Love's New Bloom by Simone Hastings

“Chandy, I’m a little dizzy right now. Earlier, when Miss Lane pushed me…uh, no, wait, I mean. She

didn’t exactly push me- never mind. Forget it. I don’t want to pursue this anymore. Can you carry me,

though? I don’t think I’m strong enough to walk all the way…” Claire feigned weakness as she spoke,

swaying lightly on the spot.

Chandler’s eyes were full of tenderness. “It’s fine. I’ll carry you.”

Having said that, he scooped her up easily and strode toward his private elevator.

Kyle followed closely behind, confusion between his brow. Even he could tell that Claire was lying. Mr.

Frost had to have seen it, too, right?

One hour later, after dropping Claire back to her room, Chandler and Kyle left the hospital together. On

the way back, Kyle, who was driving, glanced at the rearview mirror, though he remained silent and

chose not to confront Chandler.

About a minute later, Chandler spoke up coldly. “Stop sighing. Whatever it is, spit it out.”

Kyle tensed. Had he really been sighing all this while? He started seriously, “Mr. Frost, carlier, when

Miss Kane was talking about having you accompany her to Mr. Burgess‘ concert, she was obviously

trying to use you to make him jealous.”

Chandler replied nonchalantly, “Is that how you interpreted it?”

Kyle responded with some dissatisfaction. “This is not a matter of my interpretation. It’s Miss Kane’s

way of speaking and acting in front of you. Maybe she’s too used to being a rich, spoiled lady with

everyone else at her beck and call. Regardless, I truly believe she’s trying to take advantage of you, sir,

and I will not stand by that!”

Chandler laughed softly. Kyle was both his friend and subordinate. He would never have spoken up

had he not had enough of this Claire business. He asked, “Do you believe Claire was trying to frame

Erin in the lobby just now?”

Kyle thought about it for a while. “Actually, sir, we could easily know what happened by retracing the

surveillance footage.”

“Alright, do what you have to do then.” Chandler closed his eyes.

If Claire really was trying to use him to make Matthew jealous, how could he not have seen it before?

Three hours later, in the president’s office, Chandler finally opened the documents containing the

requested information about Claire. Only when he’d returned to the company did he hear that Erin had

left the office for the day. Initially, he wanted to call her, but later, he decided to peruse the documents

Kyle left for him instead.

Although he had already anticipated it, reading the documents firsthand proved that everything

Matthew said before was the truth. His heart was heavy. He even thought he felt undercurrents of pain

running through his chest. Chandler never imagined that the girl he had a crush on would be so

different from what he had imagined.

Apparently, even he could be mistaken about people.

Perhaps it was because he had been envisioning Claire as this perfect image all this while, so much so

that when she chose Matthew over him, he decided to stop caring about anything about her. If it hadn’t

been for the suspicion awoken by Matthew’s words, he wouldn’t have had Kyle look into her

background.

Chandler’s expression was melancholic when he stood, though there was a certain kind of freedom in

his heart as if the knots in his chest had been untangled after far too long.

He picked up the file about Claire and placed it into a shredder. He had been putting this off for too

long. It was time to bury her past, once and for all.

Meanwhile, one hour ago, Kyle had also retrieved the footage from the surveillance cameras in the

lobby.

A month ago, Frost Corporation had installed the internationally acclaimed, cutting–edge surveillance

system. Its purpose was precisely to prevent crimes from being committed in the corporation and to

acquire the necessary evidence in case one does happen. As such, Claire and Erin’s conversation had

been recorded in its entirety.

Chandler’s suspicions were proven to be true. Erin was framed, after all. Recalling how she had looked

at him when she left earlier, he understood it now. Erin must have been cursing him out in her heart.

Sitting on the couch and observing Chandler, Kyle couldn’t help but say, “Mr. Frost, sir, I understand

that you might not want to be disturbed right now, but I have something I need to report to you.”

Chandler placed the last sheet of paper into the shredder and picked up the cigarette box on his table.

Retrieving a cigarette, he said simply, “What?”

Kyle stood, a phone in his hand. “Mr. Xavier from the Human Resources Department just informed me

that Miss Lane had sent in her resignation letter before she went off work today.”

“She dares to resign? Does she not know about our company’s resignation policy?”

Chandler could hardly believe his ears. He didn’t expect Erin to have the audacity to resign without

even letting him know.

“Miss Lane knows about it, sir,” Kyle replied. “She’d informed Mr. Xavier that she would take full

responsibility for any losses pertaining to her resignation. According to Hans, she’d also taken the

bullet train back to her hometown about half an hour

ago.”

Chandler laughed coldly. “How naive! To think that I would let her go so easily-”

“Sir, do we need to send someone to pick her up from her hometown?”

Chandler lit his cigarette and took a long swig. His eyes were dark as he gazed at the swiftly

approaching nightfall in the city’s skyline. After a moment’s silence, he spoke abruptly, “There is no

need. Let her enjoy her newfound freedom for two days.”

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