Never Too Far Novel

Ethan lifted his head slightly. Josephine immediately took the opportunity to cup his face tenderly in her hands and proactively planted a passionate kiss on his cheek. He was momentarily stunned by her actions before he instinctively wrapped his arms around her slender waist and pulled her into his embrace. Smiling slightly, she playfully pushed him away. “I need to deliver these documents.”

When she moved away from him, he reluctantly withdrew his arm. Then, he turned around and watched her retreating figure with a pining look.

This scene was not only witnessed by Katrina but also by all of Josephine’s colleagues who were in the office at that time. They had seen the natural and intimate interaction between Ethan and Josephine, as well as the look of adoration and love for Josephine in Ethan’s eyes.

It was evident that Ethan loved Josephine more!

Jealousy was practically overflowing from Katrina’s eyes at this point. Once again, she could not understand what was so charming about Josephine.

Watching Josephine leave the room, she distractedly tidied her hair slightly. Then, she randomly picked up a document and walked toward Josephine’s desk.

Katrina innocently approached Ethan and said, “Mr. Quarles, I didn’t expect you to be here! Is Josephine away from her desk?”

“She went to deliver some documents,” Ethan replied curtly.

“Is that so? I happen to have another document for her!” she said, then she deliberately stepped to the side and continued, “In that case, I’ll just wait for her here!”

Standing in front of him, she occasionally tucked her hair behind her ear or pursed her lips. Her movements were filled with coquettish energy.

The rest of the female colleagues watched her flirtatious gestures with a mixture of scorn and derision. Be that as it may, Katrina brazenly continued to flaunt her coquettish charm.

After delivering the documents, Josephine rounded the corner and immediately caught sight of Katrina standing next to Ethan. She couldn’t help feeling extremely disgusted by Katrina’s aggressive courtship toward Ethan.

Approaching her desk, she questioned, “Can I help you?”

“Oh! You’re back! I just noticed that I brought the wrong document.” The document that Katrina was holding had been randomly taken from one of their colleagues’ desks. Naturally, she could not show nor hand them over to Josephine.

Josephine immediately saw through Katrina’s little trick and smiled. “Why don’t you show me the document?”

Katrina hastily hugged the document to her chest and guiltily burst out, “I grabbed the wrong document by mistake!”

“Did you grab the wrong document? Or were you deliberately being inappropriate in front of my boyfriend? Did you think I wouldn’t see through your schemes?” Josephine countered without giving Katrina any room to wriggle out of the situation.

“W-What are you saying?” Katrina blushed furiously, feeling so guilty that she did not dare to look at Ethan.

“What am I saying? I’m saying that you should stop sticking to my boyfriend like an annoying fly that won’t go away!” Josephine declared forcefully.

“Josephine, how can you insult me in such a manner? Mr. Quarles, please ask her to mind her manners!” Katrina immediately lodged her grievances to Ethan in hopes of showing him Josephine’s disgraceful side.

Ethan raised his eyes at those words. “Josephine is right.”

When Katrina heard that, she blushed so hard that even the tips of her ears went red. On the other hand, Josephine took the opportunity to add fuel to the fire. “Katrina, you told me that my boyfriend invited Tori out for dinner. You also claimed that there was an ambiguous atmosphere between them in the restaurant. Did you witness the scene yourself, or were you simply repeating the nonsensical gossip you heard from others?”

His handsome face revealed his astonishment. “Who said that?”

Katrina immediately panicked. Waving her hands in denial, she quickly explained herself. “Josephine, I was just repeating the gossip I heard from others. I don’t know anything. Please don’t blame me!”

Ethan abruptly turned to glare at Katrina with a frigid look in his eyes. “What the hell are you talking about?”

“No, no… Mr. Quarles, I simply repeated the nonsensical gossip I heard from others. I’m sorry. I’m so very sorry!” Katrina anxiously apologized repeatedly.

