Date The CEO.com

The week flew by smoothly. Ambryan had agreed on the plan to lay low for the time being. He dedicated his time on his work, fully using his energy on it. He attended meetings, reviewed reports and checked on the running movies. They did well in theaters and broke through their revenue goals.

Nothing was out of the ordinary. 

It was now Friday.

Eve stood behind her desk.

She faced the low cabinets and flipped through a folder in her hands. It had the files for every business trip her boss had taken. She had organized it by month, making it easier to track down whichever document she needed. 

For now, she searched for a business trip over a year ago. It seemed that Ambryan would take it again in two months. She had to prepare the accommodations by using the previous one as reference. She remembered the name of the hotel but she wanted to be sure.

Her glasses slid down her nose. 

She pushed them back up.

The intercom rang from her table. Her gaze stayed on the folder while she reached to answer it.

"Yes, Darryl?" Eve said, using the speaker mode. She found the month for the file. All that was left was to go through its documents, using the hotel as her keyword.

"Ms. Hart!" He exclaimed. "Chairman is on his way up!"

The folder clattered on the floor. Eve stared at the intercom with wide eyes. "What did you say?"

"Chairman went inside the elevator and he is on his way to see boss."

"Is it the board meeting already?" She muttered, her mind racing. She picked up the folder and placed it on her table. "Thank you, Darryl. I will take it from her."

Eve dialled on the phone but thought better of it. Instead, she propped a knee on her chair and rolled towards her computer. She opened the company chat window. Her fingers typed out one message,

``Sir Hathaway, Chairman is coming.``

Then, she headed for the CEO's office.

Ambryan looked up when she came in. It had only been two seconds since he saw her chat pop out. Anything he had ongoing would be set aside for the time being. He saved the files and closed them. He set his online status to ``In a Meeting`` which was more effective than ``Do Not Disturb`` or ``Busy`` since those were his usual ones.

Eve aimed for the tea set and carried it to the pantry across her desk. Both men enjoyed their black tea. Since they preferred it without sugar and milk, she only needed to boil the water at the right temperature. She cleaned out the cups and pot while she waited.

She checked the overhead cabinets for pantry supplies, looking for available finger snacks. There wasn't time to order in from a café so biscuits and cookies would have to do. An unopened shortbread biscuits caught her eye.

Placing them neatly on a ceramic plate, she dived for the refrigerator and took out the fruit jams.

The elevator dinged.

Eve doubled her speed. 

The water finished boiling. She poured it into the teapot. Using paper towels, she wiped off the cups and placed them back on the tray. All of the mini jars had been opened with the top of their spoons peeking out. She set them beside the biscuits and walked out of the pantry.

"Good afternoon, Chairman," Eve greeted with a bow of her head. 

Jackson Hathaway stopped in his steps. His teal eyes flickered towards her and his face betrayed zero emotion. The buttons of his pinstriped suit latched together. A muted violet tie stood out between the lapels. Its matching handkerchief peeked out of the breast pocket.

Between him and Ambryan, Eve always found the Chairman more intimidating. Maybe it was because he was older? She found similarities in their mannerisms though. 

"Good afternoon, Eve," he finally responded and pushed the door, opening it for her. "Is there blackberry jam?"

"Of course." She beamed as she walked in. Her legs moved fast, unsure of how to feel by the Chairman's gesture of holding the door open. She cursed in her head when she realized that she hadn't thanked him.

Except, she already reached Ambryan's desk—a few meters away from the Chairman. She missed the chance. The tray occupied most of the table's free space. She moved aside once she finished her task.

Relief washed over her nervous heart.

She made it in time, at least.

"Hm." Jackson hummed. He stalked towards the CEO's desk. Nothing had changed since the time he occupied the office. The furnishings stayed where they were. The color palette remained the same.

"Chairman," Ambryan greeted, walking around his table. He held out his hand for a shake. "It's been a while. Thank you for stopping by. Would you like to see the rest of the building?"

Eve stopped her jaw from dropping. Were they going to leave? What about the tea she prepared? It wouldn't be the same anymore later, even when reheated. 

"That wouldn't be necessary," Jackson replied, returning the handshake. He advanced towards the desk and bumped shoulders with his son. "My purpose resides in this office."

Ambryan shuffled his feet. They faced one side while his head shifted in his father's direction. Skepticism reflected in his violet eyes. "And what would that be?"

Jackson spun on his heels and rested his bottom on the table's edge. His arms crossed over his chest as he responded, "Evangeline Reed, newest model under Lotus Agency and newest girlfriend of Eros' CEO. Care to share some light on the subject?"

Eve gripped her hands. She bit her tongue, trying to resist a reaction. Avery hadn't mentioned anything about this. So the Chairman wasn't in on the secret? Why? One glance between him and his son gave her the answer.

Despite their formal way of address, they had a closer relationship. They understood each other. Between his wife and his son, Eve figured that Jackson would choose his son's side and oppose the plan if he wished it.

He could expose the secret.

Maybe he'd have her fired too.

Eve gulped at the idea. Should she leave? She hadn't been dismissed though. They might need something… but then, they could communicate through the phone. She had to watch over it anyway since there would be people asking for Ambryan. 

She would reply on his behalf—which would be rude to do while inside this office.

"Enjoy your refreshments, Chairman. Sir Hathaway," she spoke up, bowing low at each gentleman. "If you need me, I'll be at my desk continuing my work."

With that said, Eve made her grand escape.

"Never seen you interested in my romantic relationships before," Ambryan said after she left. He headed back for his chair, dodging the question. "I think I had worse controversies in the past. Mother surely loved to remind me of them."

Jackson turned around. His tongue clicked in complaint. "But this one stands out among the rest, doesn't she? After all, you created a spectacle of yourselves at that launch party."

Something Stuart Wilson raved to him about. The old man still had the fantasy of marrying their children off to each other. Jackson spent a considerable time listening through the other party's combination of congratulations and whines. 

The conversation only emphasized how much he didn't know.

"Is that the only reason why you're here?" Ambryan challenged. He poured the tea in both cups and set one of them closer to the other side, waiting for his father to sit down.

"I can't seem to find information on her."

His eyebrows raised at this. "That's impossible."

He may have succeeded as the current CEO but, in terms of power, Jackson Hathaway still occupied the higher position. Nothing less was to be expected when he had been in the industry longer. If anything, his vast influence only grew farther each passing day.

Ambryan wouldn't admit it but he had hoped his father would do the investigations on Evangeline. He was more cautious about the people their family interacted with. Evangeline's mysterious background would be enough to push him to investigate. 

It seemed like that hope had been crushed.

"Not when your mother is blocking it." Jackson sighed and settled on a chair. He lifted the teacup to his lips, inhaling its scent. "I don't know how or why but she managed to infiltrate my network."

"So you're also prohibited from finding more about her," Ambryan concluded. "She has this notion that I must get to know Evangeline without external help. She must have imposed the same thing on you."

"Seems like it. She also wouldn't answer any of my questions even when I asked to meet this girlfriend of yours." The latter bugged Jackson the most. It would have been fine if he couldn't investigate but Avery also zipped her lips on the subject. It rked him—as if she really didn't want him to know.

The nagging feeling pestered him constantly. 

He needed answers. 

And he needed them now.

"So you came here," Ambryan finished. He reached for a biscuit and coated it in strawberry jam. The flavorful spread coated his tongue in sweetness. He washed it down with a sip of tea. 

Jackson put his cup down and laced his fingers together, setting his elbows on the table. He stared straight into his son's eyes. "Let me repeat. Care to share some light on the subject?"