Shay's POV
The next day, I decided to go shopping for some new work clothes with Sylvia. I only have three more days left until I start work next Monday, and the thought of it always ruins my mood. So, shopping with Sylvia today was my idea to uplift my mood, and it was also my excuse to leave the house.
"Remind me again why we're doing this?" Sylvia asked with a bored tone.
"I need new outfits for work next week." She sighed and stared at the shop we walked past.
We decided to go straight to the mall, and since Sylvia knows the best outfits that one can wear to work, I let her choose the clothes for me. But we still hadn't bought anything except a cute pair of heels that she wanted for the past hour we'd been here. Anyone could tell that we were rather window shopping instead of doing actual shopping right now.
"Don't you already have clothes for work?" she asked again, matter-of-factly.
"I do, but I instantly got bored when I was looking at them this morning. Even if I don't like working at the company, I have to at least look great and professional."
She stopped walking and looked at me with her lips pursed.
"Hmm, professional you say?" I nodded my head.
She clicked her fingers together, then grabbed my arm and started to pull me inside a shop on the other end of the mall. She grabbed a few clothes from the rack and shoved them into my arms to try them on inside the dressing room.
Having no choice, I reluctantly tried the clothes on, and to my surprise, I actually liked some of them. I modeled some of the clothes in front of Sylvia, and she only agreed with a nod of her head or gave me a thumbs up, and only disagreed with some of the outfits with a firm shake of her head.
After shopping, we browsed through a few more shops until we came upon Tiffany & Co. The thought of Jason suddenly popped into my mind, and I quickly went inside the luxury shop, with Sylvia slowly trailing behind to check out the inside. I walked up to the counter with expensive watches displayed inside; they were all in different sizes, colors, and brands, and they were all for men.
My heart started to flutter excitedly as I looked at each watch while trying to see which one Jason would like. The friendly-looking clerk standing behind the counter slid open the glass cabinet, grabbed the collection of watches, and placed them on top of the counter for me to see.
"Which one do you think Jason would like?"
Sylvia stood closer next to me and stared at the watches.
"I don't know, just choose any."
"Oh, c'mon, just help me out. You know him better than I do." She scoffed in ridicule.
"At work? Yes. Personally? Not so much. You're the girlfriend, Shay, I'm just the assistant."
"Well, yeah, but you would know these little things as well, right? Just see which one would really suit him."
She stared at the watches for about a minute and then made a raspberry noise with her mouth.
"I don't know. He wears those silver watches all the time. So just choose a silver one."
I glanced back at the watches and finally decided to pick a silver Rolex watch. The clerk smiled at me before taking the watch and placing it inside a cute black velvety box and then putting it inside a small pink gift bag with ribbons.
"Cash or card?" she asked with a polite voice.
"Card." She nodded and then started typing in her computer while I fished out my card from my wallet and handed it to her.
We left Tiffany, and I turned towards Sylvia with an excited tone.
"Thanks for shopping with me today, Syl, I really appreciate it."
She squinted her eyes suspiciously at me, and I held back a laugh.
"So you're ditching me to go see him?"
"I'm not ditching you!" I quickly defended. "I just need to see him and give him this."
She glanced at the gift bag in my hands and then rolled her eyes.
"Fineeee. Go, he doesn't have a meeting till 4 p.m., so you've got time."
I happily gave her a side hug and then started waving her goodbye while making my way out. I jumped in my car and started driving to C&E Holdings. I was a little happy and a little nervous at the same time. I parked my car and then went inside and took the lift up to the floor where his office was located. I couldn't stop smiling, even when I tried to put a poker face onâit didn't work.
I guess this is that type of happiness that you can only feel when you're really in love with someone. I softly knocked on the door to his office, opened the door, and walked in. He was sitting behind his desk, writing, and when he looked up and saw me, his eyes lit up with surprise.
"Hi," he smiled at me while standing up from his chair.
"Hey. This is a surprise. Why didn't you call to tell me you were coming to see me?"
I shrugged playfully and placed my bag on the chair and the gift bag on top of the table.
"I went shopping with Sylvia earlier and I wanted to come and surprise you."
"You had a great idea." He placed his hand on the small of my back and then leaned in and kissed me.
