George also wants Astrid.

George went straight to the mirror after she left to check on his babies (hair). He wanted to ensure Astrid hadn't ripped them off when she pulled his hair hard. When he was satisfied, he came out, but Astrid was long gone.

"He decided not to chase her because he knew exactly where to find her," George thought to himself.

Meanwhile, Astrid had forgotten all about the morning's events because she was entirely focused on work. Suddenly, she heard her coworkers screaming. She peeked and saw George walking into her department, taking her partner's chair, and sitting down.

Everyone was looking at George, stealing glances at the super-hot model who had been on the cover of multiple magazines since he was little. He sat beside Astrid and watched her with a smile on his face, hoping Astrid would notice him and ask why he was there.

But instead, Astrid behaved like he was invisible.

Mrs Karen noticed the disturbance among their workers and was informed of the celebrity commotion. "Good day, Mr Smith. I would like us to talk in my office regarding why you're here," she said.

"Oh, she knows why," George said, pointing at Astrid and smiling.

"Please, if it's something personal, I believe you can settle it when she's done with her work."

"She's on her lunch break now, I checked the time before coming so she's meant to be free," George added.

Mrs Karen replied, "As you can see, she's at work and has a lot of files to handle, with deadlines to meet. I believe you can sort things out after work, as you're disturbing the other workers."

George looked around and caught some ladies smiling. He expected it; after all, his physique screamed HOT!!.

"It's alright; I'll leave. I'll see you later, darling," he said, touching Astrid's head with a smile and walking away.

"Are you okay?" Mrs Karen asked Astrid after George left.

"I'm fine ,thank you for the save" Astrid replied with a smile. She couldn't exchange words with George here, not when her workers surrounded her. There was no place in this company that was private. She heard them talking about what happened yesterday - how she had the guts to pour coffee on a famous influencer. They were saying bad things about her. When they didn't even know the whole story? She said not to bother herself with it, because they had already been talking right from when she started working here. They were talking about her fall from 'grace to grass'. So exchanging words with George about the engagement would only give them more topics to gossip about.

Her phone beeped with a text from George: "I'd like us to talk about the engagement at Sun Glows Hotel by 6 PM." She dropped the phone, feeling annoyed. She didn't know why life was so mean to her, always attacking her with problems.

George felt happy - as happy as a bird. He felt free because his problems would vanish into thin air, and he would run his very own architecture company, living the dream life instead of being forced to pose and smile in front of a camera. He'd been a model right from when he was six; he hated it because it wasn't something he wanted to do. Now, the only thing he liked about the modeling job was the attention he got from females.

"I have a business meeting with a business partner by 5 PM, and I want you to be gone before then," he said to his assistant.

"Yes, sir," she replied, applying powder to his face.

****************

George decided to go and see his competitor, Andrew, and ask why he refused to fund his project.

"Good day, Mr Smith," Miss Kimberly, Andrew's secretary, greeted. "I'm here to see Mr Thompson. Is he around?"

"Do you have an appointment?" She asked politely.

"Why should I book one?" George asked with sarcasm while walking towards Andrew's office.

"Stop there!" Miss Kimberly called, but George laughed.

"What are you doing here?" Andrew asked as George walked in and sat on his chair. "Uhm, I'm here to ask why didn't you fund my project. Was it because I strangled your slut in front of your workers?" George asked with a smile, trying to provoke Andrew.

"Your project wasn't worth funding; it's useless," George felt enraged by his last word, "useless." He has heard that word countless times from everyone in his family, from numerous companies he applied to, even from Astrid. He hated it.

George smiled, stood up, fixed his hand in his pocket, and walked towards Andrew. "I heard news you're gonna be a father. That's good, but I wish I could say congratulations to that, but unfortunately, I can't because it's not gonna happen," George said and Andrew understood the meaning of the words, but he decided to keep it cool because he knew what George was looking for right from the minute he called Astrid a "slut."

"Don't you dare hurt Astrid," Andrew replied calmly.

"Oh, it's not Astrid; it's the baby," George said, as he laughed. Andrew's face the looked the same; it was void of emotions, which annoyed George. This wasn't how he expected it to look like; it wasn't fun as he imagined it to be. He expected Andrew to strangle him, threaten him with all sorts of threats regarding Astrid and the baby, but it wasn't happening.

"Well, I have a meeting today with your mother; I better go so I won't be late,see you." George said as he left his office, expecting Andrew to ask what he wants, why he has a meeting with his mother, why he has problems with his family. But rather Andrew was quiet, which frustrated George the more.

When George left, Andrew picked up his phone and called his bank manager.

"Hello?"

"Hello, good evening, Mr Thompson," the manager greeted in a polite tone.

"I want you to block my mother's account. The maximum amount she should be allowed to withdraw per week is one million," he said, ignoring the bank manager's greetings.

"Why so, if I may ask?" the bank manager asked.

"Because she's about to be blackmailed, and I don't want her to give in."

"Ok, who exactly is the blackmailer?" Andrew ended the call, not wanting to discuss more than necessary with the nosy manager. He dialed John's number.

"Yes, sir," John replied at the other end.

"I want you to watch my mother closely and find out her whereabouts. Follow her closely, make sure she's safe. Assign someone to watch Astrid too, but do not let both of them notice that they are being followed."

"Yes, sir," John replied.

Andrew sat up and decided to think about why George tried to hurt his family, especially the child. But he couldn't come up with any reason, probably because his mind was foggy. So he decided to try and continue with work.