Aaron gave out a sheepish smile as he absently scratched the back of his neck. His blue eyes quickly darted from left to right, trying unsuccessfully to avoid eye contact with Arthur who was seated right in front of him. Unfortunately for Aaron, his face mirrored the guilt that he was feeling.
As the resident trouble maker for the Knight family, Aaron falls into trouble easily. Perhaps, a little bit too easily. He couldn't avoid them no matter how hard he tried, mischief always has a way of finding him at every turn.
"I may have told Victory that it's okay to use your room." Aaron answered with an embarrassed smile. His cheeks coloured at being caught on a bluff by his older brother.
All the Knights are fully aware that Victory is using Arthur's room. Well, technically everyone knew except for Arthur.
Up until that very moment, Arthur thought Victory was a guy called Victor.
"If I remember correctly, I've asked your permission before and you agreed." Aaron said as his face cleared, suddenly having recalled his memory of asking him way back when.
"You gave me the the green light and she's been using your room for ages. Besides, it's not like you use the room anyway," Aaron reasoned, his hands waving expressively in front of his body. "You're always staying at your own bachelor pad in the city."
Arthur indeed did have his own apartment in midtown Manhattan which is closer to Knight Towers, where his office was located. However, that didn't mean that Aaron could start an Airbnb and simply allowed any of his lady friends to use his room for their convenience. Besides, the Knight mansion have two guest rooms located on the ground floor, at the back of the house near the pool area.
"All these while, you told me her name was Victor and Victor is a guy." Arthur retorted sharply, his forehead was wrinkling in confusion. His eyes shone with disapproval at discovering Aaron had purposively misled him.
Adrian chortled from the sofa, clearly amused by his two brothers' latest altercation. As the youngest among the three, he preferred to stay by the sidelines and avoided getting caught in the middle at all costs. They would roast him easily and it was too early for him to die.
Aaron chuckled at Arthur's reply and shook his head. He nonchalantly swished his hand as if to dismiss what Arthur has just claimed.
With an albeit insincere apologetic smile, he elaborated, "Victor is short for Victory. I may have shortened her name to Victor so that you'd agree to her using your room." His lips curved into a wide grin, exposing his pearly white teeth to his brother.
Victory has been a semi-permanent addition to the Knights' household for several years now, being best friends and almost literally joined to the hip with their middle son, Aaron. They both met in high school and became fast friends since the first day they met. They were like two peas in a pod, both having the same cheeky demeanour and bubbly personality.
Arthur narrowed his eyes into small slits, his blue eyes flickering in disbelief at Aaron. His lips pressed into a straight line and a muscle was ticking beneath his square jaw.
Trying to placate Arthur's irritation, Aaron quickly added, "I'm sorry, okay? You weren't home and she needed a room to shower and change her clothes."
"As you can see," Aaron waved his arm from his chest to his waist, "it would not be appropriate for her to shower and change in my room, unless we plan on showering together."
He then plastered a thoughtful look on his face and winked cheekily, adding, "Perhaps I should go and ask her."
With those final words, Aaron dashed out of the living room, the ends of his jacket flapping wildly behind him, muttering under his breath about pesky siblings.
**********
An hour later, Aaron and Victory walked arm in arm down the curved stairs. Both were looking fresh, having showered and changed into different outfits.
Aaron was wearing a casual white polo shirt and navy slacks while Victory was wearing an oversized light blue Ralph Lauren shirt and black leggings. Victory's brown hair was still damp from the shower and tiny droplets of water had fallen onto her shoulders and her back, creating dark spots on the shirt that she was wearing.
To Arthur's surprise, he couldn't help but notice the familiar initials that were embroidered on the chest pocket of the oversized shirt that Victory was wearing. A frown had appeared on his face as realisation dawned on him.
He decided to ask her about it and called out, "Excuse me, Victory?"
Damp brown hair swivelled slowly as her head turned to his direction.
Unable to remove the accusatory tone in his voice, he blurted, "The blue shirt that you're wearing are embroidered with my initials. May I know why are you wearing my shirt?"
