"Banquet?"
The CEO nodded when his secretary asked him about it. He invited her to attend a banquet for the release of the latest AI system from one of the companies.
"I'm curious and quite interested in the AI they are trying to demonstrate at the banquet. It just so happens that they invited me to come because they knew I would definitely be interested," said Tristan, showing a blue and black invitation card.
Plus, the AI system would definitely help in the development of games made at Tristan's company, which was engaged in entertainment technology or gaming.
A game with an AI system as an NPC would definitely add to the tension of playing it, which was why Tristan wanted to see the AI at the banquet.
"But why not bring Ms. Victoria with you, sir? She is your partner, and usually business people bring their partners to..."
"She will come with me, but I will still take you. You are my secretary, and you must be by my side as long as it is a business matter," he replied, cutting Evelyne off before she finished speaking.
What he said was true. But that meant she would have to leave Luke alone again at night.
She had already hired a babysitter for her son, but she still felt worried as a mother who was far from her own child.
'I don't have a dress that's suitable for an event like that either. What should I wear?' she thought, confused.
Tristan looked at her, waiting for her answer, as she had been standing there silently all this time. The man didn't scold her, he was enjoying the view in front of him at that moment.
The face he used to see first thing every morning when he opened his eyes, the beautiful face that was usually full of smiles. Now it always looked flat because she was maintaining her professionalism.
"Evelyne," he called.
She snapped out of her reverie. "Yes, sir?"
Again and again, the word "sir" came out of her mouth. Slowly, it began to annoy Tristan because he didn't like being called that. He stood up from his chair and walked closer to her.
"Sir?" Evelyne asked again as the man stood in front of her.
His towering body, his brown eyes staring straight into Evelyne's blue eyes.
"Can you stop calling me that when it's just the two of us?" he asked in a voice that seemed to beg.
He missed their old nickname, everything about the two of them in the past. Even though Tristan still didn't want to admit it and tried to avoid the truth.
But something inside him urged him to keep getting closer.
"Sir, I can't. We're in a work environment. And we..."
"Eve! Just once, listen to what I'm saying and don't argue. Can't you be the Eve who—"
Without finishing his sentence, Tristan pulled her closer. He wrapped his arms around her waist and held her tightly.
He knew this was very foolish, he knew he shouldn't be doing this. But he couldn't hold himself back after seeing her again.
"You were once mine, you still smell like 'mine'," he whispered as he pulled Evelyne's head back to his chest.
Her body trembled, not out of fear but because she also missed this touch. She missed his warm embrace. But she couldn't sink into this feeling.
She didn't want to be labeled as a woman who stole another woman's man because Tristan was already engaged. Evelyne tried hard to restrain herself.
"Sir... Sir, please let me go. This is not right. Please let me go," said Evelyne, trying to break free.
However, Tristan did not listen and tightened his embrace.
She tried to continue to break free, but the man refused to let her go.
She felt pain in her chest, she didn't want to love the man who had kicked her out of his life so easily.
In the midst of the tension, someone suddenly knocked on the door, making Evelyne panic. Especially since she heard Victoria's voice from behind the office door.
"Honey, I came to bring you lunch!" she said cheerfully.
Tristan reflexively released his embrace of Evelyne and straightened his suit just as his fiancée walked in.
"Huh? So Evelyne is here. Am I interrupting?" she asked.
"No, not at all, Ms. Victoria," replied Evelyne, then turned to Tristan.
"That's right, I just told her to come to the banquet next week. She'll be joining us, you don't mind, do you?"
Victoria shook her head to say that she didn't mind. Moreover, Evelyne was his secretary, and this banquet was also part of his job.
There was a moment of silence between the three of them, until Tristan spoke again.
"This is Evelyne's first time attending an event like this. Can you help her find a suitable dress?" he asked, handing her a Black card.
"Consider this a reward for your hard work, Evelyne. Victoria knows what to do."
The blonde woman accepted her fiancé's Black card and nodded. "Of course, I can help her."
He smiled contentedly and kissed Victoria on the cheek, causing Evelyne to immediately turn her face away.
"Thank you, Sir."
The secretary left her boss's office and headed for the bathroom. In the bathroom, she washed her face and looked in the mirror.
She almost lost her footing. Tristan's embrace was enough to make her heart tremble as if it wanted to return to him. If only Victoria hadn't come, perhaps her defenses would have crumbled in front of that man.
She sighed heavily, then closed her eyes while still calming herself after what had happened at the office.
Evelyne was still a little shaken because he suddenly hugged her like that and said that she still smelled like his.
"So it's true, you want me back now. Even though you were the one who destroyed our marriage. But now you want me back when you're about to get your new marriage."
She patted her cheeks, regaining her composure and trying to focus her emotions again as if nothing had happened.
She took out her phone and looked at Luke's photo. Evelyne decided to call the daycare to talk to Luke for a moment.
"Mommy? I'm playing with clay with my friends! I'm making an elephant and..."
Hearing him speak brought a smile back to her face. So did her energy and strength.
'Luke, you've always been my inspiration.'
She leaned against the sink, continuing to listen to Luke talk for 10 minutes before finally ending the call.
"Alright, time to get back to work!"