Maise transfers to Luna's office since she's helping her about the case. Maise traces the transactions on the system while Luna is checking the hard copies. The two of them are really in good sync. Luna doesn't have much memories about Maise but all she knows is that she's a good person and she felt she knew her for a long time. But Maise doesn't know that she only reincarnated to Luna's body.
"Oh! Look at this." Maise said as she pointed the screen
Luna glanced over. "What is it?"
"He made another 50,000 transaction to miscellaneous expenses today. I wonder what he's spending it on. Do you think it's for his girlfriend?" Maise asked.
"Hmm... I don't know. We can't jump to conclusions without proof. Let's keep digging. How about we ask the suppliers for duplicate copies of these transactions? That could help us figure it out."
Maise nodded. "Good idea."
"Let's hit the nearby suppliers first this afternoon, then move on to the farther ones later," Luna suggested. "Want some coffee?" she added.
"No, thank you," Maise replied politely.
Luna walked into the pantry to grab some coffee. As she reached the counter, she saw Braxston finishing up his cup. She couldn't help but roll her eyes in frustration. She had hoped to avoid him, but now that she was already there and feeling tired, she decided to just get her coffee anyway.
Luna let out a sigh. "I don't know why you always show up wherever I go."
Braxston smirked. "I was here first. Maybe you're the one following me. Do you like me that much?"
Luna shot him a cold glance. "Hah, you're crazy. I'll never like someone like you." She poured coffee powder into her cup, trying to stay calm.
He leaned in, his hand reaching for the drawer above her head. Luna could feel his breath on her skin, the closeness almost suffocating. His face inched closer, and she tried to look away. They were so close now, she could almost feel his lips brushing against hers. Her heart raced, pounding in her ears, and she closed her eyes, unable to bear how close he was. She felt trapped, cornered, like she couldn't move or escape.
Then, suddenly the drawer above her slid open, and Braxston stepped back. Luna blinked her eyes open, trying to see what's his doing.
"Don't drink too much coffee, it'll just make you more nervous," he said, chuckling as he took a sip and walked away, leaving her speechless.
Luna, annoyed she couldn't push him away. She grabbed her cup and walked back to her office, frustration written all over her face.
"What's wrong?" worriedly ask by Maise
"Just some jerk trying to ruin my day," Luna sighed as she sat back down.
"Is it a guy?" Maise asked, her eyes sparkling with curiosity.
"Don't look at me like that. Yes, it's a guy, and one I'd like to forget. No more details, now get back to work."
"Ugh, you're such a killjoy," Maise groaned.
After lunch, they hopped into a cab and made their way to InnovaParts Incorporated, the leading supplier of appliance hardware. The city buzzed around them as they arrived, and Maise paid the taxi driver. They got out of the cab and walked to the building's entrance. Luna went up to the information desk and asked, "Excuse me, where's the accounting office?"
As they followed the directions, Luna stopped for a moment. Coming toward them from the other end of the hallway was a familiar face—
"Oh! You're the crying reader. We met again. What brings you here?" the guy who had given her the handkerchief asked.
"Are you an employee here?" Luna replied, her tone polite. "We're actually heading to the accounting office to ask a few questions."
Maise, standing beside her, looked at the guy with wide eyes, almost drooling in amazement.
"Yes, I'm working here." he responded with a cute smile
"You guys know each other?" Maise interrupted out of curiosity.
"It's a long story," Luna giggled.
"We actually haven't exchanged names yet. I'm Max Sterling. Nice to meet you," he said, extending his hand for a handshake.
"I'm Luna Hawthorne, this is my friend and colleague, Maise Winters. Pleasure to meet you," Luna said as they exchanged handshakes.
"Anyway, I should get going. I'm a little in a hurry. See you around," Max said quickly, heading toward the door.
Luna smirked and teased, "You're drooling."
Maise snapped out of her daze and quickly wiped her mouth.
"He's so handsomeee! Look at his body structure! I bet he's a rich guy. If I were you, I'd ask him out," Maise teased, giving Luna a playful slap on the shoulder.
"Ugh! I'm not like that," Luna sighed, rolling her eyes. "And we don't even know if he has a girlfriend."
She kept walking, ignoring Maise's giggles.
"You're so hard to get! No wonder you've never had a boyfriend. You're not getting any younger, besh. You should take action or you'll be single forever," Maise teased.
Luna shot her a stern look. "I'd like to remind you we're not here for that. We're here to investigate. So pull yourself together, or next time, I won't bring you along."
"Alright, alright. Chill," Maise replied.
When Luna and Maise entered the Accounting Office, everyone was so focused on their work that they didn't notice them.
Maise approached the employee sitting near the door. "Excuse me, who's in charge of the receipts?"
The woman pointed to someone in the corner. "Over there."
"Hello, ma'am. We're auditors from Montclair Innovations. Could we speak with you for a moment?" Luna asked politely.
"Of course. Please, have a seat," the clerk replied.
"We've been asked to review the duplicate copies of the receipts issued to our company," Maise explained, her tone serious as she looked at the clerk.
"What is this about?" the clerk asked firmly. "We can't just show you the duplicates without permission from higher-ups. What you see on the original copy should be the same as the duplicate. And as you can see, we're pretty much busy here. You're asking for receipts from quite some time ago. It just feels strange that you're asking about this now."
"We just need to clarify something. Could I have your supervisor's contact number so I can ask for permission?" Maise requested.
"Okay, sure." The accounting clerk handed them a note, and they left.
Luna and Maise left the company empty-handed. They tried calling the number the clerk had given, but it either unanswered or was out of service. With no other options, they decided to go and try other suppliers.