Victory's green eyes widened as both eyebrows lifted in surprise. Her mouth parting into a small circle and her cheeks tinted at the question.
With a flustered look on her face, Victory divulged quickly. "I took the shirt from one of the closets in the bedroom upstairs."
Her teeth had now bit onto the bottom of her pink lips in embarrassment.
Her expression turned apologetic as she continued, "I am sorry but I truly didn't know the clothes belong to you. I thought they belonged to no one because Aaron told me no one used the room."
Without missing a beat, Arthur rapidly asked another set of questions which had been weighing on his mind. He wanted to solve a mystery that has been plaguing him since a few years back.
Looking thoughtful, he continued, "Is that why a couple of my shirts have been missing from my wardrobe? And the ladies' clothing and undergarments which seem to be accumulating in my bedroom, I assume they are yours as well?"
Her cheeks turned into a deeper shade of pink. Victory gave him a sheepish smile and reluctantly nodded. Her green eyes now roamed everywhere except at his blue orbs.
Everybody around them laughed at their banter, clearly amused at the unfortunate revelation.
Before Arthur could continue and to avoid any further embarrassment to herself, Victory quickly interjected, "I'll take my clothes home with me tonight and I'll return your shirts the next time I'm here. I truly apologise for this mishap."
She continued with a wry smile on her face, "It seems that I've just barely arrived in New York and here I am already causing quite a spectacle of myself. Obviously being friends with Aaron may be a factor here."
Victory shrugged her dainty shoulders helplessly, surrendering to her fate.
Despite their tumultuous relationship, no matter what happens, Victory wouldn't trade Aaron for the world. The guy is practically her person, she'd go wherever he goes and it has caused her to land into more trouble than she has ever dreamed possible.
She glared at Aaron, her eyes sending silent threats for misleading both she and Arthur, and causing unnecessary embarrassment especially to her. If looks could kill, Aaron would have died a most painful and torturous death.
Moments later, Abigail called everyone into the dining room where dinner was served. Just half an hour ago, the sun had slipped under the horizon and it is now time for evening meal.
The dining room was located at the right side of the house, just opposite the living room. The walls were covered in light yellow wallpaper, printed with colourful birds and lush greenery, creating a tropical vibe to the room. A chandelier was hung in the middle of the ceiling, warm yellow light emitting from its crystal spheres. A white rectangular oak table stood proudly in the middle of the room and translucent Louis XV ghost armchairs were tucked smartly underneath the table.
Avery sat at the head of the table, flanked by Abigail and Aaron while Arthur sat at the other end of the dining table, flanked by Victory and Adrian.
Various dishes were already strategically placed on the tabletop, steam wafting from roast chicken, mashed potatoes, steamed broccoli and cauliflower, beef stew and many others. The smell of freshly prepared food were dancing seductively into their nostrils.
Once everyone was seated, Avery invited everyone to dig in. The table was quiet, except for the clinking of cutlery and silverware against porcelain and fine china.
After a brief pause, conversation started to flow. All of them were excited to listen to Aaron and Victory's tale from their trip to Europe.
Both shared snippets of their trip: standing in long queues to enter the Louvre, observing couples professing their love on top of the Eiffel Tower, eating ice cream in Milan, getting pickpocketed in Rome, stuffing themselves silly with pizza in Italy, meeting other travellers on the Eurotrain and choosing to backpack instead of staying in 5 star hotels.
Adrian interjected their narrative and asked a few questions about Italy, Rome in particular. Abigail's sister had married an Italian and they currently live in Rome with their three kids. In a few months, he is planning to spend his summer there with his cousins.
Once dessert was served, they all settled into comfortable silence, bellies full from eating and laughing from Aaron and Victory's travel tales.
The conversation moved on to what Aaron and Victory planned to do, now that they are back home and having completed their tertiary education. Just six months ago, both had graduated from NYU with a business degree.
Aaron claimed that he will be joining the Knight's business empire. A new position had been created for him and he will be learning the ropes from his dad.
