Chapter 4

Chapter 4

GIDEON was talking to a middle-aged man. He used to have those long, rough beards, but Lyzza could no longer see it in him now. It was something that she always thought that made the man so manly and appealing that night.

But there was no doubt he was still cool in his man-bun.

His face was sporting a serious expression. His manly posture announced his dominance and power to everyone inside this place.

“Students, this way, please!”

Lyzza immediately looked away as she heard the announcement from someone she didn’t even bother to look at. Her female classmates also halted at the jaw-dropping scenery and giggled as they all moved away from the main entrance of the building.

“We will divide you into two groups. One of the groups will be interviewed by the CEO himself, and the rest will be interviewed by yours truly, the head of HR,” a woman announced in front of them. The woman was prim and proper. She looked like a strict professor at their university; the kind of old maiden professor who was ready to give her students a failing mark in her subject.

“By the way, my name is Hillary. Group yourselves now! I don’t care if you’ll no longer join some of your block mates.” The woman even made several claps.

“We’re in the same group, Lyz!” Quincy said with a small grin and moved beside her after she left the flock of their female classmates, keeping herself updated with all the gossip while they were inside the elevator. “We’re going to join the group that the CEO will interview!”

“Don’t you think being in that group would be too difficult for us?”

“That’s the point! We need to be in that boat. The harder it is, the greater would be our chance to give him a good impression!”

Lyzza just furrowed her brows at her. She even raised one of them since she knew the meaning of the sparks radiating in Quincy’s eyes.

“It’s because I heard the news, Lyz. The hunky guy who looked like a Greek God in the lobby was none other than the CEO himself! He’s such a stunner! My liver and gall bladder were still on cloud nine,” her friend said, almost wanting to sway on Lyzza’s arm while she was stomping her feet in happiness.

Lyzza’s mouth flew open and her eyes grew bigger in shock because of what Quincy said. “That man that we’re looking at earlier? He’s the CEO?”

Quincy grinned and teased her by poking Lyzza’s waist with her finger. “See? You were also looking at him. He’s handsome, right?”

“That was him?” she asked again, like a jammed CD, since her question wasn’t answered directly yet. Although she may have known the answer, she still wanted to confirm it with her.

“Yes, Lyz! That’s why I’m excited to be interviewed by him. I wanted to take a look at that Heaven-sent guy once again!”

Lyzza gently removed Quincy’s hand from hers. “N-no. I would want to be interviewed by the head of HR instead.”

She could not figure out why she instantly felt scared by the fact that she would be facing the man who bought her years ago.

“Huh? But why? Don’t even try to switch groups!” Quincy moved even closer to her. “Look at the Head of HR! She is too strict and looks like a professor who gives failing grades to her students,” she whispered in Lyzza’s ear.

She laughed faintly and nudged Quincy. “Minimize your voice. She might hear and fail you in the interview.”

Quincy laughed. “Absolutely. If I were to fail this interview, I might as well see that handsome guy in front of me.”

Lyzza was about to reply when Ms. Hillary suddenly cleared her throat, which made her firmly shut her mouth. That was when she noticed that everyone around them was already eyeing them indifferently.

“If the two of you still enjoy gossiping, the door is open. You can leave freely,” Ms. Hillary said sternly at them while raising an eyebrow.

Lyzza lowered her head in shame as she closed her eyes. This shouldn’t be the start of her first day.

“I’m so sorry,” she apologized shamefully.

“Well, you should be. And you, what’s your name?” The HR head asked Quincy Mae.

“Q-Quincy…”

“And you wish to be interviewed by the CEO, right?”

Quincy smiled widely. “Yes, Ma’am.”

“Then, you will be interviewed by me.”

“B-but—” Quincy was about to protest, but she was quickly cut off.

“No buts. If you want to protest, then I can directly give you a failure remark at this very moment!”

“Can I be interviewed by you instead, Ma’am?” Lyzza suddenly interrupted her.

However, instead of agreeing, the woman just shook her head. Ms. Hillary was scanning her from head to toe while adjusting her eyeglasses.

“No, you’re going to be interviewed by the CEO.”

They were left with no choice because the HR Head had already looked away and started to lead the students to the HR Department. Quincy and Lyzza just looked at each other.

