Chapter 2: Ivor, I want your love

Lia’s voice was so loud that the staff in the distance had to look at her. Lia forced her to calm down. 

“So, you have made a cuckold out of Ivor. No. You have made a cuckold out of your future husband. Wait, no, no, no, what happened after all?” Lia said.

“Be careful with your words. I love my future husband very much and would never cheat on him. I’ll say goodbye to Ivor before I go out with him,” Lahaina said.

“Wait, aren’t you getting married?” Lia asked.

It was difficult for Lia to understand what Lahaina meant. 

Lahaina was getting married. But she and her future husband were not even dating. 

“That’s right, pretty soon, about a month or two after I let him fall in love with me,” Lahaina insisted.

“So, you have started no romantic relationships at the moment?” Lia asked. 

Lahaina nodded, saying, “In tonight’s party, I will become the most shining lady. He will have to pay attention to me and ask for my name.” 

Lia exclaimed, “You are so confident!”

Lahaina paid for a pile of swamps she had chosen and asked the staff to send them to her home. 

Lahaina and Lia had a snack at a famous café.

Lahaina rested her chin on hand, “I should choose somewhere to be our first date. Must be the aquarium, it’s pretty romantic. I wonder if he likes it or not?”

Lia tries to bring Lahaina back to reality, “He doesn’t even know you, does he?” Lia said.

It was hard to understand who was falling in love. They were not normal people anymore. 

Lia took out from her office bag an agreement, a pen and a key, gave them to Lahaina, saying, “Please sign this agreement. And it is the key to a mansion in Palm Beach.”

Ivor did not enjoy forcing someone to become his mistress. He has no shortage of girls waiting for him. So when his mistress no longer wanted to be with him, Lia just needed to do the work without asking Ivor for advice. 

Lahaina curiously read the agreement Lia had made. She became immediately annoyed, “What is this? Why would I sign this fucking agreement? Ivor thinks he’s so charming that I have to throw myself-esteem away to sign it. And this key. I don’t need them, I’m not without them.” 

Lia sighed, saying, “Miss Lahaina, I really believe you would never do that, but that’s the thing I need to do. If I report to my boss that you are no longer his mistress with no agreement, I will be reprimanded.”

Lahaina sarcastically said, “Is that so important to me?”

Lia took back the agreement and the key she had given to Lahaina, took out another one from the office bag, “Sorry for my unprofessionalism, this is the new agreement,” she said. “It’s signed by Ivor. When you sign this agreement, you won’t be able to bother Ivor and he won’t be able to bother you or publicize your relationship.”

Lia persuaded, “Beware of your charm.”

Lahaina signed the contract voluntarily. She was worried that Ivor wouldn’t be able to resist her charm without forcing her to be with him.

“Man, those damn beauties, those damn rich people. They just do what they want and don’t care about my problems.”

Lia got the contract back and wrote in the “farewell gift” section to address Miss Lahaina’s mental needs. 

“F*cking work,” thought Lia.

“This pen looks familiar!” Lahaina said and looked at Lia’s pen.

Lia startled, panicked and put it away.

She exposed Lia, “That pen is the same as Ivor’s, isn’t it? So that’s why I’ve never seen you use it in front of Ivor.”

Lia refused to talk about that subject by shutting down and eating her favorite chocolate cake.

“You love Ivor, don’t you?” Lahaina asked.

Lia blushed, still eating the cake.

 ahaina knew she was shy. Lahaina was not interested in giving others advice. But at the moment, she and Lia all had one thing in common. They all had their crushes, and they and their crushes had had no romantic relationships yet.

“You should chase him, Lia. I know his character is terrible, you may have to receive a bitter word when you show him your love, he may fire you. But, it’s all right. If he doesn’t love you, you don’t have to love a man who will never belong to you. If he loves you, you deserve his love.”

Lahaina’s advice made Lia reflect for a long time. 

Lia wondered what would make her able to continue doing this work. It’s not interesting when she had to do an unprofessional job. Calming a bunch of women who were abandoned by a man stressed her out.

The answer was Ivor. Her love for Ivor was enough to make Lia accept a job she didn’t want to do. 

Suddenly she tired of work, of what she had been through.

Ivor’s call interrupted her thoughts. She set her own ringtone for his call.

“Yes, boss,” Lia said.

On the other end of the line, Ivor was impatient and angry. He said, “What have you been doing all afternoon today? They’ve been calling you all afternoon, but no one’s picking up the phone. Now the assistants are all messed up!” 

“I’m going back to the company right away,” Lia said.

When she returned to the company, Coco gave her a sympathetic look. Lia walked into Ivor’s office.

“I don’t need you to explain, solve the trouble you’ve caused,” Ivor said.

Lia walked out of his office again.

“The boss didn’t give you a hard time, did he?” Coco asked. She was so worried about Lia.

“It’s okay, I’m used to it,” Lia replied freely, as if Ivor’s anger could do nothing to her.

Lia took from her office bag a small cake box and gave it to Coco.

“What is this?” Coco asked, looking at the brand inscribed on the cake box. “Man, did you go to the mall during business hours this afternoon? If the boss finds out, he’ll blame you.”

Lia patted Coco’s shoulder, saying, “Don’t worry, nothing will happen.” 

“I heard that the cake at Roses’ Taste café in the mall in New York City is delicious,” Ivor said.

Ivor’s sudden appearance freaked Lia and Coco out.

Lia felt that her heart was about to fall out of her chest.

“Boss, I just…,” Lia ceased.

She tried to explain but Ivor didn’t care, “Where did you go this afternoon?”

Lia told the truth that Lahaina had asked her to go shopping with her this afternoon and that Lahaina did not want to be Ivor’s mistress.

Ivor rubbed his forehead, saying, “All right, do your job.”

“What about tonight?” Lia asked. She needed to identify the chosen girl, scheduling an appointment with.

“Nobody. Tonight I will join a yacht party, Romeo will come with me. You can go home after work,” Ivor said, returning to the office shortly after.

Lia asked the secretary to bring him a cup of coffee he used to use and then went back to her office. 

Lia couldn’t concentrate on her work. Lahaina’s words echoed in her mind. She remembered it strangely.

Lia wondered, “If he accepts my love expression, will he be gentle with me?”

What if Ivor said no? Lia would lose her job, but she was not worried. Lia was competent, she can get a job in her specialty at another company. The only thing she did not give up was Ivor.

“She was right, if he rejects me, it means that the man would never have belonged to me,” muttered Lia.

She decided, betting on this almost impossible hand, “Ivor, I want your love.”