All Chapters of The Ruthless CEO's Obsession : Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

SOPHIE “I don’t think anyone really has a price. You’re just refusing to admit what yours is,” Maya says again, like she’s been thinking about it for a while and won’t let it go.Vanessa leans back in her chair and looks at her. “What about you then? What’s your price? Fifty bucks?”Maya laughs immediately, shaking her head. “I wish. If I was that cheap, life would be so much easier than this.”Tyra tilts her head. “How exactly would that make anything easier?”Maya shrugs like it’s obvious. “Because then I could just pack my things, quit, and disappear from my boss’s life without stress.”Vanessa laughs a little. “Yeah, but you’d miss us.”Maya pauses for a second, then nods. “Okay, that part is true.”I smile and look at her. “So what is your price then?”Maya goes quiet for a moment. She leans forward slightly, lowering her voice like she’s about to say something serious, something secret. “I could tell you… but then I’d have to kill you.”I don’t even hesitate. I grab a fry and t

ETHAN My blood is moving too fast. I give a simple nod anyway. “I’m excited to be here and work with you all.”I don’t hear my own voice properly. I don’t feel present. I can’t remember a single line from the speech I rehearsed over and over. It all disappears.My mind is stuck on Sophie Matthew.Her blue lace panties. Her legs. The way she was sitting earlier.I shouldn’t be thinking about it. I know that. But it’s still there, sharp and distracting.I worked ten years for this role. Ten years of pushing, building, proving myself. And she managed to shake me in a way no boardroom ever did. Without even trying. Just by existing in the same room.“Don’t start celebrating yet. I’ll still be around, but as you all know, this gray hair didn’t come from nothing,” my uncle Harrison Calloway says.The room breaks into light laughter.Everyone laughs.Except her.Sophie shifts in her seat. A small movement, like she’s adjusting herself, trying to stay composed. Her face is slightly red now.

ETHAN My pulse rises into my throat again. Part of me hopes she never comes. This whole thing already feels risky. One bad decision and this turns completely inappropriate."Called it. No work ethic.""Golden Orchid. Shrimp pad thai. Medium."The restaurant she picks is a tiny rundown place. Nothing fancy at all. Her food costs only $5.28. That surprises me. I expected her to choose the most expensive thing she could find just to get under my skin.Another message appears."Cold water."Cold water.My thoughts immediately start racing. I head down the private hallway and enter my code into the keypad. The elevator carries me up to the skyline suite hardly anyone knows I own.Ethan's uncle sold it to me before I relocated to Seattle. Since I didn't know the city well, living close to work seemed smart. I had the entire place renovated before moving in.The moment I walk inside, I check everything again even though I already know the suite is spotless. I walk through the grand loung

SOPHIE “What? It’s Friday. Since when does Harrison make people work on Friday nights?”I almost mention Ethan, but I stop myself before the words come out. “Sorry. I’ll try to come if I can.”“I’m keeping you a place at the Velvet Lounge Club.”“Well, my knee is messed up after today, so maybe dancing isn’t the smartest idea tonight.”“What happened?”I explain everything to Vanessa and tell her exactly how I hurt myself. “Honestly, Nessa, I have no idea how long I’ll be stuck working tonight. I’ll try my best.”“Okay. Tell Harrison he’s turning mean with age.”“I’ll tell him.”After we hang up, I finish getting ready. I change clothes a couple more times before finally picking a light pink skirt that sways around my legs and a white shirt that shows just enough cleavage. It’s right on the edge between casual and dressed up. It doesn’t look like I tried too hard.I stop in front of the mirror for one final check.Not bad at all.Good luck ignoring me tonight, Ethan Calloway.My phon

ETHAN “But....”“But what?” I snap, staring hard at her.“I don’t understand,” she says again, quieter this time.Frustration twists inside me. “You don’t understand that I actually earned everything I have? Is that what you’re saying?”She looks caught off guard, like she wants to answer but can’t figure out what to say.I lose my appetite instantly.I grab my plate off the floor and carry it into the chef’s kitchen. I dump the leftovers into the trash, rinse the plate, and slide it into the dishwasher.Then I clean up the rest of the mess. I gather the bags and empty containers from the table and throw them away. After that, I close up the first aid kit, leave a couple ice packs out for her, and carry the kit back to the closet shelf in Ethan’s master suite.Get it together.This isn’t really about her.She only thinks what everyone else thinks.Still, she should know better than to make assumptions about me.And what am I even doing standing here? I should be working.I head back