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PERSON_PROFILE

Chapter 1
Liesel Sharp had just unlocked her phone while waiting for her IV drip to be done when she received a message from her best friend, Chelsea Walden. "Jacob's back."

She faltered. She and Jacob Ford had barely spoken throughout their month-long cold war, so she had no idea he was back.

Soon, she received another message. "He's brought a young woman back with him."

A photo had been sent with the message. The young woman in the photo resembled Liesel a little—she was Natalie Sharp, Liesel's younger half-sister. She'd been raised in the countryside.

Chelsea continued, "The Sharp family is throwing them a welcome-back party. Do you want to crash it, Lili?"

She knew what Liesel was like. Liesel would give Jacob a taste of his own medicine if he dared to do anything to her. There was even a chance she would set the Sharp residence on fire.

Liesel checked her IV bag. She'd had a high fever for three days now, and the back of her hand was swollen from the constant IV drips she'd been on. She wasn't in the mood for that nonsense.

"No," she replied. Then, she shut her eyes to get some rest.

It was close to 10:00 pm when she took a cab back to Viewpoint Residences. The fever had taken its toll on her, so she soon drifted into a restless sleep. Jacob returned at some point, which woke her up.

"Did I wake you?" he asked while rolling up the sleeves of his ironed shirt. The dim light made his skin glow, adding a hint of iciness to his already cold demeanor. He looked down at her with an indifferent gaze. His voice was as alluring as always, though.

"No." Liesel's voice was a little nasal because she'd just woken up. She explained lazily, "I wasn't sleeping too soundly after taking my meds."

He frowned slightly. "Are you sick?"

She chuckled softly. She'd been sick for a while now and had mentioned it in her texts to him when admitting defeat. Yet he looked like he'd only just noticed.

She poured two glasses of water and handed one to him. "How are things at Norton City? I heard from Brook that there seemed to be some trouble with it. You—"

Her throat felt dry and uncomfortable; she wasn't in the mood to chat. Still, someone had to back down—it had been nearly two months since they'd seen each other.

However, Jacob cut her off. "Let's divorce."

She stared at him and almost lost her grip on her glass. Her throat seemed to hurt more now.

He didn't explain himself. All he said was, "You can ask for whatever you want. I won't shortchange you."

Liesel's heart clenched, but she soon regained her composure. "We can discuss this if this is because you left to pick Natalie up two months ago."

"It's not." He looked at her, his gaze aloof. "This is a loveless marriage, Liesel. There's no point in keeping it going."

It was true that the marriage alliance between the Ford and Sharp families had never been the one Jacob had hoped for. Liesel was the eldest daughter of the Sharp family, but he'd never wanted to marry her.

Their accidental encounter that night was the only thing that had made him choose to take responsibility for her.

Liesel lowered her eyes and said slowly, "Alright. All I want is the house at Northview Garden, and I won't quit my job after the divorce."

Her mother, Heather Mallone, had left the house for her. For whatever reason, it had ended up in the Ford family's hands and become one of her wedding gifts.

As for her career, she'd worked hard and built a network within Ford Corporation. She couldn't allow the divorce to wipe her efforts away.

Jacob didn't object. He looked at her and said, "Okay. Anything else?"

"No." Liesel shook her head. "If it bothers you, I can move out tomorrow."

He seemed surprised by how accommodating she was. He cautioned her calmly, "Make sure you've thought this through, Liesel. I don't want there to be anything between us after the divorce."

"Don't worry about that." She smiled.

He seemed to want to say something else, but his phone rang. He answered it and hung up shortly after. Then, he said, "I have something else to do. I'll get a lawyer to talk to you about the divorce."

Soon after he left, Liesel saw a trending topic on him and Natalie showing up together somewhere. In hindsight, fate was such a twisted thing.

Back then, Heather could not tolerate even the slightest flaw in her marriage. After learning about Natalie's existence, she forced her husband, Jeffrey Sharp, to send Natalie to the countryside so she could grow up there.

Less than two years after Heather's death, Jeffrey had remarried, turning Liesel into a joke. Natalie had also been brought back from the countryside.

Fate loved playing jokes on everyone—no one would've expected Natalie to be the one who held Jacob's heart.

