The young receptionist pretended to hesitate, but her tone was firm and unyielding as she tried to shoo them away.
Pete could feel his anger bubbling over.
“You’re telling me the CEO’s wife needs an appointment just to enter the building?!”
He knew Chester and Celestine had kept their marriage a secret all these years, but it still amazed him that even the employees of their own company had no idea who Celestine really was.
He couldn’t begin to imagine how much Celestine had endured because of this.
The receptionist looked utterly baffled.
Her? The CEO’s wife?
But, maintaining her professionalism, she kept her sarcasm in check and coldly insisted, “If you don’t leave right now, I’ll have to call security.”
Celestine reached out and gently stopped Pete, who was about to protest again, shaking her head ever so slightly.
Pete clenched his fists, feeling more frustrated than he ever had before.
Celestine quickly pulled out her phone and dialed Stein’s number.
“Mrs. Fordham, is there something I can help you with?” Stein’s tone on the other end was just as businesslike as ever.
For all the years she’d been married to Chester, Stein had always addressed her as “Miss Selwyn,” never betraying even a hint of familiarity.
Celestine frowned slightly. “I’m downstairs at the building. Please tell reception to let me through.”
Her sudden appearance clearly caught Stein off guard. After all, she’d only just recently been in a car accident with Chester. From the reports, Chester had suffered a traumatic brain injury–trying to shield her, no less–and he was still in a
coma.
Stein was surprised she wasn’t at the hospital recovering, let alone coming to the office–especially since she’d never shown any interest in company affairs befo
He hesitated for a few seconds, glancing back toward the conference room where, just recently, Chester had been meeting to sponsor Joanna Sinclair’s startup,
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After weighing his options, Stein softened his tone. “Mrs. Fordham, I’m in the middle of an important meeting for the group. Please wait a moment–I’ll come down and get you myself.”
He hung up.
Celestine’s frown deepened.
Why did something as simple as telling the receptionist take so much effort?
“Is the company entertaining some big–shot clients today?” she asked.
The receptionist looked at her like she was crazy. That was confidential company information–why would she tell her?
And who knew who she’d even pretended to call a minute ago.
Ever since the scandal from the recent livestream, the company’s overseas business had stalled. There were certainly no important clients visiting today. The only new faces around were the PR team Chester had hired for Joanna and some people from the TV production they were investing in.
If
you asked her, it was a good thing Mrs. Fordham had died young–if she were still alive, she’d probably die of anger all over again.
Just then, a few employees from accounting stepped out of the elevator.
“Well, if it isn’t Celestine from finance! Decided to come see your old colleagues for
a change?”
“Guess she’s too busy now that she’s become the star designer at Kismet Collective. Hardly remembers us little people.”
“Who is this, anyway? I barely see her once a month. Oh wait, isn’t that Miss Selwyn? What’s the matter–found out your connections dried up, so you’re crawling back to Fordham Group now?”
They clustered around, their words dripping with thinly veiled malice.
Celestine looked straight at the last man who spoke.
Merlin–one of the junior managers in the finance department. She’d never gotten along with him or his clique. When she’d left, rumor had it he was the one spreading gossip that she’d married rich and used her connections to get a
- ad.
Some of her old colleagues had slipped her the details after she resigned.
But now, as Mrs. Fordham, she also knew Merlin’s little secret–he was Stein’s
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Chapter 302
cousin. He’d spent years spreading rumors about her using connections,
conveniently forgetting how he’d landed a management job in Fordham Group’s finance department.
She had no interest in engaging with people like him. Without a word, Celestine simply found a seat in the lobby’s lounge area and sat down, waiting.
Chapter 303