“That is to say, the meal he shared with Tori was just a normal interaction between employer and employee!” Josephine asserted. However, her gaze drifted toward a certain man. She was hoping that he could explain the incident.

Ethan quickly explained, “Joey, I did go to the restaurant that day, but I was planning to have lunch with you! I left immediately when I saw that you weren’t there. Afterward, I went to the place where you were holding an interview to have lunch with you! Do you remember that day?”

His response stunned her. “I do!”

“That’s right! Atticus invited me out for lunch that day. He claimed that he had business to discuss with me, so I asked him to bring you along. However, only a female employee was waiting at the restaurant when I arrived. That’s why I went looking for you instead.”

Katrina couldn’t help swallowing nervously. What? Is Miss Alford just a female employee in Mr. Quarles’ eyes? Doesn’t he know that she is the number one idol of the TV station?

“I see.” Josephine curved her lips into a smile and turned to Katrina. “Did you hear that? My boyfriend himself has clarified the matter. In the future, please stop spreading such malicious gossip lest you destroy his reputation.”

At this point, Katrina’s complexion had practically turned blue from fright. She frantically waved her hands and apologized. “I won’t! I really won’t! I will never listen to such nonsensical gossip again. I’m very sorry, Mr. Quarles. I was in the wrong.”

Ethan cast a grim look at her. “Leave!”

Katrina immediately slipped away as though she was fleeing for her life. The other employees who had gathered around to watch the show could also tell that Ethan was in a terrible mood at the moment, so they hastily clocked out of work and left the office without delay.

Hence, they did not see the man’s expression softening instantly when Josephine reached out to hold his hand.

“It’s fine. I didn’t misunderstand you either.” Josephine smiled brightly. She finally understood the whole situation now.

Now that she had gotten to the bottom of the matter, she felt extremely relieved. Nevertheless, Ethan’s gaze remained worried as he walked out of the company while holding her hand. When they entered the car, he immediately leaned over and looked into her eyes with a profound yet burning gaze. “Do you need me to explain further?”

Josephine shook her head with a smile. “There’s no need.”

In her opinion, he had not only been wronged but also falsely accused by her for no reason.

Ethan finally stepped on the accelerator. The sports car drove toward the villa that was just handed over to him.

The villa was one of the few bungalow villas located in the city center. It was very rare to have a villa with an exclusive courtyard of 500 square meters in the city center, where every inch of land was expensive. Hence, the price of the villa was naturally astronomical.

Josephine was amazed by the luxurious layout of the villa. There were eight European-style Roman columns decorating the front of the villa, which gave off an imperious atmosphere. Although they seemed fairly ancient, they were very well-maintained. When she walked into the hall, she was greeted by the sight of a spacious hall with a soaring ceiling of six meters. The crystal chandelier hanging down from the ceiling and the large floor-to-ceiling windows tempted her to take a nap on the couch. It was the perfect spot to enjoy a cup of coffee in the morning sun or admire the lights outside the window while leisurely working on an article she brought home from work.

On a weekday night, she could even cook a scrumptious feast, open a bottle of wine, and put on a song to enjoy a relaxing drink with Ethan after a grueling day at work. That also seemed like a pretty good choice!

“Do you like it?” the man behind her asked with a smile.

She turned around and exclaimed, “I love it!”

There was no denying that she truly enjoyed these types of villas that had their own unique atmosphere.

Therefore, she did not conceal her feelings and openly declared that she loved everything about the villa.

“Go upstairs and have a look.” Ethan took her upstairs, happy to see how much she adored the villa. It happened to be evening at the moment, so the glow of the sunset reflecting against the glass windows bathed the entire villa in warm colors.

Josephine and Ethan explored the second floor together. They eventually came to the master bedroom on the third floor. It was definitely the most luxurious master bedroom Josephine had ever seen in her life. Even the bathroom was bigger than her bedroom at home.

“In the future, we will be living here together. Just the two of us.” At that, he glanced over at her with a burning gaze.

Josephine nodded shyly. “Okay! I’ll move in with you.”