…

Liesel only woke up the following noon. Her cold was much better now. A lawyer brought her the divorce agreement, making sure to go through the allocation of assets.

Jacob truly hadn't shortchanged her. Aside from the house at Northview Garden, he'd also given her some other real estate. The lawyer said, "Sign here if you don't have any objection to the clauses, Ms. Sharp."

Liesel nodded and signed the agreement without hesitation. The divorce would take some more time to finalize, though.

Jacob was busy, so Liesel didn't get to see him at all. She reminded the lawyer, "Please tell Mr. Ford to expedite the finalization of the divorce if he's not too busy. Dragging this out won't do any of us favors."

After settling the divorce, Liesel moved out of her and Jacob's marital home. Chelsea heard about this and invited her out for coffee.

"You know about Natalie, right? She studied hard in the countryside after being banished by your mother and later got into a good university. Jacob ran into her at Alden University when he went there to give a talk." Chelsea snorted.

She continued, "I heard Natalie was really in awe of him; it helped that she was so hardworking and optimistic. Your father was desperate to matchmake them, you know. But here's the question—why would someone as wonderful as her not realize what a contemptible move it is to ruin someone's marriage?"

Chelsea had always been defensive of people she counted as her own, and she scorned those who knowingly got involved with people who had significant others. The fact that Natalie was an illegitimate child only made Chelsea despise her more.

Liesel looked unfazed, though. "It's all in the past now. Jacob and I are already divorced, so she's not really ruining the marriage."

She chuckled. She had mixed feelings about the whole thing. "Besides, it's not like Jacob and I ever had feelings for each other."

She lowered her gaze and suddenly remembered the first time she and Jacob had met. The year Heather had died, she'd caused one of Jeffrey's business deals to fall through. She'd been overjoyed and had dragged Chelsea out for a celebration.

After the celebration, she'd refused to let go of a handsome man she'd latched onto. They'd both had too much to drink and had ended up in bed. It was only later that she'd learned he was Jacob Ford, her fiancé.

Rumor had it that he'd never wanted to marry her, but he'd looked at her the following morning and said, "I'm willing to take responsibility for this, Liesel. What about you?"

He'd proposed marriage. Liesel had looked at him, and a rare moment of rashness had taken over her. She'd said, "Let's do it."

To tell the truth, there wasn't anything bad about Jacob. He didn't love her but had never played the field or slept around with other women. He was also calm and level-headed, considerate and gentle. She didn't even have any complaints about their adventures in bed.

But things had changed after he'd run into Natalie at Alden University two months ago.

Chelsea looked at Liesel while feeling bitter. The latter hadn't said anything, but Chelsea knew how she felt. Judging from Liesel's personality, there was no way she would've settled for Jacob for so long if she didn't have feelings for him.

"Maybe you should go back to Shifter Corporation, Lili. Why continue suffering at Ford Corporation? I feel nauseous at the thought of those two pieces of trash being there."

Liesel had always been prideful and stubborn. After Heather's death, she'd used whatever she'd inherited to set up Shifter Corporation, wanting to compete with the Sharp family's company.

However, she'd left it in the hands of Heather's friend, Jonathan Shifter. The outside world only knew it as Jonathan's company.

"Marriage is marriage, and work is work," Liesel said. "I'm not going to give up on my career over a failed marriage."

That was what she thought—it was also what Jacob had promised her. But when she headed to work the next day, she discovered she'd been transferred from her position as his secretary to the project department manager.

Chapter 2
Liesel had taken a week of sick leave. She'd only learned about the transfer when returning to work.

A colleague gossiped with her, sounding pointed as they said, "I bet you still don't know this, Ms. Sharp. We have a new secretary whose last name is also Sharp. It looks like there's something special about her."

Liesel didn't expect to hear that. Had Jacob actually given Natalie a job by his side?

Soon, Jacob summoned Liesel to the CEO's office. When she entered and stood before him, he looked at her indifferently. "Since you want to stay at the company, continuing to hold the position of my personal secretary isn't appropriate.

"The project department manager was transferred to a branch company, leaving a vacancy there. The timing is just right."

Liesel knew very well that Jacob had always been clear-headed. He would never allow her to cause Natalie any discomfort or disappointment. Rather than saying the transfer was his recognition of Liesel's abilities, it would be more accurate to say he merely didn't want Natalie to misunderstand.

