Chapter 4 His Kiss
1191 Words
Joanne answered, “Not yet.”
Mrs. Grey had been waiting for her to say that. “That’s great! I just happen to know a young and talented man. How about I introduce him to you?”
Zane was about to speak, but Mrs. Grey interrupted him. “Zane, you know him too. Ethan Carter, Uncle Carter’s son.”
“Uncle Carter,” Mrs. Grey explained, “is our family driver.”
Mrs. Grey smiled and continued, “Uncle Carter is honest and trustworthy, and his son is well-mannered. The young man is quite handsome and capable. He started his own business and became a boss before even turning thirty. Miss Wren, if things work out, you won’t have to work for Zane anymore—you could be the boss’s wife yourself.”
Zane’s face darkened, while Joanne smiled and replied, “Thank you, Mrs. Grey.”
“Well,I’ll call Uncle Carter and tell him to arrange a meeting for you two as soon as possible.” Mrs. Grey made the final decision, leaving Joanne no chance to refuse.
Joanne didn’t get upset. “Please, go ahead.”
“Don’t worry.” Mrs. Grey took her hand and patted the back of it lightly. “You’ve given so much to Bos Group. Zane and I won’t treat you unfairly. Zane, remember to let Miss Wren leave work early tomorrow. Don’t delay her lifelong happiness.”
After saying goodbye to Mrs. Grey, Joanne took the elevator down to the underground parking lot. As soon as she sat in the driver’s seat, Mrs. Grey’s phone call came through.
She picked up the phone with a quick smile. “Mrs. Grey, is there anything else you need?”
“I’ve already asked Uncle Carter to give Ethan your phone number. He should add you on w******p later. Remember to accept his request.”
At the same time, a w******p friend request popped up. Joanne opened it, confirmed the identity, and said to Mrs. Grey, “He added me.”
Mrs. Grey responded, “Alright, I’ll hang up now. You two have a good chat.”
Joanne stayed silent for a long time before accepting the friend request.
“Hello Miss Wren, I’m Ethan. Do you have time tomorrow night? I’d like to take you out to dinner.”
She didn’t reply immediately. Instead, she put her phone down on the passenger seat and leaned back against the car seat, closing her eyes for a moment.
Joanne had thought that Mrs. Grey was just trying to put her in her place, but she hadn’t expected Mrs. Grey to actually arrange a blind date for her.
And to make things more complicated, she had even carefully arranged for the son of her driver to be the one for the match.
There was no doubt that Mrs. Grey was reminding Joanne of the class divide between her and Zane.
In fact, Joanne didn’t need Mrs. Grey’s reminder; she was perfectly aware of her position.
Mrs. Grey thought too highly of her—Joanne would never be an obstacle between Zane and Quinn.
After not eating for several hours, Joanne was starving. She drove to her usual porridge shop, filled her stomach, and then dragged her exhausted body back to the apartment.
As soon as she entered the door, she met the eyes of the man sitting on the sofa.
Joanne froze. “...What are you doing here?”
She clearly saw Mrs. Grey hand two movie tickets to Zane earlier, telling him to take Quinn to the cinema.
On the way back , she had even wondered which movie they were going to see.
It hadn’t been more than an hour since they parted, far too little time to have finished a movie.
Zane didn’t say anything. He stood up, walked toward her, and lowered his head to kiss her lips.
He had been drinking, so this kiss was unlike the usual gentle and lingering ones; it was fierce.
Joanne was breathless from the kiss and instinctively tried to push him away, but he was a little wild from the alcohol. If she hadn’t fought him off, he would have almost had her right there in the living room.
When Zane carried her upstairs, she finally noticed the lunchbox on the dining table.
It turned out he knew she hadn’t eaten dinner and had come to bring her food.
Just before throwing her onto the bed, Zane asked, “Do you want to eat something?”
Joanne shook her head. “I had porridge on the way back.”
At that, he didn’t hesitate any longer and proceeded to take what he wanted, recklessly and uncontrollably.
Joanne’s neck, shoulders, chest, even her back, were marked with his kisses.
Tonight, Zane was like a fierce beast, leaving his mark on his prey.
Joanne knew he had come tonight because she had agreed to Mrs. Grey’s blind date arrangement, and he was displeased, so he came to teach her a lesson.
He didn’t care about her; it was just the inherent nature of men: a declaration of ownership.
Before Joanne fell unconscious, she forced out a smile. “Mr. Grey, you hurt me. Remember to make it up to me.”
Zane understood what she meant—compensation was just money.
So, without hesitation, he transferred money to her via his phone.
The next morning, when Joanne woke up, she looked at the long string of zeros, in a very good mood.
She curved the corners of her lips and said, “Don’t come here again. Mrs. Grey will get angry if she finds out. You’re about to marry Miss Bennett, so if you have time, spend more time with her. You don’t have any work tonight; how about having dinner with her alone? I’ll make a reservation for you.”
Her tone was casual, as though she were truly just his secretary.
Zane usually loved hearing her speak gently to him, but at that moment, he wasn’t sure what nerve he’d hit. “Miss Wren, you’re overstepping your boundaries.”
Joanne was buttoning his shirt when she heard him, her heart skipping a beat. “Sorry, Mr. Grey, I overstepped.”
After speaking, she took the tie from the hanger, wrapped it around his neck, and quickly tied a neat Windsor knot.
She was very good at tying ties—better than he was.
Zane stared at her face, trying to read her emotions.
Noticing his gaze, Joanne looked up and smiled, “All done, Mr. Grey. How does it look?”
“Perfect,” Zane said, his words carrying double meaning. “You really are a great secretary.”
Joanne pretended not to understand. “Mr. Grey, you’re too kind.”
Because she had woken up late, she didn’t make breakfast, and Zane left in a huff, slamming the door behind him.
When Joanne drove out of the apartment building, she saw the red sports car parked by the roadside.
It stood out so much that she instinctively glanced at the driver.
Coincidentally, the driver was looking at her too.
Joanne recognized her—it was Seraphina.
- Writer
