Chapter 223 One Step Ahead
Joanna finally stopped beating around the bush when she noticed the look of impatience on Nicole’s face.
“I am just curious, Miss Lisa. What did Mrs. Gardner tell you when she told you to stay behind after I left the other day?”
Nicole finally understood the reason the two came to put on a show was not to ridicule her, but to probe for information.
Finding the situation hilarious, she answered Joanna’s question with another one of her own. “Why did you come to me instead of going to ask Mrs. Gardner directly?
Joanna’s face tightened as she balled her hands into fists. “Wendy and Mrs. Gardner have both chosen my design, Miss Lisa. I am afraid it will be bad for your reputation if you insist on intervening.”
Upon hearing that, Nicole crossed her arms across her chest and walked back to her chair. As she leaned against the backrest of the chair, she asked casually, “Wendy said she liked my design, didn’t she?”
There’s no way Wendy changed her mind! Joanna thought as she felt her heart skip a beat.
“At any rate, Mrs. Gardner decided on my design. You can’t just come and steal my opportunity away from me, Miss Lisa!”
Looking at Joanna bickering like an immature child, Queenie scolded impatiently, “Don’t bother replying to her nonsense. We are the ones with the jewelry from Triton Studio. None of the clothes she designed will be worthy of it anyway!”
Instead of getting angry, Nicole leisurely crossed her legs. “You shouldn’t have to worry about anything if this is what you think.”
Joanna didn’t speak anymore after Queenie said that. Nicole would still work in the Gardner Corporation for a few more months, and since Joanna was the design director for Gardner Apparel, she wasn’t in a place where she could make their relationship go sour just yet.
After a moment, she nodded and laughed. “I didn’t come here for anything in particular. I only came to congratulate you when I saw that you are the founder of ‘Ann’, Miss Nicole.”
She continued when Nicole didn’t show any intention of answering her. “Now that I have given you my best wishes, I shall take my leave now.”
She swiftly turned around and left after she said that.
With only Nicole and Queenie in the office, the air in the room instantly felt more awkward than it was before.
Feeling irritated when she looked at the uninvited visitor, she started chasing Queenie off. “What? Can’t walk? Or are you still not done picking a fight?”
Queenie only made a move to stand up after hearing Nicole’s sarcastic words. She then looked at Nicole thoughtfully and smiled. “Tell you what, Nicole—it doesn’t matter that you are the Chief Designer of F&M Apparel. You can never beat me!”
Nicole wasn’t intimidated by the threat at all. She only chuckled before she spat, “You overestimate yourself.”
Queenie didn’t utter another word as she left after slamming the door shut.
Nicole’s nerves only calmed down slightly after the women left. Propping her head against her palms, she pinched the bridge of her nose with two fingers.
She was sure that Joanna and Queenie were working together because they were worried that she would be one step ahead of them in presenting Wendy’s dress at the birthday party.
They must have come over to her office in panic after seeing her designing a dress.
What they didn’t know was that their guess was right. She was going to show up with the dress before Joanna did!
Wendy’s birthday party was in less than a week’s time. The invitations had already been printed and sent out, and reporters had also been notified.
Anna was also busy with the planning of the birthday party. Now that they were at such a crucial time, Joanna naturally didn’t want any more accidents to happen.
The Gardner Corporation was the largest company in network technology. One could only imagine how grand the birthday celebration for the esteemed daughter of the Gardner Family would be.
This was also precisely why Joanna had to win. Nicole could tell that Joanna truly cared about this when she had managed to hold back even when Colton announced that Nicole was the sole founder for ‘Ann’.
Thinking of this, Nicole smiled as she tapped her fingers against the surface of the table. The more important this was to Joanna, the more Nicole wanted to play the bad guy. She wanted Joanna to watch as she was robbed of what she had in the palm of her hands!
After all, Joanna had secretly been an instigator to what was about to happen.
