I Married the President

Chapter 76: Chapter 76: Outrageous

As an apology, Claire Sinclair finished every last bite of the three dishes and a soup that Adrian Quincy had specially prepared for her. She was so stuffed her stomach hurt, and she ended up not sleeping well all night.

When she woke up the next morning, Claire Sinclair felt completely drained. She even nearly missed her stop on the subway to work.

As she arrived at Astoria Tower, a black sedan was parked at the curb.

Phoebe Lockwood stepped out of the car, and a middle-aged man emerged from the driver’s seat.

”Dad, I’m here. You can head back now.”

”No rush. I’ll wait until I see you go inside.”

”Oh, come on. I’m not a little kid anymore...” Although Phoebe Lockwood’s words sounded like a complaint, she was actually grinning from ear to ear as she walked over to give her father a hug.

Catching sight of Claire Sinclair watching them out of the corner of her eye, she was instantly irritated. Pushing her father away, she said, ”Dad, that woman is the colleague who started with me yesterday.”

Suddenly being called out, Claire was instantly filled with regret. ’Why was I staring at their heartfelt father-daughter moment anyway!’

’It’s a father’s love she’ll never get to experience. Watching others won’t change a thing...’

Having listened to his daughter complain about her new colleague all night, Governor Lockwood naturally had a poor impression of Claire Sinclair. He gestured to her. ”Hey, you. Come over here.”

His pompous air as a governor was on full display; he couldn’t have looked more imposing.

By contrast, while Adrian Quincy also held a high position, his speech only carried a hint of an official tone. His conduct was completely without airs, and he radiated an aura of integrity.

At that moment, Claire developed an unprecedentedly good impression of Adrian Quincy. ’I guess it’s true,’ she thought, ’that you don’t realize how bad something is until you have something to compare it to.’

Claire Sinclair stood there in a daze for a moment before slowly walking over. ”Governor Lockwood, did you need to see me?”

Governor Lockwood’s face hardened as he berated her. ”You’re Miss Sinclair, correct? My little Phoebe is your colleague, and you’ll be seeing each other day in and day out. If you don’t want this job, just say the word, and I’ll have you placed somewhere else. But you will stop targeting my Phoebe. Otherwise, as her father, I won’t be pleased. You understand me?”

’Hang on, aren’t I the one who’s being targeted here?’

Claire found it so absurd she was dying to retort, but the man was a governor, after all. For Teacher Hartwell’s sake, she had to show some restraint.

”Governor Lockwood—”

She had barely gotten two words out when Phoebe Lockwood cut her off. ”Dad, you’re using your position to intimidate people again! How am I supposed to make friends at the company if you keep doing this!”

Her tone was whiny and coquettish. It was less of a complaint and more of a blatant boast about being the governor’s daughter.

Claire was left speechless. The father and daughter were truly a pair.

’What a shame,’ Claire thought. ’I’ve already paid my respects for Teacher Hartwell’s sake. Now, I’ll just be myself.’

”Miss Lockwood is of such a high and noble station. A simple commoner like myself could never hope to curry favor with her. So please, Governor Lockwood, rest assured. In the future, I will be sure to treat your daughter like the Empress Dowager herself. I’ll even burn incense and kowtow to her a few times a day. Would that satisfy you?”

”You— You’re going to burn incense for my daughter? Are you cursing my daughter to die?! This is infuriating!” Governor Lockwood looked ready to explode with rage, but Claire simply turned and walked away, showing him no respect whatsoever.

Phoebe Lockwood was so angry she stomped her foot. ”Dad, see? That’s exactly how she treated me at the office yesterday!”

”How outrageous! The absolute nerve! Don’t be angry, sweetheart. Dad will make this right for you!”

”Dad, you have to keep your promise. I don’t want to see that ill-mannered woman for one more second.”

”Okay, okay. I’ll take care of it as soon as I get back. You go on inside now.”

”Okay. Bye, Dad.”

A victorious smile touched Phoebe Lockwood’s lips as she turned and walked into the tower.