The Billionaire Who Saved Me

The memory of that night flashed through her mind. The dim light barely allowed Elice to see the face of the man who approached her. The warmth in his gaze invited her to get to know him, to talk to him, and maybe more.

In a hotel room, Elice found the man delving further into her life. Until she decided that the incident was nothing more than an insignificant distraction, something she needed to forget as quickly as possible.

But who would have guessed? Despite her best efforts to avoid it, even after miles apart, their paths somehow crossed again. In a place she never expected?

Oh, God. It felt like Elice’s body was shaking from top to bottom. It was almost as if all her joints suddenly lost their strength. For one question kept swirling in her head.

How? How could this happen?

Trying to look away from those intense eyes, Elice realized that her body seemed to have a mind of its own. She couldn’t seem to shift her focus from there. As if she was being pulled by an invisible force.

“Elice, have you prepared your questions?”

Freddy’s voice startled Elice and pulled her consciousness back to the surface. She turned away with a grateful sigh that escaped her heart. A breath of relief flowed effortlessly from her mouth.

“I-I have.”

But Elice couldn’t regain her composure right away. Her voice trembled, a clear sign that those eyes were more than just ordinary looks. They shook her to the core. And that made Freddy furrow his brow.

“You’re not suddenly nervous, are you?” Freddy asked expectantly. “Or are you…”

“I’m fine.”

Elice immediately cut Freddy off, smiling to reassure him that she was indeed fine.

Freddy wasn’t convinced. The look in his eyes revealed his suspicion. But a moment later his shoulders shrugged.

“Fine. I hope so.”

It wasn’t only Freddy who hoped so. Elice also wished for a similar outcome, something she almost doubted, to be honest.

How? How can I be okay in a situation like this?

But Elice knew that she couldn’t drown in the fear of personal problems. This was a job, and her future was at stake. She didn’t want this first mission to backfire on her.

Elice took several deep breaths to calm herself. And when she looked forward again, she found Garrett continuing his words.

*

As someone who had always accompanied Garrett on various occasions, especially at her mature age, Amber wouldn’t overlook any slight changes in her boss. Even if it had to do with the fact that Garrett’s usually assertive and straightforward speech had paused for a moment. Naturally, this caused Amber to immediately shift her gaze.

Amber found them. A pair of eyes that seemed to look at Garrett with a different impression. And if she had any doubts, she only had to turn back to Garrett for confirmation. The two of them shared an unbroken gaze. For a few seconds. Then a smile appeared on Amber’s lips.

When the conference ended, Amber waited for the right moment – when she and Garrett were finally in the car. On the way home.

In the car, Garrett unbuttoned his jacket, loosened his tie, and then reached for a bottle of sparkling water. In two big gulps, he moistened his dry throat.

Amber, sitting in the front seat with a seemingly young driver, glanced at Garrett through the car’s rearview mirror. Her voice was heard.

“Great speech, sir.”

Garrett responded to Amber’s look through the same medium. In the same mirror. His face looked sour.

“I don’t think it was that good,” Garrett complained. “It’s harder than I thought.”

Amber kept a smile on her face. Without responding to her boss’s words, she appeared to pull out her phone, type a message, and then speak again after sending the message. Along with the subtle sound of Garrett’s phone receiving a message.

“I sent a message for you. Please check.”

Garrett furrowed his brow. Why would his secretary send him a message when they were in the same car? Wanting to satisfy his curiosity as quickly as possible, Garrett pulled his cell phone out of his jacket pocket. His frown deepened when he found an unfamiliar number and address that Amber had sent him. Along with the accompanying message. Mrs. Amber Bailey:

Elice McLean. Garrett’s eyes widened immediately. Reflexively, he lifted his face and saw Amber smiling at him through the rearview mirror. Unable to resist, Garrett immediately responded to the message. Garrett:ConTEent bel0ngs to Nôv(e)lD/rama(.)Org .

How did you know? Amber was not at all surprised when Garrett asked her that question. But Garrett shouldn’t be surprised either if he knew. In fact, it was just the opposite. Garrett was really shocked. He couldn’t even wait for his secretary’s answer. Mrs. Amber Bailey:

Know what, sir?

About you not having a candidate?

Or that you are interested in Elice?

Sir, I am the one who schedules your entire week, seven days a week.

I don’t think anyone knows you better than me. Garrett let out a long sigh. He could only silently agree with all of Amber’s words. Truly. There was absolutely nothing wrong. Everything was valid.

For indeed, Amber had been suspicious of Garrett all along. He seemed to be trying to delay things when it came to marriage, even though he claimed in public that he already had a candidate and needed time to discuss marriage because of the woman’s career. But Amber didn’t believe him. Especially with another fact, as Amber mentioned, that she planned Garrett’s every day. For someone who really had a lover, Amber would applaud if Garrett chose to work and meet with colleagues on Saturdays and Sundays.

It really didn’t show the characteristics of someone with a significant other.

While Garrett, who had chosen not to be honest with Amber for the past six months, felt that his actions were futile. Apparently, his secretary had secretly known what he had been hiding all along.

“So how about it, sir?”

Amber’s question made Garrett lift his face, which had been momentarily lowered.

“How about what?”

Amber smiled. This time she decided to turn her body. She decided to look directly into her boss’s eyes instead of through the car’s rearview mirror.

“Sooner is better, isn’t it?”

Garrett smiled wryly. In his mind he could only curse. He decided not to prolong the conversation with Amber. However, his secretary seemed to be on top of things now. Like an opponent who had successfully found the trump card against his enemy. And that card was undeniably a very dangerous one.

Back home, after a quick chat with Norah and Daphne about the conference, Garrett went straight to his room and tried to calm down. He took a shower, enjoying the relaxing sensation of the scented soap. But in reality, he couldn’t get the conversation with Amber out of his mind.

Weighing his phone in one hand, Garrett, who had just finished showering, looked indecisive. Wearing only a white towel around his waist, he stood in front of his closet. He looked torn. Between wearing pajamas or a t-shirt and long pants.

Finally, Garrett knew what he had to do that night. He set aside the pajamas and chose the second option.

*

Elice felt her body completely exhausted when she finally arrived at her apartment unit. Even though Freddy considered the interview session a success for a beginner like her, she thought she might pass out at any moment. Not to exaggerate, but locking eyes with Garrett during the event really drained her energy.

Maybe it was just her imagination, or maybe it was true, but Elice felt something different in the way Garrett looked at her. Could it be that he felt guilty? For leaving so abruptly after the night they had spent together? It was possible.

Hastily kicking off the shoes that felt heavy on her long legs, Elice went straight to the kitchen. She opened the refrigerator and grabbed a bottle of cold water. Without using a glass or cup, she drank the water straight from the bottle.

Elice sighed in satisfaction, feeling even more relieved after the coolness moistened her throat.

“Ding!”

Elice’s relief was cut short. The sound of her phone’s notification made her thoughts shift. It forced her to reach into the bag she had brought earlier.

There was a message. Thinking it was from Freddy, Elice frowned when she realized it was from an unknown number. +0 xxx xxx xxx:

Don’t you owe me an explanation?

After leaving so abruptly that morning? The phone slipped out of Elice’s hand. The relief she had felt was gone. It was replaced by a tremor that instantly enveloped her entire body.

Inevitably, Elice could clearly guess the sender of the message. Without hesitation, the name flashed through her mind.

Garrett.

Coincidentally, Elice noticed her doorbell ringing at the same moment. Her heart seemed to stop beating instantly.

*