Chapter 23
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At the entrance of an upscale club, a group of well–dressed men emerged. Among them, the most prominent figure was Andrew Smith, the CEO of NexGen TV.
After saying goodbye to several important clients, Andrew glanced at a man stumbling out of a private room, who was visibly drunk. His eyes carried a hint of disdain.
“Mr. Smith… Seeing Andrew preparing to leave in his car, the man hurriedly approached him, his demeanor eager and submissive. “Mr. Smith, I’ve secured those big contracts for you. Will you honor the commission you promised me?”
Interrupting the man before he could finish, Andrew replied, “We’ve only signed the contracts; the projects haven’t even started yet, and we haven’t gain any profit. Shawn, why are you so eager to get that money?”
The man named Shawn frowned deeply. “Mr. Smith, my mother is ill and needs a significant amount of money. Could you possibly advance me some funds?”
Andrew sneered, “Sure, but you’ll have to send your daughter to my bed. If I remember correctly, she turned eighteen not long ago!”
Shawn’s expression turned grave, his eyes reddening. “Andrew Smith, don’t go too far!”
Andrew pointed a finger at Shawn’s nose, a look of complete contempt on his face. “What if I do? Aren’t you still working under me like a submissive little puppy? If you refuse to send your daughter to my bed, then you’d better get down on your knees and beg!”
Andrew Smith and Shawn Cushman had been neighbors in their youth, with Shawn consistently outshining Andrew in all respects. When they grew up, Shawn became the operations director at NexGen TV, while Andrew was always a step behind.
However, Shawn was honest and hardworking, lacking the social skills that Andrew possessed in spades. Gradually, Andrew rose through the ranks and, two years ago, seized a major opportunity by marrying the sister of Darian Lawrence, who was his boss.
Now, Andrew was the CEO of NexGen TV, while Shawn had been relegated to the public relations department, forced to handle work he was least suited for.
“I’ll count to three. If you don’t kneel, you can forget about your money!” said Andrew
Shawn had endured Andrew’s humiliation and oppression for nearly two years. He had considered leaving NexGen TV, but with his contract still active, resigning would cost him a hefty sum. Internally, he was consumed with anger, humiliation, and frustration, but he had no choice but to tolerate it.
Thinking of his mother’s condition, he gritted his teeth, bent his
beers and prepared to kneel down
Andrew couldn’t contain his laughter. “Shawn, weren’t you always better than me? Look at you now, reduced to a position worse than a dog!”
Just as Shawn’s knees were about to touch the ground, a pair of hands reached out to support him. A young man, and composed, held him steady.
“Who are you? This is none of your business!” Andrew snapped, irritation seeping from his voice.
handsome
The young man adjusted his glasses and presented a termination letter from his briefcase. “Andrew Smith, you’re fired. As of now, you are no longer the CEO of NexGen TV”
Sat,
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He then turned to Shawn, saying, “Mr. Cushman, our boss has reviewed your resume and believes you are well–suited for the CEO position at NexGen TV. We hope you can utilize your skills to elevate the company!”
– you
Both Andrew and Shawn froze in shock. Andrew was the first to recover, his face contorted with rage. “Who the hell are y to fire me? I’m Darian Lawrence’s brother–in–law…”
But before Andrew could finish, Darian stepped out of the car, his expression grim. “Andrew, NexGen TV has been acquired. I’m no longer the boss!”
Andrew’s face drained of color, and he stumbled back, stunned. He didn’t understand how this had happened.
Shawn glanced at Andrew before following the young man to leave.
Andrew thought of the future where. Shawn would rise above him, eliciting a primal scream of defiance. “No, this can’t be!”
Darian glared at Andrew’s twisted face, his anger boiling. “You worthless fool, you’ve offended some important figure in Jadewick without even realizing it. You’ve dragged me into a nightmare; I’ll tell my sister to divorce you as soon as I get back!”
Andrew stood frozen in place, his limbs feeling icy. He didn’t know who he had offended.
He recalled the previous call from Simon, where he instructed Tristan to replace a male guest. At that moment, he accepted to do Simon a favor since he thought it was no big deal. He wondered if that single incident cost him his entire career.
Andrew felt as if a thunderous bolt had struck him from above.
In Love Nest Villa, Simon sat elegantly on the sofa with his legs crossed.
He glanced at Tristan, who was drenched in cold sweat. “What’s the matter? Mr. Wilder, have you not made up your mind yet?”
Tristan hadn’t received Jasper’s call yet and didn’t know how things were being handled. “Mr. Fletcher, there’s really no need to make this situation so tense. Your hand isn’t even that badly injured.”
While Simon’s injury was not serious, he would never easily forgive Enoch for daring to provoke and injure him. Simon’s handsome face grew cold. “It seems you’d sacrifice your career to protect that bodyguard!”
Before Tristan could respond, his phone rang. After answering, Tristan breathed a sigh of relief, his expression shifting from dark to bright.
He cleared his throat and spoke with newfound confidence, “Mr. Fletcher, there are people more important than you don’t think too highly of yourself.”
Simon’s face dropped immediately; he kicked the coffee table and stood up from the sofa. The atmosphere around him turned icy. “Mr. Wilder, are you really sure you want to oppose me?”
