In the end, Garrison Reeves agreed to her request. He had made a promise long ago, and he wasn’t one to break his word. However, there was one condition-Winifred Dawson’s new job had to pass his review. Anything too exhausting was absolutely out of the question.
To put it bluntly, Winifred Dawson was only doing this to experience life. Hardships and toiling for money were not part of the plan.
Besides, with her frail constitution-sensitive to cold, pain, and fatigue-what kind of demanding job could she possibly handle? And how much could she realistically earn?
Garrison respected her wishes, and Winifred understood her own limits. But finding a job that was both easy and suitable for her wasn’t going to be simple.
To make it work, compromises had to be made. Nothing worth doing came without effort. Winifred thought of Leland Burns. He had assured her that he would arrange everything seamlessly, so Garrison wouldn’t suspect a thing.
But Winifred didn’t trust him. She and Garrison spent nearly every moment together-how could she possibly hide her new job from him for a hundred days? Unless Leland had some kind of supernatural ability, it seemed impossible.
As it turned out, she had greatly underestimated Leland Burns. In her world, he truly did have extraordinary abilities.
Never underestimate a man with both wealth and power. For someone like Leland, turning his plans into reality was child’s play.
Ten years ago, Leland had looked down on Garrison Reeves. Ten years later, nothing had changed. Even though Garrison had become more capable, he was still no match for Leland.
Winifred repeatedly asked Garrison if he had resolved the work-related troubles in Midlands.
Each time, his answer was the same: “Almost. It’s nearly done.”
But such vague responses left Winifred feeling uneasy. The urge to tell Garrison everything would rise within her, only to be quickly extinguished by fear.
Leland, as if reading her thoughts, would remind her often: she was his property. She couldn’t escape. If she thought revealing the truth to Garrison would free her from her obligation to stay with him for a hundred days, she was sorely mistaken. He warned her that, in such a case, he wouldn’t bother with pretenses anymore. He would simply take her by force, saving himself the trouble of playing nice.
Terrified, Winifred kept silent. The fear followed her into her dreams, where nightmares of Leland tormented her. She lost weight rapidly, her frail frame growing even thinner. Whenever Garrison asked about her bad dreams, she didn’t dare tell him the truth. Her days became a constant state of anxiety.
Despite her deteriorating mental state, she still went out to “look for work.” It was a charade, meant only to convince Garrison she was serious about her plan.
After three days of searching, it became clear that her qualifications made finding an easy, appropriate job in a city like this nearly impossible.
When she returned home, she admitted as much to Garrison.
“Don’t rush,” he said gently. “Take your time and find something that suits you. It’s important that you enjoy your work and don’t feel pressured.”
“Okay,” Winifred replied with a faint smile on her pale face.
“Have you been overworking yourself lately? If you’re not feeling well, you should rest. Don’t let job hunting affect your health. If you really can’t find anything, just come work at my company.”
This was far from the first time Garrison had offered. His face might as well have been stamped with the words “I want to pull strings for you.”
Winifred touched her cold cheeks and said, “I’m fine. I’m healthy. It’s only been three days-I can handle it.”
“Are you sure you won’t consider working with me?”
“No. If I work at your company, it won’t feel like a real job. I want to rely on myself.”
That had been her original plan: to find a job on her own and work hard to live like a normal person. But Leland Burns had derailed everything.
Garrison tried once more to convince her. “If you work at my company, I can pretend not to know you.”
Winifred gave him a skeptical look. “You could really pretend not to know me? And even if you could, what would I do there? Be a cleaner?”
Garrison could only sigh. Winifred was too stubborn. For years, she had been quiet and obedient, always listening to him and trusting his decisions. But lately, she had started asserting herself more, developing her own thoughts and plans. It reminded him of a pet parrot he’d once owned-well-trained and dependent on him-until the day it tasted freedom and never returned.
He feared Winifred might be like that parrot, ready to leave him for good.
On the fourth day, Winifred left early again. Garrison had already reviewed and investigated the companies she had applied to online. They were all legitimate businesses, but he still worried she might fall victim to a scam.
That day, Winifred went to the company Leland Burns had arranged for her. Everything went smoothly-she received the application form, filled out her resume, and completed the process.
When she returned home, she told Garrison about it.
“I found a job!” she announced.
“Where?” Garrison was surprised. He hadn’t expected her to find work so quickly. He had thought it would take at least ten days or more.
Once upon a time, finding a job would have been effortless for Winifred. With her beauty, she’d attract attention the moment she stepped outside.
But now, things were different. Her skills were limited, and at thirty years old, she wasn’t exactly a prime candidate. What company would hire someone like her?
The truth was, Leland had arranged for her to be “hired” much earlier. But to avoid arousing Garrison’s suspicion, he had delayed the process until the fourth day. Last night, he had issued her an ultimatum: she had to attend the interview and start the job immediately. He didn’t have time to drag out this performance any longer.
Winifred was left with no choice. She feared that if she delayed further, Leland would lose his temper.
She hadn’t known Leland for long-only three meetings in total-but she had already witnessed his wrath on the first day they met. It was the kind of anger that could kill.
Pulling out her interview materials, she said, “It’s Eastbridge Communications. You looked into them recently.”
Garrison vaguely remembered the company. It was a small, recently established interior design firm. He had investigated it thoroughly-it was legitimate, with proper licensing and documentation. Though the company’s business was slow and its network limited, it seemed like a safe option.
At Eastbridge, Winifred had applied for a receptionist position. With her clear, delicate features and sweet smile, she looked the part.
The pay wasn’t great. During the probation period, she would earn $2, 500. After that, $3, 000, plus attendance bonuses, bringing her total to around $3, 300.
The company was small, with few employees and a relaxed work environment. There was little chance of overtime, and the job itself was simple-answering calls and doing light administrative work. Most days, she’d have plenty of downtime.
While Garrison thought the salary was almost laughable, he reminded himself that Winifred wasn’t working for the money-it was about the experience. For her purposes, $3, 000 was adequate.
“Did you check everything out in person?” Garrison asked, concerned.
Winifred nodded earnestly. “I did. The environment is nice, and the job is really easy-it’s basically just some light errands. The woman who interviewed me, Mrs. Brown, was very kind. I even met the boss, who’s a woman as well-she was extremely friendly. I introduced myself to some of the other employees, too. They told me the company never requires overtime. I think it’s a good fit for me.
“The probation period is three months, but if I perform well, I can get promoted early. The office is only half an hour away by taxi, and public transportation is really convenient-I could take the metro or a bus. There are two receptionists, so we can look out for each other. The job is also Monday to Friday, with weekends off, and it includes social insurance. I don’t think I’ll find a better fit than this. Please, let me take it!”
Winifred rarely spoke so much all at once. She listed every positive detail she could think of, hoping to convince Garrison. She had repeated the story to herself so many times that even she almost believed it.
But Garrison remained silent.
Winifred grew anxious. She feared he might change his mind-or, worse, dig deeper and uncover the truth.