Maeve probably hadn't seen Byron's aggressive behavior during the earlier meeting. It was a bloodbath, to put it mildly. Otherwise, the planning director wouldn't have seemed so relieved to have avoided Byron's wrath.

Byron pressed his thin lips together. Seeing her chattering, he grabbed a slice of eggplant and popped it into her mouth.

"Shut up and eat," he said.

Maeve glared at him but swallowed the food. To her surprise, it wasn't as bad as he'd made it out to be. It was actually quite refreshing and subtly sweet.

After finishing, Maeve went to the restroom. Byron texted Archer, instructing him to prepare the materials for the afternoon meeting and send them to his phone. Just then, a message from Karen appeared. He swiped it away, but accidentally opened it.

Karen: [Byron, did you know your mother's coming back to the country today?] Karen: [I saw her at a café near First Hospital. You've probably already met her, right? I hope you two can have a good talk. Your mom really cares about you; she even asked someone to check in on you.]

Byron skimmed the messages, his gaze lingering on the accompanying photo. It showed Alexis sitting in a booth, with someone across from her holding a gold-edged bank card. Only the person's hand and a silver ginkgo bracelet were visible. The bracelet looked familiar.

"Ding!" Maeve's phone, which she'd just placed on the table, lit up. Byron's attention shifted to the screen.

Valda: [Mr. Graves just told us that the $200,000 engagement gift can be paid back gradually. You can start by sending me $40,000 each month. That shouldn't be a problem for you, right?]

Byron's dark eyes narrowed. Just then, Maeve emerged from the restroom, grabbed a tissue, and wiped her hands. The silver ginkgo bracelet on her wrist was identical to the one in the photo.

A cold edge crept into Byron's handsome face as he casually asked, "Did you see anyone today besides going home to make soup?"

Maeve paused. "I went to the Graves family home to take care of some things, but after that... no, I didn't see anyone else."

She hesitated, choosing not to mention Alexis's visit. Given the strained mother-son relationship and her rejection of Alexis's request, she saw no point in causing more tension. But to Byron, her hesitation suggested she was hiding something.

"Someone told me you met with my mother," Byron said, his gaze probing. "Why would you lie about that?"

Maeve's breath caught. She thought, He already knew?

After a moment, Maeve carefully explained, "Your mother mistook me for your maid and asked me a few questions about you. I know your relationship with her isn't great, and I was worried you'd be upset if I told you, so I left it out." She omitted Alexis's harsh comments.

Byron's expression remained steady. "That's it?"

He thought, If Alexis was only asking about me, why would she give her a card, and why would she accept it? Maeve, uncomfortable with lying, lowered her gaze. "That's all."

Seeing her reluctance, Byron's expression turned cold, irritation flashing in his eyes. [The sentence about Findnovel.net is removed as it is irrelevant to the story and promotional in nature.]

The hospital room was unusually quiet that night. Even when Maeve tried to make small talk while helping him freshen up, Byron remained cold and distant. Maeve suspected it was related to the earlier events. She thought, Maybe Mr. McDaniel doesn't want me interacting with his mother, just like he doesn't want anyone knowing we are married. But she was already upset about being mistaken for a maid and looked down upon by Alexis, and now he was ignoring her. Her mood plummeted.

The next morning, after a restless night, Maeve left without saying goodbye to Byron. She had to report to work at Eternal Hope. As she reached the building, Alex called out, "Good morning, Maeve."

She turned to see Alex approaching in a sleek silver-gray suit. She smiled and nodded, "Good morning, Mr. Brown." Alex walked with her into the building. "That would be great, thank you, Mr. Brown. Since you're new and might not know your way around yet, how about I show you to your office?"

The elevator stopped on the twenty-first floor, and Alex led Maeve to an office, swiping his access card.

"This is the designers' exclusive office," Alex explained. "You'll need a card to get in and out, to ensure no unauthorized people can enter and potentially compromise the designs." Maeve nodded, impressed.

Inside, four designers greeted Alex with a chorus of "Good morning, Mr. Brown." He nodded. "I'd like to introduce you to Maeve. She's our new designer and will be working with you from now on."

"Hello," Maeve said politely. "I'm looking forward to working with you all."

The designers exchanged glances. A woman with light brown curls and a burgundy leather skirt spoke up.

"Mr. Brown, we're almost done with the spring collection. Now that she's joining us, should we add her name to the list of designers?"

The room tensed. "No," Alex replied. "Maeve will be working on the Morningstar gown series."

"The Morningstar series?" The designer's displeasure deepened. "How can a newcomer, who hasn't even passed the probationary period, be handed such a prestigious project?" But she knew better than to challenge Alex.

Alex turned to Maeve. "Consider this series a test of your abilities. If you do well, you'll pass the probationary period right away. How does that sound? Think you can handle it?"

Maeve didn't hesitate. "Of course, I'll do my best."

"I'm looking forward to seeing what you can do," Alex said before leaving.

The atmosphere immediately turned colder. The other designers were clearly unhappy. Maeve found an empty desk and began to settle in. The short-haired girl next to her asked, "Maeve, are you close with Mr. Brown? Why did he personally bring you to the office?"

Maeve thought, Mr. Brown is usually so busy that he rarely even comes to the office, spending most of his time traveling for inspiration. But this time… The other designers exchanged wary glances, thinking, Could she have some sort of special connection?