I sat down on the chair in front of his desk, and he braced himself on the side of the table while folding his arms across his chest. I pushed the gift bag towards him, and he eyed it with a look of surprise on his face.
"I brought a gift for you." He chuckled and peeped inside the gift bag.
"You didn't really have to."
"Yes, I know, but I wanted to. So open it and see."
He playfully narrowed his eyes at me and shoved one hand inside the bag, pulling the black velvety box out. He opened the box and then stared at the watch nestled inside.
"Do you like it? The minute I saw it, I immediately thought of you, so I bought it straight away."
He kept staring at the watch, his expression remained blank.
"Jason?"
He suddenly blenched when I called out his name and then smiled.
"Are you okay?" He nodded his head quickly.
"Yeah, I'm fine. This is really amazing and I love it, thank you so much."
He suddenly leaned down towards me and placed a chaste kiss on my lips, and my heart skipped a beat.
"You're welcome."
I grabbed my phone from inside my clutch bag and saw that it was nearly half past twelve. Mom really put a lot of emphasis on getting back home before one o'clock so we could all have lunch together while my sisters are still around, taking a break from their "busy" life schedule. I don't even know why my mom is still trying anymore.
"Crap, I better go. I'll call you when I get home, okay?" He stared at me with confusion.
"You're leaving already? But you just got here." He placed the box down on the table and grabbed my arm.
"I know, and I'm really sorry, but I have to make it back home on time for lunch." He pouted adorably at me, and it almost made me laugh at his attempt at being cute.
"Can't you stay for like ten more minutes?" He pleaded with a low voice.
I stood up while pulling on the strap of my bag and moved closer towards him. His hand was still around my arm, and I touched the side of his face and looked deeply into his eyes.
"I'm sorry, but I promise I'll call you." He wrapped both his arms around my waist and pulled me in closer while tilting his head up to look at me.
"You sure?" I nodded my head enthusiastically while grinning.
"Promise." I leaned in and kissed him, and he immediately kissed me back.
I pulled away and freed myself from his barrier arms and made my way towards the door.
"Bye!" I didn't hear his response back, nor do I care, but I was feeling happy and so glad that I got to see him today and that he liked my gift for him.
I waited for the elevator doors to open, and when they finally did after two minutes had passed, a girl with long curly brown hair, wearing Gucci sunglasses and a grey and black dress, stepped out of the lift and walked past me without even acknowledging my presence.
Her expensive yet sweet perfume drifted in my nose, and I took another look at her one more time before getting inside the elevator. Her aura just screamed 'classy' and 'rich,' and it seemed like she was heading straight toward Jason's office.
She must be one of his clients then...
Jason's POV
I couldn't stop staring at the watch sitting in its case on my table in front of me. My thoughts were jumbled all over the place, and I couldn't stop feeling anxious. These small, sweet, and innocent gestures right here were enough to make me start confronting my real feelings for that girl. They've been confusing me for more than a few days now, and it's about time I start facing the truth.
I do have feelings for Shay.
It's not the greed or the anger talking anymore; this is really coming from deep inside. It was also part of the plan not to fall for her, but I guess I simply can't help it when she's undeniably beautiful. She's smart, sweet, and caring too, and there's nothing there not to like about Shay Falcon.
What's annoying yet unexpected about all of this is that she's so easy to like, and there's nothing bad you could ever hate about her. I was only using her father as an excuse to stop myself from catching feelings in the first place, but now, it's so fucking hard to do that anymore! I like her, and she also likes me back, but there's a problem.
Her feelings were genuine toward me from the beginning, but mine weren't.
Will I be able to tell her the truth?
A knock sounded at the door, making me flinch in surprise. I quickly sat up straight in my chair and stared at the closed door.
"Come in." The door slowly opened, and I plastered a smile on my face, thinking she had come back.
"Did you forget somethiâ"
The rest of the words died in my mouth when I saw the different person who had walked in. I never thought I would ever see her again, and just the sight of her made me feel intensely cold.
Aria Langford, a former business acquaintance who also happens to be my ex-girlfriend. She smiled sinisterly at me, took off her sunglasses, and her cold, cat-like eyes penetrated into mine.
"Miss me?"