If it wasn’t Dalores, who could it be? She was deep in thought when her eyes landed on Elizabeth, who looked even worse than earlier.
Thinking about her recent break-up and the mess at the studio, Natalie knew that it must’ve been hard for her.
“Elizabeth, do you want to take some time off? There’s been a lot going on, but don’t worry.Mr.Wesley will get to the bottom of this soon.”
Natalie patted her friend on the gently to comfort her.
Natalie had never seen Elizabeth in such a terrible state before. And she seemed to be in a bad mood.
Ever since the moment she stepped into the studio that morning, she had barely spoken a word.
Elizabeth didn’t answer her.
“Are you still sad because of the break up?” Natalie asked softly.
“You deserve someone better. Why are you sad over someone who hurt you?”
“No, it’s not like that, Natalie…I’m not sad about him, I…It’s…”
Elizabeth clearly wanted to say something, but she stopped on a second thought. She held Natalie’s hand and raised her head slowly, tears rolling down her cheeks uncontrollably.
When Natalie saw Elizabeth’s tear-stained face, she was taken aback.
“What’s wrong? Why are you crying?”
Was it because Elizabeth was still hurting from her break up? Elizabeth looked around anxiously.
When she saw that no one was looking at them, Elizabeth grabbed Natalie’s hand and whispered, “Natalie… It’s all my fault that the design was leaked.”
Elizabeth was the one who leaked the design? Shocked, Natalie looked at her wordlessly. She didn’t know what to say.
After a long time, she swallowed and said slowly, “Elizabeth, tell me what happend. Did you sell the design?”
Natalie recalled showing the draft to Elizabeth once before.
At the time, she felt that she was still too inexperienced, so she showed it to Elizabeth to ask for her opinion.
But Elizabeth didn’t look like someone who would betray W Marks Studio! “No, I…The file was in my computer. It was Jorge. Recently, Jorge had suddenly become a whole new person. He pretended to be good to me because he thought that I’d give him money to buy drugs.I didn’t agree, so he borrowed money from shady people. In the end, he amassed a huge debt.A few days ago, when I was in the shower, he got on my computer and copied all the files and sell them.”
Elizabeth yanked at her hair in distress. She was clearly wrought with guilt.
“You should’ve told me sooner. Things have been blown out of proportion now.”
Natalie didn’t know what to do.
Since Mrs. Fuller had made such a huge deal out of it, Draco had taken this matter seriously and was close to getting to the bottom of things.
“I overheard Jorge talking with someone over the phone the day before yesterday. That’s how I found out that he stole the drafts.l was planning to explain everything to Mr.Wesley today… But it’s too late now.I had no idea that I had caused so much trouble.Mr.Wesley will kill me!”
Elizabeth looked desperate. She muttered dejectedly, “I’m doomed. My career is over.”
The more she thought about it, the angrier Natalie felt.
Jorge, that bastard! Elizabeth was his girlfriend.
How could he have done such a thing to her? Didn’t he know that it would end her career? Elizabeth was a very talented designer.It would only be a matter of time before she made a name for herself in fashion.
Now, her bright future was about to be extinguished because of a stupid man.
Natalie felt both angry and sad for her.
Fortunately, Elizabeth was also a victim here.
If Mr.Wesley knew the truth, Natalie doubted he’d make things difficult for her.
“No matter what happens, you have to tell Mr.Wesley first. Yesterday, Mr.Wesley announced that he’d only give one day for the culprit to come clean.After that, he’s going to call the police. If the police find out that you’re involved, things will only get worse.”
And Natalie didn’t want that.She thought it was best for Elizabeth to tell Draco the truth now.
Elizabeth looked very worried. Her eyes wandered listlessly.
“Natalie, you don’t know this because you haven’t been here long enough. Although Mr.Wesley is very kind and seldom gets angry, when it comes to the reputation of W Marks, he’s ruthless. What’s more, since I’ve caused so much trouble, I’ll have to pay him back in compensation…”
Her life savings had been squandered by Jorge
How could she come up with the money to cover the compensation fee? Natalie bit her lip, worried that Elizabeth would let her last chance slip through her fingers. She gently tried to persuade her.
“There’s no other option now, Elizabeth. The only thing you can do is to confess to Mr.Wesley. I’m sure he’ll understand”
Elizabeth knew that Natalie was right.
Now that things had come to this, she didn’t have much of a choice.
Lip trembling, she wiped her tears with the back of her hand.
She took a deep breath and went to Draco’s office.
Finally, she knocked on the door and opened it a crack.
The office was very quiet.
The sound of a pencil being stroked on paper could be heard faintly.
The folder was still on the table and looked untouched.
Draco looked up from his desk and saw that it was Elizabeth.
His tone and expression were the same as usual.
“What’s up? Have you finished the drafts for this season’s styles?”
Elizabeth subconsciously tinkered with the hem of her blouse.
After some hesitation, she relayed to Draco what she had just told Natalie.
“Jorge ran away as soon as I found out that he stole the drafts. I’ve been looking for him everywhere since the day before yesterday, but I haven’t found any leads…”
She hated Jorge to her very core now.
That day, in an attempt to stop Jorge from leaving, the two got into a fight.
In the end, Jorge kicked her on her stomach twice.
He was such an inhuman bastard! Recalling this, Elizabeth was so filled with regret that she burst into tears.
Draco didn’t say a word.
He continued to sketch on the paper as though he had heard nothing.
Elizabeth stood glued to her spot for what felt like an eternity.
She clenched her fists and lowered her head guiltily.
Her eyes were red from crying.
“I’ll take full responsibility for this matter.Mr.Wesley, don’t worry. I’ll resign and apologize to Mrs. Fuller. I’ll also pay for the damages.After that, I’ll call the police and let them catch Jorge.I refuse to implicate W Marks Studio.”
This was the only solution Elizabeth could think of.
She had to shoulder the responsibility alone.
Finally, Draco put down his pencil and blew away the charcoal debris on the paper.
He had been silent this whole time, staring at his sketch intently, which made it difficult for Elizabeth to tell what he was thinking. After a long time, he finally opened his mouth.
“Okay.Hand over your work to the others tomorrow. You can come back to work once Jorge is caught.”
After putting down the sketch, Draco finally raised his head and looked at Elizabeth calmly.
Elizabeth had mentally prepared herself for the worst.
She didn’t expect that Draco would give her a chance to come back to W Marks.
She looked at him in shock and disbelief, “Mr.Wesley…Why are you giving me another chance?”
Draco shrugged indifferently.
“Elizabeth, you’ve always been talented and you work hard.But you’ve had too many distractions on your plate lately.I hope you’ll learn your lesson and concentrate on designing after the dust has settled.”
He was telling the truth.
Besides, Elizabeth didn’t do it on purpose.
He knew that it was only fair to give her another chance.
New Book: Beginning with a Daring Encounter
Celsie was tired of being labeled as an introvert, workaholic, and dull virgin by her friends. Determined to prove them wrong, she made a bet that she would do something daring on her 25th birthday. Now that the day had arrived, it was time to fulfill her promise. On her daring to-do list, there was one task: a one-night stand with someone.
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