Layla drove to the front of a wooden local restaurant at the city end. She parked the car at the roadside and covered her head with a black scarf. She wore a face cap and used the scarf to cover half of her face before she got down.
She walked into the restaurant and scanned the whole room without taking a step, but she didn’t see President Mason.
"He told me he's here," she whispered. Her face frowned in disappointment.
She took out her phone to call his number, but before she could open the contact app, a young, golden-haired waitress who was of the same age as her approached her, smiling.
The waitress bowed her head, standing in front of Layla. "The president, right?"
Layla nodded. "Yes."
The waitress pointed her thumb at the back. "He is waiting for you inside. Come this way, ma."
"Okay." Layla curtsied her head. The waitress led, and she followed her.
They walked to the restaurant's backyard, and the waitress opened the door for Layla to go inside.
Layla took off her heels and entered the room. She met President Mason sitting on the floor, eating corn on the cob with his bare hand. She bowed her head and sat down on the foam on the other side of the table.
The waitress came inside and bent her head, standing beside Layla. "What should I-"
"I am fine." Layla cut her off.
The waitress bowed her head and walked out.
"Good afternoon, sir." Layla greeted him.
President Mason stopped eating. He washed his hands with a bow and cleaned his mouth with a handkerchief. He rinsed his mouth with water and drank it.
"Good afternoon, angel," he responded. "How are you doing?"
She breathed tiredly. "It’s supposed to be great, but visiting Asher's company spoiled it. Now I understand Aria."
"Aria?!" President Mason let out a shock-questioning tone. "Did you chat with her privately? What did she tell you?"
She looked at him, surprised, and nodded in slow motion. "No."
He wiped out the worry on his face with a smile. "What did Asher say? Did he allow you in?"
"He chased me out, but Avery later helped me in and he gave me a chance. Though, I'm now regretting what he did." She answered.
"Why? What happened?" He asked.
She slammed the file in her hand on the table and pushed it a little forward to his front.
President Mason opened the first page and looked up at Layla, confused. "What’s this?"
"The new project Asher won." She answered with simplicity.
"Why do you have it?" He queried.
"He wants me to prove my ability by executing it."
"That’s nothing; we can do it." He smiled.
"He wants me to execute it with my capital, so I can’t succeed." She explained, hopelessly.
"Why?" He asked.
"I know nothing about this, and the capital for it is huge. So, how can I?" She asked.
He scanned the file to the last page and chuckled. "Is that all?"
He closed the file and looked up at her face, smiling. "Don’t worry, give me an hour, and I will call you back."
"What will you do, sir?" She asked.
"This project is pulling teeth, and I have a feeling there’s no better way to do it without his help. He knows the logic." He let out.
"So? Will you seek help from him?" She raised her eyebrows, amazed. "You can't do that, sir?"
He chortled. "Why would I do that? I will just indirectly get the plan from the horse’s mouth."
He closed the file, announcing, "you told me to find a better place, so we will meet at this place from now on."
She looked around with her mouth spoiled, belittling. "Is this place safe?"
He grinned and voiced out "This has been my hideout for the past thirty years, so it’s safer than any other place you may suggest."
"Okay, I will leave now." She said and stood up.
"Okay, I will get back to you soon." He let out.
She bowed her head and walked out.
Immediately after she closed the door, President Mason picked up his phone from the table and called Asher’s number.
"Good day. Are you in the office?"
"Yes." Asher answered.
"I am coming now," President Mason announced.
"Okay."
PERFICIENT INVESTMENT
President Mason entered Perficient Investment, and all the staff members quickly greeted him with excitement. They loved seeing him around, especially when they committed an offense and the CEO was angry at them. President Mason was the only person who Asher respected, and he always pardoned them whenever President Mason apologized on their behalf.
He entered the top floor, and all the staff members stood up on their feet and greeted him in unison, bowing their heads slightly.
"Good morning, sir."
"Good morning." He responded, wearing an encouraging smile.
The staff members sat down, and President Mason walked forward. He walked past Aria’s desk but took three steps backward and stopped in front of her desk.
Aria fixed her eyes on her keyboard, and she didn't know President Mason was standing in front of her.
