Tempted Trapped and Too Late to Run
Chapter 26

He pulled his gaze back and asked, "What's the deal here?"

Mentioning the issue made Richard roll his eyes. "It's Colton stirring up trouble again. I've had enough of him."

The group headed outside.

Clara noticed the folks around Simon were small figures from the top-tier elite circles. Meanwhile, the ones around Dylan were heirs to prominent families, right at the heart of the power play. They were carefree, a bit arrogant, well-mannered, yet untouchable.

She sighed softly and went to return the outfit to Megan.

Megan asked, "Clara, are you really over Simon?"

Clara changed back into her own clothes and nodded. "Yeah, I've finally seen the light. I'm done being a doormat."

Megan's eyes flickered with a hint of something as she packed away her work clothes. "So, you joined Ferguson Corporation because of Dylan?"

Clara gave a small laugh. "No way. When I first lost my memory, I thought maybe Dylan and I had something. But now, I see he's pretty distant. I just want to focus on my job and stop chasing after men."

Megan let out a relieved breath and gave her a smile. "I'm glad you're seeing things clearly now."

With some money in her pocket, Clara transferred ten thousand dollars to Megan, "Here's what I owe you. I should head out; I've got to replace a new place tomorrow. The area I'm in now isn't too safe."

Megan nodded, "Take care and don't get mixed up in things like tonight. Richard's not the easiest guy to deal with."

Clara was a bit taken aback. "You know him?"

Megan looked a bit embarrassed and quickly glanced away. "I've been around here for three years. You get to know everyone who comes and goes a lot."

Clara decided not to dig any deeper and waved goodbye.

The next day at Ferguson Corporation, Clara had barely sat down when a girl approached with a snarky tone.

"Some folks treat work like a dating service, using underhanded tactics to snag someone else's spot. Watch out. It might blow up in your face one day."

Clara looked up at the girl. Her name was Jade, the manager of the department.

Jade had been out sick the day before, but Clara remembered sending a leave request as soon as she was able.

Jade crossed her arms. "Clara, those documents I asked you to sort weren't submitted yesterday. It set back the whole department. Today, you owe everyone an afternoon tea. Let the team know what you'll get them in the group chat."

The others quickly jumped in.

"Thanks, Jade."

"I want Starbucks!"

Jade's lips curved into a smirk. She had a sharp look, and her dislike for Clara had been obvious from day one.

"Clara, how about a frappucino for everyone? You're okay with that, right?"

Sitting at her desk, Clara accepted the penalty. It was only her second day on the job yesterday, and though she was sick, she did miss work.

"No problem, but shouldn't I be added to the work group chat first?"

A few colleagues nearby looked a bit sheepish since none of them had added Clara as a friend.

Someone quickly handed her an invite to join the group, and Clara was in. This was the department's group chat, and Simon was also a member.

People started listing their drink orders, and Clara placed the order through a delivery app.

Just as she finished, Simon walked out of his office. He paused for a moment as he passed Clara.

Clara focused on her work and was not interested in engaging.

Simon leaned over. "Nothing you want to say? I'm free tonight. Want to grab dinner?"

Since Clara hadn't shown up at the Bradford family's event last night, he was in a pretty good mood and figured he'd amuse himself since he had no plans.

Clara's face darkened immediately. "I was sick yesterday. We can reschedule."

Simon sneered, "Don't you think your excuse is a bit flimsy? What kind of sickness lets you be out and about at Moonlight in the evening? Your family called you a bunch of times, and you didn't pick up."

Clearly, she was dodging him and didn't want to talk about the engagement.

Clara found it pointless to explain further and stayed silent.

Simon tapped on her desk, his tone dripping with superiority. "I'm asking you a question. Are you going out tonight?"

"Get lost."

"Keep up the act. I never realized you were such a good actress before."