The CEO Gets What He Wants

When everybody was packing up for the day at five that evening, a courier appeared bearing a large bouquet of roses. “Is there a Ms. Yvonne Gallagher?”

“Yes, what is it?” Yvonne answered as she walked toward the entrance of their office with the latest Chanel purse on her shoulder.

“These are for you,” he announced as he handed her the bouquet. “The gentleman said to tell you that he hopes you aren't angry with him and that he'll marry you once you're of age.”

Yvonne signed for it with a scowl before brightening up when she saw the card nestled in the bouquet. Blushing profusely, she threw the card into the bin before marching out of the office.

“I refuse to believe somebody as cold as Mr. Moore would stoop to send flowers just to coax a girl,” remarked one of the female colleagues as she picked up the card from the trash, with the other women leaning over curiously

The contents of the card astonished them considerably. “Even somebody who appears as reserved as Mr. Moore could fall at a woman's feet like that. Huh! So it is true that men prefer the young and coquettish types?”

“You only have yourselves to blame for staying up late to do the drafts,” said a male colleague in amusement as he shut his laptop. “How would you stand a chance against a rich girl blessed with an abundance of everything like Yvonne if your complexion is worsening by the day? It's not unusual for Mr. Moore to prefer women like her. In fact, every man in his right mind would!”

Yvonne's sudden return to the office compelled everybody to fall abruptly silent.

“My card.” Yvonne headed toward the bin before she saw the card in the hand of the colleague who had picked it up.

As expected.

The person who held the card must have read its contents out loud, and Avery must have heard it.

Yvonne was pleased. Hmm... It was worth putting on the show.

“Here,” the colleague said shiftily. “I wanted to save you the trouble of looking for it by picking it up from the bin.”

Yvonne took it. “Thank you. I regretted it the second I threw the card away. I'm afraid of getting punished by him tonight.”

Everybody knew that the “him” she referred to meant their employer.

The keywords “tonight” and “punished” sounded especially harsh as they conjured up vivid images of intimacy.

She doesn't leave much to the imagination, does she?

When Yvonne was about to leave amidst a fit of embarrassed giggles, Nina's naïve voice sounded. “Are the flowers from your husband? Why would he send them to the office? Are you living separately because of a fight?”

The others gazed up with sudden interest.

Yvonne frowned, ready to give Nina a piece of her mind. “You weren't listening, Nina,” Cecelia chimed in. “Didn't Yvonne mention that she would be punished by her husband tonight if she threw the card away? They're not separated. Sending her flowers to her office is a way of showing his love for her.”

“Punished? Why should she be punished? Yvonne's background is no match for his. Why should she ingratiate herself like a slave? Does every instance of displeasure warrant punishment? Wow. I don't think anybody would want this kind of love. It sounds like a rich man purchasing a slave in ancient times to wash his feet for him. That's about what she's good for—a cheap woman...”

Yvonne's initially shy blush darkened with rage.

“Are you provoking me, Nina?” Yvonne screamed, quite deranged. She hurled the bouquet at Nina from a distance, but the latter managed to avoid it with Cecelia's help.

Nina jumped like a startled rabbit upon turning back around. “Oh, what a shock you gave me! If you're afraid of your husband punishing you for throwing the card away, I wonder if he'll knock all your teeth out for thrashing the roses?”

All the other colleagues present including the men, stifled their laughter as they spectated the drama. Suddenly, they did not seem very eager to get off work.

Cecelia decided that they had gone far enough. With one hand dragging Avery's arm and the other on Nina's, she led her friends out of the design department.

Yvonne remained in the office and vented her rage at Nina toward Avery's departing figure. “What a shameless b*tch! As if seducing somebody else's boyfriend isn't enough, you even have your friend to shame me. Who the hell do you think you are? In terms of looks, age, and inheritance, mine crush yours in every aspect!”

The remaining colleagues began to leave in groups as they muttered about Yvonne's poor manners before speculating whether she was yelling at Cecelia or Avery.

Who has seduced Mr. Moore?

For a female employee of the design department to meet Cayden outside working hours could only mean that she was exceedingly talented in the art of seduction.

...

Avery decided to visit her father at the hospital before seeing her grandfather.

On her way there, she received a message.

Cayden wrote to inform her that he had taken the initiative to send Blake to a safe location with caretakers. It was a decent place, and she could live there too if she wanted.

Avery did not have a strong urge to bring her grandfather home after reading the text. By that point, she did not dare put Blake at risk of Dylan's psychopathic outbursts.

Grandpa's well over seventy, and he shouldn't have to deal with that. Instead, he should be enjoying his days without worry. I'll pay Cayden back in the future...

Avery thanked him and was just about to hit send when another message appeared.

It was a voice message. His voice, low and rich, reverberated through the space around her.

“Send me your coordinates; I'll come to get you. The children deserve to have both parents pick them up on their first day at school.”