Love's New Bloom

It was 10 pm on a summer night. A beautiful woman in a body-hugging dress and exquisite makeup sat in a hotel room at one of the city’s five-star hotels. A cigarette wisping pungent smoke dangled from her trembling fingers, showing how unstable her emotions were at the moment. She was eavesdropping on a conversation going on in another hotel room that she’d bugged, and it made her heart twist painfully. The conversation was between a man and a woman. The woman said, “Ian, you’ve been coming to me so frequently that I’m on the verge of collapse…”The man said, “Don’t tell me you’re unhappy about this.”The woman giggled. “I’m ecstatic!”“She’s going on a business trip tomorrow, so you can come over.”“Ian, I’m curious about something. Back then, Erin was known as the belle of our university. Don’t you love her anymore?”Ian said, “She’s worse than a sex doll. We’ve been married for a year, but I haven’t even laid a finger on her. That’s what she deserves for acting all high and mighty

“What is it? Why do you suddenly look so serious?” Holly asked.Erin looked at her hesitantly for a few seconds before saying, “Eugene was interested in me when we were still in university, but the feeling wasn’t mutual.”Holly laughed. “Oh, I know—he told me all about it on our wedding day. Anyway, we didn’t know each other then. Don’t let it bother you.”“That’s not what I wanted to tell you.” Erin frowned. Her expression made Holly a little nervous. “I hope you aren’t about to give me a heart attack. Don’t tell me there’s something going on between you and him—there’s no way I’ll be able to withstand a double betrayal.”Erin shook her head with a sigh. “I went on a business trip three months ago to attend a designers’ forum, and we all had some drinks during dinner. You know how well I hold my liquor, so I was barely upright when we got back to the hotel. I ran into Eugene in the elevator; he was there for a business deal. He volunteered to help me back to my room, and I agree

When Erin entered the room, the smell of beer and kebabs on her made Chandler frown. “Did you go out for beer and kebabs in the middle of the night?”She was angered by him questioning her and glared at him. “Give me your name or staff number!”Chandler walked past her to the bar. Instead of getting any wine, he poured a glass of water. His actions were elegant and noble; even the simple act of drinking water made him seem sexy. “And why should I do that?” There was a trace of amusement in his eyes.Erin kicked her heels off and stormed toward him. Her bravado faded a little when she realized how much shorter she was than him when barefoot. Then, she backed up a couple of steps and yelled, “I’m going to lodge a complaint against you!”Chandler rarely had the patience for these things, but he couldn’t help feeling amused by her. He sat on the couch and sipped from his glass. “What’s there to complain about?”“That…that you’re not professional enough!”He smirked. “You enjoyed your

Two hours passed in the blink of an eye. When Erin checked her phone again, she saw Ian had called her several more times.“Oh, come on. It’s not like my mom has the plague or anything! Does he have to be such a dick?”She threw her phone aside angrily and hurried into the bathroom outside to shower. Chandler checked her phone when she shut the door behind her. For some reason, his spirits were lifted when he saw the missed calls were from “Jerkwad.”He put her phone down, then headed to the bathroom outside. The one attached to the bedroom was larger, but he just wanted to use the smaller one. He strode in boldly and wrapped his arms around Erin from behind. This made her jump, and she spun around in his arms, looking up at him.“What are you…”He turned the shower off and looked deeply into her eyes.“I want you to help me shower.”Erin was lost for words. She turned away from him so she wouldn’t have to keep looking at his body. The sight of it made her mind replay what they’

When Erin went to work on Monday, she heard about their studio being acquired by Frost Corporation and that they had to report to headquarters by today. Four of them were in this company besides the boss, and they’d all been surrendered to Frost Corporation. Erin was the only one who was stunned by this, and in a bad way. The three other designers were so excited they could barely contain themselves.“God, joining this company was the only right choice I’ve made in my life! Now that Frost Corporation has acquired our company, I feel like it’s my time to shine. I’m going to marry someone tall, dark, handsome, and rich after working there!”One of the designers, Milly Thornton, looked dreamy as she packed her things. Erin packed up silently. She didn’t think this was such a good thing. To her, it was better to be the cream of an average crop than to be the worst crop in an outstanding harvest. She hoped she wouldn’t end up being assigned to handle all sorts of errands once they joined Fr