"I have my own arrangements," I replied and hung up the phone.

Then, I glanced at my watch. There were fewer than 24 hours left until the three-year term was up.

I took a cab to Terrell Tower.

The entire building was pitch black.

Everyone in the company had already gone home. Only Wesley Hanson was still sitting at his desk, fully absorbed, eyes fixed on the screen.

He was so focused that he hadn't even noticed the coffee by his hand had long gone cold.

I remembered him because he was the true technical backbone of Terrell Group and the only person who had actually done any real work over the past three years.

But to keep power from slipping out of his hands, Geoffrey had deliberately kept Wesley under his thumb the whole time.

All the dirty, grueling work fell on Wesley's shoulders, yet all the credit went to Geoffrey.

Geoffrey had even gone so far as to withhold Wesley's year-end bonus from the previous year just to pressure him into signing a non-compete agreement, effectively trying to box him in and lock him down in that role.

Before, since the company belonged to Geoffrey, it wasn't my place to interfere. The best I could do was find roundabout ways to slip Wesley some extra money on the side.

But now…

"Ms. Bennett, what brings you here?"

Seeing me, Wesley set down his pen and rose to his feet, looking somewhat startled.

"The bug's almost fixed. Please just don't tell Mr. Terrell or dock my pay. My mom is still in the hospital."

The ones doing the real work walked on thin ice, while the ones putting on a show basked in boundless glory. Why should those who work hard be trampled upon?

I pulled over a chair and, after sitting down, placed the documents on the desk.

"You don't have to fix the bug anymore."

Wesley froze. "What?"

"You designed Terrell Group's system architecture and wrote the underlying code—not to mention Geoffrey's so-called smart algorithm is actually your patent, isn't it?"

Wesley fell silent for a moment, his back straight and rigid.

"How much does he pay you?" I asked.

"Fifteen thousand dollars," Wesley replied in a low but steady voice. "But Mr. Terrell said he would give me stock options—"

"Nothing but empty promises," I said with a cold laugh. "Geoffrey has already prepared your termination letter. As soon as the bell-ringing ceremony is over tomorrow, he plans to fire you on the grounds of leaking technical secrets, and you won't see a cent of severance."

Wesley furrowed his brows deeply.

"That's impossible! I've given ten years of my life to this company."

"Nothing's impossible. In his eyes, you're just a useful tool. And once a tool has served its purpose, it's only natural to toss it away."

I pointed to the documents on the table.

"Take a look at this."

Wesley reached for the papers, and after just one glance, his entire body went rigid.

"Equity transfer agreement? The transferee… Wesley Hanson?"

He looked at me, eyes wide with shock.

"Ms. Bennett, what is the meaning of this? How is it that you hold equity in Terrell Group?"

I leaned back in my chair and looked at Wesley calmly.

"Geoffrey sits in that position because I allowed him to. Now that I'm no longer allowing it, that seat is yours. Managing people is easy, whereas true technical talent is rare.

"Terrell Group can run just fine without Geoffrey, but without you, it'll be nothing more than a pile of scrap metal by tomorrow. Sign this, and you'll be the one sitting in the main seat at tomorrow's bell-ringing ceremony.

"Why should those parasites who've been feeding off your blood get to live so well?"

Wesley was gripping the fountain pen so hard that his fingers turned slightly pale.

"Can I really do this? Mr. Terrell always says I only understand the technical side, that I'm not fit for the spotlight. I—"

"If I say you can, then you can," I interjected.

Wesley took a deep breath, and his gaze gradually grew resolute and sharp.

"Thank you, Ms. Bennett. I'll sign the agreement."

He was no fool.

After all these years at the company, he could of course see that it wasn't that good-for-nothing Geoffrey who was holding the place up. What he hadn't expected, though, was that the one truly behind it all was me, the woman who had all along been mocked as a gold-digger.

"Great." I gathered up the documents. "A stylist will pick you up tomorrow. Remember—as of tomorrow, you're the CEO of Terrell Group, so hold your head high."

At noon the next day, Geoffrey woke from his hangover, his head splitting with pain.

Out of habit, he shouted, "Water!"

But no one answered.

His hangover had his head pounding like a drum. He cracked open his eyes in irritation, only to find no hangover cure nor a suit laid out beside the bed.

His temper flared even hotter.

"Kayla, are you dead or something?"

Geoffrey stormed out of the bedroom barefoot, and it was only upon seeing the unfamiliar surroundings that he remembered he had stayed at a hotel last night with Valerie and Jennifer. In other words, he wasn't at home.

Thus, he immediately grabbed his phone to call me. After all, I was always at his beck and call. But the call went unanswered. He called again—still no answer.

"That useless woman! I must've gone too easy on her for her to treat me like this!" Geoffrey said, slamming his phone down onto the couch.