Ethan couldn’t help stretching out his arm to pull her into his embrace. Sensing what he was aiming for, she cooperatively raised her head to look at him. Their gazes met. Then, one leaned down while the other stood on tiptoes. They kissed each other gently, their movements natural.

Their kiss was so wild and passionate that Josephine could hardly control herself. Likewise, Ethan’s breathing became rough and heavy. Ever since meeting her, he had practically become a saint. His desire was often aroused by her, only to be forcefully suppressed by him.

“In that case, I will finish the renovations quickly so that we can move in together.” He held her hand with a look of anticipation in his eyes.

Josephine was also looking forward to that day. At the thought of them living together with him in this villa, she was certain that her future would be very wonderful indeed.

“Let’s go! I made a reservation at a restaurant for dinner.” Ethan led Josephine downstairs by the hand.

After dinner, Josephine received a message from her mother asking her to return home tonight. She knew that her mother wanted to talk to her. After all, she suddenly brought a boyfriend home. The unexpected situation had thrown her parents into confusion. It was only natural for her to return home to comfort them and explain the situation to them.

Ethan drove Josephine to the entrance of her house. Just as he was about to open his car door so that he could head inside to greet Josephine’s parents, Josephine stopped him and said, “Go back and rest. I’ll head inside by myself!”

He smiled and nodded. “Okay. I’ll see you tomorrow, then.”

She waved goodbye at him. “Drive carefully!”

After watching his car disappear into the distance, she finally turned around and went inside the house. Heidi was sitting on the couch, her posture indicating that she was obviously waiting for Josephine’s return. On the other hand, Mills had an apron tied around his waist as though he had just finished cleaning the house.

Josephine greeted them, suddenly feeling a little embarrassed. “Dad! Mom!”

“You’re back. Come and have a seat. We need to talk,” Heidi said.

Josephine sat down on the couch while Mills brought over a cup of freshly squeezed juice that he specially prepared for her. Placing the cup in front of her, he urged, “Here, Joey. Drink this. It was freshly prepared just for you.”

“Dad, why don’t you take a break? Come take a seat and join us for a chat.” She persuaded her father to join them.

Taking off his apron, Mills took a seat beside them. Afterward, the small family of three began their frank discussion.

“Joey, do you genuinely have feelings for Ethan?” Heidi stared at her daughter seriously, trying to figure out whether her daughter was deeply in love with Ethan or not.

Josephine considered the question briefly before she nodded confidently. “Yes, I like him. I’ve never had such strong feelings for another person before.”

“Is that to say that you won’t marry anybody else but him?” Heidi probed further.

“I like him, and I also hope to marry him in the future,” Josephine answered. Whenever she started something new, she generally preferred to finish what she started and accomplish her goals. If she was only going to play around for fun, why waste her time in the first place?

“What about him? Does he like you? Does he like you to the point where he has decided that he will only marry you and nobody else?” Heidi carefully grilled Josephine for more details.

once more. “I can tell

I believe you should

From his words, she could sense her father’s support

might marry into another family far away, I…” Her eyes reddened with emotion. That was something she could not accept. It was not that she wanted her daughter to take care of her in her old

as this was

enough. Our daughter’s happiness

tears from the corner of her eyes. “I know, but I just can’t

hugged Heidi tightly. “Mom, I don’t

they have grandchildren. If you won’t let Joey get married, when will you finally have grandchildren of your own?” Mills cajoled and

too early to talk about

consolation. Heidi was extremely envious that her best friends had

own happiness.”

she could perform her obligations

not fall asleep. At that moment, her phone rang. Picking up her phone, she glanced at the message. It was a message from Ethan. He had sent her a picture of

burst into laughter. This man was highly photogenic indeed, which meant that he generally looked

shower. What are

to take

once you finish

occurred today had

too,’ she

and tossed his phone to the side. A few moments later, he suddenly received a phone call. Picking up his phone, he glanced at

woman. Moreover,

where are

country, a female model who had just finished swimming picked up her phone to check her messages. When she saw that she had not received any new messages, she

