Chapter 9 A Tough Night
1133 Words
The three rich women exchanged glances, their eyes full of suspicion as they looked Emily up and down.
"You two aren't a couple?"
"Of course not!" Emily immediately clarified. "Look at his aura and physique. He's the best our bar has to offer. How could I keep him all to myself?"
James frowned at Emily.
She was incredibly smooth at pitching this, almost as if she'd been doing it for years. Keeping her in the company's HR department seemed like a waste of talent.
The three women's lewd gazes roamed over James, making him feel extremely uncomfortable. But with Emily there, he couldn't lash out immediately.
He had to endure their appraising looks.
"He does look more appealing than the others, but with that mask on, we can't see his face. What if he's ugly? Make him take off the mask!"
Emily's heart skipped a beat. She reached out to remove the mask but stopped when she met James' stern gaze.
She had been curious about his true appearance before and had tried to take off his mask, but he had refused. He seemed to care a lot about it.
Maybe he thought being a gigolo was shameful and planned to leave the business once he made enough money to start a new life.
Everyone was struggling to survive, and she respected him.
Emily quickly linked arms with one of the women to divert her attention. "This mask will add to the mystery and excitement! Besides, look at his physique, those abs and that waist. He's definitely got more stamina than anyone else out there."
The three women's eyes sparkled as they stared at James' broad shoulders and abs, swallowing hard.
Emily smirked, lowering her voice as she continued to pitch. "And he can handle all three of you at once. No problem at all!"
"Deal!"
The three women exchanged knowing glances and nodded, the middle one pulling out a card. "300,000 for the night. We want him all to ourselves."
"Enjoy yourselves!" Emily said with a big smile, accepting the card without daring to look James in the eye.
She left the room, feeling a mix of guilt and excitement.
James' eyes blazed with anger.
She had sold him out for 300,000!
Seeing the women approach him with seductive smiles, James' disgust only grew.
"Get out!"
Suddenly, the door burst open, and several bodyguards in black suits rushed in.
The three women were too stunned to react as they were swiftly silenced and dragged out.
*****
Despite getting the money, Emily didn't feel as good as she thought she would.
Sure, he was a gigolo, but servicing three women at once, all of them insatiable, was a bit much.
Distracted, she put her three kids to bed and then texted James.
Emily: How's it going? Are you done?
When she didn't get a reply, she tried calling, but no one answered. Anxiety gnawed at her.
Had those three women really worn him out?
Emily slapped her forehead in frustration. She had let her desperation for money cloud her judgment. How could she let herself be swayed by 300,000?
After sending two more texts to James, Emily took a deep breath, trying to calm herself.
He had been in this line of work for years. Surely, he had ways to handle difficult situations. He would be fine.
Besides, he was strong and fit. If he didn't want to, those three women couldn't force him.
She decided to wait for his response.
This had been a rash decision. She needed to be more considerate of her partner's well-being and avoid booking such physically demanding jobs in the future.
Even though she tried to reassure herself, Emily couldn't sleep well that night.
The next morning, after dropping the kids off at school, Emily headed to work, her mind preoccupied with worries. She planned to visit the bar after work to check on James.
As soon as she sat down at her desk, her colleague Annie came over.
"Did you hear? Eason got transferred to the logistics department."
"What?"
Emily was slightly surprised. While transfers were normal, it was unusual for a manager to be reassigned to handling maintenance tasks. The demotion was quite significant!
Annie pursed her lips. "Well, that's what happens when you cross James!"
"But it's strange. James usually doesn't bother with lower-level issues. Why make such a big move over something so minor? It seems over the top."
Annie's doubts made Emily's heart skip a beat.
James bumping into Eason yesterday didn't seem accidental. And then he went out of his way to have Eason reassigned. Could it be that he was standing up for her?
Emily quickly dismissed the thought.
Why was she getting ahead of herself?
She was just a new employee. Why would James take her side?
Besides, considering James' previous behavior of driving into someone who threatened him, he wasn't exactly the type to be friendly or considerate towards subordinates.
Clearing her mind of such thoughts, Emily said nonchalantly, "Maybe Eason was too flashy in his actions. It's not our place to speculate about the higher-ups' decisions."
Annie nodded in agreement, but her expression suddenly changed as she hurried back to her desk, pretending to working intently.
Emily was about to turn around to see what was happening when a shadow fell over her desk.
With a loud "thud." A stack of documents was slammed down in front of her.
"Sort these materials as required and distribute them to all departments," a cold voice ordered.
The woman had a stern face and a sharp tone. Her name tag identified her as Karen, the new supervisor replacing Eason.
Though she didn't seem friendly, Emily figured she was better than having someone like Eason with a grudge against her.
Emily smiled and took the documents. A quick glance showed the task wasn't difficult but time-consuming. It looked like she'd be busy with this boring task for most of the day.
But before she could start, Karen added coldly, "Finish it immediately."
Immediately?
Emily thought Karen must have made a mistake, but it soon became clear that Karen was intentionally making things difficult for her.
Karen piled all sorts of trivial tasks on Emily, from reviewing contracts to handling departmental chores. She was swamped all day without a break.
Even her colleagues started to feel sorry for her. "Emily, did you offend the new manager too? It seems like she's targeting you on purpose!"
Emily forced a smile, knowing it was wise to be careful with her words in the company. She didn't utter a single complaint.
But as the day was ending, a tired Emily was called into Karen's office.
"Mr. Downton is on the top floor. He wants some coffee. Go bring him some," Karen ordered without looking up.
- Writer
