Chapter 32
On the day Celeste was discharged from the hospital, Kendric came to pick
her up.
In the car, he was constantly on the phone, clearly tied up with a hectic.
workload.
The trip to Autumn River Town had thrown off his work schedule for
several days. Even though he was here today to pick up Celeste, he was occupied receiving conference calls and sifting through documents.
The car veered away from the hospital, it cruised not towards Celeste’s rented apartment but instead Melville’s villa.
“I’m not going to your home,” she exclaimed.
Kendric glanced away from his computer, “it’s your home too.”
Celeste was in no mood to argue. “I wanna head back to my apartment.”
“That’s not an option,” he resolutely rejected.
Celeste was growing frustrated. “You can’t be this overbearing!”
Kendric put on a negotiating posture, “I can’t bend to your every will.”
Celeste reluctantly agreed, “okay, fine, I won’t go to your home, and I won’t go to my apartment either. How about I stay at a hotel?”
Kendric pondered for a moment. “Let’s meet in the middle. You won’t go to the villa, or your apartment…”
“Alright,” she nodded in approval.
“You’ll come to my office. I’ve been pulling late nights lately, and you can
stay with me there,” there’s a note of finality in his tone, “that’s the plan.”
Celeste gave him a sharp look, “you want me to hang around the office
while you’re working overtime?”
“It’s not merely during overtime. You’re gonna be by my side every moment
from now on.”
Celeste was speechless. She turned her head in frustration.
Melville Group nestled in the High–Tech Park, boasted a 32–story skyscraper as its headquarters. Kendric led Celeste into his office, and then he didn’t waste a moment. He was immediately engulfed by his team for a meeting.
There was only Celeste alone in the spacious office, and silence hung in the air for nearly an hour.
She still couldn’t fathom why things had escalated to this point. If said Kendric was binding her to him out of love, she would snort. That’s what only psycho would do.
Celeste was getting increasingly irritable.
After spending a few boring hours, she decided it was time to reclaim her phone from Kendric.
The bodyguard stationed at the door was alerted when he noticed her poking her head out.
“Miss Alinsky, you can’t leave.”
“I’m not planning on leaving. I just wanna wander around the building.”
Celeste followed the signs, making her way to the conference room. The
meeting hall was vast, and she couldn’t find any familiar spots.
After a circuitous journey, she stumbled upon a tea room and settled in for
a bit of respite.
The view was breathtakingly open and bright. The floor–to–ceiling windows in the tea room covered an entire wall, offering a sweeping view of the entire
high–tech park.
Celeste absentmindedly stirred her coffee with a spoon, the unique aroma
of coffee filling the air, lulling her into drowsiness.
Finding a cozy sofa, she leaned back and propped her chin up with her
hand, taking a nap.
Suddenly there came the clattering of high heels on the marble floor. It
grew louder as they approached.
Half–awake and half–asleep, Celeste caught a faint whiff of perfume, and her consciousness became a tad clearer as she overheard a conversation.
“Have you guys seen Mr. Melville’s new squeeze?”
“Mr. Melville” and “new squeeze” hit Celeste’s mind like a shot of espresso, and she snapped awake.
She perked up her ears.
“Mr. Melville’s new squeeze? You mean the girl he brought to his office today?”
“Exactly. Who else could it be?” After a brief pause, the glamorous lady lowered her voice, “even Mr. Melville’s fiancée has never set foot in his office.”
When they mentioned the rumored fiancée, they turned excited as if they had stumbled upon some scandals from the high–society family.
“I heard the fiancée had been driven out from Melville family.”
“No wonder Mr. Melville has the guts to flaunt his affair in the office. So, it
turns out the fiancée is no longer in the picture.”
“Even if the fiancée didn’t leave… she’d probably have to grin and bear his
infidelity.”
Everyone let out a sigh, and Celeste could even sense a tinge of sympathy in
their voices directed at her.
After eavesdropping for a while, her coffee had cooled down a bit. She picked up her cup and walked out from her secluded corner.
When the ladies noticed Celeste, they exchanged puzzled and worried glances. “Hey, where did you jump out all of a sudden?”
Celeste pointed towards a corner and explained, “I was sitting over there.”
They sized her up. Judging by her age and attire, she didn’t seem like a manager in the company.
“Which department are you from?”
Celeste gestured towards the upper floors, “on the 32nd floor.”
Their expressions immediately shifted. The President’s office was where everyone aspired to work in.
“You’re new here, right?” one of them asked.
Celeste fiddled with the coffee machine and poured herself a cup of coffee
Chapter 42
“yeah, I just started today.”
They seemed to ease up upon hearing her friendly tone. “She’s a newcomer,
and even if she overhears us, it doesn’t matter.”
They resumed their conversation without worrying about her presence. “I
wonder what the girl in Mr. Melville’s office looks like.”
“Yeah, I’m curious too. I heard she arrived this morning and used the
private elevator with Mr. Melville. You know that Mary, the special assistant in
the President’s office? She’s usually quite arrogant,” another whispered, “she
even went to deliver lunch to the new girl.”
Others looked both intrigued and surprised.
Celeste couldn’t help but eavesdrop. Suddenly, someone called her, “hey, you, the newcomer!”
Celeste turned around, “me?”
“Yeah, did you happen to see the lady in Mr. Melville’s office today?”
Celeste nodded, “yes, I did.”
Their eyes lit up, “what does she look like?”
“Come on, tell us!”
“Well, she’s pretty average.” Catching a few skeptical looks from the group,
Celeste added, “she’s not as good looking as you guys.”
