family matter is for Nora to decide. Until midnight tonight, no one is to interfere with her application."

I picked up my passport and wheeled the suitcase out the door.

Ethan didn't follow. He only called after me coldly:

"You'll come back and beg me."

The next morning, I went to the office to submit the hard copies.

But the review secretary pushed them back.

"Nora, your project record is incomplete. The lead on the Marrakech hotel project has been changed to Chloe."

I froze.

That was the project my team and I had ground out over fourteen months, and it was the most important credential for the overseas posting.

Sure enough, in the system, the "Project Lead" field had been changed from my name to Chloe's.

Time of modification: one in the morning.

Approver: Ethan.

Chloe walked in on her heels and set a cup of coffee on my desk.

"Nora, don't take it the wrong way. Ethan said I just came back to the country and need an achievement to establish myself. Besides, you're about to marry into the Grants. Does it really matter whose name is on it?"

"Did you even work on that project?"

"I helped Ethan pick the fragrance for the hotel lobby. That counts as participation, right?"

She said it without a flicker of shame.

Ethan came in shortly after and gave me a light glance.

"The lead change is just an internal adjustment. The project bonus is still yours. Don't make an ugly scene."

I asked, "Why didn't you tell me beforehand?"

"If I told you, would you have agreed?"

"No."

"Then there was no point in telling you."

He pulled out the chair at the head of the table and gestured for the secretary to continue with the meeting.

The screen displayed the Dubai project candidate shortlist.

My name was at the bottom.

Chloe's was at the top.

The secretary explained awkwardly:

"Ethan proposed adding executive endorsement to the selection process. Chloe's résumé is somewhat weaker, but Ethan is willing to vouch for her."

Around the table, people murmured.

"Nora's worked on this for so long—why is she stepping aside for a newcomer?"

"One's the ex, one's the fiancée. Who knows how Ethan's balancing things."

Chloe stood up, her cheeks flushed.

"Please, don't misunderstand. Nora is very capable. It's just that she's getting married soon and isn't suited for a long overseas post. I didn't take anything from her. Ethan just thought I needed the opportunity more."

Every sentence sounded more considerate than the last.

And every sentence cemented the idea that I was stepping aside for marriage.

Ethan didn't stop her.

He even flipped my prepared proposal to the last page and slid it over to Chloe.

"Chloe will lead the afternoon pre-review. You'll assist her with the data."

I pressed my hand down on the document.

"This is my proposal."

"Proposals produced with company resources belong to the company."

"So anyone can put their name on it?"

Ethan tapped his fingertip against the table.

"Nora, you've been emotionally unsteady lately. I'm protecting you—keeping you from botching the pre-review and dragging the whole team down."

I suddenly remembered, two years ago.

The first time I gave a solo presentation, I was so nervous I didn't sleep a wink.

He'd sat in the back row of the conference room and told me:

"Don't be afraid. Results never fail those who truly earn them."

Turns out results can fail you too.

All it takes is someone swapping the name on them.

I let go of the document and nodded.

"Alright."

Chloe's eyes lit up.

"Nora, I knew you'd see the big picture."

That afternoon, during the pre-review, she read from my script until page three and got stuck when a client asked her a question.

"What are the underlying parameters of the supply chain risk model for the Middle East region?"

Chloe went pale and instinctively glanced at me.

Ethan messaged me under the table.

Answer her. Don't hold the company hostage over hurt feelings.

I turned off my phone and said, calmly,

"I apologize. I'm only here as a support staff member. I don't have the authority to answer for the lead."

The client closed the file.

"Someone who can't even explain the logic of her own proposal isn't fit to lead an overseas posting."

After the meeting, Ethan cornered me in the pantry.

"You deliberately embarrassed her?"

"Isn't she the lead?"

"Nora Sinclair, I gave you a way out, and you insisted on jumping off the ledge?"

He put a personnel notice in front of me.

Starting tomorrow, I was being transferred out of the project center to the corporate events team for a three-month handover.

At the bottom of the notice was a single line:

Overseas candidate eligibility: under review, suspended.