Chapter 22
Valerie was surprised when she saw Jared walking towards them.
“Boss? Is there anything you want me to get for you?” She asked, looking around for any sign of his bodyguard. There was none. He wasn’t supposed to be out here alone, considering his status. Opponents and haters aside, he was every lady’s dream. He was going to be beset by a horde of fans if he was recognized.
“I left a file on your table, I think you should go check it out”
Valerie secretly wondered why he looked extra grumpy. She nodded all the same.
His eyes followed her out.
“Nice to meet you, Mr Smith” Jared’s gaze turned to his new foe. He stared at him, waiting for him to introduce himself.
“I’m Ryan. Barry Taylor’s son” he reached out for a handshake. Jared didn’t take it and kept a straight face.
“Oh” he said indifferently. “You are the Taylor kid” He had seen him once in a meeting overseas. His father owned ABT group.
Ryan’s face had a hint of unhappiness at being called a kid. He was only a few years younger.Property © NôvelDrama.Org.
“I was on my way to see you. Dad sent me here for a meeting with you”
Jared scoffed inwardly.
‘By first hitting on my secretary?’
He walked out without giving him a reply. Ryan followed.
He was surprised when he saw Valerie in her cubicle. He had no idea she worked there.
She was surprised to see him, too.
“OMG! He’s hot”
Kathy scuttled over, staring as Ryan entered the office with the boss.
“Isn’t he?” She asked.
Valerie nodded. “Not as hot as Mr Smith” she said without thinking. She bit her tongue as she realized the blunder. Luckily, Kathy didn’t think too much into it.
“I know, right? But boss is unattainable for people like us. Getting to see him is already a great gift. So, I will just hide my crush deep within and move on” she said, faking tears and fanning herself. Valerie shook her head and went back to work.
The meeting only took about an hour. The door to his office opened and Ryan came out, his gaze immediately strayed to Valerie’s cubicle. She was looking at him too. He smiled at her.
“Oh my God, he smiled at me! He smiled at me!”
Kathy squealed silently that only Valerie could hear her. She bashfully tucked her hair behind her ear.
Valerie smiled back.
Jared looked like he had swallowed a bottle of vinegar as he witnessed the exchange between the both of them. He needed to stop Ryan from coming to his office.
He bit his tongue as he sat in his office, when he received a call from his friend.
“Hey buddy!”
“What?”
“Woah! That’s cold” Mike remarked.
“If you have nothing to say, I’m hanging up”
“Hey! Hey! Chill, okay? I just arrived in the country and wanted to invite you and the guys out for a drink”
Jared was about to refuse, but he thought better of it. He needed to unwind.
“Sure”
“Meeting at our favorite nightclub at 8”
Without responding, Jared hung up.
“So rude” Mike complained on the other end.
“What did he say?”
Pete asked. They were a total of three in the room. Mike, Blake, and Pete. They were all Jared’s friends.
They were the first to know when Mike returned.
Mike, a well known casanova in the upper class social circle.
His father was wealthy, and he was transferred to a branch of his father’s company as punishment for his womanizing behavior. But that did nothing to change him.
He was planning to get women at the bar for a fun night.
“He agreed, and it’s….. surprising”
They all knew Jared hated clubbing unless he was in dire need of it, because of the women who stared at him whenever he was present.
“Mike, are you sure about this? Jared hates having women around him, no to talk of prostitutes” Blake remarked.
Mike shook his head.
“You should understand I’m helping him. He needs this” he said, acting like a worried mother. “So, relax and stop acting like a scaredy-cat”
************
Jared walked into the bar and went directly to the section where his buddies were.
His face scrunched up, in disgust, as he saw Mike with a lady. He was kissing a lady and fondling her breasts with reckless abandon.
“Yo Jared. Long time no see” Mike said, stretching out his hand to pay Jared I’m the back.
“I’ll have your hands cut off”
He threatened dryly.
Mike slowly retrieved his hand.
“Cold bastard” he muttered.
“What did you say?”
“Nothing. Just wondering why you were late”
“Why do I have to answer to you?” Jared took his seat.
“You’re really in a bad mood”
“None of your business”
Mike decided that was enough and chose not to speak again. He was going to get killed by Jared’s poisonous tongue. They had not seen each other for a year, though they communicated through phone calls, and this is what he got?
He signalled to the manager, who, in turn, nodded connivingly.
“I have a surprise for you” Mike announced proudly, as ifnwaiting to be commended. Jared kept mum.
The smile fell from his face and he pouted.
A boxum lady, in a skimpy dress, walked up to Jared. The top of the dress only reached half of her breasts and ended just below her butt.
“Can I pour you a drink?” She said coyly, as she shook her breasts, biting her lips seductively. She was the top hostess in that bar, so she was quite confident in her seductive ability.
Jared remained silent. She received a go-ahead from Mike.
She happily bent down, slyly showcasing her endowment.
Jared’s face was partially hidden due to the fact that he was seated in a corner, and the dim light didn’t help, so no one saw his murderous expression at that moment.
She poured him a drink and raised it towards him, waiting for him to accept it. Jared reached out to take the drink, but when his hands touched it, he slapped it away and it shattered. She screamed and before anyone could say Jack, her hand was on the table, held down by Jared. On top of it was a broken shard of glass, dangerously close, threatening to tear her skin.
“P…. please” she pleaded. Fear was written on every inch of her face.
“How about you pour me another one, huh?”
She quickly shook her head.
“I think that is enough, Jared”
Jared immediately turned to Mike.
“Is this your suprise?” He asked, dangerously.
“No, of course not” he immediately denied. His time of demise was not right yet.
The poor lady was crying, and immediately Jared released her, she skedaddled.
He called the manager, who had seen everything and was on the verge of wetting his pants.
“I want her out of here” he instructed.
“Jared, you-” Jared’s glare stopped him.
“Yes. Yes. I will do that immediately” he was thankful that it didn’t cost him his job.
Mike sulked. The others were quiet because and didn’t intervene because they all knew how scary he was when angry. Mike knew too, but he was tactless.
“I’m out of here” Jared said, standing up.
“Wait! You just came a few minutes ago” Mike said.
“My mood was ruined, thanks to you”
“It was already ruined before you came, so why are you passing the blame on me?” Mike murmured sullenly.
When he saw Jared turn squarely to him, he put on a fake smile.
“You should leave now. You need a lot of rest”
“Want me to drive you home?” Pete asked for the first time.
“I’m not a baby” he said before walking out.
Jared drove home in his Roll Royce, list in deep thought. He knew he had fallen in love with Valerie, and there was a limit to how long he could hide it.
He inputted his password and entered. The smell of pizza immediately wafted from inside. He gritted his teeth, knowing who it was.
“You’re back” she said with a smile. She was in just a lingerie. That was how desperate she was.
“Have you been drinking?” She asked, like a dutiful wife.
“I got us something to eat. Have a seat”
He didn’t hit women, but at that moment, he felt like punching her in the face.
He sighed deeply and walked towards his room. She quickly ran after him and blocked his way.
“Move aside”
“Why can’t you just touch me even once?!” She asked, walking towards him and placed her hands on his chest. “Am I not attractive enough?! It will be our engagement in a few weeks” she reminded him.
His face turned ugly. He had become extremely irritated with her lately.
Jared pushed her away coldly, and sidestepped her towards his room.
“Is this because of her?” She shouted in anger, and his legs came to a halt.