"Okay," Liesel said.

He frowned slightly and said, "Natalie hasn't seen much of the world since she's just graduated. You should give her more guidance."

Liesel didn't say no. Setting everything else aside, she did need to hand over the work she had in hand—it was her responsibility as an employee.

She headed downstairs, running into Natalie on her way. The latter was a rookie and a greenhorn, so some of the veterans had tricked her into buying them over a dozen cups of coffee.

She hurried around with a light sheen of sweat on her forehead, looking obedient yet silly. She faltered when she saw Liesel.

"Lie—" She seemed to think of something and stuck out her tongue. "Ms. Liesel."

Liesel frowned at her and said, "You're here as Mr. Ford's secretary, not to run errands. Set the coffee aside and come with me."

Natalie paled. Still, she did as told and followed Liesel. Everyone else in the department settled down.

Liesel had no intention of picking on Natalie. After all, banishing the latter to the countryside again wouldn't bring Heather back to life. Besides, before her death, Heather had already lost interest in being mad at the Sharp family.

"These are the most recently saved files. This is a list of things to pay attention to when working with Mr. Ford, and this is his latest schedule," Liesel said. "Avoid wearing too many accessories during work unless necessary for a gathering or business meeting.

"As a secretary, what's more important is your ability to think on your feet and react to whatever that's happened."

Natalie blinked as a light blush spread across her cheeks. "Is this one not allowed, too? Mr. Ford gave this to me, and I quite like it. Can't I wear it?"

Liesel's gaze flitted past the necklace she wore. It took her aback for a split second. She'd like that particular necklace for some time.

Once, Jacob had nonchalantly asked her, "Do all little ladies like accessories like that?"

It turned out he was getting it for Natalie.

"That's up to you." Liesel lowered her gaze to conceal the emotions in her eyes. Her tone remained calm as she continued, "It's fine as long as it doesn't affect your work."

Natalie smiled sweetly without saying anything else. Liesel showed her the ropes and gave her a run-through of the overall workflow. When she was done, Natalie said, "I get the feeling that you don't really like me, Liesel. Is it because of Mr. Ford?"

Liesel looked at her. She didn't avert her gaze. Instead, she just smiled and continued, "It's hard to tell who's wrong and right when it comes to matters of the heart—it was the same with my mother and our father. Whatever it is, I still want to be friends with you…"

"Natalie." Liesel stopped her there. "Morals and ethics still bind all matters of the heart. You wouldn't have been banished to the countryside if not for that. Do only what you must, and stop thinking everyone around you is a fool."

Jeffrey had had an affair, which led to Natalie's birth. Even if Heather was already dead, Liesel didn't think she could shamelessly forgive Natalie's mother on Heather's behalf, let alone allow Natalie to do the forgiving. What right did Natalie have to talk about right or wrong?

Liesel turned and left. She returned to her office and texted Jacob. "Do you have time to get the divorce settled today, Mr. Ford? Let's get that divorce certificate."

He didn't stand her up. They met at the courthouse at 2:00 pm.

Liesel signed whatever papers she needed to and looked at him. "It's all ready. Your turn to sign."

She hadn't had time to change her outfit before leaving the office, so she still wore a professional-looking women's suit. Her hair cascaded over her shoulders, which framed her aloof yet delicate face. She looked beautiful.

Jacob watched her for a while before looking away. "You seem to be in quite a rush."

"Hmm? No, I'm not," Liesel answered after a beat. "We've already signed the papers. There's no point in dragging this out."

He didn't say anything else and quickly signed. After they got their divorce certificates and left the courthouse, Jacob looked at her. "All better now?"

"Yep." She nodded.

She was about to leave when he got in his car and rolled down the window. "I'll drop you back."

Liesel hesitated. She was about to turn him down when a wave of nausea washed over her, making her retch.

When she returned to her senses, she saw Jacob watching her with narrowed eyes. "Are you conceived?"

Her heart sank. It had been a month since they'd last slept. He'd been rather rough that night and hadn't used any protection. But things couldn't be that coincidental, right? Could she have gotten conceived from that one time?

She clenched her fists. "I can't be."

He was about to say something else when his phone rang. He answered it. When he hung up, his brows were furrowed. "I have work to do."

