The dinner ended on a high note as they stopped talking about serious stuff and started joking and sharing things they had missed out on over the last three years.William hardly talked but listened attentively to them, especially when Rosaline would share things.They finished the dinner and worked together to clean up.Tessa stocked even one-quarter of the bowl worth of remaining dishes. William found it funny.It was not hard to see that it was not just because the food was tasty but because Rosaline had made it.Once they had cleaned up, they slumped on the foot of the couch with wine and continued their chit-chat.William sat behind Rosaline, wrapping her in his arms. Tessa snorted at him but did not comment.Rosaline leaned into him as they talked endlessly.William had known they could talk non-stop for hours but was still surprised to see it firsthand.The other thing he was pleasantly surprised with was that they did not gossip.They must have spent around three hours chattin
William and Rosaline had breakfast amidst teasing and making out.She took aspirin for the hangover, drank lots of coconut water, and felt better.She called Tessa, who was similarly hungover but was feeling better after having breakfast and drinks William had ordered for her. Rosaline pecked him on the cheek to thank him, and only then did she realize she was supposed to sleep at Tessa’s place.He showed her the video of her clinging to him.She had clung to him even when he was driving and trying to change his clothes, making her cringe.“Wow. I never knew I was so clingy. Sorry!” Rosaline replied sheepishly. “You can cling to me anytime you want. Well, as long as you don’t drool on me.” William teased her.It was a few minutes before 10 am when they both arrived at William’s office.He held her hand and pointed at the offices along the way, showing her around.At 10 am, they had their usual meeting with the security team, who briefed them on the status. All the people were curio
The people from the Marketing and research team were indignant. It was one thing to be criticized by William, but for an unknown nobody to say the work they had spent three weeks on was useless was a heavy blow.Someone finally muttered discontentedly.“The people who play games don’t respond to surveys. The turnover has always been low.”“That’s because you ask the wrong questions and offer uninteresting incentives.”“Why would a person who spends over a thousand dollars in games every month care about some 10 dollars worth of shopping vouchers? Not only would it disrupt the game, but he would also have to spend more money to use the 10 dollars.”“What’s your suggestion then?”“Ask them if they want to be the VIPs who would receive the release or upgrade of the newest AR group software a day before the global release if they help you with the survey.”“What? How is it possible to release a product in advance for a select few people?”“William, can that be done?” Rosaline asked Willi
The next three months went by in a blur.They all settled into a pattern of sorts.William, Tessa, and Albert would go to work as usual. Rosaline would bring her work to William’s office or stay in the penthouse. She would randomly sleep at Tessa’s apartment or William’s place.She tried to cook as much as possible but did not always get the time. William, Tessa, and Albert all started helping her with CARE-related work. It lessened her workload by a ton.They all traveled from time to time to look into CARE issues and welcomed a lot of new members while finding adoption and foster homes for many.William thought nothing would surprise him anymore after Rosaline explained how closely she had worked with his father over the years.Timothy got admitted to Apex military academy, and William had Felix drive him there.They did not want anyone to know he knew them so that he could earn his keep himself.Felix thought his workload had increased since he was managing CARE as well.But Feli
One day, Asteria happened to be alone with Rosaline in the pantry.She felt awkward. She thought she had done something wrong by liking her man, so she held her head low.Rosaline started the conversation to her utter dismay.“You are Asteria Scott, right? Danial Scott, global CEO of Scott group’s daughter.”“Umm, Yes.” “Nice to meet you. I should have talked to you sooner. I am sorry.”“Uhh?”“Ah, I guess Mr. Scott did not tell you. You made an oil painting that your father hangs in his office.”“Yes. What about it?”“It is brilliant - vibrant colors with unearthly innocence. I begged your father to let me study it carefully for some time. You have no idea how hard he grilled me for that.”“What?”“Yes, I bet he values that painting more than his company. He was afraid I would ruin your masterpiece, so he had a dozen conditions before he allowed him within one meter close to it.”“Really?”“Of course, Miss. Scott. Why would I lie to you? The truth is I owe you.”“You owe me?”“Yes.
The weekend arrived, and Asteria found herself in an SUV with William, Rosaline, Tessa, Albert, and Felix.She was closest to Felix, so she stuck with him the entire time.Felix was already used to it and let her be. “Albert, I asked you to look after Tess. Why are you in a cold war with her?” Rosaline asked out of nowhere when they were joking about something else.“She started it,” Albert exclaimed.“Why?” “He said something about you.” Tessa fessed up. Tessa and Albert looked at each other and realized there was no good reason for two years of their cold war.“What did you say about her?” William asked Albert.Albert wasn’t sure what to say to save himself, “Brother, I did not say anything bad. I was just.”Rosaline could read between Albert and Tessa’s expressions, “You doubted my intentions and feelings for William.”William frowned at that. Albert and Tessa gave silent acquiescence. Rosaline turned to Tessa, “Tess! What would you do if the roles had reversed?”“What kind of
The next day everyone had breakfast before they went to the CARE foundation of M city.William had been here before, so he directly left to check the security and other details.Tessa, Albert, and Felix had been heaping around for some time, so they also toured the grounds and talked to the people, getting to know everyone a little.Rosaline took Asteria to the art room, where Jasmine spent most of her time at her private desk.Jasmine smiled at Rosaline when she saw her. But she instinctively shrank herself on seeing a new person.Rosaline went up to her and talked to her gently.“Hey, Jas. How have you been, girl?”“I…I am okay, Miss Rosy.”“Rosy, just Rosy Jas. Remember what I said - my fellow art enthusiasts call me just Rosy.”“Ohh..okay, Rosy.”“What are you working on?”“This…this is you…you and your…your boyfriend.”“You drew William and me together. Oh Wow. Thank you so much.”“I…I hope. It’s okay.”“Of course. I just realized we don’t even have a picture together. I will han
For the first time since Asteria knew William, he spoke to her on his initiative.“Miss Scott, you should be a professional painter or something in the field,” William told her.Asteria came out of her trance after a few seconds before his words registered to her.“Really?”“Your paintings are very life-like. And you enjoy it.”“I will paint more in the future.”Felix chimed in, “Not just that. You should open your art gallery. Showcase your skills, groom others like Jasmine and show their works.”Rosaline supported that as well.“I agree. I have known Jasmine for a year now, and in one day, she was closer to you than she had been with me. Besides, I have never seen either of you so happy as you were today.”Asteria was flattered listening to them. But she did not dare to take that step.She could only timidly thank them, “Thank you. I will think about it.”Rosaline patted her on the shoulders and comforted her.“If you need any advice on how to go about it, William’s mother used to o