Chapter 3. Hate or Lure?

"I'm never going to talk about that woman ever again," I said with finality as I had already reached my office room. Lexie was behind me, following me and asking me what happened.

"Can you please calm down for a moment?" She pleads. "You're scaring everyone outside."

I don't care if they are going to be scared about me for once today. I'm totally irritated by that woman. How dare she tell me that I'll overreact? I wasn't even bothered earlier, but then she's the one who puts up a fight, beginning with her little filthy mouth.

For the very first time, I became less interested in the entrepreneur that I wanted to negotiate with. Seeing how she acted earlier makes me sick. Is that how she reacts to people living in the middle class like us?

"That woman is not in the plan anymore," I said.

"Did you really meet her earlier back in the lobby?" Lexie curiously asked while she was arranging the folder and documents I needed to sign on my table.

"She's giving me some narcissistic vibe or whatever," I said with a hint of irritation in my voice. "Plus, she told me about some payment and overreacting or something like that, like she's implying that I'll be some sort of attention-seeking woman running around."

"Well, you did seek some attention earlier," Lexie pointed out, and so I looked in her direction.

"What did you say?" I asked.

"What, you didn't know? The reason I went down in the lobby to get you was because the news came in like a wildfire spreading all over the office," she explained, but I'm still confused.

"What news?" I asked again.

"That you're testing that woman. Well, that's a rumor, and we all know that it'll go down so quick, but other companies in this building are describing you like some sort of suicide taker," she explained again.

"I am what?" I asked. Wow, her influence is too strong for the people in here to describe me like that.

"Well, they are telling the truth, though. Girl, you can't just go around yelling at that woman because we might not know where our company will go the very next day."

Lexie sounded worried all of a sudden. Of course, the consequences of my actions earlier are obvious, but then I wouldn't apologize for calling her like that. It's Cadence's fault for humiliating me in the first place.

I continue to sign all of the papers one by one while Lexie is waiting for me. She's not saying anything at all, but she's got this horrified look in her face as she reads something on her phone.

"What are you looking at?" I asked.

"You've got to see this," she said before she opened my desktop and searched for something. While I was waiting, my phone vibrated, and as I looked at the caller ID, it was Dahlia again, so I answered the call.

"Hi, baby!" I greeted her.

"You didn't tell me you went to the office already, Mom!" She almost yelled at me because of her complaint.

"I know, I'm sorry, but I'll make it up to tonight," I said in a soft tone.

"Can you go home an hour earlier, Mom?" She asked.

I can sense she's missed me already. It's been days since I worked with that guy last night, and it's been days that I'm going home later than usual, so I don't have any spare time to watch with her lately.

"I'll try, baby, okay?" I assured her before I hung up the phone. Lexie, on the other hand, looked so tense when I took a glance at her before I finally read what was on the internet.

"Another CEO tried to humiliate Miss Malcolm in the lobby area of the Strata Empire."

You've got to be kidding me.

"Some of the employees heard how this CEO called Miss Malcolm a nepotism baby and such horrible insults."

This is going too far. I've only called her nepobaby, and that's it. The article is obviously biased, and I can certainly tell why.

"What are we going to do now?" Lexie asked.

"That news will die soon enough, and I'm pretty much sure that I only call her nepo baby because that's true anyway, and that's it," I explained before I looked at the clock. It's already 10 o'clock in the morning.

"Did you say we have an 11:00 meeting?" I asked Lexie, and she nodded instantly. "Tell them I need a brief background on that woman to be discussed at the end of the presentation."

"On it, anything else?" Lexie asked.

"Just a black coffee and order for yourself too," I said before I told her to get out of my office.

Seriously, rich people like her really have a way to make tables turn, as if it's my fault that they are embarrassed like that in public. I'm not saying all of them are like that; of course, I know some that are very polite towards others, but that woman is a total disaster.

The moment I saw her face earlier, I knew she was a trouble herself.

But why is she here anyway?

This building is not their property, so why is she even here?

I was trying to figure out why she was here when Lexie came in again with my coffee and hers. I invited her to stay for a while since we're still waiting for the meeting. I'm busy absorbing the aroma of my coffee when Lexie talks again.

"In the eyes of the corporate world, you're such an asshole for saying that to her."

"Well, I didn't say anything to hurt her. It's just a fact that everyone should know," I defended myself.

"But you still didn't know her background story, and yet you've judged her already," she replied so quickly.

"Said by the one who told me she's evil," I said while looking at her.

"I just said that because that's what some of the employees there called her, but we still didn't know her story," she said this time.

"We both judged her already," I said as a matter of fact before sipping on my cup.

"That's fair," she said before she sipped on her coffee too.

"By the way, did you get the deal with that guy who was too clingy on you last night?" Lexie asked.

On that matter, I haven't heard from him since last night. I'm expecting that he'll call right after I exit his hotel room, but up until now he hasn't even messaged me about the deal. I'm guessing he bailed on me already, and I don't even care about that anyway.

Maybe he just doesn't have the guts to sign it because he doesn't have that kind of money or something.

"I don't know, and I don't want to think about it," I said.

"Can you stop that thing, okay?" Lexie sounded so concerned this time. "With you being the trophy girlfriend of almost every man in the corporate world, everyone thinks that you're some sort of gold digger, and you know I hate that. I even heard from the women working on the other floor level that you're too busy getting guys rather than focusing on the company, and God knows how much I tried to stop myself from slapping those women."

I went silent for a moment. Every word she said was true, though. I know a lot of people are saying that I'm like that, but I couldn't find the right to care about it at all. I'm just busy striving to give my daughter a good life, and that's the only thing that can satisfy me.

"Maybe I'll stop for some time," I said as a reply.

"Then you'll continue again?" Lexie was not okay with the idea.

"Yeah, besides, I need the money, and you know where I'm going to use it," I said before I finally stood up to get to the meeting hall.

"But I don't want you --"

"Let's not talk about it for now, okay?" I stopped her from saying what she was about to say.

We both went to the meeting, and it only took a minute before they started to point out other strategies for our company. They also wanted to hire more people, so I agreed. The office gets gloomy once we have projects to do. Lastly, the thing I wanted to discuss came along.

"Miss, about the information you wanted to have, here is some of it: she's a graduate from a famous university abroad and has a double degree in economics and business management. She's the COO of her father's huge group of companies. It is also said that before her position in the office, she came from the lowest position there, which is an intern in their marketing department."

My lips parted as I heard the information about her. I guess I judge her too much.

"For other facts about her, she's only 27 years old, and it is rumored that she's not interested in men."

Hold on.

"She's not interested in men?" I repeat what Miller said.

"Yes, ma'am," he immediately responded.

I looked at Lexie only to see that she was already looking at me.

I think Cadence Jess Malcolm got my attention again.

"Do you know what I'm thinking?" I asked her.

"That's not going to happen," Lexie instantly disagreed.

I smirked before I stood up and told everyone that the meeting was finally adjourned. I walked out of the meeting hall with a smirk on my face.

I just know what to do with her.

And that's what I'm best at.