Aren was right about one thing: going to work in this state would have been a huge mistake. With the aching body I had, I could either resemble a stupid rookie who decided to run a marathon without a warm-up or... a woman whose body wasn't prepared for the amount of late-night activities she experienced. Since it was obvious to both Norton and Alan that I would never run in a marathon... then yes, not going to work was an excellent decision. I was certain that I would never be able to handle discussing my sex life with them.As much as I was glad to have some time to recover, I wasn't completely comfortable staying alone with my thoughts. After a sweet moment of bliss, I'd become anxious. Now, I kept wondering whether it was him acting cold and arrogant or me... being completely immature. Perhaps it was supposed to be like this—there's time for work and time for affection, except for the situations when we would make love in his office... Oh, God... Had I just seriously thought about

I'd never had a need to dress up. I had never even strictly followed any dress code. Yet, today, before going to Lan Diamond Tower, for the first time in my life, I decided to wear something more feminine. I didn't do it because somebody told me to, but because I wanted to. Aren bought me a lot of clothes, all designer brands. I used to see them as overpriced pieces of fabric, but that slowly started to change…I used to look at the women walking into the Café Dorado, slightly mocking their flashy style, making them look as if they escaped from the "Devil Wears Prada" film set. But truthfully, a part of me envied them. It didn't seem like they were wearing costumes, pretending to be someone they weren't. They were confident and proud. It was time for me to embrace the fact that when I was walking into the Lan Diamond Corporation, I was entering as Aren Lan's fiancée, and I wanted to look confident and proud, just like those women at Café Dorado.I searched through the closet in absolu

"So, would you like some coffee?" asked Veronica, the wedding planner, who had already looked like she had overdosed on caffeine."Yes, please," I said, yet secretly I was dreaming of something with alcohol."Black or white?" She tossed while gesturing to the waiter."Flat white," I replied, pulling out my phone. While Veronica was busy placing our orders, I texted Aren, "You'd better show up here. I cannot make those decisions on my own."I kept cursing him inwardly. I was new to this world of the richest, and I felt lost. I had no idea how it all worked, what was appropriate, and what was not.Aren texted back, "I'll join you in an hour. In the meantime, Veronica will lead you through it. You can do it. I trust you."The inner heat that appeared within me after I read those last three words wiped the frown off my face. As I exhaled, the annoyance disappeared. My heart started to pound, but at a different beat. Could I really do it? Was I capable of playing the role of Aren Lan's per

"Oh... My... God!" I heard Michael exclaim behind my back, and Miranda's wicked chuckle followed.As I turned around, I saw Miranda, leaning her back against the door frame with her hands crossed over her chest. Michael stood on the threshold, his mouth open wide in shock as he looked at me."What have you done to him?" he asked, his eyes wide in terror. "Are you a witch or something? Or is he on drugs? If you fed him with something that makes him act like this, then girl, I want to meet your supplier!" he demanded, still looking at me as if I were an extraterrestrial species.Miranda prodded his elbow. "I told you, she's special."I laughed nervously, walking their way. "Truthfully, I don't know what happened just now… He… He just…" I paused, frantically searching for words to describe it, but my mind was one hot mess.Miranda grinned and winked at me. "Let's get inside and talk. And you…" She pointed at Michael. "Get that prosecco out of the fridge and three glasses. We would need t

There was no chance that Veronica wouldn't tell Neil every single detail about our visit to the Wintons' mansion as soon as we left and called it a day. My phone rang exactly fifteen minutes later. "I'm so sorry you had to go through this, Ms. Bell!" I heard Neil nearly cry out as I took the call. "Don't be. You told me to call you, and I didn't, but mostly because I was sure that I could handle it on my own," I said, wondering where my confidence came from. "Still... You are aware that I needed to report this to Mr. Lan? He got very mad… Please don't blame me if he calls you... " His concerned tone sent a wave of anxiety right through my body. Something about Neil's words annoyed me. Would Aren truly blame me for taking care of the problem myself instead of using Neil? Why would I need to pretend I was weak when I wasn't?! It was the first time that I felt strong enough to stand up against someone like Vanessa and keep my head held high. Somehow, my good mood burst like a soap bub