"Since Pierce Group doesn't value our time, I'll take my leave now. Ms. Jefferson, make sure to transfer the compensation to us, or I'll see you in court!" Harlan's voice was sharp with fury.

Yet, Emily was still trying to shift the blame onto me. "Mr. Abston, this isn't my fault! It was all Summer—"

I quickly rose from my seat to apologize to him. "Mr. Abston, please, this is a misunderstanding. Pierce Group highly values this collaboration. 

"As Mr. Pierce's assistant, Ms. Lane may not be fully acquainted with the project, but I assure you, I'm prepared to lead this meeting. You've seen my design proposal. Our sincerity is genuine."

Harlan waved his hand dismissively. "No need. It's clear we're out of our depth with Pierce Group. Let's just call it quits on this collaboration."

Despite my efforts to persuade him otherwise, Harlan still walked out, his team trailing behind him. Jus

Since we'd laid everything on the table, Calvin had no choice but to grudgingly agree. He accused me of being driven solely by money, and I didn't bother to deny it. After all, I still had to survive.

Once I'd taken on the responsibility, the first thing I had to do was look for Harlan. He was wrapped up in his own ego, and I was prepared to swallow mine for the sake of the project.

I found out that Harlan was attending a social event tonight, so I changed into something appropriate and headed straight there.

Harlan's expression darkened when he saw me entering the private room. "Ms. Jefferson, isn't it a bit out of line for you to follow me here? This is a private gathering."

"I came to make things right since I know I upset you today," I replied with a smile, pouring myself a glass of beer and downing it in one go.

I really shouldn't be drinking, given my current condition, but I 

As soon as Emily finished speaking, everyone immediately stopped what they were doing. Their eyes darted between the two of us.

Lyra couldn't bear to watch any longer and stepped in front of me. "Ms. Lane, you're just a personal assistant. You don't have any authority to meddle in the design department's affairs, do you? Do you even understand how important this project is?"

"Do you think I'd be dealing with it if it wasn't important?" Emily retorted and pushed Lyra aside.

She looked down at me with condescension as I sat in my chair. "Summer, you've just returned to the company and don't know much about many of the projects. 

"Stop trying to show off. You're just an employee, and your job is to follow orders from above. You need to adjust your attitude toward work."

Emily extended her hand, striking a pose meant to assert her authority.

I didn't bother acknowledging her. Instead, I headed straight to the president's office. 

Inside, a few people were busy reporting their progress. Without a second thought, I slammed my hand down on Calvin's desk. "Are you sure you want Emily to lead the design department?"

Emily rushed over, looking hurt as she glanced at Calvin. "Cal, Summer is refusing to let me participate and won't give me the materials. The meeting is about to start. What am I supposed to do?

"If this deal with Lumenix Group falls through, the company stands to lose a lot of money. Summer, can you take responsibility for that?"

Her voice carried a sharp edge of accusation, as if I'd truly wronged her. I ignored her and kept my focus on Calvin. 

He signaled the others to leave with a dismissive wave, and they quickly complied, eager to avoid any trouble.

Calvin looked at me with an amused expression. "You've been out of the office for months, but Emily has been here, putting in the effort. So, what's the problem with her leading you?

"She's going to be involved in many more projects down the line. The design department is just the beginning. Help her out and teach her the ropes." 

I couldn't help but smirk. Emily was just an intern, and he wanted me to train her. We weren't even in the same department.

Bolstered by her newfound backer, Emily quickly stepped forward and nodded eagerly. "Cal, I'll make sure to learn everything I can and become your right-hand woman."

I wasn't interested in their back-and-forth. I got straight to the point. "I'm the design director. Training interns isn't part of my job. It's going to cost extra if you want me to teach her. Pay me for the training."

"What did you just say?" Calvin slammed his hand on the table and stood up.

I remained unfazed and extended my hand. "Either pay for the training or have HR find her a professional instructor."

Calvin muttered "fine" several times before finally shooting me a venomous glance. "Are you a money-grubber? Is money all you care about?"

