"Miss Vance, aside from that, could you change your story next time?" Caleb Hayes toyed with his pen, studying Evelyn with a thoughtful gaze.
Evelyn was so mortified she wanted to disappear into the floor. The next second, she looked up at Caleb in surprise. "Mr. Hayes, how do you know my last name is Vance?"
"I know your last name isn't the only thing. I know your full name is Evelyn Vance. You studied finance at T University. You're currently an intern at Sterling Group. As of today, we've met three times. Once when you boarded the wrong bus under Sterling Tower. Twice when you entered Starlight Holdings. To be precise, it should be four times. We've met twice today, haven't we?" Caleb replied with a smile.
"So Mr. Hayes has done his homework. Don't worry, I'm not a threat. I have no intentions toward you. I'm just a small intern at Sterling Group. The contract is here. If there's nothing else, I'll head back to the office. Goodbye, Mr. Hayes!" Evelyn grabbed the paper bag and placed it on Caleb's desk. Her voice was tight with forced cheerfulness.
She turned toward the door. Then she heard his voice again. "I didn't wait for you to come to dinner tonight."
What does this guy want?
"What a shame. What about tomorrow night?" Caleb pressed on.
"I have plans tomorrow night. And the night after that. Mr. Hayes, is there anything else?" Evelyn took a deep breath and answered.
Caleb just smiled at her.
Evelyn fought the urge to roll her eyes. She just wanted to leave.
Then Caleb spoke again. "Evelyn, be my girlfriend!"
Evelyn's legs went weak. Her forehead nearly hit the door panel.
She steadied herself for a moment. Then she turned around with a forced smile. "Mr. Hayes, I'm married! You wouldn't want to be the other man, would you? Ha ha, I know you're joking with me! There's nothing else. I'll go back to the office now. Goodbye, Mr. Hayes!"
With that, she yanked the door open and fled as if a ghost were chasing her.
She added silently in her head. I hope I never run into you again.
I can't believe that weirdo is the general manager of Starlight Holdings. Looks like that company is doomed.
Should she tell Alexander to cut ties with them? That would save Sterling Group some losses.
Evelyn was lost in thought as she walked out of the Starlight Holdings headquarters.
Caleb stared at the closed door. A smile spread across his face.
Well, that was too abrupt.
Before today, he just thought the girl was interesting. He wanted to meet her.
He even did something stupid. He had people send their own packages through every courier service. He told the front desk to let the courier come straight to his office.
But none of the couriers were Evelyn. None of them were even women.
He realized he had been tricked.
He pulled up the security footage. He found Evelyn's image. He had people investigate. Soon, he had her basic information.
So he ordered a bouquet of flowers early this morning. He didn't expect her to deliver the contract herself in the afternoon.
Just now, he blurted out the words. Be my girlfriend.
But honestly, he didn't regret it. This girl intrigued him.
Evelyn stepped into the elevator. Her phone rang.
It was an unknown number. She thought it was the driver. She answered. "Arthur, I'm coming downstairs!"
"Arthur?" a voice asked from the other end.
Evelyn froze. Who is this?
"Who is this?"
"We just met. You forgot already?"
Evelyn was about to say you had the wrong number. Then she recognized Caleb's voice.
"Mr. Hayes, how did you get my number?" As soon as she asked, she realized how stupid the question was.
Since Caleb knew her name, her school, and her major, of course he knew her phone number.
"Mr. Hayes, what do you want?" Evelyn asked patiently.
She couldn't afford to offend a major client.
"Evelyn, I'm serious. I hope you'll think about it."
"Think about what?" Evelyn blurted out.
"Be my girlfriend."
"Caleb, since you had me investigated, didn't they tell you I'm married? My husband is Alexander Sterling." Evelyn said flatly.
The person on the other end went silent.
"I'm serious too. I'm married. Mr. Hayes, please stop making jokes like this. Thank you." Evelyn hung up. She blocked the number.
She decided right then. She would never deliver documents to Starlight Holdings again. No matter who asked her, she wouldn't go.
Evelyn walked out of the Starlight Holdings building. She got into the car. She apologized to the driver. "The elevator was under maintenance. I had to take the stairs."
"No problem." Arthur replied with a smile.
Evelyn returned to the office. She continued working.
She sat down at her desk. She saw the flowers. Then she remembered the card. The initials M.C.
M.C. = Muchen?
Evelyn's heart skipped a beat. No way.
She pulled out the card and looked at it. It said "courier."
Wasn't that the lie she told Caleb in the elevator last time? That she was a courier?
This confirmed it. The daisies were from Caleb.
She stood up. She grabbed the bouquet and walked out of the secretarial office.
But bad luck followed her. She ran into Alexander in the hallway.
Evelyn felt like a student caught doing something wrong. She stood against the wall. She kept her head down. She didn't dare move.
"The flowers are beautiful." Alexander commented as he passed her.
"Too bad they've been wilting for a while. They're not even worth crying over."
Alexander's lips curved up. He didn't say anything else. He walked past Evelyn and headed to his office.
Evelyn watched his back until he disappeared around the corner. Then she lowered her head and walked forward. She planned to throw the flowers in the trash.
She spotted the cleaning lady. She handed the bouquet to her. "Ma'am, could you throw these away for me?"
"Are you sure?" the cleaning lady asked in surprise.
"Yes."
"Give them to me. It's a shame to throw away something so pretty."
"Okay, they're yours." Evelyn agreed.
After handing over the flowers, Evelyn went to the restroom.
She washed her hands. She returned to her desk. Her phone buzzed with a text message. She pulled it out of the drawer. It was from Alexander. It only had one sentence.
"The flowers are gone. The review is still necessary."
Evelyn wanted to cry.
Someone else gave them to her. She didn't ask for them.
Why did she have to be reviewed?
On the way home that evening, Evelyn sat quietly in the passenger seat. She was thinking about how to tell Alexander what happened today.
Alexander didn't rush her. He focused on driving. He waited for Evelyn to speak first.