The Billionaire's Pretend Wife (Isabella)
Chapter 10 Ten

"Yeah, please do tell us," the man sitting next to her encouraged.

Ann crossed her arms across her chest and pursed her lips before saying, "I just don't have a good feeling about her, that's all."

"That cannot be a good reason to not hire her," someone pointed out. "It sounds as if you have a personal grudge against her. You need to give a good reason why you don't recommend her for the position."

"I do not have a personal grudge against her," Ann claimed firmly. "But yes, I know her from school. We were classmates. That's why I know she might not be the kind of person we want in this company."

"What kind of student was she?"

"The kind that cheats on exams," Ann said. "Look, I didn't want to bring this up because I'm not sure it's relevant now, but who knows? Maybe she hasn't changed at all. Back then, she copied a classmate's design and won an award with it. The other student was disqualified. I have no idea how she managed to convince the professor that she was the original designer, but..." she trailed off, observing her nails. "But what?" the other woman panellist asked.

"I think she slept with him. I mean, she had a reputation for stealing other girls' boyfriends." Ann shrugged. "I wouldn't put it past her to have seduced the professor to have him accept the design as originally hers."

"Oh my God," the other panellist said, covering her mouth in shock. "That's horrible."

"You mean she is a cheat?" the man asked. "That's very disappointing. I had high hopes for her."

Ann rolled her eyes. "She probably wouldn't have graduated with a certificate if she wasn't cheating and sleeping her way through college. Imagine working with someone like that."

"Oh no. I'm getting shivers just from the thought."

"You should have told us all this from the beginning. Do you think she somehow knew what would be on the exam today? I thought she was just impressive but knowing this now...who knows, maybe she has a connection with someone who leaked the paper to her."

"Yeah, we cannot trust someone with such questionable morals. I feel bad for the other designers who competed against her at the design competition. Whoever placed second was probably better than her." "If we allow her into the company, her incompetence will affect us. Or worse, she'll steal designs here too and cause conflicts among co-workers."

As her colleagues butchered Isabelle's personality, Ann could barely keep her smile to herself. Well, that was easy. She had known her accusations would work. Nobody wanted to work with someone who stole others' ideas or slept around with bosses to curry favour.

"So, do we all agree to reject her?" she asked, just to make everything official.

"Definitely."

"Of course."

"Yes."

It looked like her job here was done...

***

By the time Isabelle got back home, her fears that her grudge with Ann would come in the way of her landing a job had grown. After all, wasn't this the best opportunity for Ann to get revenge? She had really hated losing the scholarship to Isabelle in college. Keeping her from getting a job at the most lucrative company in the industry seemed like a good way to get back at her.

She was unable to relax or even concentrate on looking for other jobs. The HR official she had talked to had told her that she would receive communication about the outcome of her interview within the day. That was good. It meant she would know whether she had the job soon and would no longer need to worry herself sick.

About an hour later, her phone rang. Her heart hammered in her chest as she took a look at the caller ID. It was an unknown number, and she suspected it was from the company.

After taking a deep breath to calm herself down, she received the call. "Hello?"

"Hi, this is Larson Group. Am I speaking to Isabelle Cruz?"

"Yes, I'm Isabelle."

"Okay. I'm sorry to inform you that you've not been selected for the position. We wish you all the best."

Isabelle's heart crashed in her chest with disappointment. "Thanks for letting me know."

After the other person hung up, she held the phone to her chest and closed her eyes. There went her opportunity to work for the Larson Group. But it was okay. There were many more companies she could work at. They may not be as grand as Larson Group, but they were good and she could grow as a designer working for one of them.

Composing herself, she went back to her laptop to look for openings in the industry. She had to replace a job soon.

***

When Jacob came back home that evening, Isabelle was still at the table, on her laptop. She was so engrossed in her work that she didn't pay much attention to him when he appeared.

That gave him the perfect opportunity to study her. She was dressed in an elegant white pantsuit, the kind one would wear to work. He knew that she was looking for a job, so he figured she must have had an interview.

The suit looked quite good on her... It not only gave her a professional look but also emphasised her delicate appearance. And, it wasn't anything fancy, like the overpriced type one would replace at luxury shops. It was simple and practical and at the same time well-designed. It looked like his wife had very good taste in clothes.

But the suit wasn't the only thing that captured his attention. She looked especially captivating as she sat there, her rosy lips puckered slightly as she typed on her laptop. Apparently, she looked adorable even while concentrating on whatever it was she was working on. He felt like he could stand there and watch her all night...

Clearing his throat, he made his way to the couch and took a seat. He was tired from the day's activities and wanted to rest. But at the same time, a part of him wanted to just sit there and stare at her. If he did that, she would probably feel uncomfortable. Or ask questions he didn't have answers to. She was his pretend wife, yet there he was, looking at her like he wanted to hold her close and...

He shut down that line of thought and shifted his gaze to the papers on the table around her laptop. He wondered what kind of companies she was looking for a job at. With how diligent and focused she appeared, he was sure she would be a stellar employee. That and her kind personality. Also, given how she had adjusted to the sudden change in her lifestyle seamlessly, she sounded like the kind of person who could be useful to a company during uncertain times.

His eyes widened as he caught sight of something familiar under her resume. Reaching forward, he pulled it from underneath. His suspicion was right, it was a pamphlet of the Larson Group.

If she had that pamphlet, that meant she had been at the company...

Looking at her, he asked, "Isabelle, did you apply for a job in the Larson Group?"