Chapter "By the


    8


    Way, I''ll be sending my resignation letter to your inbox soon. Today''s probably myst day here. Thanks for everything these past few days." Maeve gave Piers a calm nod before walking out of his office. Piers sat at his desk, stunned. ''Maeve''s quitting? And getting married? This has to be some kind of joke! How the hell am I supposed to exin this to Wace now? His mind was spinning.


    Maeve''s decision to resign wasn''t a spur-of-the-moment thing, I felt like a fog had finally lifted, revealing a clearer path ahead. Staying at thepany would just mean endless frustration and no future. Leaving was the smart move. She had earned a decent amount from her frence illustration work and wasn''t concerned about the loss of this job. As Maeve approached the office area, she caught snippets of gossip floating from inside.


    "Did you hear? Maeve got Mr. Graves hauled off to the station. Has shepletely lost it?"


    "People from nothing trying to marry into money-it''s never a smooth ride. She acts all high and mighty, but isn''t this just a scheme to push him into marrying her?"


    "Well, if they''re really over, we won''t have to keep pushing her to quit and be some trophy wife. It''s exhausting keeping up this pretense.


    Thatstment hit Maeve like a punch to the gut. All the ostracism and petty tricks she''d endured from her colleagues- it had all been orchestrated by Jeff


    It dawned on her: Jeff had been pulling strings, using his family''s influence to sabotage her at work, all to force her to quit. and be dependent on him. She''d seriously underestimated just how low he''d stoop.


    Maeve bit her lip, anger simmering just beneath the surface as she walked into the office, saying nothing.


    The chatter stopped abruptly, and her colleagues stared in uneasy silence. Eyes shifted nervously as Maeve packed her things with cold determination


    A few of them looked like they wanted to ask what was going on, but Maeve had always kept her distance. She wasn''t about to start exining herself now.


    Just then, Piers approached her. Sensing her determination to leave, he tried to talk her out of it. "Maeve, if you resign now, it''ll be a nightmare to find a recement on short notice. At least stay until we find someone to take over your duties." Maeve had been itching to leave immediately, but she considered his point and nodded. "Alright, I''ll stay until the end of the month." With just over a week left, it seemed doable.


    Piers gave a nod and walked away, already dialing on his phone.


    Maeve ignored the curious stares from her colleagues and focused on finishing her work. Maybe because she was leaving soon, the ones who usually bossed her around were unusually quiet today.


    Enjoying the rare calm, Maeve sorted through her designs, her mind drifting to ways she could help Byron recover from his injuries faster.


    After work, Maeve stopped by the supermarket to grab some protein powder, then picked up a few vitamins at the pharmacy before heading home.


    As she approached her building, her heart sank-Valda was there looking like thunder. Maeve''s first instinct was to turn around, but it was toote-she had already spotted her.


    "Maeve!" Valda''s voice was sharp with fury as she stormed over. Have you lost your damn mind? How could you get Jell


    thrown in jail? Do you even realize that your brother got into that high school because of the Graves family? Your father still works for them! And now, you go and bite the hand that feeds us?"


    Valda''s rage was palpable as she seized Maeve''s arm, trying to drag her away. "You''reing with me to the police station. right now You''re gonna fix this and apologize to Jeff Her voice shook with anger, her grip tightening. Maeve winced at the pressure. "Mom! Jeff put cameras in my apartment to spy on me and even tried to be violent. How is any of this my fault?"


    Valda''s eyes zed as she snapped, "So what? You should''ve put up with it. Do


    forget, our whole family relies on him!"


    Maeve''s face drained of color at her mother''s words. Her pent-up frustration finally erupted. "If you all want to rely on him so much, then do it yourselves. Stop using me as a sacrifice!"


    Valda froze, her hand raised as if to strike Maeve. "What did you just say?"


    Maeve instinctively shut her eyes, bracing for the impact. But the p never came. Instead, a firm hand interce arm mid-air.Còntens bel0ngs to N?(v)elDr/a/ma.Org


    Valda''s


    Maeve opened her eyes and saw Byron standing in front of her. Her eyes widened in disbelief. "Mr. McDaniel?"


    Byron gave a curt nod, his brow furrowed. "What''s going on here?"


    Maeve tried to answer, but Valda cut her off with a furious shout. "Who the hell is this? Are you messing around, just like Jeff said? Valda''s anger was intense. "Maeve, who taught you to be so shameless and ungrateful? Maeve felt Valda''s words cut deeper than any of the insults she''d faced from her colleagues. "Watch your tone when you talk to my wife. Byron''s voice was cold, slicing through Valda''s rant. "Our rtionship is legitimate, and it''s none of your business."