Avery had high hopes that Aaron will be taking over managing the family business from him. Arthur had told him several years back that he would not be joining Knight Enterprises and now he expects that both Aaron and Adrian will join the firm.
Despite being the firstborn, Arthur has no interest in the family business, preferring to venture out on his own and leaving the empire to his parents and siblings, Aaron and Adrian. He is confident that both his brothers would be able to step up the plate and take their rightful place in the company's business enterprise.
Four years ago, after graduating from Stanford University, Arthur started his own advertising and media company. He had to put in long hours to ensure the survival of the firm. And now the hard work is finally paying off, the company is currently one of the preferred top advertising and media agency in New York.
"What are your plans, Victory?" Abigail turned to face Victory, her pale blue eyes shining with curiosity.
"I've accepted a 6-months attachment at A. K. Media. They've told me that the post is as the personal assistant to the CEO and I will be starting on Monday. If I perform well, they might consider extending it into a 2-year contract once the 6-months attachment is over." Victory replied nonchalantly.
"So you'll be working with Arthur?" Aaron asked, moving his gaze from Victory to Arthur.
"Arthur? Which Arthur?" Victory asked, wrinkling her forehead in confusion.
"My brother, Arthur Knight, the one who's sitting next to you at the dining table?" Aaron replied, lifting one of his dark eyebrows into a perfect arc and nodding his head in Arthur's direction. His facial expression looked as if he is asking Victory a question to which she should already know the answer to.
Victory glanced to her left, to where Arthur was seated. Then she turned her attention back to Aaron and announced uncharitably.
"In all the eight years that I have known you, Aaron, this is the first time that I have the pleasure of meeting your brother, Arthur. And I am sure, this is his first time meeting me too."
Hi! What do you think of this chapter? I look forward to reading your comments. xx F.A.R. Ps: I’d be most thankful if you write a review for the book. Thank you!
"I didn't know that A. K. Media is a part of Knight Enterprises." Victory mused. Her pink lips pursed and her small head had unconsciously tilted to the side as she thought about the company that she's about to join. Her right hand was cupping the bottom of her chin while an index finger was tapping thoughtfully at the side of her smooth flawless cheeks. "I thought all your companies must have the name Knight, or something," said Victory, looking perplexed. Her gaze was unfocused as she stared towards the back of the dining room. If you were to look closely, you can see her thoughts churning rapidly behind the irises of her eyes. She continued speaking, "And besides, there is some mystery surrounding the founder of A. K. Media. He only goes by his initials and he has never entertained the press for any interview. There is very little written about him." Looking up, she turned her head to look at Aaron, who was seated to her right, "From
Victory gingerly paced her steps and walked towards the far end of the room, pausing in front of Arthur's large desk. Her Jimmy Choo stilettos made soft click-clacking sounds on the office floor. Her straight brown hair swished softly as she swayed forward, closing the gap between herself and Arthur. When she was standing about two feet from where Arthur was seated, she gave him a polite smile. Her green eyes were bright and her face was warm and friendly. "Hi, Boss." Victory greeted casually, her voice sounding soft and breathless to her ears. To be honest, Victory was very nervous. Her hands were clammy and her heart was thundering in her chest. She tried to hide it behind her wobbly smile. She wasn't sure if she should treat him as she treats Aaron, but she also felt that it would not be suitable for a new assistant to be addressing the famously reclusive CEO too informally. "Remember me from dinner last week?" she then asked
At 6 pm, Aaron strolled casually towards her workstation, whistling, looking like someone without a care in the world. He was wearing a brown jacket, light yellow shirt and white slacks. His dark thick hair was combed to the back, and unlike his brother's not a single hair was out of place. His face bore a smug expression, as if his father owned the place. Technically, it is true. His father or rather, the Knight family did own the building. Aaron's office is just a few floors above theirs, located on the eleventh floor of Knight Towers while Arthur's office is on the seventh floor. To encourage collaboration among the different businesses owned by the Knight family, twenty years ago Avery Knight decided to house all of the different Knight business entities in the same building. It was a genius move on his part because Knight Enterprises benefited greatly from the move as internal collaboration increased. Profits had risen substantial
Friday rolled in quickly and without her realising, Victory had completed almost a whole week at A. K. Media. She smiled in satisfaction at her abilities to handle Arthur's tough demands. Her main responsibilities as the CEO's assistant is to ensure that all of Arthur's affairs are in order - basically if he needs anything done, she would be the one to do the groundwork or at least get an update or status report from the different teams in A. K. Media. Arthur prefer lean organisations - thus there are no bureaucracy, everyone is divided into teams and they all report to Arthur. The nature of her work is varied, which means that she gets to do different things everyday. However, this also mean that sometimes she had to get her hands dirty - scouting out potential venues for clients, recommending potential talents who are suitable for A. K. Media's varied events and also keeping tabs on the current month's event schedule. As a media and advertising firm, A. K.
