Nelissa had put a new pad on before she went to Edward's house. It was the first day of her period and the occasional cramps were definitely tormenting.
If she was able to stay at home and have herbal tea to relieve her pain, as well as having her children beside her, it would be the best thing on earth to her at the time.
But in order to cover all her family's expenses, she'd have to earn more money. A luxurious, comfortable life was never hers; therefore, she hopped into Jolene's car and went to Edward's house.
Soon, they arrived at a prestigious and high class mansion area.
The security guard required them to register themselves. Edward had only informed the guard that only Nelissa could enter his house, but not Jolene.
The three-floor mansion belonged to the rich, therefore everything it had was one of its best in the country with an extremely strict security system.
Since Nelissa was going to enter alone, Jolene reminded her to always play by ear.
Nelissa told herself, "The client is the king. You have to do whatever he asks to please him!"
Nelissa rang the doorbell, her other hand clenched into a fist, so tightly that her knuckles turned white.
Before she was 18, she was cocooned by her mother. Introverted and shy, she always stuttered whenever she spoke.
After that, a catastrophe befell her family before she was betrayed by her first love. Being at Southville City for five years changed her personality, leading her to become a braver person.
But now, the thought of her meeting Edward made her anxious.
The person who answered the door was a middle-aged woman who was shorter than Nelissa.
Nelissa greeted, "Hello, I am here for Mr. Hales."
"Please come in, he is inside." The woman
was Eliza Zack and she helped cook and clean the house for Edward.
Nelissa felt a little relieved, cause at least it was better than having to be with Edward alone.
She walked into the entertainment room.
Apart from her, there were other guests there; they were most likely Edward's friends. There were men and women, either laughing, playing games, or singing. Edward was in the corner playing cards with three other men.
Nelissa was stunned. It was as though she had entered a world that she did not fit in. Other than having met Edward before, she had not known anyone else there.
Edward gazed over with his ink-like eyes. He then smiled at her and gestured for her.
She marched over slowly and greeted him. However, her voice was overpowered by the surrounding noise and he didn't seem to have heard her. He pointed to the seat beside him and demanded, "Sit here."
Nelissa placed her bag behind her and sat down. Instantly, everyone's gaze was concentrated on her.
She turned her gaze to Edward beside her. He had played a good card. His good-looking hand was fiddling with another card. He wore a white blouse and black pants. Though the shiny ring on his finger was not as attractive as his face, it was as charming as an artwork.
After observing two rounds of their games, Nelissa realized that they were playing with tokens. Each was worth one million. Well, it looked like Edward was losing. The three men playing with him all had beautiful dates accompanying them.
Where she was sitting right now would be the place for Edward's date.
Just when she was settled, her stomach started cramping even more.
She came to return the money to Edward this time and also tried to talk to him about their collaboration. But, he was playing cards with his friends now; she didn't dare to interrupt him.
Nelissa lowered her head and bit her lip. Her cramp had worsened after sitting down. The pain was becoming more unbearable.
"Master Hales, it's your turn," said one of his friends.
Edward ignored him and said to Nelissa, "You don't look well."
Nelissa stopped biting her lips and lifted her head. He chose to leave his friends waiting and tend to her.
"I have episodic anaemia." Nelissa's red lips at that moment made her skin look even fairer.
Edward looked at her for a while and rang the bell. A moment later, Eliza was seen coming in. Edward gave an order to her before she left again.
The card game continued. Nelissa wanted to leave but she was unwilling to lose this opportunity to talk to him. If she did not fight for it a little more, she wouldn't be able to afford the fees when her children started attending primary school two years later.
After 20 minutes..
Eliza came in with a bowl of herbal tea and placed it on the table next to Nelissa.
Nelissa looked at Edward who continued to play his game, yet this time, winning.
One of them smiled and asked, "Master Hales, who is this lady beside you. Aren't you going to introduce her?"
