Elodie’s POV
I looked at Johnny, silently asking if we should go after Yale. If we should try to fix this.
Johnny shook his head firmly. A clear ssage: Let him go.
I understood why, even if it hurt to watch talent walk away. But I also knew what Johnny wasn’t saying out loud, Yale must have had feelings for Sienna. It was written all over his face the second her na ca up. The way he’d defended her so fiercely, the way he’d looked at like I was the villain in this story.
He’d already made up his mind about before I’d even opened my mouth.
And the worst part? I couldn’t even defend myself properly. Couldn’t tell them that I’d built CUAP, that it was my code, my architecture, my vision that had beco legendary in this industry.
Because of the confidentiality agreents. Because of the governnt contracts tied to it. Because my identity as CUAP’s creator was classified information that couldn’t be revealed without clearance.
So I had to stand here and take it. Had to let Yale and probably half this team think I was just so unqualified woman Johnny was doing a favor for.
It was humiliating.
Johnny cleared his throat, drawing everyone’s attention back to him. His voice was steady, authoritative. “I know so of you might have questions after what just happened. But let be very clear, Elodie’s credentials speak for themselves, PhD or not. I’ve personally reviewed her work, and I can guarantee that her technical capabilities are more than sufficient for this role.”
The room was silent.
Nobody said anything, but I could see the doubt in their eyes. The skepticism. The way so of them exchanged glances that clearly said, Sure, boss. Whatever you say.
They thought I’d gotten here because I was sleeping with Johnny. Or because I had so connection, so shortcut that let skip the line while more qualified people got passed over.
Like Sienna.
God, even here, even in this completely separate part of my life, she was haunting .
“I expect everyone to give Elodie the sa respect and support you’d give any other team mber,” Johnny continued. “We’re a team here. We work together. Is that understood?”
Murmurs of agreent. Nods. But the energy in the room had shifted, and we all knew it.
I could feel the weight of everyone’s judgnt pressing down on .
They didn’t know the full story, how could they? Yale had apparently recomnded Sienna to Johnny, but he’d kept the details vague. So to them, this whole situation probably looked exactly like what they were thinking: another unqualified woman getting hired because of so personal connection.
And apparently, this had happened before.
I caught fragnts of whispered conversations as people filtered back to their desks. Sothing about a woman last year, so executive’s mistress who’d claid to have a master’s degree from a prestigious university. She’d talked a big ga, acted confident, chard everyone.
Until they’d actually asked her to do the work.
Turned out she couldn’t even explain basic concepts. Couldn’t answer simple technical questions. So people had started wondering if she’d even graduated high school, let alone gotten a master’s degree.
It had been a disaster. An embarrassnt.
And now they thought I was the sequel.
The unqualified woman who’d sohow convinced Johnny to kick out a talented colleague and hire her instead.
God, I could see it written all over their faces.
Johnny, seemingly unbothered by the tension, turned to a guy nad Simon who’d been working with Yale. “What projects has Yale been involved with recently?”
Simon ran through a quick overview, so algorithm optimization work, a few debugging tasks on the main platform, and a security protocol review.
Johnny nodded, then looked at . “Since Yale’s stepping down, would you be able to take over his remaining tasks?”
Every eye in the room turned to .
This was a test. I knew it. Johnny was giving a chance to prove myself right out of the gate.
But it also felt like he was throwing to the wolves.
“Sure,” I said, keeping my voice steady even though my heart was racing. “I can handle it.”
I turned to face the team, forcing myself to et their skeptical gazes. “I’m looking forward to working with all of you.”
The smiles I got back were polite. Professional. Completely empty.
They were hoping I had so actual skills so they wouldn’t have to pick up all the slack. But they clearly weren’t holding their breath.
Simon looked particularly pained. He was the one who’d been working directly with Yale, which ant he’d now be stuck working with , the woman who’d “stolen” his colleague’s friend’s job.
“All the materials are here,” he said, his tone carefully neutral. “If you have questions, just ask.”
The *if you have questions* felt loaded. Like he was already assuming I’d have no idea what I was doing.
“Thank you,” I said quietly. “I appreciate it.”
Simon nodded once and walked away.
**Third Person POV**
The mont Yale left Cole Corporation, he pulled out his phone and dialed Sienna’s number.
She answered on the second ring. “Yale?”
“Sienna, did you know Elodie Miller just started working at Cole?”
There was a pause on the other end. “What? No. I had no idea.”
Yale frowned, confusion settling over him. “You didn’t know? But I thought—wasn’t it because she pushed you out that you couldn’t join?”
“No,” Sienna said slowly, like she was processing this information in real ti. “I told Johnny I couldn’t take the position for personal reasons. I didn’t realize Elodie had anything to do with Cole.”
So Elodie had joined Cole Corporation. Which ant she’d left Wilson Group.
Interesting.
Yale shifted his weight, still standing outside the building. “Then what were those personal reasons you ntioned?”
Sienna’s voice went cold. “Just so old grudges. Family stuff. It’s complicated.”
“But—”
“What’s wrong?”
Yale hesitated, then pressed forward. “What about Elodie’s actual abilities? I heard she hasn’t even been accepted into a PhD program yet. She—”
“She hasn’t even gone to graduate school,” Sienna cut him off, her tone sharp and dismissive. “She only has an undergraduate degree.”
Yale’s eyes widened. “Wait, seriously? Just a bachelor’s?”
“Yes.”
There was ice in that single word.
Sienna stood in her apartnt, staring out the window, her mind racing. She genuinely hadn’t known Elodie had left Wilson Group. Hadn’t expected her half-sister to make any moves at all, really.
And now Elodie had apparently used whatever connections she had to land a job at another company instead of going back to school to actually improve her credentials.
Sienna almost laughed at the absurdity of it.
No vision. No ambition. Just taking shortcuts wherever she could.
“So what are you planning to do next?” Yale asked, pulling her out of her thoughts.
“I have an official racing competition coming up,” Sienna said, her voice returning to its usual controlled calm. “I’ll need to dedicate ti to training. I’ll think about work opportunities after that.”
“Oh, right. Of course.” Yale’s admiration was clear even through the phone. “I don’t know how you manage everything—racing, your research, all your projects. Most people would burn out.”
Sienna smiled slightly. “I’m not most people.”
“No. No, you’re definitely not.”
They talked for a few more minutes before hanging up, and Sienna set her phone down on the counter.
Elodie at Cole Corporation.
It shouldn’t have bothered her—they were in completely different leagues, after all. Elodie with her diocre credentials and her desperate attempts to stay relevant, while Sienna had offers from top companies across multiple Pack territories.
But still.
It was... inconvenient.
Especially if Dante found out.
She made a ntal note to ntion it to him later—casually, of course. Just an observation. Just keeping him inford.
After all, they told each other everything now.
-----
Dante’s POV
I flipped through another contract without really reading it, my mind elsewhere.
“Chad, get coffee.”
“Yes, Alpha.”
I went back to the docunts in front of , initialing pages out of habit more than actual focus. The office was quiet except for the low hum of the air conditioning and the occasional shuffle of papers.
A few minutes later, Chad returned with the coffee and set it on my desk.
I didn’t look up. Just reached for it automatically, stirring it the way I always did, three slow rotations, counterclockwise.
Then I lifted the cup to my lips.
And stopped.
Sothing was off.
I frowned, lowering the cup without drinking. The sll was wrong. Not bad, exactly. Just... different.
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