He looked at her pointedly. "We can't have children, Liesel. I hope this is just a coincidence."

Liesel's heart clenched, but she didn't say anything. Throughout her and Jacob's three-year marriage, they'd always been careful with preventive measures.

That time a month ago was the only time neither of them had done anything. But how could she have conceived so easily?

She pushed the thought out of her mind and took a cab back to the company. When she arrived, she noticed the tension in the air.

A colleague leaned close to her and whispered in trepidation, "There's been a problem with the products from Hardin Group. That new secretary signed the papers during the handover without checking the stock properly."

Liesel frowned. She'd deliberately reminded Natalie to check everything before signing for them. It didn't help that Hardin Group was more cunning than others. This wasn't their first time trying to pull something like this.

Shortly after, her assistant came and said, "Mr. Ford wants to see you, Ms. Sharp."

Liesel pushed open the door to Jacob's office. Natalie stood inside. Her nose was red, and she was biting her lip. She looked pitiful yet adorable. Her words made Liesel frown, though.

"I'm sorry, Jake. I had no idea I needed to check everything when accepting the stock. Ms. Liesel did tell me to check the items but didn't caution me that Hardin Group would be so cunning. It's all my fault…"

Jacob looked at Liesel coldly. "Nat's just graduated, so she knows nothing about these things. You know very well what Hardin Group is capable of. Why didn't you give her a heads-up?"

Chapter 3
Liesel's heart twinged slightly, but she said calmly, "I reminded Ms. Natalie about the stock handover. The office has surveillance cameras. You can check the footage if you don't believe me, Mr. Ford."

Natalie paled. Tears welled in her eyes, and she said pitifully, "I-I probably didn't hear you because my mind wandered. That's why I made such a mistake."

Liesel ignored her. "We can't let Hardin Group manipulate us for stocks worth millions. I'll handle this, but the company also has rules to uphold. Natalie will need to be reprimanded accordingly."

She turned and left the office to check on the stocks. Now that they'd already been accepted, from a legal perspective, Ford Corporation had no choice but to swallow its woes and live with the situation.

Still, there was hope for this. Uriah Hardin, the third son of the Hardin family, managed Hardin Group. However, his brother, Elijah Hardin, was the second son and favored by his family. He also wanted to usurp Uriah's position.

If she could turn this matter into a power play, she could turn the tables on Hardin Group.

At 8:00 pm, Liesel and Elijah met at a restaurant. His roguish, flippant look landed on her. "Have you invited the wrong man, Ms. Sharp? I'm not the one who calls the shots at Hardin Group, nor am I interested in you."

Liesel was beautiful but too boring in his eyes. He liked his women obedient and gentle. They were cuter that way.

Liesel ignored his words and placed a document before him. "These are some of the tracks Mr. Uriah has left in the industry over the years, Mr. Elijah. I won't beat around the bush—I don't believe you're uninterested in Hardin Group. Take him down, and this deal with Ford Corporation will be yours."

The flippant look in Elijah's eyes faded away. He narrowed his eyes and appraised her with interest. His mother wasn't his father, Richard Hardin's first wife, and Richard favored Uriah over him. But was there anyone in the Hardin family who didn't want to have something to do with the company?

After a long silence, he drawled, "What's in it for you if I take him down?"

"I need you to switch out the subpar products Hardin Group has just supplied to Ford Corporation. Cooperating with you is also good for us because you don't pull dirty tricks."

Liesel didn't mind pulling a few tricks when doing business, but Uriah's methods were too lowbrow. She was scornful of him.

Elijah looked at her. Then, he raised his glass and said meaningfully, "I hope things will work out the way you wish, Ms. Sharp."

A few tables away, Jacob's assistant, Jesse Lane, noticed Liesel. In a low voice, he told Jacob, "Ms. Sharp is here, too, Mr. Ford."

Jacob followed his line of sight and frowned slightly. Elijah had a reputation for being a dandy—what was Liesel doing with him?

Liesel didn't notice Jacob. She and Elijah soon ended their discussion; Jesse approached her then. He said, "Mr. Ford is waiting for you, Ms. Sharp."

