Tempted by Fate An Unspoken Passion 18

Posted by Adminh, Released on March 16, 2025

Chapter 18 Whose Lipstick

Mark

Owen thought it was ridiculous. Why should he feel guilty?

It had been an accident, nothing more.

He shook off Rhys‘ hand and snapped, “Go to bed now and stop butting into adult business.”

Rhys wasn’t fazed. He flashed a mischievous grin and said, “Dad, don’t play games with me. I’ve never seen you with any woman! Just tell me, is it Joanna’s roommate?”

Owen froze, confused. “Whose roommate?”

“Joanna’s roommate, Tatiana Bennett! Remember when Joanna called me? She said Tatiana was claiming to be your girlfriend. I thought she was kidding, but looks like she wasn’t…”

Owen only remembered that Tatiana had asked him to help get her two roommates into Harvey Group. He hadn’t known she had a third roommate.

The thought of Joanna made him uneasy. He turned and headed upstairs.

Rhys wouldn’t give up, following him and talking nonstop. “Dad, did you just get back from a date? I’m jealous of your love

life. Joanna’s been so busy with work that I haven’t seen her in forever. When do I get a kiss from her…?”

“Enough!” Owen snapped, his voice sharp with frustration. “You’re only eighteen, and you’re already thinking about that?

Get back to bed!”

Seeing that Owen was really upset, Rhys backed off and went to his room.

Once Rhys was gone, Owen’s guilt, which he had been trying to hide, began to fade away.

He walked back to his room, his face filled with concern, and got ready to shower.

But as he undressed, the lipstick stain caught his eye again.

Out of nowhere, the memory hit him.

Joanna had moved so fast that he hadn’t had time to react.

He vaguely remembered the feel of her lips pressing through the fabric onto his skin—so soft.

No way! Why was he thinking about that moment? Owen fought hard to push the image away, but it stuck in his mind, becoming clearer the more he tried to forget. His face darkened with frustration. He angrily shoved the shirt into the laundry basket.

But that wasn’t enough.

Owen grabbed a lighter and set the expensive shirt on fire.

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Chapter 18 Whose Lipstick Mark

He didn’t relax until it was reduced to ashes.

Joanna had no clue that one lipstick mark from her had led Owen to destroy a shirt.

She slept soundly through the night.

The next morning, she gathered her papers and headed to Harvey Group to complete the joining formalities.

Harvey Group owned the tallest, most luxurious building in Qakvale. Landing a job there was every university student’s

dream.

Maybe it was because Owen had made a call, but what usually took three days was done in just two hours.

Once the joining formalities was completed, Joanna made her way to the workshop.

As a graduate trainee, she had to rotate through different entry–level jobs to get a feel for the company.

She followed the map and found the office of Wilbur Garrett, the workshop supervisor. The door was open, and she could hear laughter from inside.

Joanna knocked,

The laughter immediately stopped. “Come in,” a voice called out.

Joanna thought the voice sounded familiar but didn’t think much of it as she pushed the door open.

The next second, she froze.

Inside were two girls. One she didn’t know, with a name tag that read Reba Curtis. The other was… Kristy!

Kristy jumped up, surprised, “What are you doing here?”

Joanna had expected to run into some of her roommates but hadn’t thought it would happen so quickly.

She responded calmly, “I’m here as a graduate trainee. The boss sent me to find Mr. Garrett and learn about the workshop’s products,”

“Oh, just a sec,” Reba said, about to grab the trainee handbook.

Kristy quickly stopped Reba, smiling at Joanna. “Mr. Garrett is on a business trip and won’t be back for a week. How about you wait outside? I’ll get in touch with him and let you know what to do next.”

Kristy’s name tag read Assistant to the Supervisor. Joanna paused for a moment but decided to trust her. “Okay, thanks.”

After Joanna left, Reba asked, curious, “We have the handbook. Why didn’t we just give it to her?”

Kristy answered with a sly smile, “The rotation for graduate trainees ended yesterday. Do you know why she’s just getting

here now?”

“Why?” Reba asked, confused.

“Because she didn’t go through the proper hiring process! Kristy replied. “This Joanna is my roommate. She never did well in school and always tried to get by with men’s connections, building a horrible reputation. Not long ago, she couldn’t land a decent job and was throwing fits in the dorm every day. But now, the recruitment for our Group closed a week ago, and samehow she still got in