Loveless CEO

Enough happenings already for one day

Sorry for the omission of this chapter. This is meant to be chapter 32, the immediate chapter after "Call me. I have something for you."

The door opens even before Ava ends her statement. Susan walks in, her face frowning as she raises a chin higher than the other. Noticing the worried expression on her face, Ava asks "Hey Susan, is everything okay?" her voice laced with concern.

"I think the question should be, where have you been? Boss lady." Susan smiles as she grabs a chair and takes a seat. "Because I stopped by earlier to check on you, but you weren't around. A bit worried though, but went back to my office to check back later on you."

Ava takes a deep breath and tries to stay calm. "I'm sorry dear. I had to step out for a bit. I had an emergency to take care of."

"Emergency?!" Susan repeats, sounding anxious.

"Yeah, yeah. Emergency." She smiles. " I was pressed and feeling unease so I went to make use of the restroom. Is that not enough emergency?" She replies as they both laugh out loud.

While lost in amusement, as they continued laughing, Susan cuts in. "That reminds me. Did you see or meet the lady that barged into Mr Xander's office earlier this morning?"

"Yeah... But I think she should be one of his relatives or thereabout." Ava shrugs, trying to play dumb.

"Relatives? indeed. She didn't seem like any of them. Atleast I know for sure that neither Mr Xander nor Ketty would throw anyone the stern look she gave to me at first sight."

"Mmm-hmm." Ava clears her throat, tossing her head in Susan's direction. "You sound like you know them so well already."

"Not really. Just that Ketty invited me for a get-together dinner at her place during the weekend and, trust me, it was fun spending time with them."

Get-together dinner already? Ava's thought races for a second. She didn't see it coming. The Mr Xander she knows won't consent to another lady who isn't Ketty, have dinner with them, considering the years and counting, she's been working with Mr Xander and despite been close to Mr Xander, she never got this much attention, talk more of an invitation for a dinner get-together. And to imagine that Ketty was actually the one that invited her over. This can't be happening, she thought to herself.

"Hello!... Hello!" Susan snaps her fingers at Ava, observing the sudden silence from Ava. "Are you okay?" She asks.

"Sure! Why not?" Sounding like someone that jumped out of the bed from a nightmare in the middle of the night.

"Because I've been calling your attention for like forever and you seemed like you were daydreaming."

"Me? Day dreaming." She chuckles and sighs, reassuring Susan that everything is fine. She settles for "Just imagining more growth and success of the EMPIRE in years to come."

Susan smiles. "Same here too."

Deep inside, Ava's mind flashes with irritation, but one she can't opine at the moment. She squeezes tightly between her fingers, wearing a forced smile as she turns to her small table clock on her left to atleast distract herself, when she notices the time. "I think I should get back to work. I kind of have a lot of unfinished work on my desk."

"You should, dear. Catch you up later." Susan marches out of Ava's office, leaving her to work.

The moment Susan slams the door on her way out, Ava smacks the desk with her both hands, standing up in the degree of furry, she's being muffling all this while. She clenches her fist so tightly, fussing back and forth in her office. "A dinner get-together. " She laughs in irritation. " So hilarious."

"Hmmm. Maybe it's just a kind gesture." She smirks after fretting for a while. She drags her seat to her ass as she arranges the files on her desk. After which, she scrolls through unattended emails on her desktop. Few hours later, still engrossed in work, she loses track of time.

"Hey! Boss lady, it seems like you're are now the workaholic here." Susan parades herself in. "It's past work hours already. I think we should get going before it gets late. Don't you think the same?"

Ava twitches at Susan's sudden chime. She chuckles as she adjusts from her desk, relaxing her back for a while. She saves up her work and puts off her computer as soon as she glance at the clock. "Yeah, we should. Just give me two minutes." She insists, getting a light make over to her face. As soon as she is done, she paces hurriedly to catch up with Susan as usual. She meets the taxi Susan already boarded.

"I guess the two minutes was for the gorgeous-looking face. Because I can see a difference."

"Sure. What else, if not for my beauty?" Ava replies as she opens the car's door.

Just as they enter the taxi, a voice calls out from behind. "If you don't mind, I can drop you off." Ava turns immediately to see Mr Xander standing by the side of his car. She nods Nd smile, her face lits up with excitement and pleasure. She hurriedly slams back the taxi door. "Off course, sir, I wouldn't mind at all."

"I meant Susan not you." Xander adds, with a light smile as he opens the door space for her like every gentleman will do. Susan freezes or second, her eyes widen in shock as she realizes that Mr. Xander was referring to her and not Ava. She looks back at Ava with a feeling of guilt and confused as well, why she was not the one being offered a ride.

Ava waves her hand to Susan, showing that it's okay, but deep down she feels disheartened and left out as she stands, glaring at the whole scenario. Susan climbs into Mr. Xander's car. He greets her with a charming smile and they drive off. "Hmmm." Ava exhales heavily, feeling bitter and jealous. Her mind clouded with unhealthy thoughts. She hops into the taxi, trying to distract herself by chatting with the driver and checking her phone.