Elijah glanced at him before turning back to Liesel. "You should consider joining Hardin Group if you ever get sick of being at Ford Corporation, Ms. Sharp. We always know a good thing when we see it."

A woman with nothing but good looks would quickly become boring, but she would be a valuable resource if she were beautiful and brainy.

Liesel didn't respond to Elijah's words. Instead, she politely bid him farewell before following Jesse to Jacob's car.

It was 11:00 pm, and the night breeze was rather chilly. Liesel's lips were a little pale as she got into the car. She lowered her eyes, and her wrists were briefly exposed underneath her suit jacket. It made her seem rather weak and pitiful.

Jacob frowned. He'd never noticed her being this skinny. "Have you settled the problem with Hardin Group?"

She nodded, looking tired. "Yeah. Elijah is harder to deal with than Uriah, but he's already agreed to switch out the subpar products. We'll just need to send someone to handle the handover."

Jacob's gaze flitted past her. "Natalie is young and naive. You can't completely blame her for this."

Liesel paused before saying softly, "You're Ford Corporation's CEO. It's up to you how you want to handle her."

Natalie was young, huh? She'd been even younger than Natalie when joining Ford Corporation, but Jacob had never cut her any slack.

"I've yet to tell Grandpa about the divorce," he said, switching the subject.

Vincent Ford had been recuperating at home these past years and couldn't be aggravated. Even if Liesel and Jacob had never been the most loving couple, Vincent probably still couldn't handle the news of their divorce.

Liesel looked down. "Got it. I'll tell him about this when the time is right."

Jacob didn't say anything else.

Liesel had had a bit to drink without eating anything. After a while, she curled up in her seat and drifted off. Her face was pale.

When Jacob noticed something was wrong with her, he frowned. He was about to instruct Jesse to take them to the hospital when she woke up.

"Where are we?" she asked, her voice hoarse.

He said, "I'm taking you to the hospital."

Liesel's heart skipped a beat as she thought of something. However, she kept her tone nonchalant and said, "There's no need for that. My stomach just feels a little upset. I'll be fine after resting at home."

Jacob looked at her. His gaze was deep and sharp. It was as if he could read her thoughts. After a while, he said, "Fine."

She relaxed. Back home, she called Chelsea and said a little grimly, "Buy me a test."

…

The following day, Liesel was supposed to attend a welcome-back party for Alex Stone, one of her and Jacob's mutual friends. Alex had called her before his return to invite her to the party. Perhaps it was because he'd heard about the divorce and wanted to help them reconcile.

The party was already in full swing when Liesel arrived. She heard Alex's voice through the door. "Have you and Liesel really divorced? Was it because of Natalie?"

Liesel faltered, her hand on the doorknob. After a pause, Jacob said, "It has nothing to do with Natalie. Liesel and I aren't a good match."

"Tsk. How are you two not a good match?" Alex asked. "I think Liesel is fantastic. She's pretty, intelligent, and has won many people's recognition at Ford Corporation. Why are you so obsessed with Natalie? Don't forget that Liesel saved you in the past. Sometimes, some things are just too little, too late."

He'd met Natalie before and could tell she was nothing but a young woman with a few tricks up her sleeve. She couldn't compare to Liesel.

Liesel had managed to save Jacob from the hands of his abductors. How could someone like Natalie compare to her bravery and determination?

Jacob would have much to regret if he and Liesel really were to divorce.

This time, Jacob remained silent for a longer time. Then he said, "You can't force matters of the heart."

Liesel lowered her eyes and slowly clenched her fists. Alex stopped trying to change Jacob's mind. Instead, he said, "You'd better think this through. You may not like her, but plenty of others do."

Liesel didn't linger. She texted Alex on WhatsApp and told him she wasn't attending the party because she had to attend to something else. Then, she asked Chelsea out.

Chelsea gave her the test and asked hesitantly, "You're not really conceived, are you, Lili?"

Chapter 4
Liesel held the test tightly. "I'm not sure yet."

Her period had yet to come this month, and the retching from before… She suspected something was up.

"What are you going to do if you are?" Chelsea looked at her hesitantly. "Will Jacob accept it?"

Liesel dropped her gaze. Jacob would never want a child she'd brought into the world. Besides, they were already divorced—it was bad for them both if she were to keep the child… even if it was one she'd longed for in the past.

