The Billionaire's Perfect Match

Chapter 7:

Emily patted Anna’s back gently. “Anna, I won’t let my past shackle me. I’ll live happily for myself, not to spite others.”

Thrilled, Anna grabbed two beers from the fridge. “Girl, congratulations on your marriage! You must be happy. If Ricard ever mistreats you, I’ll be there for you.”

Thinking of Ricard, Emily smiled. “We may not have love, but I trust his character. I believe we’ll be fine.”

That night, Emily, and Anna talked until dawn, sharing everything.

...

Emily, despite no sleep, woke up early for work. She valued her job above all else and wouldn’t let fatigue affect her performance.

At lunch, Ricard noticed Emily seemed tired and suggested, “Emily, there’s a rest room here. Take a nap.”

Emily wanted to decline, but Ricard’s concerned look made her accept. While they didn’t have love, Ricard was a considerate husband.

A lack of rest would affect her work efficiency, and Emily knew this well.

The rest room, next to room 1808, was clean and simple, offering a restful atmosphere.

Ricard drew the curtains, darkening the room, making Emily feel sleepier.

He sat on the bed’s edge, tucking her in. “Sleep. I’ll wake you when it’s time.”

Emily, struggling to keep her eyes open, asked, “Aren’t you going to rest?”

Ricard replied, “I slept well last night. I’m not tired today.”

“Okay.” Emily nodded and soon fell asleep. Ricard stayed by her side, watching her intently.

To Ricard, Emily wasn’t the type to catch attention at first glance, but grew more beautiful the longer he looked. Her delicate eyebrows, long lashes, clear eyes, porcelain skin, and strong yet gentle demeanor captivated him. He thought life together would be pleasant.

Emily slept soundly, trusting Ricard to wake her on time, but she woke up to find it dark outside. Tomorrow was the Aliba project bid opening, and she felt frustrated at her oversight.

Biting her lip, she looked angrily at Ricard. His expression remained calm. “I had my assistant call in for you. The Aliba project is well-prepared, so don’t worry.”

Emily, though still upset, couldn’t argue with her boss. However, she insisted, “Don’t do this again.”

Emily was laid-back in life but stringent at work.

Ricard nodded, “Let’s have dinner.”

Emily walked out, muttering, “Do all men lie?”

Hearing this, Ricard wanted to explain but stayed silent. Though he wanted her to rest more, he knew he hadn’t kept his word.

...

About half a month after Aliba opened the bids, William Group won the Aliba project with an overwhelming advantage.

To reward everyone, the CEO instructed Assistant Jayce to announce an event: the company would organize a two-day trip to the Wattson Resort this weekend, which was the next day. This news caused quite a stir among all the employees.

Wattson Resort was the most luxurious vacation spot in the city. It was said that the cost of one night there was beyond the imagination of ordinary people, with guests often being extremely wealthy billionaires or visiting heads of state.

While everyone was excited, they didn’t forget about their boss. Speculation about whether the boss would take part in the event became the focus of everyone’s attention.

While her colleagues were pondering this question, Emily was also thinking about Ricard. Ricard had been away on a business trip all week, and she hadn’t seen him in days. When would he be back? Although he called her at the same time every night, their relationship hadn’t reached the point where they talked endlessly. Often, they simply stayed silent on the phone.

At that moment, someone in the company’s activity group started a betting pool on whether the boss would attend the event, with each participant betting $100. The size was small, so many participated, and the bets were even for attending or not.

Lucia and Norman eagerly approached Emily. “Emily, do you want to place a bet?” Emily considered it. Despite Ricard’s cold personality, this was the first major company event since he became CEO, and it was being held at such a luxurious place, likely suggested by him to Jayce. So she, along with her colleagues, bet that Ricard would attend.

Just before the end of the workday, Emily received a call from Ricard, informing her he was back from his business trip. So she made a trip to the supermarket, bought ingredients for dinner and some snacks for the trip, and then headed home.

When she arrived, Ricard was still busy with the study. Emily greeted him and then hurried to the kitchen to prepare dinner.

During dinner, Ricard remained silent, his dining manners impeccable. Emily glanced at him several times, finally gathering the courage to ask, “Ricard, are you going to the company event tomorrow?”

