Chapter 13

"Hi Rick," Nicole nervously greeted as she answered the phone.

"Nicole, why did it take you forever to pick up my call?" Rick asked the moment he heard Nicole's voice.

"I um... I wasn't close to my phone, uh... How are you doing?"

"Are you okay? You sound nervous."

"Yeah yeah, I am," Nicole replied, internally cursing herself for not being able to hide her nervousness.

"Vanessa and I are worried about you. You didn't show up for work so we went to your apartment to check up on you but your place was locked... Where are you?"

"I'm sorry, I didn't tell you guys because everything happened so suddenly. Something came up, so I had to leave New York in a hurry."

"What's wrong? Did something bad happen?" Rick asked sounding quite worried.

Nicole felt bad for lying but she had to keep up with the act to save herself from getting into trouble with Gabriel.

"No no, everything is fine. Nothing bad happened so there's nothing to worry about... I just need to take care of something important."

"Are you sure?" He asked suspiciously.

"Yes Rick, I'm fine. I'll explain everything to you guys when I get back."

"Okay. I also called to let you know that someone has been hired to replace you since you didn't show up at work."

"I guess I'll just have to look for some other job when I get back."

"I'm sorry,"  He said sympathetically.

"It's okay, you don't have to apologize. It's not like it's your fault."

"You got us worried you know?"

"I'm so sorry, I had no intention of doing that... Could you please tell Vanessa how sorry I am?"

"Sure, um... I have to go now, take care of yourself okay?"

"I will, goodbye."

"Bye." And the call ended, to Nicole's relief.

"That was easy," she said to herself.

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Gabriel eventually had that conversation with his best friend Charles. It wasn't easy convincing his friend that he had kept his relationship with Nicole a secret away from the public eye because he wanted to prevent her from hearing untrue and nasty news about him which could affect their relationship. For Charles, that was reason enough and Gabriel was relieved that Charles didn't press the issue any further after his explanation.

After Gabriel's discussion with Charles, he went to inspect the site that was chosen for the construction of a new housing development. He inspected the place for a few hours until he could feel the intense heat of the sun on his back which was slowly giving him a headache, so he decided to go home and get some rest. Upon his arrival home, he noticed that Nicole wasn't at home, he then told his house administrator to get someone to bring him a glass of water and painkillers before going into his bedroom. He took off his suit and went for a shower. After showering he changed into a pair of jeans and a grey shirt then he noticed the glass of water and painkillers on his nightstand, he took it before having a nap.

Two hours later Gabriel woke up feeling a lot better, he decided to go to the movie room and watch a movie since he hadn't done that in a long time. He was watching a movie when he felt someone come in.

"I saw Darren home and was surprised, then I was told that you came home quite early today. What's up?" Nicole asked, walking towards Gabriel. He turned to look at her on hearing her voice.

"I had nothing important to do at the office today,"

He replied not mentioning the fact that he had a slight headache which was the reason why he had returned home early, he noticed that she was wearing a white choker lace insert bodycon dress with matching heels, and her makeup looked flawless, Gabriel realized that Nicole looked even more beautiful which each passing day, she likes to show off her curves, he was proud of himself and the sight before him. He hadn't made a mistake when he knocked on her door that night.

Nicole slumped on the couch and glanced at the TV,

"I had no idea you watch movies,"

"Now you do." He replied turning his attention back to the TV.

"How was your day?" He asked trying to start up a conversation.

"I had a wonderful time touring around New York. James showed me so many new places today,"

Gabriel wasn't expecting to hear that she was already getting comfortable with his employees.

"Honestly, I enjoyed his company... And he's really cute you know?"

He suddenly felt anger rise inside of him.  This was the second time Nicole was complimented by that chauffeur.

It's not like he was jealous or was he?

No, he can't be jealous of his chauffeur. This was only a relationship based on a contract. That notwithstanding, he doesn't want her getting too close to that chauffeur.

Nicole continued explaining how her day went with her head currently placed on Gabriel's lap while she was lying on the couch but Gabriel wasn't hearing a single word she was saying neither did he care about their current position. He needed to do something fast about her fondness for his chauffeur, that was the only thing on his mind at the moment.

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Nicole stayed indoors for a week as she decided to take a break after getting exhausted from touring New York but she made up her mind that today she wasn't going to be lazy, she was going to have a spa treatment and body massage. As funny as it sounds, she wants her skin to look good so Gabriel would compliment her. She loved hearing his compliments even if they were said with very few words and she had no idea why. Nicole had a big smile on her face just thinking about Gabriel.

Why was she suddenly feeling this way? She wondered.

"Knock it off," She said to herself before going into her closet to get something to wear.

Nicole was already dressed and was about to leave when she noticed that James wasn't the chauffeur who would be driving her that day rather it was Darren.

"Where is James?" She asked.

"He has been assigned to the boss and I to you, ma'am."

Nicole was surprised to hear that.

Why would Gabriel switch chauffeurs after telling her that James was going to be her chauffeur?

Now she was going to have to stick with Darren who was older and she didn't think he'd be as cheerful and free towards her as James was.

"Okay."

She replied before getting into the car, that she was going to speak with Gabriel about this.

Gabriel was in his study working late, he needed to finish reading the contract papers regarding the hotel construction before meeting with his potential partners. He was still at it when Nicole walked into his study.

Seriously, doesn't this girl know what they call personal space?

"Hey babe," She greeted him with a smile.

Gabriel just stared at her with an eyebrow raised. When Nicole saw the look on his face she said,

"Okay okay. I was only joking... You should learn to take jokes sometimes, it's good for your not-so-friendly self."

She sat on the chair across his desk. Gabriel noticed that she wasn't saying anything after that so he went back to what he was doing.

Nicole realized that he didn't notice her beautifully toned skin.

How dare he?

She then stood up from the chair she was previously sitting in and walked towards him. She sat on the arm of his chair and placed her arm around his shoulder,

"Why did you switch chauffeurs?" She asked in a whisper, making Gabriel drop the papers in his hands with a heavy sigh.

"Is that why you came here to interrupt me?"

"I was just curious since you had told me that James was going to be my chauffeur throughout my stay here... So, why the sudden change of mind?"

"I don't need to explain anything to you," He replied drily.

Gabriel was beginning to feel intoxicated by Nicole's perfume.

Why was she sitting this close to him? He suddenly regrets not laying down certain rules when she arrives.

"But he was my friend," she grumbled with a pout.

"I don't want you being friends with my employees," Gabriel replied, sounding quite angry, this caused Nicole to stand up in fear of his sudden change of mood.

"Are you jealous?" She suddenly but carefully asked.

Gabriel looked at her like she had just asked the most crazy question.

"You're jealous." She then concluded with a smile.

Nicole couldn't believe that Gabriel was jealous of his chauffeur, this gladdened her heart much more than any compliment he had said to her.

"Okay. I've gotten the answer I came for. Goodnight." She said, happily placing a kiss on Gabriel's cheek before walking out of his study.

Seriously? She wasn't at all offended by his reaction.

He has gotten himself a special kind of girl, this is going to be much more complicated than he had thought.

Hahaha

Let's see how Gabriel handles this one

Love y'all

Please your comments would be appreciated, thanks

😘