My CEO’s Wife Canceled My Flight Then Lost Everything Chapter 03

My CEO’s Wife Canceled My Flight Then Lost Everything Chapter 03

At 8:47 a.m., a screenshot appeared in the company-wide group chat.

It had been taken inside the CEO’s office at two in the morning.

Grant was sitting on the couch with his eyes closed.

I stood beside him holding eye drops.

The family doctor had been cropped out.

The project team’s video call had been cropped out.

So had the proposal spread across the table.

Vanessa posted the image with a caption.

Vanessa: [Look how dedicated our Claire is. My husband’s eyes hurt, and somehow his assistant is more attentive than his wife.]

The chat stayed silent for several seconds.

Then it erupted.

Employee 1: [Two in the morning in his office? That’s some serious dedication. Sure.]

Employee 2: [Can’t blame his wife for being suspicious.]

Employee 3: [Think maybe today’s project disaster is Claire throwing a tantrum on purpose?]

Employee 4: [It’s a billion-dollar deal. Is she going to pay for it if we lose?]

I saved screenshots of every message.

Then I went straight to Security.

“I need the complete footage from the CEO suite last night. Preserve the original recording.”

The head of security blocked my way.

“Ms. Morgan, Vanessa says you’re under review for a possible confidentiality breach. Your access to surveillance footage has been suspended.”

I turned around and went to the executive suite to retrieve the backup proposal.

My badge flashed red.

Access revoked.

I went to the EVP’s office.

His assistant stood behind the glass door and spoke quietly.

“Claire, he just received notice from the Corporate Secretary that you’re no longer authorized to work on the Bluewater deal. He doesn’t want to take the risk.”

“Who sent the notice?”

The assistant avoided my eyes.

“Vanessa.”

My last call was to Bluewater’s event team.

“If I come to the venue myself and explain what happened, can Bluewater hold Horizon’s presentation slot?”

There was a pause.

“Ms. Morgan, you’re not an authorized corporate officer, and you don’t have written authorization. We can’t accept a statement from you personally.”

9:26 a.m.

I stood downstairs in the lobby while cold air slipped through the seams of the glass doors.

Last time, by this point, I’d been crying so hard I could barely see.

I’d begged Security.

I’d begged the EVP.

I’d begged drivers and managers and anyone else who might help me.

In the end, I’d dragged Grant out of a hotel parking garage like a lunatic and forced him to the venue.

This time, I simply copied every piece of evidence onto three separate flash drives.

One went to Ethan.

One went into a same-day courier envelope addressed to Richard Lawson’s personal assistant.

The last stayed hidden inside my bag.

9:59 a.m.

Vanessa stepped out of the elevator.

She had reapplied her lipstick.

Her hair had been freshly curled.

She looked like a woman who had just won a war.

Standing in the center of the office, she clapped her hands.

“Everyone stop staring at Claire.”

“The company isn’t going to collapse without her.”

Someone spoke quietly.

“But Bluewater’s final pitch is at ten…”

Vanessa cut them off.

“It’s one project.”

“You people are acting like the company lives or dies on one deal. One billion dollars and suddenly everyone loses their minds.”

She turned to me with a triumphant smile.

“Claire, here’s your lesson for today.”

“Maybe you’ll finally learn not to use your job as an excuse to get close to married men.”

“What’s wrong with protecting my marriage?”

Ten o’clock.

Bluewater Capital issued its formal notice.

Horizon Digital Solutions had failed to appear for the final pitch.

The company was automatically disqualified from the current round.

The company chat went dead.

Then the messages started flying.

Employee 5: [Who was responsible for this?]

Employee 6: [Where the hell is Grant?]

Employee 7: [Why didn’t Claire get the materials there?]

Someone threw a coffee mug.

Someone else stormed toward Project Management, shouting.

Vanessa stood in the hallway with her arms folded.

She still looked pleased with herself.

“Why is everyone making such a scene?”

“It’s one deal.”

“My husband is Grant Whitmore. Horizon can survive without any one person.”

Then she turned toward me.

Her voice sharpened.

“Claire loves acting like she’s so capable. But the second there’s a real crisis, she can’t do a thing.”

“So maybe young female assistants should spend less time pretending to be devoted employees and more time learning some boundaries.”

I looked at her.

Suddenly, the whole thing felt absurd.

She had shut down every option herself.

Now she was blaming me for not inventing one more.

The elevator doors opened.

Grant strode out.

His suit was wrinkled.

His hair was a mess.

His face was dark with fury.

The entire office went silent.

Vanessa’s eyes lit up.

She rushed toward him.

“Grant, finally! Claire sabotaged the company on purpose. She even got a bunch of men to gang up on me…”

She never finished the sentence.

Grant raised his hand.

The slap cracked across her face.