Semua Bab Sweet Submission: Love Me, Mr. Billionaire : Bab 31 - Bab 40

SkylarI took a deep breath, trying to steady the nerves bouncing around in my chest.Clearing my throat, I looked at Cole across the table, his gaze calm and unreadable. “As I mentioned earlier…” I began, my voice a little shaky at first. “There’s something important I want to discuss with you.” I paused, trying to make my voice sound steady before I continued. “I’ve thought long and hard about this, and…” I exhaled sharply. “IWantToWork.” It came out so fast, I barely understood myself. Cole raised an eyebrow slightly, tilting his head.“Come again?”I took a deep breath and slowed down. “I said I want to work. I’ve been thinking about it a lot. I—” I paused, then slid the folder of manuscripts toward him. “These are my design sketches. I want to get back into jewelry design.”When I pushed the folder toward him, Cole didn’t open it right away. Instead, his fingers tapped lightly on the folder, over and over again. With each tap, I could feel my heart sink a little more. I though

SkylarAfter I left the café that afternoon, I couldn’t stop smiling. My heart felt so full it might burst. The talk with Mom had gone better than I dared to hope.For the first time in a long while, her coldness had melted—even if just a little.Hearing her proud voice, seeing her tear up over my new job at Elegance Jewelry, felt like a piece of my world sliding back into place.And I couldn’t wait to share that joy with Cole.The second I walked through the door, the house felt too quiet, too ordinary, for the way I felt. I wanted to mark the day, to make it special. I wanted to do something for him for the encouragement and support.I thought about what I could do for him.I knew money was never a problem for Cole. It never had been, and honestly, I didn’t have the kind of wealth he was controlling anyway. Throwing gifts or fancy things at him would be meaningless. I realized I needed something real. Something he would actually appreciate. And then it hit me — I could still cook

Cole “And based on the revised forecasts, we’re expecting a steady sixteen percent growth this quarter, Mr. Buckman.” Harris’s voice quivered slightly, despite his effort to sound confident. I sat at the head of the long conference table, silently listening to Harris, one of the senior executives from our Westbrook subsidiary company, stumbling his way through the quarterly report as I kept my eyes on the numbers projected on the screen behind him. Sixteen percent. The more I stared at the figures, the clearer the lie became. The numbers didn’t match the reports I’d reviewed last week, and the margins were too clean, too convenient. “As for cost reductions,” Harris pressed on, clicking the laser pointer to shift the slide, “the third phase of restructuring has significantly lowered our overhead, placing the company in a strong position heading into the next fiscal year.” A beat of silence followed. I leaned back slightly, folding my hands together. His voice wavered as he contin

SkylarI didn’t expect this restaurant to be so expensive, and to make things worse, Cole picked the most expensive dishes on the menu. I felt like I’d wandered into a luxury auction instead of a dinner date.The prices were way beyond my budget, and for a moment, I couldn’t help but wonder if Cole was deliberately ordering the most expensive dishes on purpose. But when I looked into his eyes, they looked so calm and sincere. Maybe I was just overthinking it. Maybe he didn’t even notice how costly everything was. Still, as the waiter listed off their chef’s specials and Cole ordered without a hint of hesitation, I felt my stomach tighten into knots.He picked the Chilean sea bass carpaccio, and the A5 Wagyu ribeye — not just one, but two portions. Two. My heart nearly stopped. I knew Wagyu was expensive, but when I saw the price printed on the menu — two hundred and fifty dollars per slice — I could practically hear my savings account cry out in agony. It became so obvious that I

ColeI stood at the sink, deliberately washing my hands slowly, not because I needed to — but because I was waiting. I knew it wouldn’t take long before Ethan showed up.And as expected, I heard Ethan’s footsteps behind me enter the restroom before he spoke. “Nice to see you again, Cole,” Ethan said, sliding in beside me with that old, smug grin. “I heard about your little stunt at the Westbrook meeting. Congrats on making more enemies. Celebrating with your wife, huh?”Instead, I shot him a casual glance in the mirror as I continued washing my hands.“Oh, you heard…funny,” I said evenly, “I noticed you are also here with your fiance- Did you also come to celebrate with her? Too bad I haven’t heard of any big moves from you lately—nothing that makes headlines, anyway. Guess there’s nothing to congratulate.”His expression froze for a split second, but that was enough for me to see the flash of irritation in his eyes. His grin faltered. It was a small victory, but it felt satisfying.