Take My Breath Away

"If she were a good manager, your company couldn't have fired her like that. It wasn't hard. The wrong word went in the right ear. Think about it. Anyway, it's not your fault. You don't need to feel sorry for her," Wesley said on the other end.

Blair didn't know what to say, unconvinced by his explanation. She guessed it had to do with Wesley's family. They had considerable influence in the city. Whoever fired Rebecca might have wanted to get on Wesley's good side.

She touched her forehead, baffled. "Don't do this. I didn't earn this. Everyone knows," she said in a low voice.

What would her colleagues think about her? Probably what she was thinking already. That she knew someone, and that someone got her promoted.

"I didn't do anything. They were already thinking of promoting you. I just upped their timetable some. I don't have that much pull."

Blair frowned, not knowing how to get him to stop this. He seemed to have an answer for everything, and insisted he had nothing to do with it. She sighed, "Come on. I was constantly taking time off. And I was becoming a liability. If my manager got on my case, then she probably felt justified doing so."

"I can't understand why you've put up with her for such a long time. What's done is done, though. She gives you any more grief, I'll handle it in person."

"No, no... Please, don't," Blair begged anxiously.

She was confused. That wasn't Wesley's style. He was generally a reasonable man, but why didn't he listen to her? He was stubbornly digging in, determined to see Rebecca fired.

He even said he would come to her company to handle it in person. Suddenly, Blair recalled the time she resigned from the Jin Group. If Wesley got involved, she was afraid Orion's company might go up in flames too. She didn't need that.

Wesley said with a smile, "Just leave it alone. I'll have someone handle it."

Blair thought she was in the wrong and Wesley was too harsh. She took a look at Rebecca, who was now glowering at her. Obviously, there was no way to smooth things over with her. So she had no choice but to agree. "Okay."

Rebecca saw Blair hang up, but she didn't say anything.

When she didn't speak, Blair had to say something first. "Um...I can't do anything now. You ticked off the wrong guy..."

"What do you mean you can't do anything? Are you kidding me? He's your husband. Get him to back off. Or does he have you on a short leash?" Rebecca snarled. She didn't believe Blair's words.

Blair didn't think it was the right time to explain that Wesley wasn't her husband. It would just cause more problems. Moreover, the manager's snippy attitude made Blair unhappy. She couldn't just ignore it and retorted, "See, that's your problem. He didn't like your attitude. Come to think of it, neither do I. Why should I do anything to help you? So don't take it out on me. I was asleep when I got the email telling me about my promotion. I knew nothing about it either. Still want to give him a piece of your mind? Here's his number. Talk to him yourself. What do you think?"

All of Blair's colleagues envied her right now.

She was promoted to manager while she was sleeping comfortably at home.

It was a good thing to have a powerful husband. Blair didn't even brag about it. The helpless look in her eyes was evident. This made her coworkers even more envious.

Rebecca clutched her own phone tightly. In fact, she had Blair's so-called husband's number. When she found out she was fired, she blew up his phone. But he rejected all her calls.

As she was wondering what to do next, everyone in the office began to whisper to each other. Their sarcastic comments added fuel to the fire. Rebecca was seething in anger. Indeed, everybody hits a guy when he's down.

"Rebecca never stops. She gets fired, and now she's harping on Blair because of it. I agree with Blair. If she's such a badass, why not talk to Blair's husband herself?" a colleague said.

"Talk to Blair's husband? Not after the way Rebecca treated her," another colleague mocked.

"You'll never guess what I heard. Blair's hubby is a big shot, maybe a higher-up. Now I believe it. He didn't even have to show his face, but got her fired just like that! Blair's so spoiled!"

"It probably goes something like this: Blair's husband called Rebecca and helped his wife ask for vacation time, but Rebecca showed off her usual sparkling personality. She pissed him off, and now he taught her a lesson. He made the company fire Rebecca and replaced her with his wife. Rebecca's angry, but what can she do?"

"I think you're right. It makes sense. I think Blair's husband would listen to Blair if she begged him. But Blair didn't do anything to save her."

Everyone nodded their heads, thinking that they had the whole story.

But now there was another problem. Blair's employee profile showed she was single when she started here, and no one had heard one word about a marriage. So when did she get married? Who was her husband?

Maybe Orion? The old-timers there all knew their CEO had the hots for Blair. He always gave her flowers and took care of her. But then he all of a sudden stopped cold turkey. So had he already won her over? Or had he just given up?

Hearing everyone gossiping, Rebecca felt so humiliated she decided to do anything to save her career. "Call him back. I'll talk to him," she urged.

After a moment's hesitation, Blair called Wesley again.

Before the call was connected, Rebecca suddenly yanked her phone away. Blair pulled a long face at her.

The call went through. Rebecca put Blair's phone to her ear, and immediately heard an attractive voice. "Honey."

The gentle and magnetic voice melted Rebecca's heart. He sounded so different from the guy who called on his wife's behalf asking for more time off. 'He sounds so hot!' she thought.

Blair noticed the change on her face. She leaned forward and reminded her, "So? Did he answer? Now's your chance."

Rebecca came back to her senses and cleared her throat. She turned around and walked off to a private alcove.

Blair's lips twitched. 'Hey, that's my phone.'

Rebecca suddenly stopped in her tracks. Blair heard her say, "I have something to say to you."

Blair didn't know what Wesley had said on the other end, but Rebecca suddenly raised her voice and shouted, "What do you mean I'm not qualified? Who are you? I want to see you come here and say that to my face! Is that your M.O.? Dealing with a weak woman over the phone? Ooh! Big man."

Blair's brows knitted tightly as she heard Rebecca talk to Wesley like this. In a fit of anger, she strode towards her and grabbed her phone back. She hung it up and ended the call. "Who do you think you are? You can't talk to my husband like that! You wanted my husband to come talk to you? You're not good enough to warrant a face-to-face firing."

Rebecca's face twisted in anger. When she was about to retort, Orion and his assistant stormed into the translation department.

For a moment, everyone thought that Orion was Blair's mysterious husband.

After all, Orion was the boss. He could fire or promote anyone at his whim.

When they caught sight of their boss, they all went back to work. They weren't going to hang around and risk their necks too.