True Love

Author：Wen Jiu Zhan Zhu Ma

I confessed my love to Garrett York, only to be slapped in the face and driven out of the country.

Eight years later, he knocked on my door in the middle of the night and hugged me, his eyes misty. "Josie, don't leave me," he said.

1

My boss, Randall Thornton, was a playboy from a wealthy family.

He didn't like working, but he hated Garrett York, who ran competing Brandes Investment Partners.

So he was overjoyed to learn that I had poached five top-notch clients from Brandes Investment Partners in my first month at the firm.

He called Garrett in front of me to gloat about it. But before he could finish his sentence, Garrett hung up on him.

But it didn't affect his mood at all. He happily told me that Garrett liked to pretend to be cold and distant.

I responded with a smile. Garrett had been like this since childhood.

"He was so great and arrogant. I finally have a chance. I have to rub it in."

To spite Garrett, Randall proudly took me to their private meeting.

As soon as we entered the private room, Randall took me to find Garrett.

We met a man at the door. "Another new girlfriend? No wonder you've been glowing lately," he teased.

"Stop it. This is my savior." Randall put his arm around my shoulder and led me inside.

The room was dim, and men and women were sitting in a circle.

Randall whistled at the person in the middle and said, "Mr. York, you look like you are in a good mood."

As he spoke, he brought me forward and said, "I want to introduce you to someone. Josie Dixon. My most valuable employee."

I squinted, trying my best to see Garrett in the shadows.

He put a cigarette between his lips, and the beautiful woman next to him immediately lifted a lighter to his mouth.

Flames leaped and shone on his cold face. He shot a glance at the woman.

Her face was blushing with expectation. He withdrew his gaze sarcastically and leaned back without lighting it.

Randall couldn't wait to use me to spite Garrett. "I heard that Brandes Investment Partners' stock dropped ten points last month because you lost five clients to us. You see, this is the woman who poached them."

Garrett lifted his chin and looked straight at me. His gaze was calm and detached.

I gritted my teeth, not out of nervousness, but out of years of resentment.

"Josie, look what you've done. Light the cigarette for Mr. York as a gesture of apology. I'll feel guilty if Mr. York gets too angry." Randall held back his laughter and urged me to make Garrett feel worse.

He gave me a lighter. "Tell Mr. York that you dare to do the same thing again."

I looked at the lighter in my hand and thought that one day Randall would pay for being so mean.

"Forget it. Mr. York just turned down such a beautiful lady. I don't want to overreach myself," I said with a smile, fiddling with the lighter.

"Maybe I'm blind." Garrett took the cigarette from his lips and slowly lowered his eyes.

I was being sarcastic, but he just took the opportunity to humiliate me! What a wicked, petty man!

He sounded like he was making fun of himself, but in fact, the implication was that I was ugly.

I looked at the woman next to him, whose face was obviously plastic-surgically altered, and said, smiling, "Mr. York, you do make a fair point."

He was indeed blind.

2

Garrett turned to me with a deep, cold gaze.

"You're amazing, babe. You're the first person to dare say Mr. York is blind." Randall gave me a thumbs up, happy to see what I had just done.

"Randall," Garrett asked, "where is she on your list of babes?"

He was so evil.

Fortunately, I wasn't Randall's girlfriend, otherwise, I would fight with him and Garrett would have his way.

Randall snorted. "This is pure slander..."

I interrupted him and raised my eyebrows provocatively at Garrett. "This has nothing to do with you!"

Garrett looked at me with a frown, his lips curving into a malicious smile.

The atmosphere was tense.

Even the insensitive Randall could tell that something was wrong with me.

He turned me around on the shoulder and whispered, "Do you have a grudge against him?"

"No." I played dumb. "Didn't you ask me to take him down a peg?"

Randall was confused and suspicious. He muttered, "Why do I feel like you're using this opportunity for revenge?"

He was right in his instinct.

I wouldn't admit it, of course. I blinked innocently and said, "I was only following your orders. Now that I've offended Mr. York, you're not going to pass the buck, are you?"

"Pass the buck? Nonsense. I'm not afraid of offending him."

"That's good to hear," I said, beaming.

While I was whispering to Randall, Garrett got up and left, followed by the woman.

"Mr. York, you are leaving? I haven't lit a cigarette for you yet," I asked, looking at his back and smiling a smile of dry amusement.

To my surprise, he replied.

"Then come and do it." He leaned to the side and looked at my face with an inexplicable expression.

I was stunned. Before I could react, he had walked out.

"He was asking you to go with him?" Randall frowned. "Is he trying to poach you?"

I raised my head and said, "Mr. Thornton, if my hand trembles and I accidentally set fire to Mr. York's hair, will you pay him for me?"

Randall's mouth twitched. "It looks like he won't be able to poach you. Don't worry. As long as you dare, I have enough money to compensate him."

"Then I'm relieved."

I left the private room to follow Garrett and caught up with him at the entrance to the club.

He was standing next to the car, one hand in his pocket, eyes downcast, listening to the woman beside him.

The woman said something, and he gave a faint smile

He didn't intend to answer. The woman clenched her fists nervously.

As I hesitated whether to go over, he lifted his eyelids and looked over.

He asked with a half smile, "You're here to light the cigarette for me?"

3

There was a hint of mockery in his tone, and my anger suddenly intensified.

"Or what?" I sneered with a fake smile. "You can't possibly think I came to you for anything else?"

He raised his eyebrows in interest, his gaze fixed on my face.

Then he put the cigarette between his lips and said slowly, "Light it now."

I walked closer to him, turned on the lighter, and brought the flame closer to his lips.

The flame leaped in the cold breeze. I could smell the faint scent of his body, familiar to me from many years ago. It pulled on my heartstrings.

My hand trembled and the flame brushed past the cigarette. It was not lit.

"You can't even do this?" He raised an eyebrow.

He gently pushed the back of my hand and bent his head down to light the cigarette.

I retracted my hand in a panic and gritted my teeth.

He knew my feelings too well. After so many years, I couldn't help but feel nervous when getting closer to him.

He saw this, but he seemed to be watching a joke and chose to mock me.

Sad and upset, I forced myself to calm down. "Mr. York, you'll soon find out what I can do."

If I could poach five of his clients, I could do ten and twenty...

Garrett's eyes narrowed in the thin white smoke. He could easily see what I was up to.

He turned his face to the busy street and casually said, "Go for it."

I suddenly felt powerless. I had so much to say, but my self-esteem prevented me.

A strange silence reigned.

"Miss." The woman next to him suddenly called out to me.

I turned to her and asked, "What?"

"Maybe it's a bit presumptuous, but I'd like to say something anyway." Her tone was harsh. "You stole clients from Mr. York, which proves you're capable, but don't you think that's immoral?"

"Immoral?" I was amused.

Practitioners poaching each other's clients was common. I didn't use illegal means. How could it be immoral?

The woman's eyes were full of contempt. "That's right. Not only are you immoral, but you are also disgusting, showing off in front of the victim."

Now I knew what this was all about. She was blaming me for interrupting her private meeting with Garrett.

I looked at her, who was deeply in love with Garrett, and was at a loss for words.

As I was in a daze, Garrett's cold voice rang out. "Shut up!"