Chapter 78
Carola gave a little smile, her lips barely curving. “I know Dorothea. Fidelia, do you remember when we used to gang up on my stepmom’s daughter back when we were kids p>
Fidelia’s tears dried up in an instant. She sniffed, her voice wary. “Wait, are you telling me Dorothea is that stepsister of yours p>
Carola nodded. “That’s the one p>
Fidelia was floored. She never would’ve guessed that the girl they once locked in the attic and made fun of would end up as her boss. The thought made her even more upset.
“Carola, isn’t this your stepmom’s company? She could just say the word and Dorothea would be out p>
Carola let out a sigh. “Fidelia, it’s not that simple. My stepmom apparently set Dorothea up with some guy. I don’t know who he is exactly, but it’s definitely not anything good. That’s why my mom let her join the company-otherwise, there’s no way Dorothea would’ve gotten in. She even tried to hang around my fiancé as his secretary, probably hoping to seduce him. Luckily, he wasn’t interested p>
A flicker of anger crossed Fidelia’s face. Of course Dorothea was trouble, and now she was using those same dirty tricks to try and get Fidelia kicked out of the company.
Fidelia clenched her fists. “I’m going to the office tomorrow. She and I need to have a talk p>
“Just be careful, don’t go making things worse. Fidelia, I’m sorry, but this is as much as I can do for you p>
Carola sounded sincere, but honestly, she hadn’t lifted a finger to help. She’d just made sure Dorothea had another enemy to deal with. Fidelia was her friend, sure, but not close enough to get real help. If the Blair family was still doing well, maybe Carola would’ve stepped in. Now that Fidelia’s family had lost its influence, that wasn’t happening.
Dorothea came home from work and spotted a bouquet of roses on the living room table.
Linda greeted her with a bright smile. “Dorothea, these are from Latham p>
Really? Latham buying flowers was definitely out of the ordinary.
She walked over, pulled out the little card tucked between the blooms, and as soon
as she read what was written, her ears turned bright red.
[Sorry about yesterday. I got carried away. I’ll be more careful next time p>
Instantly, her mind flashed back to
last night’s chaos. Latham had insisted she count for him. Odd numbers, he let her go. Even numbers, he just teased her. When she figured out his pattern, he’d deliberately ramp things up on the odd ones. By the end of it, her voice was hoarse from shouting No matter what he said, she refused to keep playing along.
And today he’d actually sent her an apology for all of that? The thought that the florist or Linda might have seen the card made her cheeks burn even hotter. She tore the card into tiny pieces and tossed them straight into the trash.
Linda watched, confused, as Dorothea stomped away. “Does Dorothea not like red roses p>
Latham had just finished a video meeting. When he came out, Linda let him know Dorothea was back. He headed for her room, knocked on the door, and, getting no response tried the handle. It was locked from the inside. He paused, then went back to the living room.
“She didn’t see the flowers p>
Linda shook her head. “She did. Latham, she looked really upset after reading your card p>
Latham frowned, thinking it over. The card? Suddenly it clicked. He pulled out his phone and sent her a message.
Dorothea was lying on her bed, mortified that Linda might have seen the card, when her phone buzzed.
Latham had messaged her.
[I wrote that card myself. No one else touched it. Only you and I saw it p>
Dorothea bit her lip, not sure if she believed him.
[Don’t be mad. If anyone else saw it, let me never have kids p>