Iris’s POV
The glass doors of the corporate building slid open, and I stepped inside.
Being my first day working at the office, my face held strong determination.
I was here to protect my inheritance.
But the moment I crossed the lobby, my breath caught in my throat, a wave of pure fury washing over me.
There they were.
Damian and Julian were walking through the center of the lobby, openly arm in arm.
They weren’t even trying to hide it.
Julian was leaning his shoulder against Damian’s, a bright, smug smile on his face as they chatted loudly.
The receptionist at the front desk immediately leaned forward, bowing low with an overly eager smile.
“Good morning, Mr. Damian! Good morning, Mr. Julian! Have a wonderful day.”
My blood boiled.
They had already become this comfortable in broad daylight, right in front of the staff!
Damian was treating his lover like he owned the place, completely disrespecting my family’s name in our own building.
I stopped walking, staring at them with a cold, hard gaze.
Damian turned his head and his eyes landed right on me.
His face instantly drained of color.
Panic flashed across his features, and he nervously pulled his arm away from Julian’s grip, stepping back.
Julian, however, didn’t look scared at all.
He smoothed down his expensive jacket, looking at me with this lazy gleam in his eyes.
He took a step forward, a sweet, fake smile spreading across his lips.
“Oh, good morning,” Julian purred, his tone dripping with mockery.
“Sister-in-law.”
I forced a sweet, perfect smile onto my face, but inside, my emotions had turned into a roaring anger.
I refused to let Julian see how much his mocking words stung.
“Good morning, Julian,” I said smoothly, my voice completely steady.
Then walked to hold Damian, “honey.” Julian made a low grunt from behind but I didn’t care.
Damian quickly cleared his throat, his face still pale as he tried to act like a professional boss.
“Iris will be taking over as the Deputy Manager of the Engineering Department starting today,” he told the room, announcing my new role.
I looked around the large conference table, and a cold chill ran down my spine.
“I don’t recognize anyone,”…the thought hit me.
Not even a single senior executive sitting in those chairs.
Damian had fired all of my father’s loyal friends and replaced them with his own puppets.
I was an outsider in my own family’s company.
Before the meeting was even fully dismissed, Julian walked past my desk.
He paused, looking me up and down with a loud, dramatic sigh.
“Wow,” he mocked loudly, ensuring his voice carried across the open office floor.
“You’re just a deputy manager, but you dress as if you’re walking down a runway at a fashion show. Don’t you think that’s a bit much for actual work?”
A few of the new employees nearby let out quiet, nasty snickers.
They were already taking Julian’s side, trying to please Damian’s favorite.
I tried not to lose my temper, slowly adjusting my blazer, as I looked Julian straight in the eyes.
My stare was a calm and icy.
“Oh you think so? Well, thanks for the tips then. I’ll be sure to keep it in mind,” I replied smoothly.
My calm response caught him completely off guard, instantly shutting down the murmuring around the room.
I wasn’t going to let them break me.
After a while stuck on the heavy workload, I stepped away for a while, needing a second to breathe, away from the suffocating fake smiles and the strangers occupying my father’s old boardrooms.
I ducked into the quiet, dimly lit corridor near the supply room, hoping for a moment of peace.
Instead, a heavy shadow fell over me.
“Well, well. Look who finally decided to show her pretty face at the office,” a voice sneered.
I turned around, my back hitting the cold drywall.
It was Marcus, Julian’s cousin, an averagely tall man with full beards and a menacing smile.
Damian had recently promoted him—another one of their loyal leeches brought in to drain the company.
He closed the distance between us, standing entirely too close.
He smelled strongly of cheap cologne and a whiff of cigarette, brown piercing eyes scanning my body with a disgusting look that made my skin crawl.
But I’m just here to remind you, in case you’ve forgotten.”
”A sexy woman like you shouldn’t be stressing her pretty little head over engineering blueprints.
You belong at home, in a silk robe.
Waiting in bed for a real man to come back from work and give you exactly what you’re begging for.” His hand brushed a strand of hair from my face, giving me chills as that filthy hand touched me.
“What did you just say to me?” I breathed out, my voice dangerously quiet.
Marcus let out a proud chuckle, entirely unbothered.
He leaned in even closer, his cheap cologne suffocating me.
“I said, you’re in the wrong place, sweetheart. Instead of playing boss, you should be keeping a mattress warm for—”
Slap!
My palm met with his face in a sharp loud slap.
When he slowly turned to face me, his fingers traced bright red blood on his lower lips.
Marcus staggered back against the wall, clutching his jaw.
His eyes were wide and filled with a paralyzing shock.
I leaned forward, “Don’t you ever dare speak to me like that again!
I own this company.
My father built this company.
You are a disgusting parasite, and if you even look at me again, I will personally throw you out of this building myself!”
He stared at me, trembling, entirely silenced by my fury—”Woman…hey you!” Marcus’s voice rasped, cutting through the silence.
I blinked hard, my vision snapping back into reality.
The blood on his lips was gone.
My hands clenched into tight fists at my sides.
“Thank God, if only just imagined it.”
Marcus blinked, “Huh?”
”Right.
If I report him to Damian, or try to talk back at him now, it’ll only ruin my plan.
Julian will literally drag my ass down, sending me back home.”
Marcus was still watching, his brows furrowing.
I swallowed the bitter lump of rage rising in my throat, forcing my breathing to slow down as I slapped his hand away from my face.
“Thank you for the advice, Marcus.” I said with a big full smile on my face, then hurried quickly out of his sight before my imagination came to pass.
Behind me, I could hear him muttering.
“What the hell was all that about? Stupid bitch.”