Family that Ethan had asked his family

it was enough time for her to enjoy

will definitely find you,” she muttered to herself under her

…

at the TV station early in the morning for work. At the same time, she

was from Dane Cooke, the vice president

for an interview?” After she heard the interview

me, don’t you think you should be following my schedule?” Dane sounded very

she could only comply with his initial suggestion. “Alright, then. I’ll see you at

have a good chat with you. As long as it is the company’s responsibility, the company will not evade taking responsibility for the issue,”

speak about placing great importance

to provide a warning and reminder to the local

received another call on the internal line. “Josephine,

other end of the phone was none other than Tori, who had decided upon Josephine’s

Alford, wasn’t the interview

application to Mr. Kowalski so that I can

sense the malice that Tori bore toward her. By bringing forward the interview, the time she had

just forget about the interview! You’re not bad at your job as a reporter, so you should just carry on in your

the other

Naturally, Josephine had no plans to back down from the challenge. It was fortunate that she had made some preparations in advance over

eavesdropping on Josephine’s phone call from the side, Wren leaned over with an astonished expression and asked, “Joey, are you going to

interview has been brought

to the day when I see you

some documents before she headed upstairs. Tori’s office was located on the sixth floor, which was the most important floor in the entire company. It was where the evening news and important programs were broadcasted every day. All the people who worked on this floor

she walked into the

her desk and flipping through a document with a leisurely appearance. Seeing Josephine walking into her

seat on the opposite side, she invited Josephine to

of questions that she had prepared for the interview. “I prepared ten questions for your interview. If you answer each question

in agreement as she stated, “Okay. Please go ahead and ask your questions,

that you are very confident in yourself!” Tori looked up

confident in my

shouldn’t have too high hopes. After all, a person who worked as a reporter for the past three years like you must have forgotten all your learned knowledge by now!” Tori declared in

Josephine pondered for a few seconds before

the answer. She did not expect Josephine to answer

had such a deep understanding of the learned knowledge in the book. She pressed

a satisfactory answer. Tori glanced at the questionnaire in her hand. Half of the questions were questions based on textbook knowledge. It would seem that she could no longer rely on the questions she had prepared

asking the questions

should

for a moment. It was an extremely broad question, so it was impossible to provide a comprehensive answer in just a few words. “In my opinion, a journalist should possess the following qualities—first, they should uphold proper decorum and a firm stance in any situation. Second, they should report the situation truthfully and comprehensively without any falsehoods. Third, they should have a

with cursory knowledge gained from books? Don’t you have your own opinions regarding the matter? Josephine, you can’t become a broadcaster

and standard answers to the question that was asked, but Tori was intentionally asking for her personal opinion on

achieve, as well as my personal opinion regarding

another two years in the press department before trying again in the future?” Tori pushed the questionnaire

did not perform well enough for your standards. Nevertheless, I hope I can be given

the company’s broadcasters and destroy the company’s reputation. So, I will be firm in my

you yourself often made mistakes when you were just a newcomer. Everybody goes through a process

“Josephine, are you trying to compare yourself to

was not my intention. I am simply asking that you give me a chance to prove myself on the job. I am certain I will perform well,”

you want to take over Miss Ain’s position! You are trying to replace her! You wouldn’t even have this opportunity if Miss Ain had not fallen sick in the first place! Are you so impatient to

also turned grim. “I do not

status as Mr. Quarles’ girlfriend to squeeze your way into the broadcasting industry. You’re just trying to snatch the limelight all for yourself! What

the situation. Tori had always been looking for any opportunity to scold and criticize her, so the interview was just another means to

she no longer wanted to continue with the interview. Standing up from the couch, she bluntly declared, “Miss Alford,

and sneering remark from behind. “If you’re going to act in

looked back and responded in a domineering manner,

the office and slammed

did Josephine mean? But, she indeed has

up her phone, she dialed Atticus’

