Fixed Married to the Arrogant CEO

Chapter 5

Amethyst's POV

"Goodnight, Ara," I said softly, planting a gentle kiss on her forehead.

"Goodnight, Amy," she replied sweetly, her voice soft as I tucked her in carefully.

I gave her a small smile, feeling a mix of exhaustion and warmth, before I left the room quietly.

I moved through the evening in a sort of routine. I showered, then dressed comfortably, knowing that it was going to be a long night ahead. I made myself a cup of coffee to keep me going and then walked over to my office, ready to face the pile of work waiting for me.

It was going to be a long night, and I wasn't looking forward to it.

Before diving into the mountain of tasks, I decided to give Ady a call. I needed to talk to him, even if it meant momentarily distracting myself from the weight of everything else.

As soon as I dialed his number, he picked up immediately.

"Hey," I greeted first, my voice quiet but steady.

"Hey. How are you and Ara doing?" he asked, his tone filled with genuine concern.

"Well, she's asleep now," I replied, setting down the stack of papers I needed to go through as I spoke. "But there's still a lot going on."

"What's the situation?" he pressed, his voice a little more serious now.

I let out a deep sigh, hesitating for a moment. I couldn't bring myself to tell him everything, at least not yet.

"It's still complicated. I... we need to give more time to Ara," I said, my voice a little apologetic.

I could hear Ady let out a small sigh on the other end of the line.

"Is it that bad?" he asked softly.

I bit my lower lip, feeling the weight of the situation settle deeper in my chest.

"I'm not going to lie. It is. It's very bad, Ady," I admitted quietly, my voice thick with the tension of everything that had happened.

There was a long, heavy silence that followed. I could feel the weight of the conversation between us.

"I'll cover for both of you for now," he finally said, breaking the silence. "But you know that I can only do so much, Amy. I need to clearly know the situation to be able to do something more appropriate for the situation."

"I know," I replied quickly, though I knew I couldn't give him all the details right now. "I just don't want to force it on Ara. I can see how much she's struggling right now, and it wouldn't be a good idea to force anything on her, you know?"

"I know. I know," Ady said with a hint of understanding. "So what's your plan?"

"Well, for now, I just need you to make sure that our parents won't send a whole community to search for her. I already got rid of her call history so they wouldn't know that I was the last person she called. And, in addition to that, they don't know where I'm staying, so I know no one will come barging in my door to take her back," I told him, my voice filled with determination.

"Okay. I'll do just that," he responded firmly.

"Thank you," I said, feeling a wave of relief.

"No need for that," Ady said with a soft chuckle. "You and Ara are my sisters. I'm supposed to protect the both of you at all costs, remember?"

I smiled faintly, feeling a little more at ease knowing he had my back.

"I'll give you a call again when I can," I said. "My schedule is just pretty tight right now because Fashion Week is just around the corner."

"Okay. Be careful, the both of you. I'll see when I can come and visit to check up on both of you," he said, his voice gentle.

"Okay. I'll let Ara know," I replied, my tone softer now.

"Take care, sis."

"You too," I said, my voice filled with warmth as I ended the call.

I huffed and glanced at the mountain of work in front of me. The thought of it made my shoulders sag, but there was nothing I could do but press on.

I could already feel it—I wasn't going to get any sleep tonight.

Great.

Amazing.

Wonderful.

Ugh!

Time seemed to drag on as I worked, the hours blending together in a blur. I didn't know how long I was working before I finally started to doze off, but I woke up with a jolt when my alarm went off.

I groaned, rubbing my eyes, before getting up and heading straight to my room.

I showered quickly and got dressed for the day, the exhaustion still lingering in my body. I made breakfast for both Ara and me. It's a good thing I'm used to cooking for myself, given that I've lived alone for years and had to learn how to manage on my own.

After cooking, I went to wake up Ara so we could eat together before I left for work.

Of course, she had her usual episode of morning sickness, throwing up in the toilet when she woke up. But after a few minutes, we finally sat down to have breakfast.

"You don't look like you slept," Ara pointed out, eyeing me with concern.

"I did, but just a little," I admitted with a small sigh. "I'm okay though."

Ara pouted, clearly not fully convinced. "Did you have to skip work last night because you had to leave early because of me?"

I immediately shook my head. "No, of course not. I just get insomnia every now and then, especially with Fashion Week coming up. It has nothing to do with you," I reassured her.

She sighed in relief. "Really? You're not saying that just to make me feel better, right?"

I gave her a small, assuring smile. "I'm fine, Ara. I really am. If you're thinking that you're troubling me by being here, you're not. I'm more than glad you're here with me, okay?"

Her eyes filled with tears again, but she smiled softly.

"Okay," she said quietly, smiling through the tears.

We finished breakfast, and I left shortly after. I had already prepared lunch for Ara, so she could just reheat it when she needed to.

Celine would spend the day with her, which made me feel a little better. At least I knew someone was looking after her while I was gone.

Since Ara had been staying at my parents' place, she hadn't developed much independence. She didn’t know how to cook for herself, and we had helpers to handle that at home. It worried me, but I wouldn't let anything happen to her as long as I was around.

"Miss Wright, there's an invitation that came in today," my assistant came into the office, handing me a sleek envelope.

"An invitation for what exactly?" I asked, raising an eyebrow as I took the envelope from her.

"I believe it's for the sponsors and designers," she explained.

I opened the envelope and my eyes widened in shock.

"Tomorrow night?!" I exclaimed, startled by the short notice.

I could see that my assistant was just as surprised as I was.