Just then, Valerie and Jennifer emerged from the room.

"What's wrong, Geoffrey? What's got you all worked up so early in the morning?"

"That useless woman has disappeared. She didn't prepare breakfast or arrange the car for us!" Geoffrey replied through gritted teeth.

Valerie let out a derisive laugh and sauntered over, wrapping her arms around him.

"She's just trying to get your attention by playing hard to get."

Jennifer sidled up to him as well.

"Exactly. Geoffrey, have you checked Instagram? I just saw someone post that they spotted someone who looked like Kayla buying a multi-million-dollar watch at the Patek Philippe boutique."

Geoffrey was taken aback. "She bought a watch?"

"Yeah, think about it—what could she possibly do without you? She obviously bought the watch as a peace offering for you. But after we riled her up last night, she's probably wrestling with her pride right now."

Geoffrey's expression immediately softened at this, and a smug smile even crept across his lips.

"Glad she's come to her senses," he said with a scoff. "What did I tell you? Without me, she can't even put food on the table. There's no way she'd actually have the guts to leave me."

He picked up his phone and typed, "Seeing as you've bought the watch to make amends, I'll let what happened last night slide. I'll give the watch to Mr. Carr later, so you'd better box it up nicely and get back here to drive us to the ceremony. Don't you dare make me late."

He pressed send, but the message to me showed only one gray tick.

Geoffrey exploded with rage, cursing furiously.

"Kayla actually dared to block me?"

Valerie quickly pressed him down.

"Oh, come on, she's just having a meltdown. Her pride's hurt, and she's waiting for you to sweet-talk her. I bet she's already outside the venue right now with the watch, waiting for you to forgive her. Let's just get going."

Geoffrey thought it over and decided it made sense.

"Fine, let her put on her little act a while longer. Just wait till we get to the venue—I'll show her what's what."

By evening, luxury cars crowded the entrance of Hallford Hotel for Terrell Group's IPO bell-ringing ceremony.

Geoffrey, in a bespoke suit, made a grand entrance with Valerie on one arm and Jennifer on the other.

However, the moment the three of them approached the entrance to the banquet hall, they were stopped by two towering security guards.

"Excuse me, sir, please present your invitations."

Geoffrey's smile froze instantly.

"I'm the CEO of Terrell Group. Why do I need an invitation to enter my own event?"

The security guard's expression remained blank, showing not the slightest intention of yielding.

"Our apologies, but the CEO of Terrell Group is already inside. Unauthorized personnel are not permitted to enter."

At these words, all three of them stood stunned.

"The CEO of Terrell Group? Geoffrey is standing right here. Who else could it be?" Jennifer asked with a frown.

Geoffrey gave a cold laugh.

"I don't care who he is. If someone's got the nerve to impersonate me, they're done in this city."

Just as he was about to force his way in, a black Rolls-Royce slowly pulled up at the end of the red carpet.

I stepped out of the car in a black evening gown with a plunging neckline. The Patek Philippe on my wrist gleamed with particular harshness under the lights.

Geoffrey's eyes lit up the instant he saw me, only to shift into rage a split second later.

He rushed over, pointing at the watch on my wrist, and shouted, "Didn't I say this watch was for Mr. Carr? Who said you can wear it? As if you even deserve it! Take it off right now. If you get it dirty and Mr. Carr doesn't want it anymore, can you even begin to make up for it?"

Valerie and Jennifer followed closely behind, piling on with their snide mocking.

"Kayla, the bell-ringing ceremony is about to start. It's not like you're the one going in with Geoffrey, so what are you getting all dressed up for?"

"Hurry up and give the watch to Geoffrey, then take us in. Do that, and we'll let what happened last night slide."

They slept with my husband right under my nose, and now they were the ones saying they'd let it slide?

How utterly ridiculous.

But Geoffrey's tone was just as condescending, and his face was filled with self-righteous entitlement.

"Kayla, this is your last chance. Swap out these clueless security guards right now, and I'll forgive you for blocking me."

I adjusted my cuff, a flicker of amusement in my eyes.

"You'll forgive me? Geoffrey, are you still dreaming?"

"What's that supposed to mean? You—"

Just then, the grand doors of the banquet hall slowly swung open, and a steady, commanding voice rang out from within.

"I am the CEO of Terrell Group. Whatever Ms. Bennett does, it is not your place to forgive."

Geoffrey whipped his head around.

Out came Wesley in a dark blue suit with an understated jacquard pattern, flanked by a group of senior executives.

His expression was stern, his presence radiating absolute authority. Not a trace remained of the timid, submissive man he used to be.

Geoffrey's eyes bulged as if he had seen a ghost.

"Wesley? What the hell are you babbling about? If you're the CEO, then who am I?"