Quincy frowned shyly at her and stomped her feet right from where she stood, rolling her eyes and crossing her arms across her chest.

“That Ms. Hillary is so annoying! Is she in her menopausal period or something? Hmp!”

“She is still young, though. She’s just a few years older than me,” Lyzza said.

Quincy stomped her feet again. “Ah, still! She still acts like she’s in her menopausal period.”

She was stunned as soon as her friend marched by, following the other students in her new group. Minutes later, she found herself sitting on one of the benches outside the Chief Executive’s office.

Lyzza knew that the air in that place was usually colder. However, she couldn’t find any words to explain why her hands and feet were literally freezing at that moment.

Was it due to the air condition or because she was freaking nervous?

She silently prayed that the man would not recognize her. It had been four years since that night happened, and she was sure that it would be too awkward for them to see each other again in case he was able to recognize her.

Worse, she was certainly sure that she would fail the interview.

“Ms. Lyzza Pacamara?”

Lyzza heard the voice of the male secretary of the CEO.

She wanted to raise her hand, but she couldn’t bring herself to do it. Her chest tightened, and the aggressive beating of her heart was evident.

“Ms. Lyzza Pacamara? Is she here?” The secretary repeated.

It made her classmates look at her in confusion.

She swallowed the lump in her throat and forced herself to raise her right arm.

“T-That’s me…” she uttered.

The CEO’s secretary eyed her from head to toe, then his gaze went back to her face. After that, he smiled and opened the door for her so she could enter Gideon’s office.

“You are next. Mr. Gideon Vesarius is waiting for you,” he said, mentioning the full name of the man she wanted to avoid at all cost.

Even his full name had a different appeal to her…

The name Gideon sounded powerful and became perfectly dominating with a last name Vesarius. It was such an entrancing name for the owner of Vesarius Airlines.

Lyzza felt like shrinking in her place.

“T-thank you…” She muttered and meekly made her way inside the office.

“Good luck!” the secretary uttered to her as he went outside.

She felt as though her heart was about to escape right from her rib cage at any moment due to its loud beating.

It was beating erratically, making her breathless.

She lowered her head as she walked to the center aisle of the office and stopped in front of a huge office desk. She couldn’t raise her head. In her peripheral view, Lyzza could see the strong and huge figure of a man who was seated on a swivel chair across the desk.

She nervously played with her finger; head still focusing on the floor when she heard the man clear his throat.

“Introduce yourself, please,” ordered a familiar voice.

That voice was too familiar to her ear, mind, and overall system. Deep, dangerous, and sexy. His voice was very manly.

She gulped once again. If she were to count how many times she gulped that day, her fingers in one hand wouldn’t be enough to count it.

Lyzza played with her fingers for a couple of seconds until she was able to breath heavily. She raised her gaze and looked directly at him.

“M-my name is Lyzza Pacamara, sir,” she stuttered as she met those dangerous deep brown eyes.

She realized that there was something different about him now that she had seen him again this close after four long years.

His beard wasn’t there. That used to make everyone think he was a beggar. There was still a little stubble on his cheeks and jaw, which added to his oozing sex appeal. His hair was still in a man-bun, and there was no doubt he was still the ruggedly handsome man she met four years ago.

But now, he was in his suit and tie, inside his wide and luxurious office.

“Lyzza,” her name lingered on his lips. The way his mouth uttered her name made her feel goosebumps slowly running down her spine. It was like he was tasting her name using his sinful and sexy mouth.

She saw him taking a glimpse at her resume that was on his desk. It took at least a couple of seconds before he looked back at her.

‘Please don’t let him remember me,’ she silently prayed.

She really wanted to enter this company for her daughter’s sake—their daughter whom he didn’t know. Her prayer wouldn’t be answered if she could not concentrate just because of the man’s presence.

However, fate didn’t seem to like conniving with her now that Gideon was looking at her intently. He then put his elbows on top of the glass cover of his desk and intertwined his fingers.

“So, your name is Lyzza, huh?” Gideon Vesarius smirked like he was mocking her. “I thought it was Rona.”

“I don’t know what you are talking about, sir,” she lied on his face and eyed him head-on to prove her claim.

She chose to lie. It was as if she didn’t know about that one night they spent together.

