Too Much to Bear, My Love

No wonder they call it true love. Even if there were incriminating photos of Cassie with another man at a nightclub, a simple explanation from her had Oscar wrapped around her little finger once more. No matter if the explanation makes absolutely no sense, he still thinks of her as some innocent little lady.

Amelia just closed her eyes and remained silent.

“Are you tired?”

Amelia shook her head.

“So what did you think of what I just said?”

“After the divorce, I will get sole custody and sizable alimony, not to mention a more-than-adequate amount of child support. Since I love money so much, do you think I will reject your proposal?” Amelia shrugged while replying.

Oscar's lips curved into a smirk, and he appeared to be in a good mood.

When they reached the Majesty Group building, Oscar parked the car on the side of the road. As Amelia removed her seatbelt to get out, she said, “Mr. Clinton, drive safe.” She then opened the door to alight from the car.

Oscar halted her. “As your chauffeur for today, shouldn't I get a little something as a thank you?”

As Amelia turned around, she saw Oscar gesture at his cheek. Chuckling, she kissed his cheek and meant to leave immediately, but Oscar was faster. He held her head in place and gave her a French kiss. When they finally broke apart, Amelia was blushing furiously. She appeared coquettish and looked even more seductive than before. Even Oscar's gaze had changed as he swallowed, his Adam's apple bobbing.

Amelia rolled her eyes weakly at him and tidied her mussed-up hair before leaving the car quickly.

Once she entered the office, everyone stared at her knowingly. She felt awkward at the attention, which didn't end when she reached the design department. Some of her close colleagues even smirked when they saw her. The atmosphere was unsettling and perplexing.

One of her more familiar female colleagues came up to her and stared at her neck. She chuckled, “Amelia, it looks like your husband is a pretty passionate person. I'm sure you both enjoyed a pretty intense night yesterday.”

Amelia felt her cheeks heat up. How can I discuss my sex life with other people!

“Jessica, what nonsense are you saying! We're at work; don’t talk to me like that, or Mr. Scott will have your head if he sees us,” Amelia replied. Jessica just pointed at her neck and laughed. “Amelia, there's a very prominent hickey on your neck. I'm not sure anyone is going to think otherwise.”

Amelia hurriedly pulled out a compact mirror from her purse. There was indeed a hickey on her neck; she hadn't worn a high-neck blouse today, and the hickey was like a flashing neon sign for all to see. No wonder everyone was staring at me since I entered the lift; it's all because of this hickey!

This is all that jerk's fault! He must have snuck a hickey while I was distracted from all the kissing in the car!

How can I face my colleagues with a hickey like this! I'm going to be the laughing stock for ages! I know they're not mean, but I'm not that thick-skinned!

She brought her purse with her into the washroom and dabbed some powder on her neck. Once the hickey appeared less obvious, she let out a sigh of relief.

When she returned to her desk, Jessica pounced on her again. “Amelia, if your husband still has the energy to bed you when you're pregnant, I wonder how good his stamina must be? You should bring him along sometime. I'd like to see which man has stolen the heart of such a hottie like you; you must know every male in the design department has eyes for you.”

Amelia rolled her eyes at Jessica. “Jessica, you know the company rules. They'll dock our pay for gossiping during working hours. If you carry on like this, I'm going to tell Mr. Scott.”

Jessica stuck her tongue out playfully. “Amelia, you've gone over to the dark side! Siding with Mr. Scott against me! But alas, I'll forgive you because you're so pretty.”

Amelia shook her head resignedly.

But Jessica wasn't done. She suddenly spoke with a mysterious vibe. "Amelia, when you were in the hospital, a gorgeous woman joined our company. Why, her beauty is even comparable to yours! She quickly rose through the ranks to become the director of design. She's our new boss now, you know.”

Amelia glanced at her and repeated herself. “Jessica, if you continue gossiping like this and get your pay docked, don't blame me.”

Jessica's eyes widened as she spoke in a disbelieving tone. “Amelia, are you not at all curious about who this femme fatale is? There are two gorgeous women in our company now, and it's driving all the male colleagues crazy. I mean, you're married, but they can still hope.” Amelia didn’t know whether to laugh or cry at her antics. “Jessica, I know you millennials have all sorts of ideas up your sleeves. But please, just go back to your desk and work. We can talk about stuff outside of work during our lunch break, ok?”

Jessica chuckled to herself while returning to her desk. Her desk was next to Amelia's, so she continued whispering to her as she switched on her computer. “Amelia, I'm telling you. Even though that new director is gorgeous, she's really hard to get along with. When you two meet, I hope you both don’t make a big show of preening your own feathers.” “Jessica, tone down on your wild imagination, ok?” replied Amelia. Jessica was born in the 90s and had just joined the company this

year. She still has some of that school-going childishness and a boundless amount of energy and imagination. Although her endless smiles and laughter really did help her to get along with pretty much anyone. She may look like an air-headed girl, but she’s really capable too.

