"No way! That's an opportunity for you both, don't you think?" Alicia commented with a hopeful, mischievous grin."What are you talking about? Give me your phone." Calla extended a hand toward Alicia.Alicia pulled her phone out of her bag but teasingly waved it, not handing it over immediately. "Are you going to call your boss?""Of course! My phone is with him. He can't contact me otherwise," Calla replied."You should be careful when you call," Alicia reminded her as she handed over the phone."What do you mean?" Calla asked, puzzled."Are you dumb? It's almost 10:00 pm. If you call now, you might make his wife or girlfriend think you're the other woman!" Alicia laughed.Calla hesitated at this. She was pretty sure Pierre didn't have a wife, but she didn't know if he was living with a girlfriend.Still worried about whether her phone was indeed with Pierre, she decided to call her own number. She thought this would avoid any misunderstandings since it was her own phone chimi
Braving the heavy rain, Calla finally persuaded the supermarket owner's husband to drive her to Pierre's place.When Calla arrived at Pierre's door, she was thoroughly soaked. The wind and rain had rendered her umbrella useless.Calla continuously rang the doorbell, eventually rousing the feverish and groggy Pierre."You're… here." Pierre leaned against the wall with his eyes closed after opening the door.Seeing this, Calla quickly helped him to his bed. She touched his burning forehead and took his temperature, finding it to be over 102°F. She wanted to give him some fever medicine but found there was no water in the thermos. After boiling some water and letting it cool for a bit, she gave Pierre the fever medicine. Then, she covered him with a warm blanket.Calla was drenched in sweat after all this. She looked down at her damp clothes. She had no choice but to use his bathroom to take a quick shower. Pierre was as helpless as a corpse right now anyway.She had already che
At 3:00 am, Calla got up again to check Pierre's temperature. Confirming his fever had subsided, she returned to the couch to sleep, finally feeling relieved.When daylight broke, Calla felt something move beside her, and she groggily opened her eyes. She was startled to see Pierre, dressed in pajamas, squatting by the couch and staring at her.Alarmed, she quickly sat up.When Pierre noticed her surprise, he felt somewhat awkward. He quickly pointed at the blanket covering her. "The blanket fell off, so I put it back on you.""Oh, thank you," Calla murmured, tucking her hair behind her ear. She blushed when she realized she was still wearing Pierre's white shirt.Pierre must have sensed her embarrassment then. He stood up, ran his hand through his hair, and smiled. "Actually, I should be the one thanking you. If you hadn't brought the fever medicine and stayed over to take care of me, I'd probably still be out of it."Calla looked down. Even though she wanted to stand up, she fe
Mercer's expression only darkened when he shifted his gaze to the table set with two breakfasts.He boomed, "Pierre! Pierre, get your ass out here!"At this point, Pierre seemed to hear the commotion. He emerged from the bathroom, holding a hair dryer in one hand and Calla's clothes in the other. Seeing Mercer standing in the middle of the room, Pierre was momentarily stunned before handing Calla her clothes. "Your clothes are dry now. You should go change," he said.Calla took the clothes from Pierre, trying to maintain a calm demeanor despite feeling uneasy. After all, Mercer looked like a wild beast on the verge of going berserk. His current expression suggested he was not far from losing control.This simple exchange of words and the handing over of clothes was enough to ignite Mercer's fury."Hey cuz! What brings you here?" Pierre greeted Mercer with a smile.Hearing the word "cuz", Calla stared at them in shock. They were cousins? No wonder they both had the same last nam
That morning, Calla made an excuse to leave Pierre's house and quickly departed after changing into her own clothes. Pierre kindly offered to drive her, but she firmly refused.The incident had already led to a misunderstanding with Mercer. Calla did not want anyone else to misinterpret the situation.Reflecting on the events of that morning, Calla felt a pang of self-reproach. Her actions had indeed created an opportunity for misunderstanding. Fortunately, it wasn't Pierre's girlfriend who had come over. Otherwise, Calla might have been accused of being a homewrecker and be subjected to a confrontation. It certainly would have been hard to explain herself under the circumstances.After that incident, Pierre seemed to appreciate Calla's work even more. He entrusted her with many important tasks at the company, some of which were personal matters.Although Calla was hired by Pierre and couldn't refuse his assignments, she felt that his level of trust had surpassed the usual employ
"It's none of your damn business! I'm teaching my daughter a lesson," Rudy shouted.Hearing this, Pierre turned to Calla. His eyes filled with questions."I have nothing to do with him!" Calla answered firmly."You ungrateful girl! You don't even acknowledge me as your father!" Rudy stepped forward to hit Calla again.Pierre intervened once more, warning Rudy, "If you do this again, I'll call the police."At the mention of the police, Rudy hesitated. He pointed a finger at Calla, who was hiding behind Pierre.He then barked, "I heard you work at a very prestigious law firm. If you don't do what I ask, I'll go to your company and spill all your dirty secrets. Let's see how you'll face your colleagues then. Will your boss still value you?"Hearing Rudy's malicious and despicable threat, Calla stepped forward to argue with him. "What dirty secrets do you have on me? Tell me!"Before Rudy could speak, Pierre solemnly addressed him. "Sir, I'll have you know, I am Calla's boss. I hig
Late in the afternoon, just before the end of the workday, Pierre called Calla into his office."Mr. Garland, is there anything I can help you with?" Calla asked, standing in front of Pierre's desk.Since the last incident, Calla and Pierre had been interacting more like friends in private. She no longer avoided him, perhaps thinking they could be platonic friends. She was grateful for his concern.Pierre looked up and said, "I need a favor from you. Are you free tonight?""I don't have any plans. What can I help with?" Calla smiled, realizing it was a personal matter.Of course, she agreed readily, believing friends should help each other out."Do you know Nelson Lowry of Riverford's Skyrise Group?" Pierre asked.Calla thought for a moment and replied, "Mr. Lowry Senior of Skyrise Group is a household name in Riverford. He's highly respected and devoted to charity. He has funded the construction of many remote schools in Riverford. Plus, he has represented Riverford at the K
Calla had always lived a frugal life, so this was her only evening gown. She remembered spending 600 dollars on it back then, which had made her heartache.Putting on this dress again, Calla stood in front of the full-length mirror and gazed at herself for a moment. Her face and figure were still the same as two years ago, but she felt like she was no longer the same person.The dress boasted an off-shoulder design, leaving a large expanse of her fair skin exposed around her neck. She put on a platinum clavicle chain and a pair of small platinum stud earrings. She bought these simple and modest pieces of jewelry over the years, and they were the only ones she owned. They felt pretty good on her, giving her a fresh and elegant bearing.Time was running short. As such, she tied her hair into a ponytail, secured with a silver rhinestone-adorned clip. Finally, she slipped into silver high-heeled sandals. Checking herself in the mirror, she saw a young and graceful figure. Calla nodd