“I’m not opposing you; it’s you who’s making things difficult for me!” Tristan stared directly into Simon’s darkened eyes. “Enoch must stay. If you doesn’t want to participate, you can withdraw!”
Simon’s expression darkened severely. In Novavista, no one had ever dared to speak to him this way. He gritted his teeth and was about to say something when his phone rang. It was a call from Andrew.
TII let Andrew explain it to you.” Simon switched the call to speaker mode. “Mr. Smith, tell Mr. Wilder again that he needs to let go of that bodyguard.”
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Andrew was furious. Because of Simon’s call he had lost both his job and his wife. He even wanted to kill Simon now.
“Simon, you’ve ruined my life! You may be invincible in Novavista, but do you even realize whose toes you’ve stepped on I’ve lost my job, and it’s your fault” Andrew shouted.
Simon’s ears buzzed. He hung up the phone with a grim expression.
Tristan smiled. “Mr. Fletcher. I’ve been in this industry for years, and Im not easy to be threatened”
Simon was about to grind his teeth to dust.
Tristan, feeling good, smacked his lips. “My connections are far stronger than yours, Mr. Fletcher. You’ll need to step up your game!”
Simon was speechless.
“My backer loves to ship that bodyguard with Tiana; he’s a fan of their pairing! Oops. I really need to arrange for someone to fix the second–floor window soon!” Tristan left after saying this.
Veins throbbed on Simon’s forehead, and his expression was dark.
After Tiana lay down on her bed with headphones on, she began to drift off to sleep as her eyelids grew heavy. Just then she felt a gentle tap on her arm. Tiana opened her eyes to see Arabella leaning over her bed.
Taking off her headphones, Tiana said, “Bella, why aren’t you asleep yet?”
Arabella lowered her voice and replied. “Tiana, two guests were fighting in the boys dorm on the second floor.”
Tiana sat up abruptly, her beautiful eyes narrowing. “Who got into the fight?”
It seems to be Mr. Gaston and Mr. Fletcher, Arabella said.
“What?” Tiana quickly jumped out of bed and hurried toward the second floor. She knocked on Enoch’s door, but after quite a while, no one answered.
Returning to her room, she asked Arabella, Was it serious”
Tm not sure, but the second–floor window is shattered. Mr. Wilder went to mediate, and it seems like the window has been fixed now,” Arabella replied.
Tiana recalled the icy, menacing look in Enoch’s eyes when he saw the red marks on her wrist, and her brow furrowed. If he went after Simon, Simon wouldn’t let him off easily. Tiana felt Enoch was being too impulsive.
She pulled out her phone, intending to message Enoch, but after searching for a while, she couldn’t find his WhatsApp account. Then it hit her–she had blocked him recently.
She unblocked him and, shortly after, he accepted her request.
TianaS Vibes: [Where are you?]
Enoch G: [Out with the kid for a late–night snack.]
Tiana fell silent. Tm here stressing out, and he is out snacking she thought
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TianaS Vibes: Which kid?]
After a moment, he sent back a side photo of Gideon. The picture also showed a table full of barbecued food.
Tianas Vibes: [You guys are so annoying! Aren’t you not supposed to sneak out and have snacks at night?]
Enoch G: [Tristan the Fox is too busy to keep an eye on us.]
Tianas Vibes: [Huh, so you know his nickname!]
Enoch G: [Check the comments.]
Thinking of those impure comments, Tiana’s ears flushed a bit.
Enoch G: [Want some barbecue! I can bring some back for you.]
TianaS_Vibes: [Okay, and bring a cup of milkshake for me.]
While texting, Tiana glanced at Arabella and asked, “Bella, Enoch took Gideon out for barbecue. Do you want some? They’ll bring some back.”
Arabella shook her head. “I can’t eat that; I’ll definitely bloat tomorrow if I do.”
As Tiana was chatting with Arabella, she received another message from Enoch.
Enoch G: [Call me honey.]
TianaS_Vibes: [Get lost!]
She thought Enoch was too shameless. She’d rather not eat the barbecue than address him as honey.
About an hour later, Tiana received a message from Enoch.
Enoch G: [Come downstairs.]
Arabella was already asleep, so Tiana quietly slipped out of the room.
Enoch was in the living room, and as soon as he heard her footsteps, he turned to look at her. Meeting his deep, narrow eyes made Tiana’s heart skip a beat.
She quickly walked over to him. “Let’s go to the backyard. I’m worried that Tristan the Fox and the others will notice us if we stay in the living room.”
The two of them walked to the back of the garden, one in front of the other. Enoch set down the barbecue and milkshake on the stone table, then took out a napkin to wipe off the bench for her.
His gaze fell back on her, and he noticed that the second button of her pajama top had come undone at some point, revealing a hint of her chest.
He slightly narrowed his eyes, which were as deep as the ocean. Tm just bringing you a late–night snack; please don’t do
this.”
Tiana frowned. “Don’t do what?”
17:18 Sat, 15 Feb D
Chapter 23
“Don’t seduce me Enoch smiled.
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Tiana followed his gaze and looked down at herself. When she saw that her button had come undone, her cheeks instantly flushed
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