Gideon’s forehead creased. His thick eyebrows were almost kissing each other because of what she said.

Lyzza almost stepped back when he stood up from his seat. But she mustered her courage not to do so. If she would step back and flinch at his mere movement, he would suspect that she was lying and trembling in fear.

He walked toward her, his gaze not even looking away. She just watched him walk in her direction and met his piercing gaze.

She acted so brave in front of him, but deep down she could feel that her knees wanted to quiver because of fear and mortification.

Gideon stopped right in front of her. And just like before, she felt small in front of him. He was literally towering over her. He was too tall and huge for a man. She had no idea how on earth she handled him that night, given his huge physique.

“You don’t know me. Is that what you’re trying to imply, Ms. Pacamara?” he gently asked, but she could sense the hint of disappointment in his deep voice.

“Well…” she began, spinning her lies inside her head. “I do know you since my classmates talked about you.”

“Why are you speaking so formally in front of me? Am I that old for you to do that, Ms. Pacamara?”

Lyzza licked her lower lip before she answered. “You are the CEO of Vesarius Airlines, sir, and you are older than me so with respect, I should be using formal sentences, yes.”

“I’m just thirty-three. Damn it!” He raised his voice.

She didn’t know if she was the only one he was shouting at since he even looked in a different direction. But since they were the only ones inside the office, she was definitely sure that she was the only one whom he was shouting at.

“Well, you’re still older than me, sir,” she answered.

She saw how his jaw clenched as he looked at her again. “And you said that you don’t know me,” he retorted.

“Yes, sir.”

“Playing innocent, huh?” He nodded repeatedly, as if he already knew what she was up to. That even tripled her nervousness.

“I’m not playing around, sir—”

“Four years ago, in the auction… at the hotel,” he interrupted her.

She absentmindedly held the hem of her skirt.

“I really don’t know what you’re talking about, sir.”

Why did he have to remind her of that?

“Then, seems to me that I have to make you remember,” he said in a husky voice. With that, he grabbed her waist and pulled her against his hard and muscled chest.

He held her cheek and before she could even make any reaction, his lips had already invaded hers. It sent her millions of bolts running inside her frail system because of that kiss. A kiss that shook her whole being.

Her eyes popped open, and the only thing that she did was to tightly hold on to the hem of her skirt, as if that was her only saving grace.

His lips moved, giving her hot kisses. He french kissed her, trying to get a response from her. But due to being shocked by his sudden action, she was not able to move.

She couldn’t kiss him back…

Then his pace changed. His kiss became more passionate seconds later. He was frustrated, and he almost swallowed her whole. When he lightly bit her lower lip, it was only then that her senses got back together.

Lyzza pushed him hard in the chest. She wanted to slap him, but she couldn’t. She couldn’t even find anger inside her chest—where there should be, at the very least.

Admit it or not, she couldn’t erase the fact that his kisses made her knees weak. She wanted to grip his shirt and loop her arms around his neck. She wanted to kiss him back just like she did that night.

Gideon grinned at her, tracing his lips with his thumb.

He then licked his lower lip.

“Now, you can’t deny it. I know it’s you; the same addictive strawberry perfume and the same taste on your lips that I once ravished,” he stated.

She felt the heat rising on the edge of her eyes.

Ravished? Did he think of her as a whore?

She opened her mouth and mustered all of her courage to stop her tears from falling.

“It was me,” she finally admitted. She thanked the heavens that her voice didn’t break. “Can we now proceed to my interview, Sir?”

She chose to put seriousness in her tone. Hell, Lyzza didn’t even bother to look at his face anymore. Instead, her gaze remained on his chest.

Thinking that he would not say a word anymore as he was silent for a moment, Lyzza could only inhale heavily. However, Gideon spoke after a while.

“You can go. You’re done.”

Her tears finally fell from her eyes as soon as she heard those words from him. She just chose to lower her head as a sign of respect and so he wouldn’t see her tears.

With a heavy heart, she walked away and exited his office.

She felt so low. She knew that she wouldn’t be accepted into that airline company. Gideon made her feel that a woman who sold her body just like her didn’t have any place here and was clearly not worthy of his time.

Wasn’t this the reason why he didn’t even interview her?

How heartless!