My jaw clenched in frustration as I closed my eyes, trying to calm myself down.

I hadn't prepared anything for something like this.

"Oh my god. I'm so sorry, Miss Wright. It just came in today. I... I'm sorry," she stammered, clearly apologetic.

"It's okay, Alice," I said with a forced calmness. "It's not your fault. Go on and have your lunch."

She nodded and quickly left the room.

I massaged the bridge of my nose, trying to release the tension that had built up.

"Whatever," I muttered to myself, setting aside my other work. I started sketching a design I could make overnight. It didn’t need to be extravagant, but I couldn’t look plain either.

I had my sponsors in place, so that wasn’t a worry, but I still had to be present to present ‘Lady A’—which was, of course, myself.

The theme of the event was a masquerade ball.

Great. Just great.

I quickly finished my sketch in a matter of minutes, envisioning a gown in emerald green velvet with a high split and thin straps.

I rushed to my storage, pulling out the materials I needed to start working. If I started now, I could finish it by the afternoon and then focus on my paperwork later that evening.

I skipped lunch, determined to get the gown done.

I also had to make a mask to go with the outfit, but ugh, this was just too much. I felt the pressure mounting.

Hours passed as I worked, completely immersed in the gown. But then there was a knock on the door.

"Miss Wright, you have a visitor," my assistant said.

"Who is it?" I called out without turning around.

"That's no way to treat your senior now, is it?" a familiar voice said playfully.

I turned, shocked to see a woman stepping into my office.

"Miss Katrina?" I gasped, surprised to see her.

"Hello, darling. It's been a while," she said, her smile wide and warm.

I bowed my head slightly, still stunned.

"I'm so sorry. Please, come in," I said, trying to regain my composure.

Miss Katrina waved off my apology and motioned for my assistant to leave. Once she was alone in the room with me, she turned and gave me a bright smile.

"Come here and give me a hug already," she said, her voice full of warmth.

I smiled and rushed over to her, hugging her tightly and kissing her on the cheek.

"When did you come back?" I asked, still processing the surprise of seeing her.

"Just yesterday, darling," she replied as I guided her to a seat.

"How are you?" she asked, her voice soft with concern.

I glanced at the mannequin with the gown I was working on. "A little preoccupied with rushing something to wear for tomorrow night's party with the sponsors," I admitted with a sigh.

"Oh my. I'm guessing you only received the invitation recently for you to be cramming like this?" she asked with a knowing look.

I nodded. "I received it earlier today actually," I said, pouting.

"Oh my my my. How unfortunate. I figured you weren't one to cram like this. You were never one to be so irresponsible," she teased, and I sighed.

She gave me a reassuring pat on the back. "No worries, darling. I'm here now, aren't I? Let me help you," she said, winking at me.

I smiled, feeling relieved.

With her expert help, we managed to finish the gown much faster than I expected, and it turned out absolutely stunning.

"Fabulous," Miss Katrina said in satisfaction, admiring the finished product.

I hugged her tightly in gratitude. "Thank you so much."

She caressed my hair gently. "You're always welcome, darling. If you're so thankful, you can bring me out for dinner tonight," she said with a playful grin.

I chuckled and smiled. "Of course."

It had been a while since we had dined out together, and I was looking forward to catching up.

"But can I bring someone with me?" I asked suddenly, remembering that Ara was at home.

"Who is this someone exactly? Perhaps a boyfriend?" she asked, hopeful.

I shook my head quickly. "Oh no, no, no. It's my sister. She's staying with me, and I wouldn't want her to have dinner alone at home," I explained.

"Oh, okay. I'd love to finally meet a family member of yours," she said, making me smile.

Miss Katrina had always looked out for me over the years. She was the true mother figure I never had growing up.

She was strict but gentle, and though she cared for me deeply, she never spoiled me in a way that would make me dependent.

In fact, she had taught me to be independent.

"I'll make a reservation now and let my sister know," I said, grateful for her kindness.

She nodded in approval.

I excused myself and quickly made the reservation at Miss Katrina’s favorite restaurant before dialing Celine’s number.

"Heyyy, bestie," I said when she answered.

"Hey. Can you put Ara on the phone for a moment? I need to tell her something urgent," I said.

"Kay kay. Wait a sec. I'll go get her."

A few moments passed before I finally heard Ara’s voice.

"Amy?"

"Ara, is it okay for you to have dinner with me and my senior? She's Miss Katrina. I've told you about her before, right?" I asked carefully.

"Of course. I'd love to," she responded eagerly.

"Thank God. Okay, get ready. I'll ask Celine to drive you to the restaurant I reserved," I said, feeling a sense of relief.

"Okay. I'll hand the phone over to Celine now."

Then, Celine came on the line.

"What's up?"

"Miss Katrina just came back and gave me a visit. I'm taking her out for dinner with Ara. Can you please drive her to the restaurant? And pick out a dress for me to change into?" I said, trying to sound as sweet as possible.

"No probs, babe," she said easily.

"Thank you, Celine. I owe you tons," I said with relief.

"I know. An 'I love you' will do," she teased.

I mentally cringed, sighing.

"Okay, I love you," I said, cringing a little.

Celine giggled on the other end.

"I love you more, bestie. Anyways, I'll go on ahead and pick something out for you. I'm guessing it'll be somewhere fancy."

"Yes," I confirmed.

"Okay. I got you!"

"Thank you. I'll see you later."

"Kay kay! See you."

We ended the call.

I had a lot on my hands right now, but at least I had some good company to look forward to later.