Chapter 48 - 48 47 Gina Lopez's Test

Words : 1886 Updated : Sep 10th, 2025

48: Chapter 47 Gina Lopez’s Test 48: Chapter 47 Gina Lopez’s Test Last night, while washing James’s underwear, Gina couldn’t stop complaining, but tonight, after James finished his shower and left his underwear on the washing machine, she washed them again, this time without the same revulsion. “I’m doing this because the guy did me a favor, and he even cooked for me,” Gina found an excuse for herself, but reason made it very clear to her that she was somewhat attracted to James. However, Gina shook her head. Although James could indeed be considered a suitable partner and exactly the kind of husband needed by a career-oriented woman like her, her standards for a boyfriend were high. There were many things about James that she found disagreeable, so the mere thought was fleeting, and Gina quickly dismissed it. The next morning, James used leftovers to make two bowls of seafood noodles, and once again, Gina had the rare chance to have breakfast at home. James left the house first, and Gina followed shortly after, directly going to the underground garage to get her car. As she drove out of the community, she glanced subconsciously towards the bus stop and immediately saw James talking to a girl with a backpack. The girl’s constant giggling and smiling made them appear very intimate. This made Gina frown instantly. She knew a fair amount about James and that he had no relatives in YODC City, and probably didn’t have many friends. But there he was, laughing and chatting with a student-like girl; their relationship was indeed suspicious. As a modern woman, Gina didn’t care about how many girlfriends a man had before marriage, but James’s apparent flirting even with young girls disgusted her; any previous good feelings vanished in an instant. Still, Gina remained relatively calm. She hadn’t verified this matter, and it was possible that the girl was the child of one of James’s friends, which would make it understandable. At that moment, the bus arrived, and James spread his arms to shield the girl as she boarded. The girl turned her head while boarding and continued to chatter with James, indicating that they had known each other for a long time and were very close. “Beep beep.” A car horn sounded from behind, and Gina realized that her car had been coasting without acceleration. She quickly stepped on the gas pedal, and her Buick gradually sped up, merging into the flow of traffic. There was some traffic today; Gina arrived at the office later than usual. After parking, she saw James again. He had gotten off the bus with the girl, exchanged a few words, and then the girl hopped and skipped into the nearby high school. Gina frowned but didn’t wait for James; she went straight into the company and to the elevator to wait to go upstairs. The elevator hadn’t arrived yet when James approached her from behind and greeted her, “Good morning, Ms. Lopez.” “Hmph!” Gina snorted coldly at James without any reason. James was stunned, not understanding what had gone wrong so early in the morning. Everything seemed fine at home, and they hadn’t even started work yet at the office. He didn’t seem to have done anything wrong, did he? “Good morning, Ms. Lopez.” Accompanied by the sound of high heels, Director Sunny Nguyen arrived at the elevator. Gina greeted Director Nguyen and suddenly remembered the phone call between James and Director Nguyen one evening. She subconsciously observed them but noticed that Director Nguyen did nothing more than greet James and didn’t engage in further conversation, appearing as if they were complete strangers. This seemed odd to Gina. The fact that they could call each other at night indicated a good relationship, but Director Nguyen’s behavior at the office, showing no signs of familiarity, suggested there was only one reason – they were hiding their acquaintance. Gina, because she had to hide her sham relationship with James, was particularly sensitive to such matters. Coupled with the news from headquarters that Director Nguyen and her husband weren’t on good terms, and that she was in the process of getting a divorce, having an affair was plausible. However, Gina was somewhat incredulous that Director Nguyen would choose James, wondering what qualities he possessed that could attract a high-level executive like Director Nguyen, who had been a notable figure at headquarters before coming to this company as the financial director due to some special circumstances. Then the elevator arrived, and everyone squeezed in, though not as crowded as before; there was some distance between them. Director Nguyen stood close to Gina, whispering to her, and didn’t give James a second glance. Two nights ago, like a ghost had taken hold of her, Director Nguyen had made an inexplicable call to James and then deeply regretted it. Even if her marriage was nearing its end, she didn’t want to indulge herself too freely. Having experienced a failed marriage, she had a better understanding of men. Those who would sweet-talk you all day might not necessarily accompany you for life. At this time, she should be more disciplined. If her soon-to-be ex-husband found out, it would only lead to more trouble – he was eager to find faults with her. So, Sunny Nguyen had made up her mind, no matter what, she had to completely disassociate herself from James Brown and not be entangled with him in any way. Both Gina Lopez and Sunny Nguyen were people who