President Mason tapped the desk, and she looked up at him, saying nothing.
"It’s been a long time here," he said, beaming. "Don’t you miss me?"
Aria looked down and smiled slightly with part of her mouth. She looked up at his face. "I do, sir."
"Are you avoiding me?" He asked.
Aria scoffed. "Why will I? I’m not a scapegoat, so avoiding you is useless."
He nodded, impressed. "I am confused about you. You are a fly on the wall, but you’re mute until now." He poured it out.
She took her hands off the keyboard and stretched them beside her, frowning her, confused. "Mute about what, sir?"
"Didn’t you know anything, or are you just pretending not to know?" He investigated.
"What are you talking about?" She questioned him, pretending not to know what he was talking about.
"Aria, you can’t hide forever. Come to my side." He let out.
“If I can’t hide forever, I will continue to hide till I can’t anymore." She said.
"Okay, it’s your choice, but it’s not the best for you," He took out his business card and put it on her desk. "This is the hundred and eleven card I am giving you. I know you always throw them away, but I will continue to give you till you change your mind."
"I advise you to stop wasting cards because there’s nothing to change in my mind." She declared.
"You are still free to come to me whenever you need my help. Your place is not occupied, and it will never be." He said and walked to Asher’s office, leaving the card on the desk.
Aria grind her teeth, looking at President Mason from behind, and a drop of tears falls from her face. Immediately, President Mason turned to a corner. She wiped the tears and vexed her anger on the keyboard, pressing it with outrage.
Immediately after President Mason entered Asher’s office, Asher stood up and bowed his head to greet him.
"Good afternoon."
"Good afternoon, son." President Mason responded with a welcoming smile. He walked closer to the chair and sat down. "How’s business?"
"Great as always." Asher answered, sitting down.
"I trust you. You are the great Lucas Asher," President Mason said, and Asher beamed at him.
"How’s your brother? Any news about him?" President Mason inquired.
"He called me last week, threatening to come back and claim his rights." Asher answered.
President Mason chuckled. "Can’t he just give up? Doesn’t he know he can never win against you, no matter how much he tries?"
"Put your mind at rest. I am right behind you, and I will always support you. He can do nothing." He assured.
"Okay."
"Hun!" President Mason cleared his throat.
"Asher, what do you think about Theodore Layla, who just returned suddenly?" He raised concerns. "Don’t you see her as a big deal? Won’t she cause any trouble or affect your business?"
Asher chuckled with a devilish look. "Layla is nothing but a banana stem that doesn’t worth sharpening the cutlass to cut."
"Trust me, she can do nothing. She has been here twice, proposing to be a business partner with me, but I chased her out."
"Why?"
"I don’t feel too good about her." Asher answered.
"What will you do about her?" President Mason asked.
"Avery told me she was her childhood best friend. So, I painted a torture as a chance and gave her an assignment to battle with," he explained. "I gave her a foreign project to deal with, and if she doesn’t back out, she will go bankrupt."
"Oh! That’s good," President Mason nodded, impressed.
"But Asher, what if she wins?" President Mason thought twice. "Won’t that be a problem?"
"She can only succeed if she uses a secret plan." Asher revealed.
"What's the plan?" President Mason inquired.
Asher changed his sitting posture and fully explained the plan to President Mason for five minutes.
"Wow! Yes, she can’t succeed," President Mason confirmed, nodding. "But Asher, don’t let Avery trick you into partnering with that girl for any reason."
"She will fail, and once she does, she won’t be allowed to set foot into this company again." He announced.
"Okay, that's good. I am here because I need your help. I just won a project, and I don’t have enough capital to execute it. The recent project exhausted me a lot." President Mason spoke out.
"How much?" Asher asked.
"Five hundred million dollars."
"Okay, I will wire it to you tomorrow morning." Asher said.
"Thank you so much." President Mason appreciated him.
"About our wedding. Can you be a little faster with the date, sir?" Asher pleaded.
President Mason smiled. "Calm down, Asher. Avery is yours already. I just think she needs a little time for her career. Just be a little more patient."
"Okay, sir."
"I will leave now. Since you promised to sponsor the project, I should work on the plans. I will talk to you later." President Mason said.
