He Never Noticed Me Until I Loved Someone Else novel Chapter 35

Although Stella loathed being trapped in a confined space with Chloe, stepping back out would only make it look intentional.

So, she offered a polite, "Director Huxley."

Perhaps because there was no one else around, Chloe couldn't even be bothered to fake basic decency. She just shot Stella a haughty glare and completely ignored her.

Stella wasn't the least bit offended; she just quietly stared at the floor numbers.

Suddenly, a notification pinged from Chloe's phone.

She tapped it and recorded a voice note. "Thanks, Serena! You made me look so pretty in those photos, I absolutely love them!"

Almost immediately, Serena sent a voice note back.

"What are you thanking me for? It's because you're naturally gorgeous! Besides, I should be thanking you for putting in a good word for me the other day, otherwise Jarrod would've killed me over that Quinn bitch!"

Hearing her own name, Stella could feel Chloe's eyes dart toward her.

She pretended not to notice, silently praying for the elevator to speed up.

"It wasn't your fault to begin with, so of course Jarrod wouldn't blame you!"

Chloe sent another voice note. "But you really need to be smarter. You knew Jarrod might show up, yet you still let your temper get the best of you and gave certain people an excuse to play the victim."

Stella wasn't stupid. She knew Chloe was indirectly accusing her of intentionally provoking Serena to make her look bad in front of Jarrod.

Stella found it hilarious, but she wasn't about to waste her breath arguing with Chloe.

The chime sounded, and thankfully, the elevator arrived.

Stella waited for the doors to part and immediately stepped out.

From behind, Chloe’s passive-aggressive voice drifted over. "Clocking in exactly on time isn't a great habit. Don't think you can slack off just because you've been at the company for a while."

Stella practically had to bite her tongue to keep from snapping back: Easy for you to say from your high horse. With the mountain of work you dumped on us, I barely have time to breathe, let alone slack off.

Mr. Whitaker just looked at her with an expression that screamed, 'How can you be this naive?'

"You think your team is getting a bonus? Upper management just sent down a memo. Due to Director Huxley's exceptional leadership and outstanding personal performance during the launch, the company is awarding her the bonus and throwing a celebratory dinner in her honor tonight."

Stella froze. They had done all the heavy lifting—why was Chloe getting the reward?

Mr. Whitaker was a seasoned corporate survivor. Seeing Stella's reaction, all he could do was shake his head.

"Was the launch event Director Huxley's proposal? Is she your superior? Was her media presentation not outstanding?"

"But that doesn't mean she should be the only one rewarded. My team worked endless overtime to actually execute everything."

Stella fought desperately for her people. "Mr. Whitaker, I don't even need my cut, but could you at least push for the rest of the team?"

"Stella, it's not that I don't want to help you, but I have zero say in executive decisions. You know exactly who is backing Director Huxley. By pleasing her, the company is indirectly pleasing Mr. Fuller. How do you not understand something this basic?"