Betrayed and Dumped: She Rose Stronger Than Ever novel Chapter 38

Rebecca pulled into the parking lot at Meridian Tech’s headquarters and found a spot. Before she could even grab her bag, Justin was already out of the car, hurrying to open the door for her with a dramatic flourish.

“After you, boss,” he said, gesturing with an over-the-top bow.

Rebecca laughed, shaking her head but not protesting. She walked right in, letting his goofiness lighten the mood. Inside, Justin made a beeline for the front desk to check them in. He filled out the visitor log while the receptionist smiled politely. Then she picked up the phone and dialed to confirm their appointment.

And just like that, her smile disappeared.

Justin immediately picked up on the shift. “Is something wrong?”

The receptionist put down the phone and looked at him, polite but distant. “I’m sorry, sir. I just spoke with Scott’s assistant from the tech department. There’s no appointment under your names. I’m afraid you can’t go upstairs.”

Justin blinked, then blurted out, “Hell, there gotta be a mistake! We definitely have an appointment. I can show you the confirmation right now.”

His voice was loud enough and a little curse slipped out. The receptionist’s frown deepened. She glared at him like he was just another pushy salesperson trying to sneak in.

“I’m sorry, sir. You need to leave.” Her eyes were icy, and she glanced over at the security guard, who was already watching them from the side.

Justin looked ready to keep arguing, but Rebecca stepped in, gently grabbing his arm. She patted him on the shoulder, her voice calm and steady.

“Hey, it’s okay. There’s probably some kind of mix-up. Let’s go sit in the café and wait for a bit.”

They walked over to the little coffee shop in the lobby. Rebecca ordered two iced lattes, sliding one over to Justin.

“Here, drink some coffee and calm down.”

Justin was fuming. He grabbed the cup and took a huge gulp, half-emptying it in one go.

“She called me a troublemaker. Can you believe that? I definitely called Scott’s assistant and booked the meeting. I even saved the call log.”

She dialed, but the call rang and rang, then went to voicemail.

Justin slouched over the table, looking miserable. Rebecca nudged his cup closer.

“Relax. He’s probably just busy. Let’s give it a little more time.”

Justin glanced at her, almost in awe. How could she stay so calm? No wonder she was the boss. Her patience and cool head were on another level. Next to her, he felt like an anxious puppy.

Half an hour went by. The general manager still didn’t answer. Rebecca took another slow sip of her coffee, not looking the least bit rattled.

She glanced out toward the lobby, watching the steady flow of people. She didn’t spot the person she was hoping for, but then her eyes caught on a familiar group near the security gates. There was Bruce, Sonja, Lottie, and two engineers from NovaStack Cloud, all leaving together.

It was obvious. They were here for the same Meridian Tech project, and they had just wrapped up their meeting.