After the call was abruptly cut off, Zara stood there for a long time, frozen in place.
Panic surged through her.
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Hayley was clearly dragged into this because of her. If even Hayley got kicked out of the Zamora family, they wouldn’t have a single say in the Zamora family anymore.
And Daron was treating them with such cold indifference.
Zara was freaking out.
She was desperate to change her situation.
She knew she had lost all influence with Daron, so her only hope was to make sure Hayley stayed in the Zamora family.
As long as Daron and Hayley still had that connection, there was still a chance for her to make a comeback.
Everyone in the executive office had already seen the news online.
No one said a word about it, just like always; everyone instinctively kept their distance from Zara.
Lately, Marina had been dropping by Cloudstorm Group almost every day.
With how close Daron and Marina were acting, everyone in the office was already guessing about their relationship.
Earlier at lunch, Zara and Hayley had just managed to fix their image a little in front of their coworkers, but now that the post blew up online and wrecked everything all over again.
Zara took a deep breath, thinking. ‘How am I supposed to work after all this?‘
Back at her desk, Zara couldn’t help but keep glancing at the elevator, nerves twisting in her stomach.
The elevator doors slid open.
Daron walked out, and Zara practically jumped to her feet, rushing straight toward him.
She accidentally knocked over her water cup as she got up, but didn’t even care. All she could think about was getting to Daron, her eyes wide with panic.
Zara blurted out, her voice trembling, “Daron, can we talk? Just the two of us?” She could barely hide how desperate she was.
Daron gave her a cool, unreadable look, checked his watch, and said flatly, “Five minutes. That’s all you get.”
Zara nodded quickly, trying to steady herself. “That’s enough,” she said, forcing herself to sound confident, even though her heart was racing.
‘Five minutes… I can do this. I just need to explain everything before time’s up, Zara told herself, trying to psych herself up.
She reached out to push open the door to Daron’s office, but he just stood his ground, not budging an inch.
Zara froze for a second, then heard Daron’s deep, unyielding voice.
“We can talk right here,” he said, his tone leaving no room for argument.
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:15 pm
Chapter 490
Zara’s face went stiff, and for a moment, she was completely at a loss for words.
She bit down on her lip, a flicker of tension flashing in her eyes.
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He’s just trying to avoid any rumors, but if I have to talk about this out here in front of everyone, it’s basically like publicly humiliating me, Zara thought, feeling utterly exposed.
Zara took a shaky breath, her eyes welling up with tears.
But Daron didn’t even look at her; he just glanced down at his watch.
Zara bit her lip, and after a long, tense silence, she finally spoke up.
‘Daron, I really did write those diary entries myself, but that was years ago. Back then, I was young and naive. I mistook admiration for infatuation, which is why I wrote those words, Zara said, her voice trembling.
‘Later, Bette talked to me and helped me see things clearly. To get my thoughts back on track, I chose to go study overseas,” she continued, trying to sound calm.
‘Living alone abroad these past few years taught me a lot. What I feel for you isn’t romantic. It’s just the respect and admiration a sister has for her brother,” Zara said, her voice growing steadier.
Zara sniffled, trying to hold back her tears.
‘I don’t know why Bette chose to reveal all my diary entries at such a critical moment, but I promise, I truly don’t have any romantic feelings for you,” she said, her voice trembling.
‘Daron, I…” she started, her voice trembling.
As she spoke, tears fell from her eyes.
She looked up at Daron, hoping to catch a glimpse of his expression, but he never looked at her. His gaze stayed fixed on his watch, showing no reaction at all.
Zara’s eyes flickered with panic.
When she stopped talking, Daron finally glanced up at her, his tone cool and indifferent.
“Are you done?” he said.
Zara nodded, resigned to her fate.
“I’m done,” she replied.
“I’m sorry, Daron. I know I’ve caused you trouble. I’ll explain things to Marina myself and apologize,” Zara said, her voice trembling.
Daron replied coolly, “No need. Trust me, she doesn’t want to see you.”
Zara’s face froze, tears still hanging on her cheeks as she just stared at Daron in shock.
But Daron didn’t look back. He just pushed open his office door and disappeared inside.
“Employee evaluations are starting soon. Just focus on your job,” he said, his tone flat and uninterested.
Zara bit her lip, feeling defeated. She barely managed a nod.
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:15 pm
Chapter 490
He didn’t even bother to look at her, completely ignoring how hurt she was.
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As the office door closed behind him, Zara’s face went stiff. Suddenly realizing she still had something important to tell Daron, she hurriedly pushed open his office door, blurting out in a rush.
‘Daron!” she called, her voice urgent.
‘It’s all my fault. When my mom found my diary, she sat me down, set me straight, and sent me abroad,” Zara said, her voice trembling.
The Zamora family estate already knows about everything, and now my mom’s getting kicked out. Her reputation means everything to her after all these years in the Zamora family. If she has to move out, I can’t even imagine what all those society ladies she knows will say about her,” she continued, her voice breaking.
I’ll take responsibility for all of it myself. Could you please say something to Grandpa for me?” Zara pleaded, her eyes filled with desperation.
But before she could finish, Daron cut her off, his voice cold and sharp.
Grandpa already called me. Hayley moved out of the Zamora family estate on her own,” he said, his tone flat and inyielding.
She just couldn’t stand the thought of you living out there alone. Since you know your actions are dragging down the nother who took you in, you’d better keep your head down and start acting right from now on,” Daron added, his voice icy.
Zara fell silent, her heart sinking.
She bit her lip, words right at the edge, but she forced herself to swallow them back down.
Calista had totally thrown her under the bus.
Zara knew there was no way she could fix her image in Daron’s eyes anytime soon.
What really blindsided her was how Calista could make up such wild stories just to protect her own career. She dumped all he blame on Zara, and even told Garret that it was Zara who’d been feeding her all those ideas about hating Marina.
Garret was no fool.
He’d catch on in a heartbeat and spill every detail to Daron, no holding back.
Zara knew there was no way Daron would ever look at her with anything but coldness from now on.
Daron settled into his chair, glancing up to see Zara still standing at the doorway with her head bowed. His tone went cold.
Get out,” he said, his tone leaving no room for argument.
Zara just nodded, her heart sinking as she turned and walked out of Daron’s office.
As she walked out, she ran into Garret in the hallway.
Garret shoved a stack of documents into her hands, his face unreadable.
Zara, you messed up something this basic? I’m starting to wonder if you even know what you’re doing,” he said, voice cold.
Zara immediately flipped through the papers, and sure enough, one of the numbers was marked in red by Garret
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Chapter 490
Her face turned ghostly white as Daron’s words replayed in her head, and her stomach twisted with anxiety.
EX 65 Voucher
At a time like this, screwing up at work was the last thing she needed. Daron would jump at the chance to ship her off to some other department.
“Sorry, Garret. I’ll fix it right now,” Zara stammered, trying not to panic.
She snatched up the documents and rushed back to her desk, not daring to waste another second.
But just as she was about to leave, Garret stopped her, his voice low and serious.
“No need. You’ve been off your game lately, and I can’t let you drag the whole team down. I’ve already reassigned your work to someone else,” he said, his tone firm.
“Go home and get yourself together. Come back when you’re ready to work,” he added, his voice leaving no room for argument.
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Sara Lili is a daring romance writer who turns icy landscapes into scenes of fiery passion. She loves crafting hot love stories while embracing the chill of Iceland’s breathtaking cold.
