Chapter 9 William's gaze fell on the necklace on Samantha's neck , and his eyes grew cold for a moment . " I don't know him , " he said . Samantha's face tightened , clearly upset . Rachel caught the subtle changes in both their expressions , and a small laugh escaped her . " Funny , just earlier , Ms. Judd said she'd introduce us to her boyfriend . How about next week ? " +25 BONUS William's gaze darkened , and before Samantha could speak , he cut in , " Other people's boyfriends aren't our concern . By the way , she's new here . If she needs help , you can show her the ropes . Also , the data for the Oasis Project needs to be checked . Take a look at it for her . " Rachel could barely hold back a laugh . He wasn't giving her the project to manage , but now he wanted her to help Samantha look good in front of the team . How did he even have the nerve to say that out loud ? She swallowed her frustration , replying , " I have other work to do . Samantha nervously bit her lip , glancing at Rachel before speaking in a soft voice : " William , please don't make Rachel do it . It's my fault that I can't even handle something this simple . " " It's alright . You'll get the hang of it . Rachel is very capable . If you follow her , you'll learn a lot , " William replied , his voice calm and encouraging . To anyone else , it would have sounded like a regular compliment . But Rachel knew better . William never tolerated mistakes at work . If anyone messed up , they were out - no excuses . But with Samantha ? He was incredibly patient , even going so far as to hand her off to Rachel for help . Samantha lifted her eyes to look at Rachel . " Rachel , is that okay ? " she asked , her voice soft and uncertain . Rachel shrugged . " Whatever Mr. Lewis says . " William gave Rachel's shoulder a small pat , his gaze full of quiet approval . " Show her the ropes . It'll be good for you to have another pair of hands to help out . " Rachel forced a tight smile . Was William trying to make Samantha her assistant , or was she being groomed to replace her ? Rachel shook off the thought , focusing on Samantha who was standing there , clearly uneasy . " Bring the data you worked on to my office . " " Okay , Rachel . " Samantha obediently returned to her office to gather the data before following Rachel into her office . Rachel's desk was buried under piles of paperwork ; she couldn't help but tiredly rub her forehead . Samantha placed the completed data in front of Rachel , who scanned it quickly . The expression on her face darkened . Her long fingers pointed to a number on the third line . " If the project starts based on your numbers , the company is going to lose a lot of money . " Samantha leaned in , looking at the numbers with a panicked expression . " I'm so sorry , Rachel . I might have made a mistake because William asked me to accompany him to the mall to buy some things for his parents . I'm really sorry . " Samantha had heard from William that Rachel could read lips , so there was no real need to sign . The gestures were just a 1/3 Chapter 9 courtesy - nothing more . +25 BONUS Rachel tightened her grip on the file , her voice cold as she said , " Ms. Judd , this is work . Your personal matters have nothing to do with me . I only care about your work results . " Her words were direct , but Samantha acted like she had been terribly wronged . Her eyes were red - rimmed , and she looked like she was about to cry . " I'm sorry , Rachel , please don't be mad . I'll fix it right now . If there's anything else wrong , just point it out to me . " Rachel felt exhausted . She didn't have time to waste on Samantha's mistakes . But still , she took a closer look , marking every mistake with the data . Minutes passed , and soon , the page was covered in red circles . Rachel's lips tightened as she lifted her gaze to meet Samantha's . Did you actually check the data properly ? " If she had , there was no way it could be this wrong . The numbers looked like they were made up . When Samantha saw Rachel's cold and serious face , she tensed up even more . Her hands fidgeted nervously as she tried to explain . " I … I heard you could pull the data directly from the existing files , so I just … " Rachel couldn't believe what she was hearing . " You have to know that data changes . Even yesterday's numbers might be different today , " she said sharply . Samantha's face turned red with embarrassment . " I'll redo it right now , " she whispered , wringing her fingers together . " The project is on a tight schedule , " Rachel reminded , trying to stay calm . " Since you've taken it on , I expect you to treat it seriously . " She was trying her best to keep her temper in check . If Samantha had been professional and responsible , Rachel would have had no issue . But the fact that Samantha couldn't get something so basic right was worrying . It was unfortunate the project wasn't under Rachel . If Samantha was this careless , Rachel couldn't imagine how badly things would go if the project actually moved forward . She didn't blame Samantha directly . The problem lay with William Rachel didn't believe that he didn't know about Samantha's abilities . He was fully aware , yet he still pushed forward , and that was what disgusted her the most . " Go recheck everything . I want it before lunch , " Rachel instructed firmly , placing t " Okay . " Samantha , eyes red , grabbed the file and left the office . As she walked through the office , their colleagues couldn't help but gossip in low voices . " Did Ms. Lloyd really make her cry ? " e back on the desk . " Ms. Lloyd needs to change her attitude . Just because Mr. Lewis spoils her doesn't mean she can treat new colleagues like that . " " Everyone knows how much Ms. Lloyd values the Oasis Project . Since she didn't get to manage it , she must be upset . " Another coworker had an epiphany : " Oh , I get it . She's abusing her power and position . " The people around her didn't even realize that Rachel had heard every word of their conversation . But it didn't matter . Soon enough , she would be out of this place , and none of it would matter anymore . By noon , Rachel had wrapped up most of the projects she was responsible for and was ready to head out for lunch . She opened the door , only to stop short when she saw William standing next to Samantha , whose face was all flushed and red- eyed , looking like she had been wronged . If Rachel didn't know better , she might've felt bad for her too . But she saw right 23 Chapter 9 through the act . +25 BONUS " William , you don't have to wait for me . You go ahead and eat. Rachel wants me to finish these numbers before lunch , or she'll get mad , " Samantha said in a soft , almost pleading voice , biting her lip . William frowned , his brow furrowing deeply . " Did she scold you ? " Samantha shook her head quickly , her lips trembling as she muttered , " No … no , she didn't . Rachel's a senior . It's fine . I deserve it . " William let out a quiet sigh , his hand reaching up to gently ruffle Samantha's hair . " The project isn't going to get done in one day . Don't stress . Let's go eat first . It's already late . I'll take you to your favorite place , Moon & Barrel . " At the mention of the restaurant , Samantha's eyes lit up . " Did you manage to get a reservation ? I tried calling so many times but couldn't get through . " Rachel froze for a moment . Just the other day , she had told William she wanted to try the shrimp gratin at Moon & Barrel . He kept saying it was impossible to get a table , but promised to take her there as soon as he could get a reservation . But now , it seemed the real reason he hadn't taken her there yet was that he just didn't want to . William stood up and pulled Samantha to her feet . " Let's go . " Samantha hesitated . " But … what about Rachel ? " " Don't worry . Rachel might seem strict , but she's really easygoing . I'll explain it to her , and she won't be upset with you . " William quickly shut Samantha's notebook and was about to leave , but as he looked up , he spotted Rachel standing at the door . His dark eyes flickered with a brief moment of panic , but he quickly masked it with a calm expression . He made a quick sign for eating and asked , " Rachel , you haven't gone to eat yet ? "