Chapter 86: Chapter 86: It’s Really That Kind of Relationship

When Sebastian Hawthorne came out of the private lounge, his gaze instinctively went toward the screen.

Not seeing Cecilia Croft’s busy figure, he paused for a moment before striding over.

He found Cecilia Croft slumped over the coffee table, her head tilted to the side, fast asleep.

Her face was resting on the notes she had been organizing. Her handwriting was as elegant as she was.

Sebastian Hawthorne walked over, stopped across from her, and sat down on the sofa, his gaze landing on her sleeping face.

Her eyes were closed and her brow was tightly furrowed, a clear sign that she wasn’t sleeping peacefully.

It was likely due to the many troubles she’d been facing recently, preventing her from fully relaxing even in her sleep.

Sebastian Hawthorne drew his gaze away from her and glanced at the mountain of files on the table.

Although Cecilia Croft had already gone through some of them in the morning, more than half still remained.

The Hawthorne Group had long planned to expand into Silvercrest, and numerous meetings, big and small, had been held.

But if he remembered correctly, the meeting materials were supposed to be organized by a dedicated person.

Cecilia Croft should have only needed to read the meeting summaries to quickly understand the company’s projects and plans for Silvercrest.

Sebastian Hawthorne casually picked up a file from the desk and flipped through it, his brow furrowed and his expression stern.

At that moment, Cecilia Croft’s alarm went off.

She had set the alarm to remind Ruby Croft to go to the hospital for her check-up on time.

On pure reflex, she immediately lifted her head, grabbed her phone, and silenced it, her eyes even glancing worriedly toward the private lounge.

Seeing that no one had come out of the lounge, she silently breathed a sigh of relief. As she looked down to text Ruby Croft, she felt a pair of eyes on her.

Cecilia Croft looked up from her phone to see Sebastian Hawthorne sitting on the sofa across from her, flipping through a file.

His expression was stern, tinged with impatience, and he looked like he was about to lose his temper.

"Mr. Hawthorne, you’re awake? Did I wake you?"

’I didn’t talk in my sleep, did I?’

’Or maybe I made some little noises while I was sleeping and kept this man who has trouble sleeping from his rest.’

"I’m sorry."

Whatever the case, it had been unintentional.

With a frown, Sebastian Hawthorne placed the file on the coffee table, stood up, and walked away.

A flash of awkwardness crossed Cecilia Croft’s eyes.

After a moment of thought, she got up, walked to Sebastian Hawthorne’s desk, and took the initiative to suggest something.

"Mr. Hawthorne, perhaps you should just set up a temporary workstation for me in the executive office. I think..."

Sebastian Hawthorne didn’t look at her. He just picked up the intercom and called Keith Warren.

"Who prepared the meeting records for the Silvercrest project? Tell her to take all the materials back and redo them."

On the other end, Keith Warren heard the thinly veiled anger in Sebastian Hawthorne’s voice. His expression changed as he quickly responded.

"Yes, Mr. Hawthorne. I’ll bring someone up right away."

Sebastian Hawthorne said nothing more and hung up, his gaze turning sharp and severe as he looked at Cecilia Croft.

"What were you just saying?"

Seeing his cold, imposing expression, Cecilia Croft swallowed the words that were on the tip of her tongue.

"Nothing."

"I’ll get back to work."

’He’s a little scary when he’s angry.’

’No wonder Jasmine Vance is afraid of him.’

From their previous interactions, Cecilia Croft knew Sebastian Hawthorne was grumpy after waking up, but she hadn’t expected him to get this angry.

’Besides, it’s possible I disturbed his rest. If I make any requests now, I’ll probably just be asking for trouble.’

’He’s already taking his anger out on others; he can’t possibly take it out on me, too.’

Cecilia Croft silently returned to her temporary workstation, burying her head in the documents on the table and trying to make herself invisible.

Sebastian Hawthorne glanced up in Cecilia Croft’s direction. Seeing her timid and cautious appearance, he frowned.

The next second, however, he saw her furtively pick up her phone and make a call, bending over so low her head was practically under the coffee table as she whispered to the person on the other end.

"Assistant Young, please remember to remind my sister to go for her check-up!"

After speaking, she hung up, sat up straight with a serious expression, and went back to flipping through the files.

Sebastian Hawthorne raised an eyebrow before looking away from her.

Keith Warren soon came up with his assistant.

His assistant walked timidly over to Cecilia Croft and began to tidy up the files on the desk.

Cecilia Croft was taken aback. Confusion flashed in her eyes as she quickly held the files down.

"Wh-What’s going on?"

’I just finished extracting the key information from this batch of files. I can’t let this young woman mix them all up.’

Keith Warren’s voice, low and explanatory, was heard speaking to Sebastian Hawthorne.

"I apologize, Mr. Hawthorne. It was my subordinate’s negligence. She gave Miss Croft some obsolete materials, needlessly increasing her workload. I’ve already had someone downstairs prepare the new documents for Secretary Summers. They’ll be sent up shortly."

Sebastian Hawthorne’s expression was indifferent. Sitting in his office chair, he glanced at the assistant hiding behind Keith Warren, his tone frigid.

"Manager Warren, your wife is about to give birth. I can understand if your focus has shifted. But I trust you’re a man who knows how to handle his affairs properly."

Keith Warren nodded quickly. "Thank you for your trust, Mr. Hawthorne."

Only then did Cecilia Croft understand. Most of the files the project department had sent her were obsolete, discarded materials.

They were likely rejected proposals and plans from meetings, all sent over by the young woman before her, needlessly adding to her workload.

No wonder she felt the order of some meeting materials was off when she first received them.

’She had thought it was Keith Warren’s way of putting her in her place, since he had been in charge of the project before her.’

’It would be normal for him to harbor some resentment.’

But seeing Keith Warren’s anxious expression as he explained things to Sebastian Hawthorne, it seemed he wasn’t aware of the matter either.

’Was he truly unaware, or just pretending?’

Cecilia Croft removed her hand from the files, her gaze studying the assistant who was tidying them up.

The assistant didn’t look up, just kept her head down and continued to gather the papers.

From the occasional glance she shot, Cecilia could see intense resentment.

It wasn’t resentment toward Keith Warren, but toward her.

Cecilia Croft frowned, a flicker of confusion in her eyes.

’She had just returned to Karthus and hadn’t interacted with many people. Logically, she shouldn’t have offended this junior assistant.’

While she was still puzzled, Sebastian Hawthorne’s cold and merciless voice echoed from his desk.

"An employee who can’t even handle a simple task like this has no reason to remain at the Hawthorne Group."

Cecilia Croft clearly saw the assistant’s hand tremble. Her gaze turned to Keith Warren, pleading and aggrieved. 𝒇𝓻𝓮𝓮𝙬𝙚𝒃𝒏𝓸𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝓬𝓸𝒎

Seeing that look in her eyes, Cecilia Croft couldn’t help but be reminded of Jessica Keller.

She couldn’t help but frown and glance toward Keith Warren.

’Logically, a junior assistant who made a mistake would simply be fired.’

Even knowing that Sebastian Hawthorne’s expression was sharp and unforgiving, he still mustered the courage to plead on the assistant’s behalf.

"Mr. Hawthorne, Walsh has been with the company for four years. This is the first time she’s made a mistake like this. I hope you’ll consider it, for my sake..."

Sebastian Hawthorne’s voice was cold as he cut him off. "Keith Warren, don’t bring personal feelings into the workplace."

’Tsk...’

’So it really is that kind of relationship.’

’How utterly disgusting.’