Single Mom's Sweet Husband (Charlotte)
Chapter 43

Charlotte heaved a sigh and said wearily, "I'm actually not too sure. I'm still waiting for the company to commence the investigation."

"Ah! But now there are heated discussions all over the internet, postulating you to be a commercial spy sent by Emerson Corp. There are even people claiming that you are Mr. Emerson's lover! Anyway, there are heaps of different rumors," Anne said in one breath. "Wait a minute, do you not surf the internet?"

"All over the internet?" Charlotte finally caught on. How did this matter end up online? "Anne, I'll talk to you later."

Once she hung up the call, Charlotte promptly switched on her computer. Unsurprisingly, the main headline of the financial section was relating to the bid.

The title read derogatorily, 'According to insiders, Charlotte Emerson of NC Corporation paid a visit to Chairman of Emerson Corporation in the dead of night. What could she possibly be hiding...' Attached was a picture of her at the hospital that night.

The contents of the article were no less vilifying. To her disbelief, it even stated without evidence that she was the one who had disclosed their design plans to Emerson Corp.

In another similar article, she was narrated as a woman who would go to the ends of the earth for money. It even mentioned her promotion, claiming that she seduced a higher-up but ended up stabbing NC in the back for money.

The picture attached in this article was of Charlotte getting into Christopher's car.

In the comments section below, a torrent of abusive comments clamoured for her to get the f*ck out of the design industry.

As if adding fuel to the fire, the two articles had each garnered over a million reshares.

Seeing this astonishing figure, Charlotte smiled a bitter smile and said self-deprecatingly, "This really has become the talk of the town, huh. If this persists, there's no denying that I will soon be the talk of the whole country!"

'Knock, knock!'

A brief rapping on Charlotte's door pulled her out of her whirlpool of thoughts.

She looked up to replace Zoe Watson standing by her door. Zoe was a member of Shane's secretarial team.

Zoe was not like the other secretaries, who would dress up extravagantly. On the contrary, she was always clad in the plainest business suits. Her words were always professional and a solemn expression was always hung on her face.

The coldness in her eyes mirrored Shane's.

Then, as if reading from a script, Zoe said, "Ms. Emerson, the president wishes to see you." With that, she turned to leave.

Outside the president's office.

Charlotte pushed open the heavy set of mahogany doors and entered. The first sight that welcomed her was Shane Fuller seated at his desk. His eyes were glued to his monitor and his fingers pranced about on his keyboard.

His short hair was neatly styled atop his head, leaving his well-defined cheekbones for the world to see. His features came together to manifest a sense of engrossment in his work.

The sunlight trickling in from the window just happened to land on him and form a soft, glowing halo around him.

Ever so imperceptibly, however, she could still feel the chilliness that emanated from his body.

Charlotte stood in place and waited for Shane to start questioning her. As the seconds ticked by, though, Shane didn't even look up and Charlotte was overlooked as if she was air. The suffocating atmosphere seemed to weigh down on Charlotte's shoulders. She couldn't bear it any longer.

'Maybe he read the comments online,' she speculated.

Contemplating her options, Charlotte ultimately opened her mouth and began, "Mr. Fuller, I can explain."

A few seconds passed and Charlotte almost thought he was going to give her the cold shoulder. Just then, he spoke. "Tell me about it," he said flatly. His gaze remained fixated on the screen as though he wished to burn through the monitor.

"I didn't sell the designs to Emerson Corporation. You know about my relationship with Mr. Emerson..." Before Charlotte could finish, Shane looked up at her and the simmering fury in his eyes took her by surprise. Her words were lodged fast in her throat.

He replied, "We've lost the bid. This is a responsibility that you cannot shirk no matter how hard you try."

When she first stepped in, Charlotte was still filled to the brim with repentance. However, hearing Shane's words struck her dumb. Did he actually think she had come to shirk her responsibility? This man did not hold back from underestimating her!

"That cannot be further from my intention, Mr. Fuller, but I will not take the blame for something I did not do. As a designer, I have my own principle and professional ethics. I know distinctly what is and what's not to be done." As she pressed on, her rage only grew.

Of everything that Shane could doubt, he doubted her moral standing.

It wasn't like they had just met.

As much as she itched to lash out at him, Charlotte could feel a growing sensation of grievance in her heart.

Despite so, she refused to let her emotions show, being the stubborn woman she was.

"Alright then, I'll give you a week to get to the bottom of this; replace out who stole the designs. If you can't, you shall be banned from the industry. At the same time, Emerson Corporation will pay the price it deserves."