Vol. 1-04: Need a Girlfriend Statue

"Aunika, you can't let him get away like that!" Yuki slammed her hands on the table and stood up.

The group were in the flower shop, gathered around a round table in the back room. Take out boxes littered the surface. They shook from Yuki's force. Sakura snatched an open juice bottle right before it could fall.

Sighing, Aunika raised the check from Whitlock Hotel. She ended up selling the flowers after careful thought. If Mr. Davidson was demanding his investment, she wouldn't have been able to pay it without this check.

Yuki sat back down when she didn't receive a reply. She grabbed her boss by the arm and whined, "Aunikaaaa."

"We don't have evidence, Yuki." Aunika patted her hand and smiled gently. It wouldn't be worth it to investigate. It would lead to a lawsuit and they didn't have the resources—which was entirely in Mr. Davidson's favor.

Why he would stage a scene like this against the flower shop was something Aunika can't figure out. If he really needed the money, she would have found a way to give it back.

With how it turned out, she could only guess it was for selfish reasons and he didn't want to be painted in a bad light.

"So you'll just hand him back his money?" Sakura asked. He cleaned up the empty containers, tossing them into a trash bag.

Aunika shrugged and hid the check in her wallet. "Either way, we were able to sell the flowers. That's still a good thing."

"Yeah but… we'd still lose a lot of money…"

"Don't worry. We'll find a way."

Back in the Whitlock Hotel, the general manager's office had something else going on. The office was enclosed from the rest of the hotel staff floor. It had its own conference room and pantry. The entrance would lead to a lounge where Hugo, Dion and Louis stayed as Cal's assistants. Their desks were on the other side of the room, furthest from the main door.

Louis moved his laptop to a small dining table, typing away. His bushy eyebrows knitted in concentration. "And… post!"

"What the hell are you doing?" Dion asked as he looked up from his work computer. He leaned back on his chair for a better view of Louis. "Don't you have reports due today?"

"That can wait. This can't." Louis turned his laptop around for Dion to see. "I posted an ad about for boss' date. I called it: 'Are you the Lucky Girl?'"

Dion narrowed his coral eyes. When it came to graphic layout, Louis was the best out of the three of them. The only downside to his talent were his lame slogans and catchphrases.

"Handsome, rich, single, gentle…," Dion read out loud. "Since when was the boss gentle? Your ad is misleading. Also, how do you plan to filter out suspicious applicants?"

"I was thinking you can handle that, Mr. Tech."

Rolling his eyes, Dion got to work. It was better to do it now than later. They couldn't risk any breaches even if it seemed unlikely to happen. "I hope you used VPN before posting or boss can trace that add to our office."

"Oops—"

"What is it this time?" Hugo greeted them as he came out of Cal's personal office. Dion pointed at Louis, implying he wasn't at fault.

"Look what I made, Hugo!" Louis declared and directed the laptop screen towards him.

Hugo glared at the ad. "That's… a terrible idea. Don't count my share of the blind date in that ad."

Since Cal agreed to meet three women, Hugo wasted no time to complain further. He had to make this opportunity count. This woman could make or break the future of their company and their clan. She had shoes to fill and standards to check off.

An ad like Louis made would only attract flies.

Louis rolled his eyes. "Are you saying you have a better idea?"

"I'm saying I have a less stupid idea," Hugo responded. He sat at his desk which was behind Dion. His first thoughts about the plan was to figure out Cal's ideal type.

Luckily, he may have an answer to that.

"Speaking of ideas…" Dion voiced out loud as he finished the security protection for Louis' ad. "We should have asked Aunika to join the blinde date."

"The florist?" Louis exclaimed, his eyebrows shooting up.

Dion nodded. "Yeah, I liked her. Good personality, good head on her shoulders, business-minded like boss… They're about the same age too. Don't you think they'd kick it off?"

Louis bit his inner cheek and thought about it. Aunika did seem like a good match for Cal… "But if we want to work with her shop, boss would reject the idea."

"Hm…" Dion pressed his lips together. "You're right. That's too bad. I'll have to think of another way to find a blind date for boss."

"So you're also against my idea?"

"I'm saying three methods are better than one." Dion winked. He went back to work, pushing the blind date aside. There was no hurry. It wasn't like Cal had any woman in mind. He never looked at any of them more than necessary.

At that, Dion knitted his brows.

Should he look for a different gender?

In his office, Cal sneezed. He rubbed his nose and grabbed another folder of documents. His email was open on his computer screen. He glanced at it every few seconds. Noticing this, he forced himself to concentrate on the project proposal in his hands.

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This didn't last long. His icy blue eyes stared at the computer. Then, his hand moved to the mouse and his finger clicked on the left button. The inbox collapsed, revealing his desktop background of a painting with brown eyes smiling at something he couldn't see.

Cal's mind recalled his conversation with Hugo.

"Do you agree with Louis?" Cal said as he signed the final contract with a supplier.

Hugo blinked. "I beg your pardon?"

Cal handed the file back to him. "I was asking if you think I'm lonely and that I need a girlfriend."

"..." Hugo gritted his teeth. He wasn't sure what Cal was implying or what the agenda was.

Cal tilted his head sideways, a devious smile on his lips. The sight of it made Hugo grimace.

"Not funny, boss," he muttered. "Next thing you'll say is you have a criteria list for your blind dates."

"I can make demands?" Cal exclaimed, exaggerating a little. "You should have said so earlier. I like this. I want a girl who looks like a work of art."

Hugo opened his mouth then closed it again. Should he take the bait or not? With Cal, it was hard to guess when he was serious or not.

"You want a statue?"

Cal frowned. Hugo really had a low sense of humor. This wasn't fun at all. "I said she should look like one, not a literal piece of art."

He turned back to his computer when his phone rang. Cal excused himself for a minute, minimizing all the programs he had opened. He stood up and faced the window. His voice was low as he talked.

Every now and then, he'd sneak a glance at Hugo. His assistant may not have a funny bone but he had a better brain than the other two. He should figure out what was unspoken.

His icy blue eyes flickered away any time Hugo almost caught him. After a few glances, Cal spotted his assistant staring at his desktop background. A smirk stretched on his lips.

It was a stretch but he hoped Hugo's perfectionist nature would prompt him to find an exact match to the painting—and Cal could only wait to see if he'd bring the right person.

In the present time, Cal admired his photo background. He and her only crossed paths once since that day. The painting was a recreation of that fluttering moment. He didn't want to forget it nor forget what she looked like now.

Cal sighed and turned his head away.

His hand clenched into a fist.

Would it be too selfish to bring her into his world?

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Aunika sat by herself in a local bar. At this time of the day, it had a peaceful atmosphere and only a few cutomers. She ordered a glass of water while waiting for Mr. Davidson. The gears in her head worked out how she should approach this matter.

She heard the entrance open and lifted her head.

Mr. Davidson walked in, locating her position. He was a businessman who bought flowers from her small stand one day. The enthusiasm she had when he offered to invest still lingered in her mind. He seemed like a decent enough man…

… so why would he want to bring her down now?

"Aunika, I can't tell you how unprofessional that was of you," he said, not bothering to exchange pleasantries and sat down on the bench across from her. "Are you slacking because your business isn't gaining profit recently?"

Taking a deep breath, Aunika focused on a soft tone. "My services haven't lowered at all. But I acknowledge that I could have done better."

"If you know that then, you should have! Business has been terrible lately. You needed to go the extra mile. This has happened too many times. You're just not cut out for this. I should have known that you were too young and lacking. I want my money back. Give it to me in 3 days—"

Aunika stood up and slammed the check onto the table.