Chapter 4. His offer

"How much money do you need right now? Be precise."

"U-hmm… what do you mean by that, Sir?" Madeleine queried, clearly confused as she endeavored to understand his reason.

"You heard me, Ms. Nevia."

She swallowed hard, still trying to figure out the root of why he suddenly asked her that. She looked away in embarrassment.

"You're not going to tell me how much money you need, are you?"

"I think… not." She looked back at him and gave him a confusing gaze. "I can take care of myself, Sir."

"Are you telling me that you can't answer my question, Ms. Nevia? But I thought you'll do everything I said? And that includes answering me directly."

"Well— I need a lot of money for my mom's treatment..." she explained slowly as she "A lot, Sir."

Hearing those words softened his heart, so he immediately took the cheque from his wallet and offered it to her.

"Here," he spoke sternly, his voice showing nothing but concern toward her. "Take this."

She stared at him in incredulity at that moment, feeling something she could not fathom.

'Did he just offer me his cheque?'

'Why does it feel like he knew my situation?'

'Do I even deserve something as valuable as this thing?' She could feel her insides turning to mush as she gaped at him, completely dumbfounded.

"Thank you, Sir. But I can't pay you back—"

"You will, eventually, but you won't know," he interrupted her once more, cutting her off.

Madeleine stood up from her seat and looked directly into his eyes. "Tell me how to repay you, Sir. I'll do everything to serve you."

He let out a deep breath and stared at her intensely. He couldn't hide his smile anymore, his heart melting with warmth as he gazed at her.

"I'm not asking for anything; just give me some work to earn you a nice sum of cash. You have to put me above everything else, Madeleine. And that is an order from me," he stated with authority which earned her approval.

"Anything for you, Mr. Harrington."

He smiled— a hot smile that was too hard to resist.

"Follow me."

Madeleine followed behind him, unable to hold the excitement ascending to her face. But utmost trepidation coalesced with that emotion as she tried to absorb what had just transpired.

As they passed by the other employees working, Madeleine quickly noticed all their smiles and glances toward Mr. Harrington.

They stopped in front of the elevator and, pressed the button, waited a few seconds before the elevator doors opened. They entered inside together and made their way downstairs. As they walked through the hallways, Madeleine could hear murmurs from different workers whom she didn't recognize; she followed Mr. Harrington until they walked outside and headed directly to the car, which confounded her the most.

"Where are we going, Sir?" she inquired as she scrutinized the entire surroundings.

"You'll see later," he replied as he opened the door for her. Their face was too close that she sensed his majestic aroma, which lingered in the air. "Get in."

"Sure, Sir." she obeyed obediently before closing the door. As she sat there looking out the window, she tried her best to prevent the apprehension from creeping into her soul. She was keen to get the attention and converse with the CEO to get to know him, but she didn't know where to start or how to put a good mood on it.

Her thought swiftly faded when Mr. Harrington buckled her seatbelt, and Madeleine felt uneasy as she sensed his stare towards her down to her cleavage, almost making her sweat.

"You're wearing a nice perfume, Sir," she remarked without hesitation, trying to divert his attention.

"Allergy of it?" he asked as he returned to his seat and turned on the engine.

"No, Sir. I just liked it," she replied as she focused her gaze on the windshield, trying not to sound flirtatious.

His heartbeat increased with every word from her mouth as he felt himself getting hotter. And worse yet, he was trying his best to stop being affected by her. No matter how often he tried to avoid this woman, his entire existence kept saying she attracted him.

Mr. Harrington looked at her through a mirror reflection; then his gaze moved down to his cleavage again, which he quickly avoided.

'Damn, she's so hot! How could someone like her be this so attractive and enticing?' he thought but quickly dismissed it, for goodness sake. Mr. Harrington doesn't have a soft spot for anyone, especially the woman. He has everything. He can afford it even if it costs billions of dollars. He can lure women and leave anytime he wants. No thrill in that, only boredom. He used to believe that women only cared about his money and looks. This is why meeting Madeleine gave him a strange feeling because he became interested all of a sudden, like he wanted to see more of her, maybe learn something, or even fall in love.

 "Do you have a boyfriend?" he suddenly asked.

She shook her head. "And I guess we're opposite, Sir."

Her words made him startled. She was being direct and honest in their exchange. "What do you mean?"

"It's not that I'm judging. But of course, you have wealth and a handsome face enough to make a woman fall in love."

"I'm not fond of girls," he claimed. Being criticized by anyone is what he despised the most, but he managed not to divulge his sentiments. He knew that if he'd continue with his line of explaining himself would probably lead to him getting exposed to another level of rudeness because he hates that.

"No worries, Sir. I won't mind."

He chuckled at her response, finding her straightforwardness to be sexy. "You don't believe me?"

"Of course I do. That was my first impression upon seeing you yesterday in your room."

Silence prevailed between them. His body felt warm from hearing it, especially when she said it with such honesty.

Just a few minutes ago, they stopped in front of the restaurant, then Mr. Harrington excused himself and exited the car.

For a moment, Madaleine was brooding about the cheque.

'How could I ever pay this man back? This is beyond my ability to afford it. How can I show my gratitude after he did the such thing for me?' Those words kept revolving in her neurons as she pondered on her dilemma. Furthermore, she wondered how Mr. Harrington knew about her issue with money and that she was struggling with it.

Suddenly, a loud phone ringing broke the moment of her contemplation, and soon she found out the source was coming from Mr. Harrington's phone on its car phone holder near the front of the driver's seat. She didn't answer it; instead, she scrutinized outside, expecting to see her boss, but she failed to see him. The phone rang a couple more times until it stopped. She looked at the phone and was dumbstruck to see the message on the screen.