A major project that Bryn had been overseeing from the start had hit a snag. It had been running smoothly up until now, but suddenly, the client wanted to cancel the partnership—something she hadn’t anticipated, let alone prepared for.
Francesca, the newly appointed director, was technically in charge of such high-profile projects, but for reasons she couldn’t quite understand, the client specifically demanded that Bryn take the reins. The decision was out of her hands; she had no choice but to step up.
After multiple tense meetings, the client pushed for a completely new design. To appease them, Bryn reluctantly agreed to start fresh. She put everything she had into the new proposal, hoping to win them over. But when she showed up with the revised design, eager for approval, she was met with scorn. The client accused her of plagiarism, even questioning her integrity in front of everyone.
It wasn’t until the client presented a proposal eerily similar to her own that Bryn realized the ugly truth. Francesca’s design wasn’t just similar—it was a carbon copy of hers.
Now, standing in the general manager’s office, Bryn was face-to-face with Francesca, both of them tense, ready for the confrontation. The general manager sat beside them, his face pale with unease. The room crackled with tension.
Plagiarism was a serious accusation in the design world, a stain that could ruin reputations and careers. The two proposals were so alike that it was impossible to determine who was at fault without triggering a corporate disaster. On one side stood Francesca, the rising star, freshly promoted to director and on the other was Bryn, with her connections to the CEO. Neither of them could be blamed outright without causing a major ripple in the company.
But Bryn wasn’t about to back down. She knew, without a doubt, that the design was her own creation. The late nights spent perfecting every detail were still fresh in her mind. And the way Francesca had deliberately kept her out of the office on that critical day was all the proof she needed.
Before Bryn could voice her frustration, Francesca’s voice cut through the silence, laced with mocking sweetness. “If you’re struggling to come up with a design, there’s no need to resort to copying. Why would you do something like that?”
Bryn’s pulse quickened, but she held her ground. “Do you have any proof that I copied, Miss Clements? Both proposals are nearly identical. Shouldn’t I be allowed to suspect that you copied mine?”
The air in the room was thick with anticipation as everyone braced for the fallout. The scene had escalated beyond anything they’d expected and the tension was palpable. In an instant, Alex entered the office, his presence commanding the room. The staff quickly scattered, returning to their seats with a mix of curiosity and apprehension.
Alex’s gaze swept the room, landing on Bryn. She stood tall, unshaken, but her heart was in turmoil. Slowly, he spoke, his tone smooth, almost too smooth.
“Miss Clements is an overseas talent. Highly skilled, both professionally and in business. I’m sure this plagiarism thing is just a coincidence.”
His words were light, as though brushing aside the matter, but to Bryn, they felt like a slap. What he was really saying was that Francesca didn’t need to copy her work—she was good enough on her own.
But anyone with half a brain knew that two identical proposals weren’t a mere coincidence. If Francesca hadn’t plagiarized, then the only other explanation was that Bryn had been accused of doing so—and that accusation hung in the air like a suffocating cloud.
Bryn, standing there under the weight of the room’s scrutiny, felt the heat rise in her chest, as though the very air was pressing in on her. It felt like she couldn’t breathe. All the words she’d been longing to say to Francesca, all the bitterness and hurt that had been building up inside of her, were trapped in her throat, refusing to come out. She could care less if everyone else didn’t believe her. But what truly stung, what cut deeper than any insult, was that Alex—who knew how hard she’d worked on this project, who knew her dedication—wouldn’t stand up for her. His silence was louder than any accusation.
