Chapter 533 Resignation

• “What?” Hearing the announcement that Raina was demoted, Finnian’s face went dark, like he’d been struck by lightning. Not in a million years did he think she’d go this hard. Raina didn’t even look at him. She kept on, “After Finnian’s demotion, James will be promoted to general manager.” James lit up, shocked this good fortune dropped into his lap. He rushed to butter her up. “Thank you, Raina. Don’t worry. I’ll give it my all. I won’t let you down.” “Raina, you’re ruthless.” Finnian shook with rage, fists clenched, just about to blow. Then his mom’s warning flashed through his head—she’d told him to give Raina some leeway. D*mn it. Treat it like a dog bite and move on. Besides, he mostly played games at work. GM or supervisor—didn’t make much difference. With that in mind, and because of his mom’s order, he forced all that anger back down. Finnian was always in-and-out like a ghost. Most of the higher-ups barely knew him. No one cared about his demotion. Everyone had already decided he’d sold a proprietary formula on his own and cost the company big. They looked at him with contempt. No one was going to plead for him. One exception: Hannah. She believed Finnian was clean and knew he’d done a lot for the company. Now Raina not only wronged him but knocked him down to supervisor. She was burning over it, yet helpless. “Raina, since you demoted Finnian to supervisor, then just demote me too. I want to move to Sales as assistant supervisor and keep assisting him,” Hannah stood and volunteered. “Hannah, are you threatening me?” Raina’s pretty face went cold. “No. I’ve always worked under Finnian. I’m used to staying by his side. I don’t want to leave him,” Hannah said, plain and sincere. She just wanted to go wherever Finnian went. No threat intended. Raina didn’t see it that way. She knew Finnian was laid-back, and Hannah handled a lot of his work. Before Raina moved to the branch, Hannah had basically propped up the branch’s early growth alone. Hannah was strong. Tons of branch affairs ran through her. If Raina transferred her to Sales as assistant supervisor, there was no way she could find a suitable replacement fast. So, Raina figured Hannah was leveraging that to pressure her. And as the CEO, no way was she tolerating a subordinate challenging her authority. “Hannah, Sales doesn’t need an assistant supervisor. If you’re willing, stay on as GM assistant. If you’re not, you can resign,” Raina said coolly. She meant to make Hannah back off, not to force her out. In her eyes, GM assistant paid well. No way Hannah would quit. Hannah thought for a beat, sighed. “Forget it. I’ll resign.” Truth was, Hannah liked the job. She didn’t want to leave. But she was Finnian’s woman. Finnian and James had been at odds for ages. Now James was GM—no way she’d be his assistant. Not happening. Raina froze. She didn’t know Hannah’s concern and thought Hannah was being ungrateful. She flew into a rage. “Fine. Approved. You can leave anytime.” “Rai! Na!” Finnian snapped. He slammed his palm onto the conference table. Bang—deafening. The big table crashed over. The executives all jumped up, Raina included. “Finnian, are you nuts? Why smash the meeting room table?” Raina glared, fury icing her face. Finnian had had enough. His eyes burned. He ground out, “Raina, did your conscience get eaten by a dog? Hannah and I came to the branch first. For the new company’s production and growth, she gave more than you can imagine. The branch is what it is today thanks to her. Even if you won’t admit her achievements, she’s bled and sweated for this place. Yet you repay kindness with cruelty and force her to resign. Do you even have a heart?” “I…” Raina faltered under the accusation. Some guilt pricked through her; her edge dulled. But she was the CEO. In front of all these people, she couldn’t swallow her pride and admit fault. So she doubled down. “I gave her a chance. She chose to resign. I didn’t kick her out.” “Chance, my ass. She applied to be my assistant supervisor. That’s just one word from you. You refused. You’re doing this on purpose!” Finnian shot back, all that pent-up fury exploding. Raina hadn’t meant to be cruel. Being misread stung, and she had no good rebuttal. Honestly, what she’d done did look like burning the bridge after crossing the river. Hannah tugged Finnian’s arm and gave him a soothing smile. “Finnian, let it go. Don’t say more. I’ve been exhausted these two months anyway. A break after resigning might be good.” Finnian pinned Raina with a murderous stare. “Raina, if you weren’t a woman—and if my mom hadn’t told me over and over to let you be—I’d make you pay for this today.” Women were Finnian’s sore spot. Seeing Hannah wronged hurt worse than being wronged himself. If it were anyone else, he’d make them regret it. But Raina was different. She was his fiancée, and his mom backed her. No matter how mad he was, he wouldn’t actually harm her. “Don’t try to scare me. I don’t buy it.” Raina let out a cold laugh. She’d been thinking of talking Hannah into staying to fix her earlier mistake, but Finnian’s swagger lit her temper. In her mind, he’d cost the company a ton and still dared to mouth off. No way she’d tolerate it. She blurted, “If you can’t stand it, resign with her. No one’s stopping you.” “You think I’m dying to stay? Newsflash—I’m done.” Finnian gave a chilly snort, took Hannah’s hand. “Hannah, we’re out. No point sticking around to swallow this crap.” Watching him turn to leave, Raina’s heart lurched. She didn’t know why, but she really didn’t want him to resign. Maybe because she had no hard proof and didn’t want to let him go so easily. Maybe because, deep down, she relied on him in some way. Either way, she didn’t want him walking out for good. But proud as ever, she wouldn’t admit it. She said the opposite instead: “Finnian, if you want to go, then go. But just so we’re clear—this is your voluntary resignation. Don’t call my dad later to complain.”