After a long silence, she said, "No, he won't. There's no point in keeping lingering attachments or forcing someone to do something against their will. If I'm conceived, I'll lose the baby."

She'd waited for a baby that hadn't come over the past three years. Now, it was long past the time for that.

Liesel was in a bad mood, so she didn't do the test on the spot. Instead, she and Chelsea had some drinks. Well, she only had a sip or two of a drink with the lowest possible wine content.

She only remembered the test when she arrived at the company the following day. She headed to the bathroom and did the test. Then, she was dumbstruck when she saw the two lines on it.

She was conceived… with Jacob's child.

Her face turned pale. Just then, someone entered the bathroom. In her panic, she threw the test into the trashcan and clenched her fists.

Was she really going to lose her and Jacob's child? A pang of pain swept past her heart.

Liesel was in a meeting but she was distracted. When it was over, a colleague leaned close to her, looking excited to share gossip. "Did you hear, Ms. Sharp? Someone from our department is conceived."

The competition within Ford Corporation had always been intense, and carrying a baby was something that would easily affect one's career and ascension up the ladder.

The colleague couldn't help saying gleefully, "I wonder who it is. They're being hush-hush about this, aren't they?"

Liesel's heart skipped a beat. She looked up and happened to meet Jacob's cool, calm gaze. He said, "Come to my office, Ms. Sharp."

She clenched her fists. When she entered Jacob's office, he said, "I'll have Jesse take you for an examination in a couple of days."

Her heart stuttered, and she blurted out, "It's not me."

"This is just to be safe. I'm sure you don't want any trouble to arise from this."

Liesel couldn't stop him. She could only suppress her panic and say, "Okay."

Natalie came her way when she left the office. The former bit her lip and said uneasily, "What happened last time was a misunderstanding, Ms. Liesel. You won't get mad at me for that, will you? I had no idea Hardin Group would pull such a dirty trick and try to stuff subpar products on us!"

"That's none of my business," Liesel said indifferently. "The company has its system for rewards and punishments. You'll have to bear the consequences of your mistakes. It's as simple as that."

She had nothing much to say to Natalie. Setting aside their relationship, she'd always drawn a clear line between her professional and private lives. There was no need to drag personal grudges into work.

Natalie sighed in relief. "It's Dad's birthday next week, Liesel. He hasn't seen you for so long. How about you come home so we can celebrate as a family?"

Jeffrey's birthday was a week after Heather's death anniversary. Liesel looked at Natalie and said, "I'm not in the mood to scheme and play mind games with you, Natalie.

"If you're not a complete idiot, you'll understand what I mean when I say your father's birthday isn't a good day for me and my mother."

Natalie faltered. Then, her face turned red, and she said, "I know it's only a week after Heather's death anniversary, but you can't revive the dead. We still have to celebrate Dad's birthday since he's alive, right?

"I've never blamed Heather for banishing me to the countryside, so why do you have to keep holding a grudge against Dad?"

"You know very well why my mother sent you to the countryside," Liesel said icily. "If I were to forgive the person who'd caused her death and even celebrate his birthday, it wouldn't prove that I'm generous enough to bury the hatchet. It would just show that I'm heartless."

Natalie blanched. Her eyes turned red as tears welled in them. "I didn't mean anything else by this, Liesel. I just—"

"I don't care what you meant," Liesel interrupted. "When at work, we're nothing more than colleagues. You should focus on your work, Ms. Natalie."

She turned and left, not wanting to play mind games with Natalie. She took the afternoon off to head to the hospital. It didn't even occur to her what Natalie thought of her words.

Unfortunately, it seemed Natalie was more cowardly than she'd expected. The former had been so absent-minded while walking that she'd twisted her ankle. Jacob brought her to the hospital.

"Congratulations. You're six weeks conceived."

Liesel happened to run into Jacob, who was holding Natalie up, when she was leaving the hospital with her report.

The doctor's words reverberated in her mind. "Your body cannot handle the surgery, Ms. Sharp. If you proceed with it, you might not be able to conceive in the future. I'd advise you to think this through."

Liesel felt bitter. She was conceived with Jacob's child, which was something to be happy and expectant about. But would he allow her to keep it?

Jacob noticed the look on her face while Natalie hesitantly called out to her. "Lie—Ms. Liesel."

