Chapter 1
I was only a regular guy working for Evercrest Group, getting chewed out by Cordelia Owens, the CEO, every single day. But the pay was good, so I was tolerant.
Yet then, one day, I accidentally barged into Cordelia's office and caught her and Chloe Hastings, her bestie, in the middle of something private.
Those two women were lying on the bed, not a stitch on.
My nose started bleeding right on the spot.
I figured I was a dead man for sure. Rich folks had all sorts of ways to make someone disappear, like a car crash, a fire, or drowning.
But instead, Cordelia kept me in her office that day, and that was the day I lost my virginity.
*****
My name was Ryan Carter. I was 23, fresh out of a top university.
Right now, I was working as a secretary at Evercrest Group, owned by the Owens Family in Riverside City.
I made 10,000 dollars a month, full benefits, and triple pay for overtime.
It sounded pretty sweet, right? But that was bullshit.
My boss was Cordelia, CEO of Evercrest Group, the Owens Family's oldest daughter. She was cold, though good-looking, and her temper was short.
She chewed me out like clockwork, almost every minute, and never skipped a beat.
She had nagged, "Ryan, your file formatting looks like a dog chewed it up. Do it again.
"Ryan, this coffee's way too hot. Are you trying to burn me alive?
"Ryan, what's with this shirt? Seriously, get a new one tomorrow."
I took it all. Why? Because I was broke.
Where else could I find a job that paid that much? It was not like getting yelled at was gonna kill me. After a while, I'd get used to it. Hence, it wouldn't bother me anymore.
Getting into Evercrest Group was kind of a freak accident.
About six months ago, I sent in my resume for a basic admin job.
For the interview, I went all out and bought a new suit and ended up spending half my living expenses for the month.
When I got there, holy crap, the place was packed.
I was number 37, and I had to wait all morning to get my turn.
When I finally walked in, there were three people on the panel, and Cordelia was sitting right in the center.
The first time I saw her, I almost forgot to breathe.
Her brows were perfectly shaped, her eyes were phoenix-like and intense, and her skin was pale and porcelain-like.
She was dressed in a sharp black business suit, her hair pulled back in a neat bun. She was as cold as ice.
Cordelia looked up at me, her eyes staying on my face for a couple of seconds. Then she glanced down at my resume.
"Ryan Carter?" she asked.
"Yes, ma'am," I said.
"Finance major at Riversea University, right?"
"Yes."
"Not bad grades."
"Thanks, Ms. Owens."
Cordelia closed my resume, then hit me with something completely unrelated to the interview. "Do you have a girlfriend?"
I blinked, totally thrown off. "No."
"Good," she said, making a few quick notes on my resume. "Come in tomorrow. You're hired as my secretary."
I was totally baffled.
The other two interviewers looked as shocked.
One of them, a middle-aged guy with glasses, whispered, "Ms. Owens, are you sure about hiring him as your secretary? You might want to think twice..."
"He's the one." Cordelia cut him off, stood up, and walked out, leaving the other two interviewers and me staring at each other in disbelief.
Like that, I went from a fresh grad applying for a regular office job to the CEO's secretary.
Later, I found out the last guy in my position had been yelled at so much by Cordelia that he quit the job.
She had scared off three secretaries in three months.
I was number four.
Once I got the job, I managed to hold my own.
Yeah, Cordelia chewed me out pretty often, but I never screwed up anything major at work.
She could yell all she wanted, but my paycheck always showed up in full, right on time.
Over time, I figured out how to deal with her moods.
Whenever she started chewing me out, I never talked back but kept my head down and let her vent.
Once she was done, I went back to work like nothing had happened.
That trick never failed me.
Everything changed that day, six months after I started.
It was a Wednesday afternoon when Chloe showed up.
She was Cordelia's best friend. They'd been inseparable since they were kids.
She was a total knockout, but in a different way than Cordelia.
Cordelia was all ice queen vibes, while Chloe was bright and dazzling.
Chloe had a heart-shaped face, big eyes, and when she smiled, two cute dimples popped up at the corners of her mouth.
Also, she had an hourglass shape that could make anyone stare, and every step she took was like she was strutting down a runway. Heads turned wherever she went.
Chloe dropped by the office to see Cordelia all the time, so we were pretty familiar with each other by now.
"Good day, Ms. Hastings," I greeted her.
"Hi. Is Cora in?" she asked.
"Yeah. She is. You can go in," I replied.
I led her into Cordelia's office and left soon after.
Right then, Leo Clark from the Finance Department came running over, clutching a document, his face pale as a ghost's.
"Mr. Carter, this is urgent. It's the bank loan renewal. If it's not signed today, we'll be in breach of contract tomorrow," he blurted out.
I took the document and saw a big stamp with the word "Urgent." My heart skipped a beat.
Cordelia had laid down two rules for me.
Rule number one: When Chloe came to see her, nobody was allowed to interrupt. Even if the world was ending, I had to wait until Chloe left.
Rule number two: If I got an urgent document, I had to let her know immediately. If I took more than five minutes, she'd kick me out on the spot.
She set those two rules on different days.
When she told me the second rule, I wanted to ask what if Chloe dropped by at the exact same time as an urgent file landed on my desk? What was I supposed to do then?
But that day, I'd gotten chewed out for screwing up at work, so I kept my mouth shut.
Good thing, for the past six months, those two situations never overlapped. And today wasn't my lucky day.