"Yes," I replied and withdrew my hand. "If you're not going to pay me directly, then I want a raise. After all, I'm doing the work of two people now."

I knew exactly where things stood. My relationship with Calvin had deteriorated to the point where money was the only thread holding us together.

There was always the possibility he might fire me one day, and if that happened, my options would be limited. 

I'd be forced to either consider divorce or resort to breaking the display cases at home.

Calvin glared at me for several minutes, remaining silent despite whatever Emily had said. Finally, he spat, "Fine, I'll give you a raise."

I picked up the phone on his desk and quickly dialed the HR department's extension.

"Mr. Pierce, this is HR. How can I assist you?" an HR assistant asked on the other end.

I smiled at Calvin and quietly said, "It's best to see things through to the end."

I wasn't trying to be difficult, but Calvin was hardly the type to play fair. Who knew if he'd actually pay me?

"Promote Summer Jefferson and increase her base salary," Calvin barked into the phone.

Without bothering to stick around any longer, I grabbed the documents and headed for the door. As I passed Emily, I offered a polite reminder. "The meeting's about to start."

Emily was somewhat caught off guard.

I didn't know what Calvin had said to her, but her eyes were red and puffy by the time she walked into the conference room. I asked Lyra to organize the meeting materials before handing them over to Emily.

"Ms. Lane, the other party will be here in half an hour. Please hurry." Lyra reminded her.

"There's no need for you to worry about me. I'm Mr. Pierce's assistant!" Emily snapped, grabbing the documents with a burst of anger and quickly scribbling notes.

I couldn't vouch for her skills, but her eagerness to prove herself suggested she might be capable. Her determination to outshine me would probably push her to perform well. 

Unfortunately, I'd overestimated her.

I assumed that Emily's field of study would at least be relevant to her work. Besides, given that she'd been with Calvin for a few months, I'd expected her to be somewhat familiar with the company's meetings.

But she kept making mistakes while leading the meeting and eventually resorted to reading directly from my documents. 

Despite having the script in front of her, she still stumbled, mispronouncing several key Elarian words and even asking Lyra for help with the pronunciation.

I was on edge and itching to step in, but Emily cut me off each time.

"Summer, I'm leading this meeting," she insisted and stared at me stubbornly, leaving me speechless. 

In the end, Harlan Abston, the president of Lumenix Group, had to step in. 

"Sorry to interrupt, Ms. Jefferson, but is this the level of commitment we can expect from Pierce Group? If Mr. Pierce has no intention of continuing the partnership, he might as well compensate us for breaching the contract."

The conference room fell into a tense silence, broken only by Emily's sobs.

She quickly stood up and nodded apologetically to Harlan. "Mr. Abston, I'm sorry. I only received the materials from the design department today, so I'm not familiar with the project yet. Besides, the documents Summer gave me are full of technical terms I don't understand."

Her words hung in the air. Everyone stared at her in disbelief, wondering if she'd lost her mind.

"Since Pierce Group doesn't value our time, I'll take my leave now. Ms. Jefferson, make sure to transfer the compensation to us, or I'll see you in court!" Harlan's voice was sharp with fury.

Yet, Emily was still trying to shift the blame onto me. "Mr. Abston, this isn't my fault! It was all Summer—"

I quickly rose from my seat to apologize to him. "Mr. Abston, please, this is a misunderstanding. Pierce Group highly values this collaboration. 

"As Mr. Pierce's assistant, Ms. Lane may not be fully acquainted with the project, but I assure you, I'm prepared to lead this meeting. You've seen my design proposal. Our sincerity is genuine."

Harlan waved his hand dismissively. "No need. It's clear we're out of our depth with Pierce Group. Let's just call it quits on this collaboration."

Despite my efforts to persuade him otherwise, Harlan still walked out, his team trailing behind him. Just before he left, he gave me a long, pointed look.

"Ms. Jefferson, I understand you're in a tough s

Chapter 16 Including Your Wife