Chapter 2. Women Seducers

"Oh my, Lily. You scared me." Sandy gently punched Lily's arm and then invited her inside.

From outside the café, Steve got out of his car and went inside.

Sandy looked back and asked Lily, "Did you bring Steve here?" 

"Yes, I invited him."

Sandy took Lily to her office on the second floor. She brought a glass of warm milk and some snacks. The two sat, exchanging greetings, until Steve came and joined them. 

"Lily wants to stay at your house," Steve said. He suddenly sat down next to Lily after taking in the minimalist decor of Sandy's study. 

"I already know," Sandy snapped, her eyes rolling lazily in response to Steve's babbling, which she perceived as the sound of bees. 

"You go away; Lily doesn't like lazy men."

Steve snorted in annoyance at Sandy's sarcasm. He thought it was annoying.

Sandy's warm hand took Lily's and tightened it. "If you want to stay at my house, I'll accept you for as long as you want. Think of me as your family." 

"Thank you, Sandy."

***

In a different place, Ryan, who arrived late today, was forced to struggle with work that bored him. His mind had been drifting somewhere since Lily left his house this morning. There was one feeling missing, and he didn't know what it was. Even though, before coming, he had visited his girlfriend in her private apartment and received a little kiss on his lips. This made Ryan not concentrate on his meeting. 

"That's all I can say. Thank you for your time," said one of the meeting participants before ending his presentation.  

From a distance came the sound of a pen falling. Everyone in the room turned their heads toward the sound. Ryan, who had just woken up from his reverie, immediately picked up the pen and returned to sitting neatly as before.

"Ah, let's continue tomorrow. I will evaluate everything," Ryan said. 

"Sorry, Mr. Ryan. We have to do the results of today's presentation as soon as possible because the deadline has come," said someone who was nodded by some others. 

"I can't concentrate right now. Just apply again for the postponement." Ryan let out a long breath. A look of annoyance was clearly printed on every little crease on his forehead. 

"I can't. Because this is the second time we've postponed it," said the others.

There was an instant silence in the room.

Ryan scrubbed his face roughly. The image of Lily was always present in his head, and it made him feel guilty.

"Sean, please summarize today's meeting." Ryan stood up. 

He left the room without a single word, which made some of the meeting participants whisper about his boss. They didn't like Ryan's arrogant and arbitrary leadership style.

"I hope Mr. Scott comes back from out of town so that his arrogant deputy doesn't come back to every important meeting," said Susan, the meeting participant who had asked earlier.

 "Yes, I hope so."

'Shit!' Sean cursed. Sean was forced to follow Ryan to his room. Actually, if it wasn't too important, he was too lazy to meet face-to-face with his boss. The proposal that Ryan had to sign was neglected because of his unprofessionalism during the meeting.

 Knock knock

 "Come in," Ryan replied. 

"You're not professional. I tried so hard to help you, but you ruined everything." Sean threw away the document that Ryan had to work on. His boss and best friend just grunted in annoyance. 

"You're disrespectful to your boss," he replied irritably.

"Sign. The team and I have explained it at length, but you're not professional. You should be able to differentiate between personal business and office business," Sean babbled at length. 

Ryan raised his face and looked at Sean lazily. "Your face pisses me off." Ryan pulled out the proposal and signed it. When he was done, he handed it back to Sean. 

"If this is your household problem, get it over with."

Ryan partially slammed his body and raised his legs as high as possible, placing them on the table. He put his hands behind his head and closed his eyes slowly. 

"I'm divorced, Sean. She left me. I was hoping that she would prevent the divorce, and now she's gone with a man who is also her ex-boyfriend," he said, starting a serious conversation.

Sean, who was just about to walk out of the room, sat back down and looked pityingly at his friend.

"Lily, you mean, are you guys really divorced?"

Ryan nodded. The corner of his lips twitched. He wanted to swear, but he held back.

Sean chuckled in surprise; he too wanted to curse, but he couldn't considering his current status. 

"Lily is a diamond in the haystack. Why are you wasting it?"

Ryan lowered his legs and arms. Now both hands rested on the table, and his face was deliberately directed at Sean. 

"What about Sarah? She's been waiting over a year for me to marry her."

Sean chuckled. He had all kinds of swear words in his heart for his stupid best friend. "You're divorced from Lily? What a fool. You gave up diamonds for worthless silver?" 

"Don't call Sarah worthless," Ryan snapped.

Sean stopped what he was saying. 

"She's just as important in my life. She's the one who helped me get back on my feet after my father nearly destroyed me." 

"Whatever you say. You'll regret it someday." Sean chuckled again in response to Ryan's words. 

"If you just want to make fun of me, you better get out of there," he chided. The aura in Ryan's room instantly soured. 

"Alright, I'll go."

After Sean's departure, there was another knock on the door from outside. After receiving a reply, a woman dressed slightly scantily entered the room and then walked over to Ryan, who was sitting and doing his work. 

"Honey, are you free today?" Sarah, Ryan's girlfriend, sat on the same chair as him. Her right hand was wrapped around his neck, and she planted a kiss on his lips. 

"Where do you want to go?" asked Ryan. His hands wrapped around Sarah's waist, and then he returned the kiss that had just been given. "I'll take you anywhere." 

"When did you propose to me?"

Ryan was silent. His cheerful face turned flat without any reaction.

Sarah sighed. She was annoyed with her boyfriend's response, which she thought was very strange. 

"Wait a little longer. I'm filing for divorce next month," he replied flatly. 

"You're not lying to me, are you?" Sarah stared with her round eyes, trying to pressure Ryan. "Don't try to lie to me, Ryan." Sarah fiddled with Ryan's tie, then rubbed his broad chest, clad in a black shirt. Her strokes were sensual, causing Ryan to drift. Sarah brought her face closer until her breath was gently on Ryan's cheek. 

"S-sarah..." Ryan sighed.

"Don't lie to me. Because I don't like being lied to," Sarah whispered softly in Ryan's ear.

Ryan nodded. "Yes, baby." 

"I love you." 

"Sarah, we'll continue later. I'm going to work first." Ryan gently pushed Sarah off his lap. He told her to get off and put his tie and shirt back on.

Sarah looked annoyed that she almost got what she wanted. 

"Always," she muttered under her breath. Ryan heard, but he just shook his head.