Delayed Passion: Miss Lynch's Unrequited Love-Chapter 29: I Can Fire You Anytime

Foreman Chandler and the others looked over when they heard the noise.

The next second, the office was filled with a hubbub.

"Who is it, who is it, did anyone say who sent it?"

"Hey, Foreman Lynch said she doesn’t have a boyfriend, so what’s going on here?"

The crowd was enjoying the drama, laughing heartily. Only Thea Lynch kept her brows knit, without a hint of joy on her face, even looking somewhat troubled and annoyed.

"Who sent it?" She looked up at the assistant across from her.

The assistant explained, "The reception said it was delivered by a local courier, they don’t know exactly who. The courier just mentioned it was for Thea Lynch in the R&D department."

Foreman Chandler analyzed, "Looks like it’s someone familiar, they know Foreman Lynch works here."

"There’s a card here." He picked up a pink card from the corner and handed it to Thea Lynch, "The name should be inside, right?"

Thea Lynch put down the scissors and flipped it open with one hand.

[Happy Holidays!] The card only had these four short words, with no signature.

But the handwriting, Thea Lynch thought she’d seen it before, she just couldn’t be sure right now.

"Who sent it?" The single folks looked on, eager for gossip.

Thea Lynch shook the card in her hand and tossed it on the table casually, smiling tauntingly at them, "No name written, oh."

Everyone was disappointed, "What’s with this person, sending flowers but not signing the name! What an idiot!"

Thea Lynch laughed and sat back down, signaling for the assistant to take the flowers out.

"Don’t you want them?" The assistant was puzzled.

Thea Lynch: "Don’t waste them, throw them in the restroom to freshen the air."

"..."

In the evening, Thea Lynch bumped into her assistant as she came out from the break room.

She looked away, carrying cookies, planning to head back to the office to continue checking data. She had nothing much to do tonight, so she decided to work overtime a bit.

As they passed each other, the assistant reached out and grabbed her.

Almost instinctively, Thea Lynch swung her arm, shaking off his hand. She turned aside, eyes cold, "Don’t touch me."

The assistant didn’t expect such a big reaction, and was momentarily frozen.

He hadn’t had the chance to be alone with Thea Lynch these past days, even when they met, they kept their distance, she hadn’t even looked him directly in the eye.

Examining the woman opposite, after all these years, she seemed unchanged. Always carrying this cold demeanor with everyone.

Occasionally, when she smiled, it was in a mocking manner, with contempt and loathing evident in her eyes. Just like that man from before, looking down at him with a condescending, oppressive air, as if in the eyes of people like them, others were insignificant.

What he hated most was Thea Lynch’s gaze! Even after all these years, it haunted him like a nightmare. In front of her, he always felt his pride and everything about him were trampled underfoot, negligible!

Still, he couldn’t deny that she remained so stunningly attractive. Her long hair casually tied up, a strand gently tucked behind her ear, with every gesture like a dust-free fairy, dazzling beauty lingered in time.

The figure before him overlapped with the girl in the school uniform from back then, and he stared blankly, speaking only as she was about to leave, "I didn’t mean to, I just wanted you to stop."

Thea Lynch turned back, her expression cool, as she mockingly asked, "Lost your voice, have you?"

The assistant choked up, "I just didn’t want you to miss hearing me."

As he said that, Thea Lynch squinted her eyes.

"Weren’t you wearing a hearing aid before, so I..."

Thea Lynch casually put down the plate she was holding, stepping forward, "Didn’t settle the account from back then, do you feel it’s a pity?"

"So you do remember me!" The assistant didn’t feel embarrassed, he was even pleased he guessed correctly.

Thea Lynch smirked, "Surprised?"

It was that familiar smile again, the assistant felt a cold sweat, "You, that was all in the past. You wouldn’t give me a hard time, would you?"

This was exactly what he feared the most, the reason he repeatedly probed Thea Lynch was because of this.

"Relax, you’re not worth me making a fuss over." Thea Lynch crossed her arms, leaning against the wall, raising her eyebrows, "Because I can easily get you out."

"Do you think you’re the boss of Stratus? You can decide whether I stay or go?"

Recently he found out, Thea Lynch was just an ordinary engineer here, the only slightly important thing was, she had a big project in hand. Other than that, she was no different from people like Foreman Chandler.

"No." Thea Lynch shook her head, seeing his relief, she slowly added, "But I could be anytime."

"!"

"I am, after all, a graduate of a prestigious school, do you think I can’t live without this place?"

"Have you forgotten about the non-compete agreement? Do I need to educate you on it?"

Upon leaving Stratus, he couldn’t join a competitor or engage in competitive work for two years, it was something written into the contract from the start.

"...How about I apologize, I didn’t mean it back then, and I got expelled too. Besides, all these years... I’ve been living in the shadow of you and that man."

"That man?" Thea Lynch frowned. "Weren’t you the one who transferred schools?"

This contradicted the version she knew.

When he mentioned that person, he became agitated, "Your brother! Not only was I expelled back then, but my parents were also affected. My future was nearly ruined. I thought it was over, but then, fresh out of school working, I ran into you."

He muttered the last part, reluctantly.

"..."

Thea Lynch focused on the earlier part, after the incident back then, she only told Ian Preston. The brother he mentioned must have been referring to Ian Preston.

Yet Ian Preston never mentioned this matter to her later.

"I apologized to you, could you give me another chance?" His qualifications were actually inflated, he really didn’t know where to go after leaving Stratus.

Earlier he was so assertive because he didn’t know her background at Stratus.

Thea Lynch: "Depends on my mood."

"!"

——

In the evening, Foreman Chandler invited everyone for a meal, and Thea Lynch’s plan to work overtime was foiled, as the entire R&D department boisterously made their way downstairs.

At the entrance, Foreman Chandler was arranging rides for everyone.

Before they could decide, headlights flashed not far away, shining directly on their group. A few of the men cursed, ready to go argue, when they saw the car’s hazard lights flash.

Thea Lynch hid behind Foreman Chandler, not noticing what was happening over there, as she was digging through her bag for her keys.

"What kind of car is that, a BYD?"

"What are you, blind? That’s a Bentley!" 𝐟𝕣𝗲𝕖𝕨𝗲𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝗲𝚕.𝗰𝚘𝐦

"Wow, that license plate is a Beijing A consecutive number! First time seeing it!"

Beijing A consecutive number? Thea Lynch squinted and looked toward the light source.

"Why is it flashing hazard lights like that? Could it be some rich lady here to take Old Chandler for a Valentine’s?"

As everyone laughed, Thea Lynch subtly raised her hand, "Excuse me, sorry to interrupt, that’s here to pick me up."

"..."