“Amelia, she's coming over here. Be careful ok, don't become the target of her temper.” Jessica had just ended her words before she quickly turned towards her desk, looking as if she was prepared for some impending disaster.

Amelia turned her head around and saw a man and a woman enter the design department. One of them was Mr. Scott, and the woman was none other than Jennifer Larson, who she'd met the other day.

In less than a month, someone who wants nothing to do with me is suddenly my boss.

When Jennifer saw her, surprise flashed over her eyes. She immediately turned towards Carter. “Mr. Scott, is this the employee who's been absent for half a month?”

Carter nodded.

Jennifer continued. “Mr. Scott, I remember company rules stating that employees, who are serving their three months’ probationary period, are not allowed to apply for long periods of leave. I checked the records, and it turns out she applied for leave after only working for a couple of days. Shouldn't the company enforce disciplinary action, Mr. Scott?”

“I approved her leave. Do you have a problem with that, Ms. Larson?” Carter replied lightly.

Normally, a smart woman would never argue with a man over such petty matters. Jennifer was a capable worker, but her superiority complex would not allow another woman to monopolize the attention of a man she liked. I have to send her packing no matter what!

“Mr. Scott, I am the director of design now. Don't I have a right to penalize employees who are taking leave when they're not supposed to?" Jennifer lifted her head and replied in a sharp tone.

Carter just glanced at her before addressing Amelia. “Amelia, come to my office for a moment.”

He turned and left the office. Jennifer shot an ambiguous glance at Amelia before stomping away on her heels.

Jessica expressed her annoyance and said, “Amelia, you need to be careful. Women get jealous easily, even more so for those who are beautiful. I'm pretty sure she has a target on your head.”

Amelia tidied up the things on her table and laughed. “Sweetie, you've watched too many dramas, and you're mixing up fiction and reality. All you need to do now is to do your work properly. I'll arrange for an appointment for you so you can see a doctor about your penchant for overthinking.”

Jessica wasn't angered at her words but merely pouted. “Amelia, why are you so mean! I'm just worried for you, yet you make fun of me. Don't make me angry.”

Amelia just smiled and spoke to the rest of the office. “Everyone, I'll need to leave for a moment. If my luck has run out and my boss wants to sack me, I hope you will all remember and miss me.”

The male colleagues reacted strongly to her words. “Don’t worry Amelia, we have your back. If that Ms. Larson is being unreasonable, we'll all quit in solidarity.”

Amelia laughed. "Ok, with your words, I feel ready to face anything ahead of me.”

Everyone burst out in laughter. “Amelia, if your husband hears this, he's going to be so jealous.”

Surprisingly, Amelia cracked a joke. “He's always stewing in jealousy.” After some friendly banter with her colleagues, Amelia made her way to Carter's office. Jennifer was already inside.

Amelia nodded politely in her direction. “Jennifer.”

Jennifer, however, replied coolly. “In the office, please address me as Ms. Larson.”

Amelia answered smoothly. “Ms. Larson.”

Jennifer hmphed lightly, her eyes full of hostility towards Amelia. Amelia was bewildered at her demeanor. I've only met her twice before this, but why does she have such a poor impression of me? The only reason I can think of is men’s problems, with the man in question being Carter.

“Mr. Scott, what did you want to speak to me about?” asked Amelia as she tried to shake off the unpleasant thoughts in her head.

Carter looked at her and asked caringly, “Amelia, are you ok? Is the baby giving you problems?”

Amelia shook her head. “Thank you for your concern, Mr. Scott. I'm feeling fine now.”

Carter nodded his head. “Good. I reserved the spot in Saspiuburg for you. If you've decided to go, I'll make the necessary travel arrangements.”

Amelia replied, “Mr. Scott, please don't trouble yourself. I'm five months pregnant now, and I don't think my husband's family will allow me to travel to Saspiuburg for training. You can let someone else have the slot; I recall there are training opportunities next year. I can always go with the new hires then.”

"Amelia, is it? Don’t you think you're asking for too much? You come and go as you please and take this training opportunity for granted. Do you somehow own this company or something? You're taking advantage of Carter's kindness, with no thought to how this will affect his image in the eyes of his other employees. Utterly selfish behavior,” said Jennifer unforgivingly as she crossed her arms.

Carter smiled apologetically at Amelia before addressing Jennifer coldly. “Ms. Larson, I hope you don't let your personal feelings get in the way of your work. I personally approved Amelia’s leave as she was hospitalized after a car accident. Any reasonable boss would approve her reasons for taking leave. Don't you think your preconception of the situation is making you sound like a shrew?”

Jennifer's expression soured as she gritted out, “Carter, you're telling me off because of that woman?”