The Alpha's Unclaimed Mate (Jason and Laila) by Caroline Above Story novel Chapter 76

Laila’s POV

Sheila’s face went to the side, her cheek red from the sting of my slap. Slowly, her hand came up and gently touched the red mark.

Surprise widened her eyes, but as she seemed to come to understand what had happened to her, she turned toward me, fire sparking in the depth of her gaze. Rage swallowed her, and she stepped toward me with aggression, her hands closed like fists.

In a clumsy burst, she drew her arm back and attempted to hit me. She moved slowly, clearly unaccustomed to fighting. I didn’t like fighting either, but I had been to the gym more than her.

I dodged her blow, then grabbed her wrist and twisted her arm – not enough to break it, just enough to reclaim control of the situation. As she started to go to her knee, I released her and she stumbled away. She straightened at once, then glared at me.

I could handle the glaring so long as she didn’t try to throw more punches. But even that, I’d be able to deal with.

Sheila’s biggest problem was that she underestimated me. She thought this kind of intimidation, threats and insults, would work with me. She had no idea the hells I had already gone through just to be where I was in this moment. Compared to some of my worse hardships, Sheila was nothing.

“We are to have equal footing in this competition,” I said. “There’s no reason for you to treat me like you are. I am not someone lesser. And I will defend myself.”

“You think you are so tough,” Sheila scoffed.

“I am tough,” I told her. “But you are only embarrassing yourself with these antics. Do you think any reputable person would want to work with someone who spreads such vicious rumors? This reflects badly on the entire company, you included.”

“Don’t act so damn high and might, Vanessa,” Sheila said. “Your name might be on the door, but that doesn’t mean you are the best. It just means you got there first.”

I couldn’t take credit for Vanessa’s successes, even if they were attributed to me because of the life and reputation I took on when I accepted Vanessa’s name.

“Our company stands for something,” I said instead. “When you act like you have, even to get ahead, you put a dark spot on the company. The board is not going to like the curse you are bringing to the entire company. You are being too short–sighted.”

“I’m not going to stand here and be lectured by you,” Sheila snapped.

I supposed I wasn’t surprise. She didn’t mind dishing out the criticism but she couldn’t take any herself. She’d dodge accountability as much as she could.

I had no idea how she thought she was going to run a company if she did win this wager and I was forced to resign. Sometimes bad contracts just happened, and sometimes not even for anyone’s fault. Consumers sometimes changed their minds or some outside circumstances affected trends. It happened.

A true leader would know to dust off and keep trying, to adjust to minimalize loses and then press forward with new ideas. A true leader would accept responsibility and take any repercussions personally rather than pass if forward. At the top, it is ultimately my responsibility to make sure things go smoothly.

If Sheila ran things, she’d likely find scapegoat after scapegoat to make sure she remained blameless. It would never work, and the employers would stop seeing her as trustworthy. The only reason they trusted her now was because I was an easy target as their boss.

With me out of the way, she’d be the next one on the block.

Sheila huffed at me, and then turned and stormed out of the bathroom.

Calmly, I looked again in the mirror and continued to fix my hair. When I was satisfied, after another few seconds, I turned and

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