The Billionaire's Unexpected Proposal by Samantha

Chapter 143

The day dragged on, with Sandra doing her best to get under Evelyn's skin. She hovered around, offering unsolicited advice, acting extra friendly with some of the staff, and throwing Evelyn fake smiles every time their paths crossed. But beneath Sandra's thinly veiled hostility, Evelyn could sense something more: Sandra was looking for an opportunity to steal her phone.

Evelyn kept her phone close all morning, knowing that if she left her phone unattended, Sandra might take the chance to snoop.

She made sure it was either in her pocket or locked securely in her drawer. She even caught Sandra casting glances at her desk when she thought Evelyn wasn't looking. Every time she excused herself from her desk, Evelyn could feel Sandra watching, waiting for her to slip up. But Evelyn wasn't about to give her the satisfaction.

By mid-afternoon, Evelyn needed to use the restroom. Tucking her phone into her pocket, she made her way to the restroom, trying to shake off the growing tension. She couldn't let Sandra control her every move.

Once inside the restroom, Evelyn slipped into a stall, grateful for a moment of peace. She was about to relax when she overheard voices- some of the staff

chatting as they fixed their makeup at the sink.

"Did you hear about Evelyn?" one of them whispered.

"Oh yeah," another replied. "I heard she got fired from Empowered for being incompetent. Imagine, she came back here like nothing happened. Must be good to have the family company to fall back on." Evelyn rolled her eyes as she listened in silence. She did not doubt that Sandra had sponsored some of these rumors.

The first woman chuckled softly. "That's not even the best part. I heard she leaked those stories about Derek Stone all over the internet because she was jealous of her sister's relationship with him." "And," the second woman added in a hushed tone, "apparently, she has been away for a long time because she ran away on the morning of her wedding. Can you believe it?"

She was usually not one to enjoy gossip, but there was oddly something satisfying about eavesdropping on a conversation about yourself, especially when the gossipers were clueless gossipmongers. The first woman gasped. "No way. What a mess."

The gossipers continued to snicker, clearly enjoying themselves, oblivious to the fact that Evelyn could hear every word. But Evelyn wasn't going to hide. She flushed the toilet, and as she stepped out of the stall, the women froze, their faces draining of color.

Evelyn walked to the sink, washed her hands, and smiled at them through the mirror. "You know," she said calmly, "I don't care about the rumors you're peddling, and I certainly don't care where you got them from. What I care about is that you are being paid to stand in the restroom gossiping during work hours."

The two women stammered apologies, avoiding her gaze as they hurriedly grabbed their things and fled from the restroom. Evelyn shook her head, drying her hands before walking back to her office.

Just as she was settling back at her desk, her phone buzzed with a text message. It was from Derek: [I gave my mom your number. She'll probably call you soon.

I'll call you when I'm less busy.]

Evelyn's heart skipped a beat. [Why would you give her my number?] She started typing in response, but before she could send it, her phone lit up with an incoming call from an unknown number. Her heart raced. Was it Derek's mother?

then took a deep

"Hello?"

I just wanted to... well, I was hoping you'd give me a chance to meet with you. I know I've made mistakes, and I don't expect you to forgive me easily, but I would really like to

That's all I want."

voice, and despite everything that had happened, Evelyn felt a small sense of

a pause. "We can

you, Evelyn. You can

and

Mrs Stone replied. "I'll see you

headed to Café Limca. Her mind swirled with thoughts of the meeting

had said she wanted to see her to apologize, Evelyn couldn't help but feel anxious as she remembered the last time they met in Derek's suite and how it had

reminded herself

mother, and Derek wouldn't have given her number to his mother if he

ΛΟΥ

clear the air

impression

anxious but composed, with a glass of

looked up and returned the smile, though it was tinged with nervousness. "Evelyn, thank you for meeting

a seat across from her, noticing how carefully Mrs. Stone had dressed for the occasion. Neither of them said a word until they

Stone began after they had been served, her voice low. "I misjudged you. I should

much as it hurt me, I understand why you did that. I've tried to put myself in your shoes. You reacted that way because you didn't know what was

leaned

way I did. It is true that I didn't know the details of all that transpired between you and Michael, and I reacted based on the lies he told me, but I shouldn't have treated you that way, regardless. I'm so sorry, Evelyn. I don't want

start over if

would be different. But you didn't." Mrs. Stone's shoulders relaxed, but her gaze remained earnest. "Thank you, Evelyn. But I want to do more than just apologize. I want to make it up to you. If there's anything I can do- if you want your job back at Empowered or even a promotion,

reached into her handbag and pulled out a

a picture of

sight. "Samantha looks just like him," she observed, surprised by the