When the coronavirus hit the world in 2020, the beauty industry were among those who were badly hit by the pandemic. Numerous malls had to be temporarily closed asthe country declared a self-imposed quarantine to curb the spread of the virus. The beauty giant Sephora, are among those who were severely affected. Sales dipped drastically in the second quarter of 2020, causing the company to close a number of its stores throughout the country. Majority of their sales in 2020 were supported by their online digital store. Although the beauty giant has its own digital store, customers still prefer the offline shopping experience. The ability to wander into Sephora's brightly lit stores and trying out the beauty products which were displayed throughout the store are among what influenced customers to make their purchase decision. And now that the country is recovering from the after-effects of the pandemic, Sephora has decided to host a celebration, some
Arthur tilted his head towards Victory, his pale blue eyes blinking at her obscurely. He barely registered her dizzy state, realising belatedly that he wasn't feeling too good himself. Giving Victory a small nod, heguided her out of the ballroom. His head was buzzing, as if he had too much to drink and his cheeks felt warm. His eyes were glazed, his vision felt like he was seeing two images on top of each other. And when he moved forward, he also discovered his legs to be unsteady, wobbling like a penguin. Did I drink too much champagne? He pondered. Cautiously, he steered her towards the elevators, his left hand resting gently on her lower back. Arriving in front of the elevator, he pressed the buttons on the wall next to the elevator doors. In her befuddled state, Victory could barely hold herself steady. So she closed her eyes, shifted her weight and leaned into Arthur for support. Her head rested gingerly above his shoulder, brown ha
Arthur chuckled at her words. If anyone was ravished last night, it would have been her. She doesn't realise it just yet but there were scarlet kiss marks below her jaw, along her neck, trailing from her shoulder and downwards to where her chest is covered by the duvet. He is absolutely sure that if he were to take a peek, there would be more red marks on other intimate parts of her body. "Considering the state of familiarity that we are in now, why don't you just call me Arthur instead of Mr. Knight." He insisted with a ghost of a smile to her. His pale blue eyes were twinkling with amusement. "Why did you ask that, Victory?" Arthur asked, referring to her earlier question. Victory nibbled nervously on her bottom lip, contemplating what she was about to say. What shocked her is that it took her only a week before jumping into bed with Arthur. One. Bloody. Week. She's known Aaron for eight ye
To say that everything went smoothly after the unfortunate incident of cherry popping would be an understatement. Things went from unease to extremely awkward, as both Victory and Arthur never had a smooth relationship to begin with. Victory is proverbial little Miss Sunshine while Arthur is the fire-breathing Mr. Grouch. And now the world's weirdest pairing have a salacious little secret between them and it was causing a wide rift in their professional relationship. Still, both Victory and Arthur tried their very best to pretend as if nothing happened. They only discussed the event once, and that was when Arthur told her that he had seen the video footage from the hotel which confirmed that Kate was seen to have added something in the champagne and both of them appeared tipsy when they walked from the elevator to the Executive suite. He purposely omitted the fact they were making out like hormonal teenagers in the elevator. Both agreed that i