Mike Willis

"Oh... Stress..." she mumbled softly. Her slender fingers slowly and gently massaged her forehead before proceeding to her swan-like neck while her eyes closed.

She kept her eyes closed for another five minutes. Paul who sat across her looked on. He wanted to tell her to rest, but it seemed his lady boss was not someone who leaves her work midway.

"Paul..." Paul gulped when he heard her called her sweetly that his ears turning red. It was lucky that his lady boss still had her eyes closed.

"Do you have a girlfriend?" Paul was dumbstruck with her sudden question. He scratched his head.

When Paul didn't answer her, Rose opened her eyes and studied his expression.

"Uh... You don't have a girlfriend, do you?" she hit the nail right in the eyes. Paul reluctantly blushed.

"I need to secure my job before I could think of having a girlfriend, miss," he answered, shyly. He lowered his eyes to the floor, avoiding his lady boss scorching gaze as if she was intended to swallow him whole.

"Is that so? No wonder you always stick to my side. Don't you know that you are only making yourself a problem?" she probed him. Paul astounded.

"Problem? What problem miss?" he asked back, curious.

"People would think I'm your girlfriend and that, my dear assistant, will make you lose your chances to get yourself a real girlfriend," she said casually before ending it with a shrugged. Paul was dumbstruck when he heard her. He then chuckled nervously to mask his real feeling at the moment. Gosh! His lady boss was too reckless to voice her opinion. No wonder most of the head of departments, managers as well as a few directors were wary of her. She was the kind that straightforward and a bit ruthless. Outspoken.

"I never think of that, yet, miss." He replied to her. Rose burst out a laugh and looked at him.

"Gosh! Paul, you need to start to think of your future. How old are you now?"

"25 years miss." he curtly answered her. His face reddened all of sudden as his lady boss asked him his age. Rose gaped. Surprised by the fact that he was still young.

"All the more you need to find a girlfriend!" she exclaimed in the end.

"I think that can wait, miss," he replied with an abashed smile on his face.

While the two were enjoying their conversation, someone stood straight outside the door. Sarah looked at the tall man before her with a yearning look from where she sat. She quickly gathered her courage and asked, "Do you want to meet Miss CEO, Director Mike?" she flashed her sweetest smile at him, but unfortunately for Sarah, the man that she dreamed of only nodded his head with a gruff. She gulped down her saliva nervously.

"Er… Do you need me to inform Miss CEO?" she asked.

"No need. I'll go in myself. You may continue your work," he refused her swiftly and knocked on the door before both of them could hear a businesslike voice commanded to enter. Sarah quickly returned to her seat and watched the man entered the CEO's office, dejectedly. She had been harboured feeling for the man since the first time she set her eyes on him. She knew it was foolish of her to think of impossible. Just based on his appearance, it was obvious that this kind of man only had their eyes on the most exquisite and well-mannered lady, like her lady boss. She pouted her lips, feeling dissatisfied with her own destiny. How unfair! She wailed internally and buried her little face on the piling files on her table.

Inside the CEO office.

Paul quickly excused himself and went out, leaving the two alone in the office. Rose gestured Mike to take a seat across her. She indeed appeared businesslike lady whenever she was on business talk. And this characteristic of hers gained his admiration. Charismatic. She was definitely born a leader. The way she solved a few setbacks a few days ago enough to make others look up at her, amazed, inspired. But those were not what attract Mike to come closer to her. He didn't know why he was drawn towards this woman, his lady boss, although he had different agenda for her in the first place. Damn! This woman was indeed dangerous.

"What can I help you, Director Mike?" she asked him, her left brow arched into a beautiful arch that attracted his attention. He had never thought to see the way she arched her brows was mesmerising and soul-wrenching at the same time. Soul wrenching as she was his lady boss.

Mike took a deep breath and quickly shook off his nonsense thoughts and placed a folder on her table. She took the folder and opened it to find it was a proposal of one of the projects that she was eyeing so far. She brought the file and went to sit on the black leather sofa. Mike followed suit and took his seat next to her.

"I have prepared a proposal. So, you might want to go through it before we go and meet our client later this evening."Rose nodded her head knowingly.

She bit her lip and started to flip through the proposal. Mike took the courtesy to glance at her up close.

Her skin fair and no doubt supple and soft. Her lashes long and curled. Her cheeks tinted with a pinkish blush that made her appeared youthful. Young and vibrant, indeed. And her lips, smoking red and it was tempting to kiss them. The swell of her breasts beneath her green flowery chiffon blouse was so obvious that he could feel a sudden rush to his groin and he found it so suffocating to control his urge to act foolishly. Not to mention the front slit of her skirt, exposing her fair-skinned thighs that really challenging to keep his manhood at bay. Her fragrance assaulted his nose and it was such a refresh scent that made one be intoxicated. Totally different from those who put on too much fragrance that would kill his mood instantly.

Rose took about twenty minutes to read the proposal. She turned to Mike and smiled.

"The proposal is good, but there are a few things that we need to amend." She passed the folder back to Mike and stood, swiftly walked towards her working table and took her Surface Book 2 and walked back to him. Mike who was watching feeling curious.

"I believe you have the thumb drive with you. Why don't we make some amendments now, hmmm?" Mike was dumbstruck with the swift way she handled the matter at hand. What made him even stunned when she suggested with a soft voice that sent a wave of weird feeling into his heart. Her eyes flashing with complete trust.

"I don't have my thumb drive with me. But, rest assure. I can retrieve the document through my Google Drive. Please allow me." Seeing Rose agreed to let him use her laptop, he went on and began to make the necessary amendments.

Rose left him with his task and went to her landline and called Paul to enter. A second later, Paul entered.

"Paul, I will go to meet a client later on with Director Mike. So, you don't have to come with me this time." She informed him while plastering a reassuring smile on her face. Usually, Paul would come with her to every meetings and occasion that she needed to attend. But since Director Mike will be the one accompanied her, so she thought it would be best to let Paul slack once a while.

Paul was taken aback slightly. What? But his mission was to look after her. To keep her out of dangers. How could he abandon her? But looking at the way she smiled reassuring, he relented.

"Noted Miss. Please take care," he said in the end.

"Sure. Don't worry. Director Mike is with me. And -" she paused a while before adding, "If Mr Townshend asks my whereabouts, just tell him I'm on a business trip. Thanks" Paul gaped. What does she mean by that? What business trip? Lady boss... He looked hesitate with the new task given.

Paul was not the only one surprised by what she said. Mike's ears perked up in interest upon hearing what she had said. This is something new... He quickly made the amendments before he stood and placed the laptop on the coffee table.

"Well, it's done. May I proceed to print them?" he asked. Rose turned to him and nodded her head before said, "Go ahead. Press CTRL and P, and print." Mike simply did what she said and got the proposal printed readily.

Rose looked at Paul before she patted his shoulder gently. "Don't worry, please. I feel like I have another brother when you are so overprotective towards me. I appreciate it. Really." she quickly ushered him to go away before she turned around and bam! She crashed right into Mike's firm and muscular chest and also, stepped on his shoes that she was off-balanced and almost fell off backward. She was lucky that Mike just in time to catch her by her slender waist.

"Sorry. I don't know that you are behind me," she apologised. She only had herself to blame that her nose scrunched up painfully.

"It's okay. My fault for standing right behind you," Paul who watched them felt indescribable feeling deep inside.