Chapter Twenty-Five

Zoe POV:

"Philip, I think it's time for me to resign as your secretary," I said as we laid on the bed in each other's arms. I had slept the night over in his house.

"Why?" Philip asked.

"Like you said before, I can't remain your secretary forever," I replied.

"Are you ready to go to culinary school?" Philip asked.

"Yeah," I replied.

"Okay. What culinary school do you have in mind?" He asked.

"I haven't settled on one yet. There are a lot of them I have in mind. It's so hard to choose you," I said.

"When you pick one, let me know, okay?"

"Okay," I replied.

"I'm going to miss working with you, though. Nobody does the secretary job more than you do," Philip said.

"I'm going to miss that too."

We stayed cuddled up for a long time watching a movie until we both decided it was time to get up and take a bath.

We stayed even longer in the bathroom, making love, and exploring each other's body.

It was Easter Friday, and we had no plans for the day. We decided to pay a visit to my mum and Aunt Emilia.

I pressed the doorbell, and my mum opened the door. "Hey! How're you two doing?" Mum asked excitedly and stepped aside for us to come in.

We went in and as usual, the house smelled like pastries.

"Is that Zoe and Philip?" Aunt Emilia asked from the kitchen before she emerged. "How's my favorite couple doing?" She asked.

"We're fine," Zoe replied.

She went upstairs to drop her duffel bag and I took a seat on the couch.

Zoe returned a few minutes later and plopped down beside me.

"So, mum. I'm ready to start culinary school?" Zoe informed her mum and Aunt Emilia who emerged from the kitchen with a tray of muffins.

"It's about time," Aunt Emilia said as she set the tray on the dining table. "Come sit here," she said to us, and we obliged. "Have some," she said, and Zoe dug in right away.

"So, what culinary school did you choose?" Camilla asked.

"I don't know yet," I replied.

"How can you not know that yet?" Camilla asked.

"How about the Institute of Culinary Education?" Aunt Emilia asked. "It's a good choice and it's here in LA."

"I had that in mind, but I didn't want to rush," Zoe said. "Since you said it, that means it's a sign."

"I could pay your tuition fees," Philip offered.

"No, Philip. I can handle it," I argued.

"Do you have the full tuition right now?" Mum asked.

"No. I have more than half and I can raise the rest myself," I said.

"Come on, Zoe. Since you have more than half of the fee, let me complete it," Philip said.

I gave it a thought. Philip had done so much for me, and I wanted to do this on my own.

"Fine," I said. "I'll pay you back though," I told him, and he nodded. I knew he didn't agree to my terms, but I didn't want to argue.

"Now, I have to start looking for a new general secretary," Philip pouted and we burst into laughter.

"I hope you find one that can put up with your attitude like I do," I said.

"I hope so too. Honestly, I don't think I can find one," Philip said.

Aunt Emilia and mum went upstairs to take their baths and headed to the pastry shop, leaving me and Philip alone in the house.

"Are you thinking what I'm thinking?" Philip asked as he wiggled his brows.

"No, I'm not," I replied with a straight face.

"I'm sure you are." He held my waist and pulled me closer and tickled.

I giggled like a child, trying to wriggle out of his grip. "Philip!" I groaned.

"What?" Philip asked innocently.

"Stop it!" I said amid laughter.

"Stop what?" He smirked.

I bit his hand slightly and he let go of me and yelped dramatically. "Ouch! Are you trying to bite off my skin?"

"Don't be such a drama queen. I only bit you with the tip of my teeth, you're lucky I didn't dig in deeper," I said. "You're such a big baby sometimes." I shook my head. "How's Mark by the way?" I asked.

"He's probably having a good time with his girlfriend in Santorini," Philip replied.

Philip had given Mark some time off work and everything to relax and not think about work. Philip had paid for their flights to Santorini, Greece.

"Have you met his girlfriend?" I asked.

"Of course. She's the kind of woman Mark needs in his life. Mark is always about work every damn time."

"Look who's talking," I said as I took another muffin.

"Haven't you had enough of that?" Philip asked as I took a huge bit of the muffin.

"I can never have enough of Aunt Emilia's muffin," I replied with my mouth full. "This is the last one, I promise. Hold on a minute, don't tell me what to do, you don't own my body."

"Oh, really?" Philip raised a brow. "Swallow everything in your mouth and we'll talk about that," he smirked.

"I'll swallow just to see what you're going to do." I chewed up everything in my mouth and swallowed it.

"Sit on the table," Philip ordered and I obliged.

Philip began to play with the hem of my top before finally taking it off me with his signature smirk. I smiled, ready to be taken to cloud nine.

