Are we an item?

Astrid checked into her room and met Andrew already there.

'What are you doing here?' she asked with a smile.

'I came to see what you spent the money on,' Andrew said.

'I bought clothes and I will be resuming in three days' time,' Astrid said with a smile as she placed down the bags.

'Work?' Andrew asked.

'Yes. Oh, I forgot to tell you. I received an email last night from Seth Corporation,' Astrid said.

'That's good. Get ready tonight. I will pick you up by nine,' Andrew said.

'Where are we going?' Astrid asked.

'Some reason, our partners chose the bar,' Andrew replied.

'What are you doing here? What are you doing there? I want to sign a contract and finalize our agreement,' Andrew said.

'Uh, I've been wondering... where is Claudia?' Astrid asked out of concern.

'She is alive,' Andrew replied.

'I mean, where is she?' Astrid asked again.

'I don't know,' Andrew said as he walked away.

Astrid spent the rest of her day happily withdrawing and spending Andrew's money.

Astrid was done dressing when she received a text from Andrew telling her to come outside. When she arrived, she was shocked to see a lady in the back seat.

'Good evening, Miss Walton,' the lady greeted.

'Good evening,' Astrid replied with a smile and got in the front.

'Wow, you're driving today?' she said with a smile, then went close to Andrew and whispered, 'Who is she?'

Andrew knew she was talking about the lady in the back seat.

'Oh, she is my secretary, Kimberly Evans. You can call her Kim,' Andrew said calmly.

'Seat belt,' Andrew said as he started the car engine and drove away.

They got to the bar and were informed that their partners hadn't arrived yet, so they decided to wait.

While waiting, Astrid decided to dance a little bit and loosen up. Andrew watched her dance the whole time, capturing her smell, feeling relaxed.

Not until she started dancing with some random guy who popped out of thin air. He noticed how he touched Astrid while dancing and it made him furious. Because no one's entitled to touch what belongs to him except he gives you the consent to do so.

Kimberly observed how he looked at Astrid,she wished deeply that he would also look at her that way, his features are relaxed when he looks at her there's always a slight smile at the corner of his lips. She envied Astrid, she wondered what Astrid did just to catch his attention and gain so much favor from him.

She has worked with him and stayed by his side for five years but she never won him no matter what she did.

Andrew ordered his secretary to go and get Astrid. The secretary nodded and did as she was told.

Astrid excused herself from her dance partner, sat on Andrew's lap, and slid her hand around his neck while he held her waist.

'How may I help you, daddy?' she whispered the last part in his ear, which made his expression change.

'Do you want to die?' Andrew asked.

'If I die, I will still flirt with you as a ghost,' Astrid replied as she touched his chest with a finger.

'Are you sure you want to continue seducing me like this?' Andrew asked, making Astrid smile because she knew he still had unfinished business.

She sat on the couch and took a sip of the whiskey in front of her, then took a sip of the punch.

'Mm, that's good.'

Soon, their partners walked in and greeted.

'Good evening, Mr Thompson. I'm sorry we were delayed by some unforeseen circumstances,' the director apologized as he sat down.

The director was a middle-aged man, probably in his early fifties, and from his looks, you knew he liked to party, not minding the ring on his finger.

'It's okay,' Andrew replied calmly.

'Why haven't you ordered anything? Don't you want something spicy?' he asked as he winked, then laughed out loud.

Andrew understood him.

'Let's finalize our deal,' Andrew said calmly, getting straight down to business.

'You don't need to be that serious, do you?' the director replied as he whispered into his assistant's ear.

'Come on, let's drink,' the director said as he poured out the whiskey he brought in his bag.

"He can't, so I will drink for him," Astrid said.

"Who is she?" the director asked.

"She is my girlfriend, Astrid Walton," Andrew replied, making Astrid wonder if he actually meant it or if it was just a tag, because this was the second time he introduced her this way.

"That's nice. It's good to see that you're dating someone, that's good. Impressive," the director said.

"Why can't you drink?" the director asked.

"I'm driving," Andrew replied coldly.

"It's okay, I will drink. I have high alcohol tolerance, so I'm suitable," his secretary, Kimberly, said.

"Wow, that sounds like a challenge," the director said, letting out a hearty laugh.

"Kimberly" Andrew called sternly.

"Eish...Why are you ruining all the fun?" the director asked.

"It's fine," Kimberly said, dismissing Andrew with a smile. Kimberly wondered why she agreed to come in the first place, now watching them act all lovely, which made her unhappy.

She has been watching Astrid and Andrew flirt with each other, both verbally and physically. Now her heart feels heavy.

"I really need this shot," Kimberly said to herself.

"Let's sign this now so we can party as we like," Andrew said.

"Why are you ruining all the fun?" the director asked.

"Don't you think it's much better if we sign this and party as we want? We could also celebrate our partnership. Don't you think it's a good idea?"

"Fine, fine. But first, we need to do a toast," Andrew said, faking a smile as he handed a pen to the director.

As soon as they were done signing, his assistant came back with two girls dressed in short red seductive gowns, and they both wore red masks.

The director clapped because they looked good.

Astrid turned to look at Andrew with a face that said "really?" Andrew smirked and decided to watch them dance.

"This is good stuff, right?" the director asked as one of the girls leaned in and pecked him.

Andrew didn't enjoy this because he felt they were dirty, used and discarded by other men.

Andrew couldn't leave immediately, or else it would seem rude.

His secretary continued drinking continuously, which made Andrew wonder what was bothering her.

He called John to come and take her home.

Astrid sat there, watching Andrew's expression, to see if he would be swooned by them and the girls.

But the director noticed and filled Astrid's glass with whiskey.

"Come on, girl, this is for our corporation," he said as he gave Astrid a drink.

But she politely refused.

"No, I can't drink alcohol," Astrid said.

"Oh, come on," the director said.

"She can't drink," Andrew said sternly, which made the director back off.

He simply smiled and faced the girls dancing.

Andrew understood it all. He planned to make Astrid drowsy so Andrew would have time to spend with these girls.

Andrew looked at Astrid, whose arms and legs were crossed, and her eyes were watching him.

"I'm sorry, but I need to leave," Andrew said with a smile as he looked at Astrid's face.

"What about your gift?" the director said, which Andrew knew he was talking about the girls.

"Mm, I appreciate it so much, but she's much more important," Andrew said, as he scooped Astrid into his arms.

Making Astrid wonder what he meant by "she's much more important."

Why did she take a liking to his words?

Does he like her?

Are they an item now?

Maybe it was something he didn't mean.

She kept pondering on the words.

Why did he scoop her up? Her legs were functioning perfectly.

She sighed. She wanted to get it out of her head.

She wanted to know if she and Andrew were really an item,if he meant his words.

"Okay, then go on," the director said, laughing.

Andrew put Astrid in the car and drove off.