When the Contract Marriage Ended, He Stayed

### Chapter 87: You Were So Cool

Hazel Hawthorne’s attitude was so resolute that the HR staff were at a loss for words. They all recognized her and knew her background was anything but simple—she had the entire Xavier Group backing her. Having someone like that work for their company put them under immense pressure.

With a smile, Hazel placed the termination letter on the table, then grabbed Sharon Winters and left without another word.

Sharon Winters gazed at Hazel with pure admiration. "Hazel, you were so cool back there!"

Hazel smiled. ’Cool, huh?’ She knew perfectly well the company was trying to fire them because of Chloe Lee. Since they hadn’t violated any company regulations, management would need a convincing reason to let her go.

"Sharon." Hazel was a little worried about Sharon Winters. She was well aware that even if she stayed, no one at the company would dare touch her. But Sharon was different. They could find other ways to come after her, and Hazel couldn’t be by her side twenty-four-seven.

Thinking back on what had just happened, Hazel felt she might have been too impulsive. Surely there were other ways to resolve the matter.

But what was done was done, and regretting it now wouldn’t help.

"What’s wrong?" Sharon asked, noticing Hazel had called her name and then fallen silent.

Hazel shook her head. All she could do was protect Sharon to the best of her ability. Sharon was the first real friend she’d made, a friendship Hazel cherished deeply. From spending time with her, she could tell Sharon was a pure-hearted, sincere person.

It wasn’t until Chloe Lee got a call from HR that she found out neither Hazel Hawthorne nor Sharon Winters had been fired. She could understand why Hazel couldn’t be dismissed—that would likely require a direct order from her cousin. After all, Hazel was Aiden Xavier’s wife.

But Sharon Winters?

’Sharon has no connections. Don’t I even have the authority to fire someone like her?’

Chloe Lee was absolutely furious. She started smashing things in her office, and those outside could hear the occasional crash. Looking at her bandaged hand, she vowed she would absolutely not let this go.

’I have to show Hazel Hawthorne who she’s messing with. In all my years at the company, I have never been so humiliated.’

The mere thought that this was all Hazel’s fault made Chloe’s loathing for her intensify.

Chloe threw open her door and stormed out of the office. She let out a cold snort as she passed Hazel’s and Sharon’s desks. Sharon, seemingly afraid of Chloe, didn’t dare to look up. Hazel, however, met Chloe’s gaze without an ounce of fear, staring her down.

"Got phlegm stuck in your throat?" Hazel asked, her expression neutral and her tone deceptively casual.

When you truly hate someone, you’ll see even the most innocent action, like them taking a sip of water, as a deliberate provocation.

And that was exactly how Chloe Lee felt.

Hazel shrugged. Even with Chloe glaring daggers at her, she said nonchalantly, "You must be coming down with something. You should see a doctor before it turns into a fever. You wouldn’t want to fry your brain."

Hazel was, in fact, deliberately provoking Chloe. She didn’t want to be enemies with anyone, but when someone insisted on treating her as one, what was she supposed to do? Just smile and wait for them to make a move?

If they couldn’t be friends or even cordial colleagues, then so be it.

"Hah." Chloe sneered. She’d see how long Hazel could keep up this smug act. She was going to see her cousin right now and tell Julian Sterling exactly what awful things Hazel had done to her.

「President’s Office.」

Without being announced by the secretary, Chloe Lee barged directly into Julian Sterling’s office. The moment she entered, Julian shot her a cold look.

That single glance was enough to rattle Chloe. "I’m sorry, cousin. I’m just so upset, I forgot to have the secretary announce me."

"Hmm?" Julian glanced at her again before quickly averting his eyes. The rising inflection of the sound conveyed an unreadable attitude.

Chloe knew Julian had always indulged her. She was a precious daughter in the Sterling Family, and Julian’s own father doted on his niece. Otherwise, a man with Julian’s personality would never have turned a blind eye to her antics at the company for so long.

As long as she didn’t cause the company any actual financial damage, Julian was willing to look the other way. He figured young women were prone to jealousy, and drama was inevitable wherever they gathered in numbers. He had no desire to get involved.

"You came storming in here. Is this about Hazel Hawthorne?"

Chloe watched Julian cautiously. She knew he and Aiden Xavier were close, so there was little hope of getting him to fire Hazel. She immediately settled for the next best thing. "Cousin, I came to you—"

Before Chloe could finish, Julian cut her off. "What did you call me?"

Chloe quickly corrected herself. "I’m sorry. In the office, I should call you Mr. Sterling." After a beat, she pressed on, "Mr. Sterling, Sharon Winters has a moral character problem. She cannot be allowed to remain at this company."

"Sharon Winters? Moral character?" The moment Julian realized this wasn’t about Hazel, his expression eased slightly. As for Sharon Winters... he could barely recall her face. There were too many employees in the company for him to remember every single name and face.

"What did she do?" Since Sharon was, after all, one of his employees, Julian was reluctant to fire anyone without good cause. It would disrupt the company’s operations and could easily erode staff loyalty.

Seeing that Julian hadn’t immediately rebuked her, Chloe launched into her story, embellishing it heavily. She then deliberately held out her injured hand. The gauze was off, revealing a palm full of blisters that looked quite severe.

No matter what Chloe might have done wrong, she was still his cousin. He would never permit someone to bully his family. As soon as Chloe finished her story, Julian picked up the phone, called HR, and ordered them to fire Sharon Winters on the spot.

Hearing no mention of Hazel Hawthorne’s name, the HR department breathed a collective sigh of relief. Firing one Sharon Winters presented no difficulty at all.

「After work.」

Sharon spotted a black Maybach parked by the company entrance. She pouted at Hazel. "Looks like Aiden Xavier came all this way just to pick you up, huh?"

"Aiden Xavier, here to pick me up?" ’He wouldn’t be that nice,’ Hazel thought. ’He’s probably only here because he needs me to do something for him.’

Hazel glanced at the Maybach. Only someone like Aiden Xavier would have such a flashy license plate. She said goodbye to Sharon and walked over to the car. Aiden lowered the window, gestured for her to get in from behind a pair of black sunglasses, then immediately rolled it back up.

’Show-off!’

Hazel got into the car, her expression unreadable. "You didn’t come all this way just to pick me up, did you?"

"And why couldn’t I have come especially for you? Besides, I just finished up some business nearby. It was on the way."

That line sounded familiar. Hazel felt like she’d said something very similar herself. She frowned for a moment, then it hit her: that’s exactly what she had said yesterday when she brought him a cake at his office.

’Hah. A quick study, I see.’

***