***

I sat on my swivel chair as I closed my eyes and reminisced the good times I had here as Philip's secretary. It was my last day at work, and I wanted to make the best out of it. As much as I loved being Phillip's secretary, it was time to pursue my passion. As a kid, I had always dreamed of being a chef and owning a restaurant, and I knew it was time to bring that dream to realization.

I had already registered at the Institute of Culinary Education, Philip helped with the other half of the tuition fees as he had promised.

I opened my eyes and noticed a small note on my desk. It looked like Philip's writing. I picked it up and read the note.

You're the best thing that has ever happened to me. Thank you for being the best secretary I could ever ask for. I know you can do this; I have your back always! Good luck!

I love you.

Love, Your favorite boss.

My face broke into a big smile. I fell in love with him all over again. My eyes began to water as the thought of not getting to see him every day crossed through my mind.

I heard a ding, and Philip walked out of his elevator.

"Hey, babe," Philip beamed at me.

I sprang up from my seat and ran to him and pulled him into a bone crushing hug. His hands crawled around my waist, and he ran his hands through my hair. "What's the problem, baby?" He asked softly.

I sniffed, and his cologne filled my nostrils. "I just realized I won't be seeing you too often," I replied sadly.

His chest walls began to vibrate as he chuckled. "I'll make sure that doesn't happen, okay? Before I forget, we have a date tonight. You have to dress fancy, baby."

I raised my head and looked up at him. "Where are we going?" I asked.

"To a very fancy restaurant Mark recommended yesterday. The view is nice, and their food is amazing, you're going to love it," Philip replied.

"What if I don't?" I smiled.

"Trust me, you will. So, did you read my little note?" Philip asked with a smirk.

I grinned at the mention of that. "It made me fall in love with you all over again."

Philip grinned like a Cheshire cat. "I'm glad to hear that."

He lifted my jaw, and his lips came down on mine. I could never get tired of his kisses.

"Why do I feel like you still have something up your sleeve?" I asked after he broke the kiss.

Philip smirked suspiciously. "What do you mean?"

I squinted my eyes. "You have something planned aside the date, don't you?"

He shrugged. "Maybe, maybe not. My cup of coffee, please," he smirked and began to walk to his office. He stopped as he held the knob of the door. "By the way, your ass looks great in that skirt."

I rolled my eyes as he closed the door. I made his coffee and took it to his office.

"You know you don't have to spend the day working, right?" Philip asked as he laid the cup of coffee down after taking a long sip.

"What should I do then? I can't stay idle until the closing hour," I said.

"You could talk with your friends," Philip suggested.

"That would distract them from working and might make a huge mistake that may cost your company a lot of money," I argued.

"That's true. Fine," he sighed. "Do whatever you want, you're so stubborn."

I threw my head back in laughter at his facial expression.

"Fine. I'll do as you say boss." I gave him a mock salute and returned to my office the same time Mark came out of the elevator.

"Hey, Mark," I greeted as I plopped down on my swivel chair.

"Hey, Zo. Happy last day at work," Mark said.

I chuckled. "Thank you," I told him before he went into Philip's office.

Soon, I got so bored, and I decided to take Philip's advice and go to Will and Dani's office.

The elevator was in maintenance mode, so I had to use the stairs. I hated using those stairs, it made me realize how much work out my body needed. I knocked softly on the glass door; I heard Dani's voice, permitting me to come in.

Dani jumped in excitement as she saw me. I rushed to hug her like I hadn't seen her in weeks. We saw each other this morning as well as Will.

"You guys saw each other earlier. Why does it seem like you haven't seen her in years?" Will asked, rolling his eyes.

"Today is the last day we will get to do this, especially in the office." Dani said as the tone of her voice sounded sad.

Honestly, I was going to miss this. Will and Dani and everything. I've only known them since I started working here, but it felt like I had known them my whole life. Deep down, in the deepest part of my heart, I didn't want to stop working here. It was nice, everything and everybody.

"Yeah. Me too," I added.

Will let out a heavy sigh before he confessed. "Yeah. I'm going to miss everything about you. It would be so weird not having you around, especially during lunch break."

"You know what? Lunch time will be my treat, Buy whatever you want."

I was able to brighten up Dani's mood because she loved it when she got free lunch.

Lunch break came pretty quickly, and we walked down to our favorite spot which was a few blocks away from the company building. We ordered our usual; it took a few minutes before the order arrived.

"Philip and I are going on a date tonight," I announced.

"That's nice," Will said, taking a sip from his drink.

"What do you plan on wearing?" Dani asked.

"Honestly, I have no idea," I sighed.

"How about that black dress you never want to wear?" Dani asked

"No, I don't think it's that fancy," I replied.

"It's a date, sweetheart, and dates are fancy," Dani said.

She was right, it was going to be a fancy date, and my black dress was just perfect for the occasion.

We talked longer than expected. It was my last day having lunch with them and I needed to spend more time before I left for culinary school.