Asher stood up and bowed his head. "Okay, bye, sir."
President Mason walked out of Asher’s office, and he stumbled into Nancy at the corner.
Nancy curtsied her head. "Good day, sir."
"Good day," he responded. He pointed his thumb at Asher’s office without looking back and asked, "are you his new secretary?"
"Yes, sir."
He dug his hand into his coat's breast pocket and took out the last card in it. "Take this. Call me if you need my help."
Nancy shook her head, rejecting. "I don't need this. I won’t need your help, sir."
"Are you sure?" He asked, and she nodded.
"Have you heard that none of his secretaries have ever lasted two months?" He asked, trying to convince her. "Your fate with him might be different with my help."
She beamed with a high level of confidence and calmly explained. "I heard the rumor even before I applied to be his secretary, but Asher differs from what I imagined. So, I am very sure I can last forever if I want to, not with anyone's help, sir."
"Okay. It’s not even up to a week, so you can keep hoping till you can’t take it anymore," he said as he returned the card to his pocket.
"So, I'm expecting you." He said.
"Okay, sir." Nancy smiled. She bowed her head and walked out of his sight before he could say another word.
President Mason chuckled and walked out of Perficient Investment. Immediately after he entered his car, he called Layla’s number.
"Didn’t I tell you, girl, you have passed the test already? Let’s meet tomorrow for the plan and the capital," he said excitedly.
"Let’s get the ball rolling."
Layla drove into Perficient Investment with excitement running around her face. She parked in the parking lot and wore her sunglasses. She picked up the file on the back seat and got out of the car, holding the file lightly in her hand. She walked into the company elegantly, raising her chin. She entered the top floor and met only Aria. Aria was placing her hand on the desk. "Good morning," Layla greeted, but Aria didn’t hear her. "Good morning." Layla raised her voice a little, but Aria still didn’t hear her. She walked closer and tapped the desk three times before Aria raised her head from the desk in a shocked tone. "Hun!" Layla beamed. "Good morning." Aria feigned an insincere smile, responding with her voice stammering, "go-od morning." "How’s your day?" She added. "Fine," Layla answered, raising concern in a low voice. "Are you okay?" Aria brushed her hands through her swollen eyes, which illustrated that she cried for a long time. She glittered her face with a smile and
SIX WEEKS LATER Layla walked into Proficient Investment with a different, excited look. Her mood and mode of walking were elegant, and the happiness in her easily ran around her face. She entered the top floor and met Asher having a conversation with his staff members. “Good morning.” She greeted him at the top of her voice. Asher paused his conversation and shifted his attention to her. “I heard you feed the workers with words — congratulations,” he said, smiling. He giggled, adding, “But unfortunately, I am sorry I can’t solve your problem. I can't sponsor the project.” “Why do you think I am here for that?” She asked, crossing her hand on her chest as she bent to the left a little. “I think far. If you aren’t here for that, what other reason will you come for?” He raised a question. “What if I come to tell you I quit?” She asked. “You won’t be here for that. It seems you will rather push to the end than quit, even though you know you will lose.” Asher said. “Shame to the d
Asher arrived in his office, with Aria and Nancy behind him. Nancy quickly walked closer and took off his clothes. She hung it on the shining standing wooden hanger at the left side of Asher’s table and Asher sat down on his seat. Nancy walked back to his front and bowed her head. “I will go and get your coffee, sir.” “Okay.” Asher permitted and Nancy walked out. Aria walked forward, holding a file in her hand. She bowed her head and raised it. “Good morning, sir.” “What’s it?” Asher asked. He picked up a file and opened it. Aria walked forward and placed the file on the table. “Sir, this is the proposal I prepared to defend the Spanish contract.” Asher moved the file closer and paraphrased it. “Is this what you call a proposal? If you are to assign a contract to a company, can this convince you?” “I give you just-” Before Asher could complete his statement, a call came into his phone. He closed the file and picked up the call. “Good morning.” The caller, a Spanish chairman’s