took their work very seriously. They had met in the morning to discuss work matters. After Sunny Nguyen had tidied up a bit, she was ready to leave when Gina Lopez casually said, “Director Nguyen, what are your thoughts on how staff is currently arranged in the company?” “Staff arrangement, Ms. Lopez, I manage finances. Staffing arrangements, that doesn’t seem to fall under my responsibilities, does it?” Sunny Nguyen was somewhat confused by the question Gina Lopez had raised. “I’m not asking you to arrange it, but we do have too many redundant staff in the company right now. Some are connected with the head office or other departments, and their presence not only hinders normal work operations but also affects the morale of other employees. This really gives me a headache. S~eaʀᴄh the NovelFire.net* website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Do you have any good solutions, Director Nguyen?” This wasn’t a specific study; it was more like small talk or a discussion. So, after pondering for a moment, Sunny Nguyen said, “The issue is indeed troublesome. In our branch offices as well as the head office, we encounter the same problems. Those people are untouchable. If you deal with them, you offend people from all sides. But if we don’t manage them well, it has a huge impact on the other employees, particularly the ones who work diligently. It’s incredibly unfair for them to be earning the same as those who do nothing. But if we were to increase their salary, the idle ones would surely object. This poses quite the dilemma in terms of the company’s financial policies.” Gina Lopez sighed and said, “Yes, the company didn’t face such issues in the first half of last year, but as the second half came, more and more people arrived in our company, all kinds of people who get paid without doing any work. Just like the other day when I arranged for James Brown to join the company, I knew people here would think he’s another one getting paid for no work.” When Sunny Nguyen heard the name James Brown, her heartbeat quickened, and she tentatively asked, “James Brown was arranged by Ms. Lopez to come in? Could it be that he really has connections above?” Noticing the subtle change in Sunny Nguyen’s expression, Gina Lopez became even more interested. Shaking her head, she said, “No, he was originally a security guard in our building. I saw that he was diligent and had some ability. Although our company has many idle people, there aren’t many talented ones. Struck by a desire to recruit talent, I hired him into the company.” “Oh, I see. Ms. Lopez is really desperate for talent.” “He can’t exactly be called a talent, but he is useful. What about you, Director Nguyen? Are you familiar with him?” “No… not familiar. How could I be familiar with him? I only knew about him after arriving at the branch office. It was that day when he helped me purchase office supplies that I met him.” Gina Lopez suddenly asking this threw Sunny Nguyen off balance. Although her explanation was clear, there was a hint of protest too much, and as a knowledgeable boss, Gina Lopez naturally had a keen sense of observation. How could she not see that Sunny Nguyen was lying? But at this moment, of course, she would not expose her. With a slight smile, she said, “I’m just venting a little. Director Nguyen, you don’t need to overthink it. In this company, the only one I can get along with seems to be you, Director Nguyen.” “Thank you for your trust, Ms. Lopez. If there’s nothing else, I’ll go back to my work.” “Hmm, you’re busy.” Gina Lopez nodded. After Sunny Nguyen had left, Gina Lopez lightly tapped her fingers on the desk. She truly couldn’t understand the relationship between James Brown and Sunny Nguyen. If Sunny hadn’t tried so hard to cover it up, she wouldn’t have thought that a high-ranking director like Sunny would have any intersection with James, a mere security guard. But Sunny’s cover-up indicated that their relationship was unusual, and Gina found it incredible that a high-ranking director would have such an unusual connection with a former security guard. But quickly she laughed self-deprecatingly. It was even more unbelievable for her since she was now living under the same roof as James Brown. They had the flavor of a little domestic life. If Sunny knew about this, who knows what she would think. Back in her own office, Sunny felt restless, carefully considering what Gina had said to her. Suddenly, she felt like Gina was testing her. Could Gina have seen the relationship between her and James Brown? That wasn’t likely, was it? Aside from a one-night stand, her contact with James Brown in the company, after the first day, was just two encounters in the elevator. Moreover, she had deliberately kept her distance from James. How could Gina possibly notice any relationship between them? Or could it be that day in the elevator, stuck together, and that guy played tricks that made Gina see? “Oh my God…” The thought alone made Sunny wish she could find a crack to disappear into. If Gina had actually discovered what happened between them that day, it would be an utter embarrassment. “Damn you, James Brown, you’ve really ruined me.” Sunny now felt like calling James Brown into her office just to bite him, but she didn’t have the nerve to let him come anywhere near her office anymore. All she could do was keep cursing James Brown inside her room.

Chapter 48 - 48 47 Gina Lopez's Test

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