Jacob's gaze flitted past her. "What are you doing here?"

She hid her report behind her and said softly, "I came for a follow-up check because my cold isn't completely gone yet."

He narrowed his eyes at her. Natalie seemed to notice something and tugged his sleeve. She looked a little glum. "You should have something to discuss with Ms. Sharp, Mr. Ford. I'll head back first."

Jacob frowned but didn't make her stay. "I'll have someone take you back."

She nodded obediently.

Liesel sighed in relief and stuffed the report into her bag. When she and Jacob were in his car, he glanced at her. "Are you that nervous to be around me? The more you act like this, the more I'll think you're conceived."

She subconsciously wanted to deny it but forced herself to smile. She asked, "What will you do if I really am conceived, then?"

"Make you lose it," he said without hesitation as he looked her in the eye.

She knew it. A pang of pain swept past her heart, and she shook her head as she said bitterly, "It's just a cold."

Jacob scrutinized her for a while before saying, "I heard you and Nat got into a small fight today, leading to her twisting her ankle while heading downstairs.

"She's young and naive but is kind. She also doesn't get into arguments with others that easily. You should be nicer to her and be more accommodating if anything happens in the future."

Liesel's bitterness bubbled up in her. No one in this world could avoid being more favorable to certain people. She said, "She's not a child, Mr. Ford. There's nothing for me to accommodate."

Chapter 5
Liesel looked at Jacob. Her tone was calm as she said, "I don't owe Natalie anything, nor do I owe you. Work-wise, I'm only her senior. Regarding my personal life, my mother didn't owe her anything.

"Natalie came knocking on our door when her mother chose to marry another. No woman can accept her husband's illegitimate daughter. She might have had Natalie sent to the countryside, but Natalie was also given more than enough money to survive there.

"I don't owe her, whether professionally or personally. Why should I be more accommodating and tolerant of her? Why should I back down when facing off against her?"

When she finished her speech, silence descended upon the car. Jacob looked at her. She wore a simple dress that clung to her curves, and her delicate features were arranged into her usual mask of aloofness.

There was something cold and tenacious about her. She was so brilliant that one could almost neglect her beauty.

His gaze flitted over her eyes. After a moment of silence, he said gently, "I'm sorry. I didn't handle this matter appropriately."

Liesel didn't say anything. He looked her in the eye and said, "I shouldn't have made you suppress yourself and back down for Natalie's sake. You're a wonderful woman, Liesel. Even though we're divorced now, I still hope you'll live your own life."

She clenched her fists and tried to keep her tears at bay. She couldn't deny that she really, really liked Jacob. However, certain things just couldn't be forced.

…

Liesel headed home. She had someone ask around about the doctor Jacob was going to arrange to examine her. Meanwhile, Chelsea was worried. "Can't you just tell him the truth? He might not be that cruel. You two were together for three years, after all."

"I'd rather not." Liesel caressed her belly. She was silent for a while before saying, "Since I can't lose the child, there's no need to let Jacob know about this. We're already divorced, and this child is part of my life now. I'll need your help dealing with the doctor."

Whatever it was, she couldn't let Jacob find out about the baby.

Chelsea didn't object. She seemed to think of something and said, "Natalie used to intern at Shifter Corporation. Do you think it's just a coincidence, or does she know something?"

This came as a surprise to Liesel. Natalie had interned at Shifter Corporation? Did she know it belonged to Liesel, or…

It piqued Liesel's suspicions, but she didn't dwell on the matter. "It's probably just a coincidence. She graduated from Alden University, and Shifter Corporation does campus recruitments there, too."

Chelsea had only brought it up since it had occurred to her. She smiled and said, "Mr. Shifter and Neal should be back soon, right? I'm sure you'll feel more secure with them around."

Neal Shifter was Jonathan's son, and the Shifter family had been managing Shifter Corporation on Liesel's behalf all these years. Since Heather's passing, the Shifters had become like family to Liesel.

She smiled, and a rare hint of relief flashed in her eyes.

…

The following day, news of Uriah's downfall broke out. Elijah looked like a dandy but had surprisingly ruthless methods.

