20

Charlotte's POV

“Hi? Arthur?” I asked, I tried remembering if he ever told me he was the CEO of Ginx Enterprise. But none that I know of,

“But..”

“That was my father…” he Says, I frowned,

I sighed rubbing my head,

“I saw the mail just now. I'm supposed to partner with Anderson Enterprise?” I asked if I sat there, listening to Arthur speak, but inside I was frowning.

I couldn't help but feel skeptical, no matter how friendly he seemed. I had been burned before, and I wasn't sure I could trust him. But I knew that I had to give it a chance.

I had to find a way to work with him, despite my reservations. I sat up straight and focused on the task at hand, trying to put my feelings aside.

“It's my dad. He says you two could work perfectly together.” He says.

I tried to hide my reaction, but my frown deepened. I felt a wave of anger and frustration, but I kept my composure. I didn't want to give him the satisfaction of seeing me upset.

I simply replied, "Yes, it's important to stay focused on the task at hand." But inside, I was seething.

“So there's nothing you can do?” I asked,

“Nothing I can do, sadly”.

“Ok.. I'll call you later then, bye-bye,” I said hanging up the call,

“The universe is against me” I opened my computer and then looked at his name staring at me.

“Auden Anderson of the Anderson Enterprise.”

The door creaked open, and Anita walked in with a pile of files on her.

“What's with the files?” I asked, Looking at her,

“Dr. Kobbs as usual. He asked me to give you this to review.”

My eyes popped open, “ all of it?”

“Yes, all of it.” She says handing me the files, I opened it up and saw files from last month even before I took over.

“But this is the Redex deal from last month?”

“He says there are glitches and you need to go through it,” Anita says, I collapse to the chair,

“Oh good Lord …” I breathe out as I cover my eyes with my hands.

“And… uhm…there's something you should know.” She says, looking at me, wondering if she should tell me or not. I guess with the few bad news I've been receiving lately, I'm immune to the news she was about to give.

“Auden is here. He's requesting to see you.” I frowned, what the hell is he doing here? To mock me maybe.

“Why? You let him in?” I asked,

“The security,” Anita answered, I went silent as I sighed again.

“I can send him away if you don't want to see him.” How can I do that…we're working together thanks to Arthur's father.

“Let him in.” I finally said to her, waving my hand and asking her to bring him in.

She gave a short bow and then turned to leave as she closed the door behind her slowly, it wasn't up to a few minutes that the door creaked open,

I was still lost in thought when Auden walked into my office. He was a tall, imposing figure, and his presence filled the room.

I looked up at him, trying to read his expression, but he was inscrutable. He simply stared at me, waiting for me to speak. I took a deep breath, knowing that I had to face the music.

“Anita told me you wanted to see me," I said, my voice still.

"Yes, because we would be working together.”

I frowned,

*Working together? I have no intention of working with you so we're going to communicate through our Assistants, is that found by you?” I asked.

“The assistants? Won't that be stressful on them?”

I rolled my eyes, adjusting myself to my seat.

“As long as we don't do it together, Yes. Anita will send my copy of the contract to you and there you have it. Problem solved.” I stated,

“No, it's not.” He sat there,

Auden was impeccably dressed, as always. He wore a perfectly tailored suit, and his hair was perfectly coiffed. Even his shoes were polished to a high shine.

I felt a twinge of envy as I looked at him, knowing that I could never hope to match his level of perfection. But I forced myself to focus on the task at hand, knowing that this was no time for self-pity. I had to take responsibility for my actions and make things right.

I waited for Auden to speak, steeling myself for whatever was to come.

“And why? Because some months ago I was nobody to you.” I said, still pained.

He sighed, took out a card placed it on the table,

As I waited for Auden to speak, I noticed something out of the corner of my eye. On the desk in front of me was an invitation card, dropped there by Auden as he looked at me.

I picked it up slightly. It was an invitation to a gala, and I was the guest of honor. I couldn't believe it. I had been so consumed by my anger and self-doubt that I hadn't even noticed the invitation. It was as if the universe was trying to tell me something, but I wasn't sure what.

I looked up at Auden, my mind racing. He seemed to be waiting for me to say something, but I was at a loss for words. I cleared my throat, trying to gather my thoughts.

"I'm honored to have been invited to the gala," I finally said, my voice sounding meek even to my ears.

"But I'm not sure that I deserve to be there. After what happened before, I don't think that I'm worthy of such an honor." Auden studied me for a moment, his expression softening slightly.

"You are being too hard on yourself," Auden said, his voice surprisingly gentle.

“I promise my parents will behave.”

There was one thing I didn't want to go back to.

His mother.