Jayden sat motionless. His brow remained furrowed, his jaw locked tight. He felt a cold flare of anger beneath his ribs, though he refrained from cutting her off immediately. As much as he despised hearing this coming from Melissa, a pragmatic voice in his head acknowledged the danger. In a corporate titan like SJ Corp, the perception of favoritism was a poisonous weed—and if Sarah was seen as bulletproof simply because of her proximity to him, it would create an unsustainable rift.
Taking his silence as encouragement, Melissa leaned in just a fraction more, her eyes shining with earnest devotion. "You have always been the gold standard of discipline and professionalism here, Sir. You built this company's reputation on strict accountability. I... I just cannot bear the thought of the staff believing you practice double standards. I don't want your impeccable reputation tarnished because of someone else's carelessness."