Will and Dani had to get back to work so we ended our conversation and said our goodbye as we returned to work. I had already packed my things from my desk earlier, including the flower vase Dani gave to me when I started working here.

I checked the time on my phone. I needed to get ready for my date with Phillip.

My stomach felt like it was going to explode any minute. I had eaten way too much than I used to. I rubbed my stomach like I had a baby in it.

I got home and quickly took a shower. Philip was going to be here any minute and I wasn't even ready. I had one hour to get ready. Aunt Emilia helped me style my hair into a French twist, letting a few strands on my edges down. I did my make up myself as Amy wasn't around to do it for me, she had to work overnight to get a job done. To my greatest surprise, my makeup was superb, it came out nicer than I had expected.

I took out the black dress from my closet. It was still as new as when I bought it. I put on a pair of silver heels and a silver clutch to match.

I heard my doorbell from my room, and I knew it had to be Philip.

"Honey, Philip is here!" My mum hollered excitedly from the living room.

"Coming" I yelled back

I was done. I just needed one finishing touch and that was my lipstick. I didn't want anything too sharp or too bright, so I went for a nude lipstick.

Yeah, I was ready. I went downstairs and saw mum and Philip sitting while talking.

"Hey." I knew I had interrupted them.

Philip stood up and his jaw was on his floor. He looked at me as though he had never seen me in a dinner dress even though we had been on countless dates. His eyes looked like they were going to pop out of their sockets.

"Wow," he breathed. "You look…stunning," he finally found his words.

I smiled and said, "Thank you."

"Have fun, okay?" Aunt Emelia said from behind us.

As always, he opened the door of the car and I got in. The night was calm and lovely. Philip let the windows down as we enjoyed the night breeze. I could feel the soft breeze that brushed through my face, it was refreshing. The ride to the restaurant was in a comfortable silence.

We arrived at a five-star restaurant and Philip got down before me to open the door for me.

A cold breeze brushed by and set a chill down my spine.

Philip took my hands as led us into the exquisite restaurant. It was a French setting. It looked like I had walked into Paris.

The wonderful aroma of different food instantly made me hungry.

Philip made an early reservation for two. We were directed to our table. A waiter poured us some red wine I've never tasted.

"This place is really nice." I said as I looked around in awe.

"I know, right?" Philip smiled.

"How come I have never heard of this place before?" I asked no one in particular.

"I knew you would. It's actually a new restaurant. They just launched it a few weeks ago. I think the owner is French, but he didn't make it a French restaurant, but they have French cuisine," he explained as he took a sip.

"How did you find it?" I asked, taking a sip from my glass too.

"I told you before. Mark found it," he replied. "What do you want us to do?"

"Let's try their French cuisine," I replied as I went through the menu.

Philip signaled a waiter, and he took our order. Our order arrived in a few minutes, and we dove right in. We tried so hard to keep up with conversations, but we couldn't as the food was too delicious to keep talking.

We finished our food and had desserts.

My stomach felt tight from drinking too many liquids.

"Excuse me. I need to use the restroom." I stood gently and went to the restroom. I asked a waiter for directions, and I found the restroom. It was just as nice as the dining area. I let out all the liquid from my bladder and washed my hands thoroughly. I heard some weird noises from the other door. I was so confused on what exactly they were doing. From beneath I could see their clothes right on the floor. It seems like they decided to have dessert there. I didn't want to interrupt their sweet moments. I dried my hands and made sure the door was properly locked.

I went back to my table.

"I guessed you had a lot to drink," Philip.

"Yeah," I let out a small laughter.

We decided to call it a day and head home. Philip dropped me off at my house and promised to call me first thing tomorrow. I waved at him as he drove off and went inside when I couldn't see his car anymore.

"Hey, honey! How was your day?" Mum asked as soon as I entered the house.

"It was amazing," I replied. "I'm so tired," I whined as I went up the stairs to my room.

I aggressively took off my heels. They felt so uncomfortable. It left some red marks on my feet.

Tonight, was amazing. Philip was amazing.

I laid down on my bed after I had changed into my night wear. Soon, I drifted off to sleep.

I slept like a baby till the next morning. I knew I haven't had that sweet and long sleep in a really long time. I felt so alive and full of energy. I picked up my phone from the bedside cupboard and saw a missed call from Philip. I called him back, but he didn't pick up, then I remembered he was probably already in a meeting.

I went downstairs after I had brushed my teeth. Mum and Aunt Emilia had already left for the pastry shop. I took a glass of water from the refrigerator and had an apple. It took me a while to decide what to eat.

It felt weird being at home doing nothing. I began to miss work and everything.

My breakfast was ready, and I decided to watch a movie. I turned on my TV to watch some Netflix movies. I was going to sit and enjoy the few hours of unemployment.