Betrayed and Dumped She Rose Stronger Than Ever novel Chapter 205

Rebecca handled the questions like a pro, standing right in the middle of the crowd, calm and confident as she answered each one. Martha hovered nearby, her cheeks burning. For a second, she wished she could just disappear. Thankfully, everyone was so focused on Rebecca that nobody seemed to remember her awkward attempt to trip Rebecca up earlier.

She was about to quietly sneak away when Andy called out. With his usual clueless enthusiasm, he said, “Hey, Martha, weren’t you just doubting whether Rebecca could even read the documents? You really owe our new colleague an apology.”

Suddenly, every pair of eyes was on Martha. She bit down on her lip and shot Andy a death glare. Why couldn’t he just keep quiet for once?

Caleb turned to look at her too. “We’re all on the same team now. We should help each other and learn from each other. There’s no point in turning this into a competition.”

Now it felt like things had gotten way too serious. Rebecca stepped in quickly. “It’s really not Martha’s fault. She was just thinking about what’s best for the project. Let’s all get back to work.”

The group broke up and everyone headed back to their desks. Martha glanced at Rebecca, still biting her lip. “Thanks. I really didn’t mean any harm. I just care about the project too much.” She aimed the last part at Caleb, hoping he’d believe her.

Caleb just replied coolly, “Go get your work done.”

Back at her desk, Martha could feel the anger simmering inside her. What a fake bitch! She’s acting like she was defending Martha, but really just trying to look good in front of everyone. It made her sick.

Her phone buzzed. Martha glanced at the screen, grabbed her phone, and hurried to the conference room. She closed the door behind her before picking up.

“Hi, Sonja.”

Sonja’s voice came through, casual and direct. “So, what did you find out? Any idea what Rebecca’s really doing at the base?”

Hearing Rebecca’s name again brought all that humiliation back. Martha couldn’t help a bitter little snort.

Sonja picked up on it right away. “Sounds like something happened.”

Martha summed up the whole scene, ending with, “She’s got a bit of skill, but not much. Just enough to impress a bunch of guys who don’t know any better.”

She might as well have said Rebecca was all looks, no substance.

Sonja seemed satisfied. “Keep an eye on her. Let me know if anything comes up.”

Sonja frowned. “What are you getting at?”

Shawn moved to sit across from her, leaning on the desk, his smile lazy. “I know you, Sonja. You never do anything without a reason. Trying to tell me you’re busting your ass just for Bruce? I’m not buying it.”

Sonja slapped his hand away, annoyed. “Hands off. We’re at work.”

“But you’re right about one thing. I don’t do anything for love. As for what I really want, that’s my business, not yours.”

“Just keep this in mind. I won’t shortchange you. As long as the new product launches this quarter and the company goes public on schedule, you’ll have done your part.”

Shawn left her office and went to grab some coffee, thinking over what she’d said. It was obvious now—Sonja was after the IPO. He remembered seeing her talking about stock options with one of the shareholders in private...

A cold sneer tugged at his mouth. She was playing a serious game.

Just then, Bruce came down the stairs and bumped into him. They nodded politely at each other. Shawn couldn’t help feeling a little sorry for the guy. He wondered how it felt to work so hard, not realizing you were just being used by the girl you couldn’t let go.