Chapter 6
785 Words
Chapter 6
As soon as she arrived home, Ariel placed her bag on the sofa. She took off her high heels, walked quickly to her bedroom, and turned on her laptop. A stack of documents on her desk needed to be organized for tomorrow morning’s meeting.
While opening the presentation file, her mind drifted—not to the data or the meeting schedule, but to that night. The night she was with Zayden.
Ariel closed her eyes for a moment. The memory was vivid—his intense gaze, the grip on her waist, the quickening of his breath. Her body still remembered every touch, every gasp, and… how many times she reached her peak that night.
“Oh, God, Ariel,” she murmured, rubbing her temples. “Why are you remembering this again?”
She tried to focus on the laptop screen, but instead, the image of Zayden’s chest muscles, his toned abs, and the way he held her as if nothing else existed in the world, became clearer.
Suddenly, her phone rang, startling her. Gavin’s name appeared on the screen.
Ariel glanced at it, took a deep breath, and answered. “Hello?”
“Hey, baby. Are you busy?” Gavin’s voice sounded cheerful.
“A little. I’m preparing documents for tomorrow’s meeting.”
“Oh… in that case, can you go out for a bit tonight? I want to take you to dinner.”
Ariel paused. “Dinner? Is there a special occasion?”
“There’s something I want to give you. It won’t take long, I promise,” Gavin replied, a hint of excitement in his tone.
She looked at her laptop screen, then briefly closed the file she was working on. “Okay. What time?”
“Seven. I’ll pick you up.”
“All right. I’ll get ready later.”
“Thank you, baby. See you soon.”
The call ended. Ariel put her phone on the desk and leaned back in her chair.
“What does Gavin want to give me?” she murmured.
She returned her gaze to the laptop, trying to continue her work. Her fingers typed, but her mind wandered. Every time she tried to focus, Zayden’s face appeared again.
Ariel let out a long sigh. “This isn’t healthy.” She opened an email from one of the managers at the company, highlighting a few notes for the presentation. Every now and then, she glanced at the clock in the corner of the screen, counting the time left to get ready.
After an hour, Ariel decided to take a short break. She went to the kitchen, poured herself a glass of water, then returned to her desk.
Her phone buzzed— a message from Gavin.
[Tonight you have to look beautiful, okay?]
Ariel typed a short reply: [Okay].
She exhaled softly, then turned off her laptop. Tomorrow’s work was almost done, just needed a little touch-up after dinner.
In her bedroom, Ariel opened her wardrobe. Her hand paused on a red dress she had worn to a company gala—the same night Zayden had been watching her from afar.
“Why am I remembering that again?” she whispered, shaking her head.
She finally chose a simple black dress. Not too flashy, but enough to make her look neat.
The clock was almost at seven. Ariel tidied her hair, applied a light perfume, and grabbed a small purse.
A soft honk came from outside. She peeked through the window—Gavin had arrived.
Ariel went down, locked the door, and walked toward the car. Gavin stepped out from the driver’s seat and opened the door for her.
“You look so beautiful,” Gavin said with a smile.
“Thank you,” Ariel replied briefly.
In the car, the atmosphere was quiet for a few minutes before Gavin spoke. “I’m glad you’re coming out tonight. It feels like it’s been a while since we’ve had dinner together without interruptions.”
Ariel only gave a faint smile, not saying much. Inside, she was still thinking about the pile of unresolved problems.
Gavin glanced at her. “You look tired. Don’t work too much, okay?”
“I’m fine. Tomorrow is just a big meeting, so I need to be ready.”
Gavin nodded. “Okay, after dinner I’ll give you a surprise. I hope you’ll like it.”
Ariel looked out the window, trying to push away the lingering images that had been with her since the afternoon.
But somehow, every time she closed her eyes for even a moment, it wasn’t Gavin she saw—it was Zayden.
Ariel, you have to remember your purpose for getting close to Zayden, she reminded herself.
- Writer
