Better Late, But Never His Again novel Chapter 85

"You should give it to Dr. Vance, then." Audrey's tone firmed up, lifting her chin with a flash of stubborn defiance.

Marcus looked back down, picked up his pen, and completely dismissed her. "Get out."

Audrey's lips parted as if to argue, but she swallowed the words. Marcus was already focused back on his documents, his body language making it abundantly clear that the conversation was over.

She bit her lip, spun around, and left. The heavy door clicked shut behind her. Standing alone in the quiet corridor, the hatred burning in her chest flared into a raging inferno.

Why? She had given six years to this place! She was the first to arrive and the last to leave. She took on every thankless task, yet in the end, she meant less than an outsider who had only been here a few days? She clenched her fists so hard her nails dug into her palms, her resentment toward Hazel deepening into pure venom.

Back in the lab, people began filtering out for lunch, leaving the desks empty one by one.

Hazel was still finalizing her last few data sets, the clacking of her keyboard echoing loudly in the spacious room. Evelyn hadn't left. She leaned against a nearby desk with her arms crossed, studying Hazel's profile. Her smirk grew wider before her eyes cooled into something much darker.

The moment the last person stepped out and the door clicked shut, Evelyn strolled over to Hazel, her voice dripping with triumphant malice.

"You saw it, didn't you, Hazel? Julian and I slept together. He couldn't keep his hands off me last night. He said you haven't managed to satisfy him once in all these years."

She paused, letting the cruelty of her words hang in the air. "Have you ever stopped to wonder if maybe you're the problem? You really are incredibly boring."

Hazel's fingers paused on the keyboard. She looked up, meeting Evelyn's eyes with absolute deadpan indifference. Her gaze flicked to the dark mark on Evelyn's neck, and she delivered a single, devastating reply. "Hickeys can cause blood clots. Careful you don't drop dead."

Evelyn's face froze. She hadn't expected Hazel to be so utterly unfazed. It took her a second to recover, her voice instantly spiking into a shrill screech. "You're just jealous! Julian hasn't touched you in forever, has he? Last night he was all over me like a wild animal!"

Evelyn stood frozen, her fists clenched tightly at her sides.

She glared at the empty doorway, her breathing ragged, her chest rising and falling uncontrollably.

Hazel, that bitch!

It took her a long time to calm down enough to pull out her phone and dial a number.

The moment the call connected, her eyes darkened into something utterly ruthless.

"You're out, right? Meet me at the Corner Cafe after I get off work. We need to talk!"