Chapter 184 Salary Raise
"I'm not leaving! Emerald City is wonderful. Why should I go back? Simon, don't forget I'm your mother! You dare try to kick me out?"
"What wouldn't I dare? If you won't leave, I'll personally escort you back! If you stay in Emerald City and hurt Emily again, don't blame me for disowning you as my mother!"
He turned to his desk, grabbed his phone, and started dialing security to have Lauren removed. Seeing this, Lauren completely panicked. She rushed forward to snatch his phone, but Simon pushed her away firmly, "Don't make me use force on you!"
Lauren stumbled backward and collapsed onto the sofa. Seeing the resolute look in Simon's eyes, she finally realized he was serious this time. Gone was her earlier arrogance—she could only sit on the sofa, crying and cursing, "Simon, you ungrateful son! I wasted my life raising you! You're throwing out your own mother for some outsider! You'll be punished for this!"
Simon ignored her tirade, calmly finishing his call, "Hello, it's me. Send my mother back tomorrow, and don't let her come back again."
After hanging up, he didn't spare a glance for Lauren sobbing on the sofa. He walked into his study and slammed the door shut with a bang, shutting out all the arguments and accusations.
All of this was heard crystal clear by the surveillance team Charles had assigned. The agent immediately pulled out his phone and reported every word of Simon and Lauren's confrontation to Charles.
At that moment, Charles was in Emily's office.
Charles hung up the phone and walked over to her, gently taking her hand, "Simon really is protecting you this time. When he learned Lauren had been scheming against you, he was furious enough to send her back home and said he'd never let her return to Emerald City again."
Emily was stunned for a moment, then a faint smile curved her lips. Though she couldn't fully forgive Simon for his past actions, seeing him willing to break ties with Lauren for her sake, even banishing Lauren from the city, brought her a trace of comfort.
She said softly, "I never thought he'd go that far."
"He's still your father, after all—he has you in his heart. With him keeping Lauren in check, the Johnson family shouldn't bother you anymore."
Charles's fingertips gently traced circles on the back of Emily's hand, his gaze glued to her face as if memorizing every detail. Emily felt uncomfortable under his intense stare, her fingers instinctively curling as she quickly lowered her head to flip through the documents on her desk, though her ears betrayed her by turning red.
Just thinking about tomorrow night's date and spending the night together made her heart race.
Charles leaned closer, his warm breath ghosting over her ear as his voice carried lazy amusement, "What are you looking at? Are those documents more interesting than me?"
Emily's cheeks burned hotter as she shoved the documents toward him, "Don't be a distraction. I haven't finished reading these yet."
"No rush." Charles pulled the documents back and closed the folder. "Tomorrow's date is what matters. Leave today's work for the staff."
As he spoke, his fingertip lightly tapped her chin, "That powder blue dress I sent you—it'll look perfect on you. Will you wear it? I spent ages picking it out."
Emily turned her head away, avoiding his gaze as she whispered, "I know, stop talking about it."
Seeing her shy reaction, Charles's smile deepened. He pressed his luck by resting his chin on her shoulder and murmuring, "Why are you being bashful? We already have children together."
"That's different!" Emily's protest carried a hint of petulance, but she didn't push him away.
For the rest of the afternoon, Charles became a permanent fixture in Emily's office. When she reviewed documents, he sat beside her watching; when she drank water, he personally handed her the glass; he even waited outside the restroom door.
When her assistant brought in coffee, she could barely stand to watch.
Charles was gently tucking a strand of hair behind Emily's ear, his expression so tender it could melt hearts, completely different from his stone-cold demeanor in board meetings.
She set down the coffee and quickly retreated. The moment she closed the door, she couldn't help venting to a colleague, "Mr. Windsor has completely lost his mind! He only has eyes for Ms. Johnson now—the rest of us might as well be invisible!"
Charles didn't care about others' opinions; he found these interactions quite enjoyable. Only when he got thirsty did he leisurely get up to visit the break room. Just as he reached the door, he heard two employees chatting quietly.
"Did you see Ms. Johnson and Mr. Windsor? They're so happy together! Mr. Windsor actually handed her documents personally and fixed her hair. I'm so jealous!"
"I know, right! Mr. Windsor is so cold to everyone else, but he's so gentle with Ms. Johnson—that's true love! If I could find someone like that, my life would be complete!"
Charles's mood instantly soared. He pushed open the door with a smile, "You're absolutely right. Emily is wonderful."
The two employees spun around in shock, and seeing it was Charles, their faces went white as they stammered, "Mr. Windsor! We weren't gossiping about you on purpose!"
Charles waved dismissively, pouring himself coffee in excellent spirits, "Every Obscura Fashion employee gets a salary increase—two thousand dollars each. Consider it a company benefit."
The employees stared in shock, then nearly jumped with excitement, "Thank you, Mr. Windsor! You're amazing!"
"Mr. Windsor and Ms. Johnson must stay happy forever!"
Hearing the employees' well-wishes, Charles's smile grew even brighter. He finished his coffee and returned to Emily's office, completely oblivious to the chaos his impulsive salary increase would cause.
Nathan was organizing materials for tomorrow's meeting when he received a call from the finance department. Learning that Charles had announced a two-thousand-dollar raise for all Obscura Fashion employees nearly made him drop his files. He rushed to Emily's office, where Charles was helping Emily look at dress photos, and said helplessly, "Mr. Windsor, the finance department is asking how to handle the salary increases you announced. Also, are we still holding tomorrow's international conference call?"
Charles didn't look up, "Postpone the meeting. Handle the salary increases with finance, make it happen quickly so the employees don't have to wait."
Nathan watched Charles, completely absorbed in romantic bliss, and could only sigh, "Understood."
He thought to himself, 'Mr. Windsor has been completely swept away by Ms. Johnson. From now on, Obscura Fashion's benefits will probably depend on Ms. Johnson's mood.'
The next day, Emily arrived at the office to find Charles absent.
Nathan said he had urgent business out of town. Emily felt puzzled but didn't ask questions. However, she seemed distracted all day, frequently checking her phone and feeling like something was missing. It wasn't until the afternoon that she realized that she actually missed Charles.