Keeping his temper in check, Simon asked, "What do I have to do for you to accept a private settlement?"Cordy sneered. "Why are you so eager to settle it privately? I'd be half-dead if John Levine didn't take that blow for me.""I know you suffered, but I'm doing this for Starstream Group," Simon said, his tone turning soft gradually. "It's going to affect the company negatively if this gets out, and we're still family, right? I naturally feel sentiment for Starstream after working there for so many years—I don't want our scores of employees to get hurt over this."Cordy sneered again—despite Simon's pretty words, he was just afraid that they would connect the incident to him.Still, she relented. "Well, since you've put it that way, it's not as if I can't settle it privately.""Really?" Simon was clearly thrilled."But I have several conditions.""What conditions?""Firstly, the culprit must cover all of John's medical expenses, including the fee for his medication, his hospi

Noel was left frozen stiff for a moment, but she quickly changed her expression, looking miserable and teary-eyed. "I'm so sorry," she said. "I didn't know you were allergic to lilies—I'll be careful next time.""I'm not allergic to lilies—I'm allergic to you," John said icily, every word a threat. "Just be careful not to show your face around me."Noel's face abruptly turned pale.She could not believe what she was hearing!No man had insulted her like that ever since she was a child, because they all loved her shy, delicate nature…It must be Cordy's fault! John must have said that for her benefit! Still, Noel withstood her distress and picked up the bouquet of lilies before running out of the ward.Cordy watched as Noel left, and she must admit that she felt a little exhilarated.Boys would hover around Noel ever since they started attending school, and Cordy had no idea why they all liked Noel so much.Did the scent of hypocrisy not stink enough? In fact, Cordy felt

Before Cordy could speak, John added sharply, "And don't tell me you weren't being distant. I have a heart; I can feel it."In other words, he was telling her not to lie to him. Cordy stared at him in silence for a while before asking, "I thought you knew?""No, I don't," he replied, not bothered to play around."I don't believe in love, and I've rejected you before already," Cordy said, lowering her gaze in fear of meeting him. "It's just your stubbornness talking."She did not want to admit that it was because of Zoe York.There would be no 'other woman' if he never wanted to be with her."So you mean to say that my effort was bearing fruit, which was why you're deliberately distancing yourself?" John asked, as if to confirm it.Cordy was taken aback, but she admitted it with her silence. What other reason was there?!John was too dangerous—she must not get too involved with him."So, I failed to offer you a sense of security," John said. "I will restrain myself as best

Be that as it may, none of the heads of departments and executives believed that Cordy was stupid after working for her for a while.But before they could speculate about Cordy's thought process, she proceeded to the next agenda. "It has been over two months since I've come to Starstream, and thanks to everyone's help—especially my sister Noel—I'm now familiar with the company's operations and management. For that, I thank everyone here."No one applauded her—not even Noel—even if Cordy was clearly being nice to her.Even so, Cordy continued nonchalantly. "Having grown to learn about this company, I've also noticed certain glitches, which naturally means that we need to fix them. As such, I'm announcing a complete shuffle of positions—and that includes everyone here."Her words sent the conference room into an uproar.Shuffling positions was a huge deal, but Cordy said it as if it meant nothing!"And now, I will present the list of personnel to be shuffled—of course, if anyone he

Randy Martin was reporting on the recent situation at Starstream Group, and he could not help giving earnest praise when he was done. "Mrs. Levine's moves were perfect… I was so worried that she'd be ousted when she charged into Starstream all by herself, but she took complete control of them in under four months instead!"John listened to him, his delight hardly hidden from his calm expression."We have insider information that Hank Rogers was running everywhere and bad-mouthing Simon Sachs, calling him an ingrate and a snake. Fabian Locke and Dean Longman are reconsidering their allegiances as well—in short, Simon's pedestal is crumbling, and his company's stock prices are dropping slightly because of that. Most importantly, no one in Starstream trusts him now. All they want is to keep their jobs and stay in Starstream, so they have to be loyal to Mrs. Levine."John took a slow sip of his tea, seemingly enjoying the worshipful tone in Randy's words. "Mrs. Levine's only issue now