Kowalski, I’ve interviewed Josephine. I don’t think she

didn’t I tell you to interview her just for appearances’ sake?! Why are you being so serious about this matter?” Atticus asked from the other end

if you are planning to force me to work with somebody like that, then I refuse to work here any longer!” Tori threatened in a fit

high cost, so she was confident that he had

criticize you, but do you really think I call the shots in the company? So what if you refuse to work with us? With his abilities, it would not take much effort for Mr. Quarles to hire ten others who are more famous than you. You should think about the possible consequences of offending

a trace of panic entering her heart. If I no longer work in this company… Having offended her previous employer, she could no longer return to her former position. What’s more, there was always great competition for her current position. If she failed to dominate her position,

toward Josephine flashed through the depths of her eyes. It was Josephine who had pushed her into such a miserable

…

saw Josephine returning to her seat, she couldn’t help exclaiming in astonishment, “Why are

was the only one to interview me, so I found the whole interview session

me… Does she have the final say over the results of the

I will ask Mr. Kowalski to arrange for somebody else

to interview you? You could just ask Mr. Quarles to sign your interview form! Wouldn’t that solve

lit up at

will dare to reject you if you have Mr. Quarles’ signature on your interview form?

“Alright, I’ll follow your advice and ask

Then, Wren leaned over and whispered, “Joey, considering our friendship, I hope you don’t forget about me once you’ve become part of the rich and wealthy! I’m not asking you for much. It’s enough if you add another 300 to my base salary once

that? If I really became the lady boss of the company, I’ll be the first to recommend you

was so moved by Josephine’s declaration that she immediately threw herself at the other

rang. She glanced at the

about our interview session this afternoon! I specially made time

she said. After ending the call, she

she had an interview in the afternoon, she decided against inviting Ethan out for lunch. Nevertheless, she sent him a message to inform

safe!’

then went to the canteen with Wren for lunch. Along the way, she received many looks from various people. Some of them

was because most of them were from different departments and she

for the interview with her colleague when she received a phone call from one of Dane’s assistants. According to the assistant, Dane had urgent matters to deal with and could not attend the interview today. The interview could only take place the next day. In addition, the assistant invited her to the clubhouse to discuss the topics of their interview

that Josephine did not like that kind of gloomy and smoky

no helping it. I am working and can’t leave my position. Miss Jacobson,

Even her team leader seemed puzzled

are any topics that they wish to avoid in advance, then we have to follow

that I should discuss the interview questions with his assistant

you have the time? If you don’t, I’ll send somebody

be much easier if she went there herself. Besides, the other

now, so I’ll head over myself!”

gave her permission to meet the female assistant. Afterward, Josephine returned to her office. Grabbing her bag and notebook, she

on the third floor. There was no desk for work in the private room. She took

The female assistant started by introducing the company’s background before bringing up certain issues that required special attention. After a while, she seemed to become thirsty from talking so much and offered some tea to Josephine. “Miss

drink some tea. Josephine had also gotten thirsty after traveling so far, so she picked up her teacup and drank the

you’ve finished your cup.” The female assistant urged and stood up, looking

her

of a triumphant smile appeared in her gaze. The

of Dane’s evil scheme. He had taken a fancy to Josephine and wanted to take advantage of her. That was why he had made these arrangements. As long as she finished that cup of tea,

and sweep everything under the rug. That was his usual method to

her hand, she answered her phone in front of Josephine.

ending the call, she turned to Josephine and stated, “Miss Jacobson, Mr. Cooke is coming over soon. Please wait

case, I will ask my colleague to

Cooke is only coming over to take some documents,” the female assistant hastily elaborated.

she left the

to stand before the floor-to-ceiling windows and enjoyed the cold air

her face with her hand, thinking that the weather was far too hot. It’s only March!

her doubts without much concern. Feeling slightly bored, she picked up her phone and

monitoring the

heart with a sweet sense of happiness. For some reason, she suddenly missed him very much. The images of

this moment, her phone rang. It