Chapter: 232

"You believe it, your family and friends might too, but no HR department at any investment firm will take your side. Once you're fired under such circumstances, nobody will care about your innocence."

Brody's words held a harsh truth.

With his extensive corporate experience, he had witnessed countless instances of manipulation and deception.

It was not rare for superiors to destroy a subordinate's career over personal vendettas. The outcome was invariably the same: those affected would be stigmatized and forced out of their industry in disgrace, while the best-case scenario saw the offending superior mildly reprimanded, yet the victim's reputation remained damaged.

In every case, those at a disadvantage bore the brunt of the consequences.

Seeing Bethany's continued silence, Brody sighed deeply.

“Bethany, Mr. Bates has been up for nearly 48 hours..."

He trailed off, unsure of what more to say, and then ended the call.

Jonathan's partiality towards Bethany had become painfully obvious to everyone involved.

Bethany sat on the bench for a long time afterward, contemplating Brody's words.

"Are you only thinking of yourself?"

Her self-centeredness struck her suddenly.

Bethany realized that she had never truly considered Jonathan's perspective.

At the first sign of trouble, her instinct was to pull away from him, naively believing she could clear her name alone. She had even doubted Jonathan's motives before.

A tumult of emotions surged within her, leaving her feeling utterly conflicted and overwhelmed.

Jonathan's affection weighed on her heavily. As she came to grips with the depth of his feelings, she realized they were far more profound than she had ever anticipated.

Until now, Bethany had never been in a romantic relationship.

“Bethany, I finally found you." A man's voice interrupted her thoughts.

She looked up to see a man approaching. It was the same man she had seen with Maddie after Jonathan's car accident. His name was Nikolas.

"Do you need something?" Bethany asked coolly, her tone indicating her reluctance to engage.

Nikolas paused, meeting her gaze with a serious look. After taking a deep breath, he said, “I'm here to suggest that you divorce Jonathan."

“That's for me to decide," Bethany responded firmly, disliking the feeling of being pressured.

"Don't take this the wrong way. I'm not against you, but I'm not exactly in your corner either. I'm just pointing out that Jonathan has made significant sacrifices for you, and he's now facing some tough choices. Perhaps it's time you did something for him."

“Are you supporting Maddie?" Bethany inquired.