She immediately chimed in, "Hello, I am Nelissa Quest, an employer of the Victory Group."
Mutely, Edward glimpsed at her with a weird look.
Nelissa was convinced that Edward was well aware of her intention of coming here. He should know that the Victory Group had wanted to collaborate with the Hales Group for a long time.
She added, "Mr. Hales, besides returning you the money, I hope to be able to talk business with you. Do you have a little time to spare?"
"I cannot hear you clearly," replied Edward while playing. The music was deafening.
Nelissa wasn't sure if he was giving her a tough time on purpose. She bent over, ignoring his dominant aura, and moved closer to him. "I was asking if you have time to spare to talk business with me."
They stared into each other's eyes before Edward started looking at her closely. Her long hair was draping down on his hands. She had a chest nameplate on her blouse.
He hooked her nameplate out, his fingers nearly touching her bosoms.
Nelissa's heart skipped a beat; it was clearly an act of harassment. The nameplate slid past her chest that was covered by her thin blouse. Every action this man had made were acts of flirting, although his hands hadn't really touched her chest.
"23? You must be the same age as my niece," Edward muttered flirtatiously as he looked at Nelissa's nameplate.
Nelissa was confused at what he meant. Should she be calling him 'Uncle' now?
"Just sit and drink the tea. If you are tired you can go to the room upstairs to rest, or just leave," said Edward as he returned the nameplate to her and continued the game.
Of course, Nelissa was not going to leave. The tea allowed her to regain some strength, her face glowing again.
She lowered her head and told Edward she was going to excuse herself for a while. She then left the room and followed Eliza to a bedroom upstairs to take a brief rest.
It was too noisy downstairs.
Nelissa locked the door and sat down on the black leather sofa. She forced herself to stay awake; she had to stay vigilant.
On the sofa hung a suit jacket. She studied it and thought that it looked like Edward's. After she picked it up, she found out that the jacket was a huge one. She placed it on the bed and flung herself onto the sofa, texting Jolene.
She reminded Jolene to pick up the twins from school, for she did not know how long she had to wait for Edward to finish playing cards.
Jolene replied rapidly, "How is it on your end? What is Edward's attitude? Did he harass you?"
"No, he didn't." Nelissa typed in as she touched her chest and thought to herself, "Well, maybe he did! But skillfully."
Nelissa felt irked for she could not voice out her anger.
After texting Jolene, Nelissa fell asleep leaning on the comfortable sofa. All of a sudden, she felt a pair of warm hands hugging her. Then a man mumbled with a charming voice, "Nelly…"
"Thump… Thump.." Nelissa woke up to the knocks on the door. The sky outside the window had started to darken. Only then did she notice that it was already 6 in the evening.
She got up in a hurry and opened the door. The door was unlocked. She frowned; she remembered she did lock the door...
Eliza was waiting outside the door. "Miss Quest, Master Hales is waiting for you in the study. I will take you there now."
"Okay." Nelissa suppressed her doubts for the moment and followed Eliza. She combed her hair with her fingers. Her hair should be messy now that she had just woken up for a nap.
The room she was in a while ago was a little heated as she had forgotten to open the windows for the air to come in.
Nelissa walked in the study alone. The lights were off. The only light that shone in was from the setting sun outside. Edward was standing beside the desk, his face covered by a shade of a mysterious shadow, his eyes staring at her like torches.
Although unspeaking, he had a dominant aura that stressed people around him out.
She walked towards him slowly and took out the money. "Mr. Hales, I'll return the money to you first. I didn't know that this was yours. Thank you so much."
Edward did not move an inch; he stared at her and at her messy hair that wrapped around her delicate face. Her dry, red lips looked as if they were waiting to be caressed.
Suddenly, he grabbed her delicate wrist and pulled her straight into his arms.
Before Nelissa could react, Edward kissed her, dominantly. There was a faint scent of tobacco.
Nelissa had a feeling that she was being offended. It was the first time she had been kissed without her consent!