MIAMI MOTEL, NEW YORK CITY. 6:30 pm Asher arrived in front of the Miami motel. It was the oldest motel in New York City and was built in the most local neighborhood in New York City. It didn’t look like a place Asher would go for a simple reason, but if he win the Spanish contract, it will be the biggest break for him ever since he became a CEO. “This place is dirty,” He said silently, looking around irritated. He hissed and looked back. “Why isn’t she here yet?” He constantly looked at his wristwatch every second for twenty minutes, until he was tired of waiting. A part of his mind told him to go inside and visit the chairman by himself, but the other part that convinced him to wait till Layla showed up won. Six minutes later, Layla arrived, holding a food basket in her right hand as she glued a flower bouquet to her chest with her left hand. She stood beside him, looking down. “Let’s go in.” He looked at her from head to toe and scoffed. “Can’t you apologize for coming
After they left chairman Caros’s place last night, Asher was so excited that he decided to pardon everything Layla did to her and he promised to return the favor to her by pleading to President Mason on her behalf.Asher arrived at President Mason’s office, but President Mason wasn’t around. Asher was so busy with tons of work but he waited for President Mason because he wanted to make Layla happy by making him make a big break he would forever be proud of.President Mason arrived in his office an hour later and met Asher pressing his phone.“I am sorry for keeping you waiting.” President Mason apologized as he walked to sit down opposite Asher.“It’s fine,” Asher smiled, putting his phone beside him on the chair. He stood up and bowed his head. “Good morning, sir.”“Morning, son, how’s work?” President Mason inquired.“Fine, sir.” Asher replied and sat down.“Hope there’s no problem? Why did you come unannounced early this morning?” President Mason questioned.Asher beamed, lightly.
Layla entered the local restaurant, President Mason’s hideout, wearing tight jeans and a cardigan, covering her face with a face cap. She looked around and went straight to the room, but she didn’t meet President Mason inside.She dug her hand into the cardigan pocket and took out her phone. She dialed his number, and it didn’t ring twice before he picked it up.“I am in-”Before she could complete her statement, the same waitress from the first day opened the door. She stood in front of Layla and bowed her head.“He is not here, but on the other side.”“Okay.” Layla ended the call and followed the waitress.They turned left and right thrice till Layla was confused and she wondered if she could remember the way out.The waitress stopped in front of the last room at a corner and opened the door. She bowed her head, directing, “go in.”“Okay.” Layla said, looking at the lady suspiciously. She entered the room, taking her steps slowly, one after the other.The waitress closed the door, a
Asher walked out of his office, his footsteps screamed anger. He walked to Natasha’s desk and slammed the file in his hand on the desk, yelling. “How dare you?!” “What’s this?” He asked, pointing to the file on the desk. Natasha quickly stood up on her feet, fixing her eyes on the floor. Her body shook and her voice stammered in a squirm of fear. “S-ir-” Asher didn’t give her space to say a word. He hit the desk with anger, asking with a high voice. “What excuse do you have for your silliness?!” “Sir-” Natasha wanted to explain but Asher continued to cut her off. “What are you doing that you can't concentrate while you are working? Are you bound with mistakes that you can’t compile a file without making one?” “I am sorry, sir,” Natasha apologized, bowing her head, slightly. She raised her head, and a tear dropped off her face. She wiped the tears and laid her hand on the document to pick it up, saying. “I will fix it, sir.” “If you fix the document, can you fix the precious tim
"You're blocking the road…" a man notified, knocking on Layla's car door, but Layla was far lost in thought and she didn't hear him.He knocked on the car glass again. "You're blocking the road…"Two police officers arrived, and the man moved back.An officer moved closer and knocked the car non-stop for thirty seconds.Layla heard the officer's voice from afar, and immediately as she opened her eyes and saw the officers, her eyes widened in bewilderment and thunder rattled in her heart."I didn't…" she wanted to talk, thinking they came to arrest her as Asher's murderer.She rolled down the glass, and immediately the officers saw her; they wore a cute smile."Ma, we received a call that someone is blocking the road. That's why we are here." An officer explained, beaming. "Oh!" A surprised tone escaped Layla's mouth. She looked back and saw many cars she blocked. She looked back at the officers. "I'm so sorry…""It's fine, ma," they said. "Do you have a problem with your car?""Not a