Ricard seemed not to hear her, continuing to eat his meal.

His lack of response made Emily feel a bit embarrassed, so she lowered her head and continued eating.

After a while, Ricard put down his chopsticks, picked up a napkin, and casually replied, “I’m not interested in such activities.”

He didn’t explicitly say he wouldn’t go, but his words implied as much.

“Oh.” Emily responded softly, unable to hide her disappointment.

“Why? Do you want me to go?” Ricard asked suddenly, noticing her disappointed expression.

With a sheepish smile, Emily scratched her head and thought to herself that his departure wasn’t the issue.

Under the bright chandelier, Ricard raised his eyebrows. As her husband, he would make time to attend if she wanted him to go.

...

The next day, Emily woke up early, but Ricard was already up before her. Even though they had been living together for a few days, no matter how early she got up, she always found him dressed and sitting by the window reading financial newspapers.

Sometimes, Emily felt Ricard didn’t belong to this era.

His routine was annoyingly consistent, and he always read printed newspapers instead of looking up news online.

“You’re up,” he said, looking up at her before returning to his paper.

“Yes, good morning!” Emily looked at him, unable to take her eyes off him. Today, he sat quietly on a single sofa by the window, his long legs crossed comfortably, dressed casually in all white. The morning sun streaming through the window cast a warm glow on him, making him look like a rare piece of art, so beautiful that one would want to hide it away.

Emily’s intense gaze didn’t bother Ricard. He calmly continued reading his newspaper.

Normally, his appearance attracted many admiring glances, which he found annoying, but Emily’s quiet admiration didn’t bother him. Eventually, when Emily continued to gaze, he inquired, “Aren’t you attending the company event?”

“Right, I almost forgot.” Emily laughed awkwardly, quickly making up an excuse. She was just thinking about how much Ricard would fetch if auctioned as a piece of art when his voice brought her back to reality.

...

The company rented two 50-seat buses to take employees to Wattson Resort, a vacation paradise.

As department heads took attendance, everyone glanced around, looking to see if the boss would join them.

Lucia stood beside Emily, saying, “God bless, the boss has to come, he just has to.”

Emily blurted out, “He’s not coming.”

Lucia’s eyes widened. “How do you know?”

Realizing her slip, Emily quickly made an excuse. “The boss is always punctual. If he isn’t here yet, he probably isn’t coming.”

Lucia’s shoulders slumped, and the nearby female colleagues sighed in disappointment.

Their intentions were obvious. Rarely did they see the boss at work, leaving no opportunity to impress. This trip was an amazing chance. Everyone had brought their best outfits, hoping to catch the boss’s eye, but he wasn’t coming.

More than an hour later, the group arrived at Wattson Resort, by the sea. The first task upon arrival was to collect their room keys.

Emily was initially assigned to share a room with Lucia, but then Amile suddenly appeared and said, “Emily, there aren’t enough rooms here. Come with me to another room.”

Amile was a trusted aide of the boss, and Emily, being specifically assigned to an unfamiliar room by her, made everyone envious.

After everyone had collected their room keys and was eager to check out their rooms, Amile stepped forward and announced, “Please wait a moment, everyone. CEO William has a brief message.”

CEO William!!!

In an instant, everyone’s eyes lit up. Was the CEO really here?

Under everyone’s expectant gaze, Ricard walked in slowly from the main entrance, dressed in a custom-tailored silver-gray suit. Every step he took made the hearts of the female colleagues race.

Seeing Ricard appear, Emily thought of nothing else but that her $100 bet had paid off, and she had won a few more dollars, which made her thrilled. When Ricard glanced at Emily and saw her beaming smile, he wondered if just a brief appearance from him could make her so happy.

He approached, politely smiling at everyone. “Enjoy yourselves, eat well, the company covers all expenses.”

Everyone cheered with joy, almost shouting “Long live the boss,” except for Emily, who stood quietly at the back, thinking how wonderful it was to have money.

Amile, using the excuse that the rooms here were full, led Emily to a sightseeing cart heading to the independent villa area of the resort. Seeing the facilities there, Emily felt a bit uneasy. Was there another purpose behind Amile bringing her here?