Chapter 680

After crashing on her stomach all night, Juniper's back felt way better when she woke up. She couldn't help but wonder what kind of magic potion Anthony had used on her; it worked like a charm.

She barely stepped into the office when Terry rushed over. "Why are you just getting here?"

Juniper shot back, "What? I'm not late."

Terry snapped, "Didn't I tell you to come in half an hour early today? Where's the report?"

"Report? What report?" Juniper looked totally lost.

"What? Mira didn't tell you to give me the Stellaria Group report half an hour early today?"

Juniper glanced at Mira, who hadn't said a word.

Just as she was about to say something, Mira walked over with the report. "Terry, I've already finished it."

"Good thing you did, or I wouldn't have made the deadline today. Juniper, don't let this happen again," Terry said, walking away.

Juniper turned to Mira, "Why didn't you tell me to come early? And you didn't mention the Stellaria Group report either."

Mira shot back, "I did tell you; you just forgot."

"No way. If you had told me, I would've remembered. You didn't say anything."

"Does it matter now?" Mira smirked.

Juniper warned, "If you keep this up, I'll tell Terry."

Mira sneered, "You're new here and lack work experience. Do you think Terry cares about your excuses or the results? Bosses hate people who shirk responsibility. Doing that will only make you look more incompetent."

As much as it stung, did Juniper have to let herself get played like this?

Terry often had Mira notify her about stuff. If Mira intercepted the messages, she'd keep running into problems.

Juniper said coldly, "Mira, I respect you as my senior, and I don't think you're the type to play tricks. We're both secretaries working for the good of the company, so please don't play these little games."

"What games am I playing? I did notify you, but if you can't remember or didn't hear it, what can I do? Don't push the blame onto me," Mira said coldly, like she was just stating facts.

No one else could see anything weird between them.

Faced with this, Juniper had no choice but to suck it up.

But that day, similar stuff kept happening. Terry grumbled, "Juniper, why are you completely out of it today? If you're not feeling well, take a leave and let Mira handle it. You're just delaying the company's work like this, you know?"

Juniper had no way to explain and could only endure it.

Mira was banking on her not complaining because that would mean shirking responsibility, which would only make Terry more pissed. The biggest no-no in the workplace was passing the buck; it was better to take all the blame herself than to shirk it.

But this couldn't go on. Juniper said directly, "It's my fault today. In the future, please notify me directly about any work."

Mira smirked. "What do you mean by that? Are you saying my notifications are inadequate, causing you to fail at your job?"

Whether it was true or not, Juniper didn't want to argue with her.

Mira had been with Terry for years and was his trusted aide. She always nailed her work, so Terry completely trusted her. "Sometimes I'm too busy to notify you, and I might forget. Mira has a better memory, so it's more reliable for her to notify you. Be more careful in the future and avoid mistakes, or I'll be in a tough spot too."

Juniper had no choice but to say, "Yes, I understand."

She glanced at Mira, whose eyes were calm and unruffled. Such deeply calculating people were the most terrifying. Even if she complained, no one would believe her; they'd think she was stirring up trouble.

Juniper could only be more cautious, but she felt like she was walking on thin ice.

As the workday was winding down, Juniper dropped off a report to Anthony and was about to bounce.

"Is your wound feeling better?" Anthony asked, still eyeballing the report.

"Much better, thanks for asking, Mr. Eilish." Juniper wasn't planning to stick around.

But just as she turned to leave, she heard a cool voice behind her, "Having a boyfriend to take care of you certainly helps you heal faster."

'Did I hear that right? Is he... jealous?' Juniper thought.

But she didn't want to get her hopes up, figuring Anthony was just annoyed with Ronnie. They had beef, and he was probably just being sarcastic about Ronnie, not her.

She didn't know how to respond, so she just left.

Anthony closed the file.

As long as Juniper was around, he couldn't focus on his work, always wanting to look up and see her outside.

Having her around would make it hard for him to concentrate in the future.

It was a headache.

But he had no reason to fire her, and besides, he couldn't bear to.

Anthony rubbed his temples.

Thanks to Juniper's caution, she managed to get through the rest of the day without any more screw-ups.

But she felt like she had fought a battle, utterly wiped out.

As she walked out of the office, she felt a bit dizzy.

Her phone buzzed with a text message: [If you don't answer the phone, I'll come to your office.]

It was a threat from Aaron.

Since last night, Aaron had called her over a dozen times, but she had hung up each time.

Just as she finished reading the message, the phone rang again.

"Where were you last night? Why didn't you come home?" Aaron asked angrily.

Juniper replied, "I've moved out."

Aaron shouted, "What? Moved out? Where to? With whom? Are you rebelling now? Get back here immediately. You're not allowed to go out without my permission. Stay home and reflect on your actions."

This made Juniper even more determined not to go back.

Juniper said coldly, "I'm an adult. I can go and live wherever I want. You have no say in it."

"I'm your father!" Aaron shouted. "You can throw a tantrum, but there's a limit. Don't go too far! I hit you yesterday because I was impulsive, but wasn't it because you provoked me? If you had just argued a little less, I wouldn't have..."

Juniper mocked, "Yeah, I like to argue, and I can't change that. So, to avoid provoking you, I won't go back."

"I'm your father. I can't just let you run wild outside. What if something happens to you? Who will be responsible? Come home, and we'll talk it out."

Juniper said, "I've said everything I need to say. There's nothing more to discuss. What I want to tell you is that I'm serious about this job. Whether you agree or not, I'm going to keep doing it. It has nothing to do with Anthony; I'm pursuing my own career."

Aaron asked, "Why does it have to be the Eilish Group? Can't I arrange a position for you in my company? Since you've already broken up with Anthony, don't keep dragging it out. Have some dignity."

"Mind your own business. I don't need you to manage my affairs. That's it." Juniper hung up the phone.

She was still fuming when a rose suddenly appeared in front of her.

"It's you. You scared me," she glared at Ronnie's handsome face, annoyed. "Didn't I tell you not to come? Why are you here again? Did you forget your promise?"

She pulled him along quickly, but they still attracted a lot of attention. She figured her name would be all over the company forum again tomorrow.

Ronnie explained, "Today's different. You're hurt, so I have to pick you up from work and make sure you eat. You don't take care of yourself."

Juniper retorted, "Who says I don't?"

Ronnie replied, "You just don't. Luckily, you have such a considerate boyfriend like me. Where else can you find a boyfriend as good as me? If you lose me, someone else will snatch me up and won't give me back."