He'd gotten someone to leak information on the dirty tricks Uriah had pulled to the paparazzi. Coincidentally, Uriah had recently murdered someone while driving under the influence and had gotten a scapegoat to take the fall. Thanks to everything being lumped together, he was soon arrested.

Elijah had proper quality stocks delivered to Ford Corporation in exchange for the subpar stocks. When Liesel went to handle the handover, he watched her with interest.

"Don't you trust me, Ms. Sharp?" He raised an eyebrow and eyed the light sheen of sweat at her temples. His gaze turned pointed.

She smiled and blinked at him. "I wouldn't put it that way. Better safe than sorry, right?"

Her smile and rare moment of slyness made her glow. Her eyes were so bright.

Elijah smirked at the sight. It looked like the rumors about her couldn't be trusted at all. She was much more interesting than those naive young women.

Jacob and Natalie happened to see this. Natalie approached with a smile and said, "You and Ms. Liesel seem to get along very well, Mr. Hardin. It looks like this matter was a blessing in disguise."

Her tone was light-hearted and lively, which carried a hint of a young woman's naivety and cheer. Her words made one's imagination wander, though. It was as if Liesel and Elijah were more involved than they seemed.

Jacob's expression darkened when he took in the smile on Liesel's face. Then, he said coolly, "Sorry to have troubled you over this, Mr. Hardin."

"Oh, it was no trouble at all." Elijah smiled meaningfully. "Nothing is considered troublesome when I have someone as gorgeous as Ms. Liesel attending to me."

"Ms. Liesel has always drawn a clear line between work and pleasure. You might have gotten the wrong idea, Mr. Hardin." Jacob's gaze flitted over Liesel.

Elijah's smile widened. "Drawing a clear line between work and pleasure isn't the same as being heartless. One has to be thick-skinned when pursuing a woman, right? Or are you interfering in your employee's personal life, Mr. Ford?"

Jacob faltered. Then, he said, "I'll leave you to it, Mr. Hardin."

He turned and left with Natalie in tow. Liesel watched them. Her gaze was aloof. However, Elijah saw the glumness deep inside. He said, "Your precious Mr. Ford isn't all that great. Why don't you consider other fish in the sea?"

There was a hint of amorosity to his words. Liesel returned to her senses and chuckled. "I remember you saying that I'm not your type, Mr. Hardin. Have you changed your mind?"

Elijah looked at her. If he had to be honest, she was too stubborn and inflexible for his tastes. She was indeed not his type. Yet she was pretty and intelligent enough to mask her inflexibility.

"Not really." He leaned closer. "But I'll make an exception for you. You should really consider my proposal."

Liesel didn't take his words to heart. She was just glad she'd managed to resolve the stock problem and prevent Ford Corporation from suffering any losses.

Jacob punished Natalie by docking three months of her pay and bonuses. Then, he paid Liesel double her salary.

The colleagues in Liesel's department were pleased when she returned.

"I'll admit it—I can't stand those who got in here because of their connections. Anyone else would've been fired ages ago."

"I know, right? She's supposed to have graduated from Alden University, yet she made such a huge mistake immediately after taking over as Mr. Ford's secretary. Even if we were to talk about looks alone, it's not like she can compare with Ms. Sharp! I wonder what Mr. Ford sees in her…"

Ford Corporation was one of the biggest in the industry, so it was harder for rookies to find their footing there compared to other companies. Their situation would only be worse if they didn't have the skills to back themselves up.

It wasn't appropriate for Liesel to comment on the subject, but she knew it wasn't right to pick on Natalie like that.

"Stop." She could feel a headache coming on as she stopped the gossip. "She's just a young woman who's new to this. You guys should focus on your work. I'll treat everyone to a nice meal in a couple of days, okay?"

Only then did the crowd zip their lips and get back to work.

Liesel needed to hand a contract to Jacob now that she was done with the matter with Hardin Corporation. She headed to his office and was about to knock when she heard Natalie's voice.

Inside the room, Natalie bit her lip. Her eyes were red as she said, "I'm too useless, aren't I, Jake? Everyone says I can't compare to Ms. Liesel."

Jacob frowned, and a hint of displeasure flashed in his eyes. He wiped her tears and said, "What's the point of comparing yourself to her? You two aren't the same."

Liesel faltered outside the door. She only pushed it open after a beat.

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