"Are our ears broken? How is this tyrant very kind? He"s even very specific with the snacks to give to this lady. Just who is she?", one executive sneered in his thoughts.Samantha wanted to stop him but his secretary was quick on her feet that she wasn"t able to object. Daniel also had already continued with the meeting, she didn"t have any other choice but to sit on the sofa awkwardly as she waited. The secretary came back with a tray that contained everything that Daniel had ordered her to. Samantha grabbed her wrist, pulled her close and whispered, "Is he really about to finish his meeting?"
The secretary gave her a complicated smile, she told Samantha that they have started only for about 20 minutes when she arrived.
Samantha"s smile was even more complicated than his secretary"s, she nervously picked up the mango juice and took a sip. "I"m uncomfortable, Daniel Cho. What the h.e.l.l are you doing?"
...
"You can"t do that again, that was really embarra.s.sing.", Samantha complained before she ate a spoonful of food angrily.
Daniel found her really amusing, how could this woman eat angrily? "What did I do wrong?"
"You finished the meeting quickly, they didn"t look very happy about it. Their gazes were too…", Samantha couldn"t finish her sentence, she cringed.
"Really? I guess I have to add more workload then."
She raised an eyebrow, "What? How is that comforting?"
"Why do I need to be comforting? They were the ones who stared at you.", Daniel said as-matter-of-factly.
Samantha didn"t know how his mind worked, wasn"t "the matter about finis.h.i.+ng the meeting quickly" more important than how they looked at her? He wasn"t at all bothered that he ended the meeting early but he was concerned because of their stare?
"Oh right, I have something to tell you.", Daniel interrupted her thoughts.
Looking up at him, she asked, "What is it?"
"Congratulations, Trident won the bidding.", he announced proudly.
Samantha didn"t catch on right away as she just stared at his handsome face with a bewildered expression, "What?"
"I said, Trident won the bidding for the software project."
She thought long and hard but the only bidding that she could remember was the one three months ago. Did they have another one? Samantha hasn"t been to her company yet so she didn"t know any updates about their recent projects. What an irresponsible CEO, she left everything to Alexander and a.s.sistant Chen; she suddenly felt guilty.
"Why aren"t you saying anything? Aren"t you happy?", Daniel asked after not hearing any response from her. Judging by her expression, she doesn"t seem to understand what he said.
"What bidding? Is it a new one? I haven"t gone to the company yet, I planned to do so after lunch.", she replied.
With a smile on his face, he explained it to her, "The bidding from the last time was delayed. It was just continued about a week ago and your company won."
"You mean…", Samantha paused, she"s happy that they won the bidding but if Daniel did something like giving her the upper hand because of their relations.h.i.+p, then she would be really upset. "Did you do this for me? I don"t think-"
"Of course not, don"t be silly, Ms. Kim. I don"t mix business with pleasure.", he immediately brushed off her thoughts.
Samantha studied his expression, he doesn"t seem to be lying. "So we really won fair and square?"
He nodded his head and Samantha smiled. "So you"re treating me to lunch to celebrate with me then?"
Daniel continued to eat his steak, "You"re getting sillier by the minute, Samantha. This is me taking my girlfriend out for lunch. Shouldn"t you be the one who will be treating me out for a nice meal? It"s your company who won after all.", he spoke with a smile on his face.
Samantha was speechless. She"s really smart but why is it that when she"s with Daniel, she becomes dumb?
…
In the afternoon, Samantha arrived in Trident.
Her a.s.sistant smiled so brightly, "Welcome back, Madam."
She smiled back at her, "Update me with everything that happened while I was gone."
a.s.sistant Chen nodded and handed her a tablet as she explained in detail. The company had a little set back when she left but Alexander was able to handle the matter efficiently. They were currently handling several projects but even with her gone, Trident had been sailing smoothly so her guilt had somehow dissipated a little.
A knock was heard from the door and Alexander came in.
"It"s so nice to see you back, Sam.", he said as he sauntered towards her desk.
They greeted each other with a brief hug before Samantha gestured for him to sit on the sofa. She then broke the news to him and Alexander got very excited. They"ve finally won the proposal that they"ve been preparing for months.
"We are so lucky that you are dating the CEO.", he chuckled.
"Oh no, this was all you and the team. I didn"t do anything, he told me that the decision was made by a group of people. It was a fair compet.i.tion."
He was even more elated, "Well, that makes it even sweeter then!"
A couple of months back when Samantha left the country. Daniel suddenly came to see him. He was a bit intoxicated that time in the middle of the day, it was the second week that Samantha ran away and Daniel didn"t have any idea where to look for her. So for the first time, though they haven"t been acquainted, Daniel Cho visited Alexander Li to look for Samantha.
Alexander was quite stunned by his surprise visit. But even so, he couldn"t afford to offend the CEO of Cho Corporation. "What can I do for you, President Cho?", he probed.
"Where is she?", Daniel asked as he stood in front of Alexander"s desk. His tie was loose, and his hair was a bit disheveled.