Dangerous Desire The CEO’s Hidden Woman

“How dare you reject my calls? I called you three times! Care to explain why you haven’t been home in two days? What the hell is wrong with you, girl?” Francis’s deep voice was so loud. It felt like he was right next to Scarlett at that moment. She could even hear his furious breathing.

Scarlett sensed that he was sulking and unhappy. She patiently explained to him in as gentle a voice as she could manage. “Honey, listen, just calm down. I haven’t run away. Why would I do that? One of my friends had a major emergency, so I accompanied her to the hospital to sort everything out. Didn’t you receive my messages?”

Scarlett heard the sound of pages turning from the other side of the phone and suspected that Francis must still be working. She wished she could be with him at the moment.

“But why don’t you pick up the phone? Don’t you have time to talk to me? Not even for a minute?” Now, there was more grievance than anger in the voice.

“I’m sorry… But you know how it is. After a serious procedure, a patient always needs to be nursed very carefully. I’ve gotta pay really close attention to her physical condition, her emotions, and her diet too. She’s quite unstable emotionally, so I have hardly had any time for myself. I’ve just been checking up on her.” Scarlett explained.

“You should’ve told me earlier, and I could have arranged the best nursing services for your friend. Which hospital are you in right now?” Francis asked.

“No, no… it’s okay. Don’t worry about it. I don’t wanna make this a big deal. Niki’s already panicked and stressed out. It’s fine, really. Hopefully, I’ll be able to come back home tomorrow.”

“Scarlett, are you hiding something from me?” Francis raised his voice. There was a suspicious tone in his voice now.

“Not at all, why?” Scarlett was not lying at all, but for some reason, she was feeling nervous and tried to calm herself down.

“I can always sense your unease when talking to me.” Francis sighed ever so slightly.

“It’s like… well…you know…” Scarlett stopped and wasn’t sure whether to continue or not.

Francis was in the middle of going through some important files but waiting for Scarlett to finish her sentence, he stopped what he was doing. He stared at the fireplace.

“It’s just like… You’re much more experienced and sophisticated than I am…And sometimes I feel like I’m just so naive…and stupid in front of you. I mean, you’re always so busy with your business and your time and energy are precious. As you said, you can create so much wealth for your business and for yourself in just a matter of minutes. How do I dare to bother you with my boring and meaningless daily life, with my girlish gossiping and the trivial activities of my friends? I don’t want to report my life to you… like a secretary completing a weekly financial report or something…”

“Our conversations feel like work to you?” Francis lost focus, his vision becoming blurred.

Scarlett didn’t have time to respond to that question before she got cut off. Scarlett looked at the screen silently and gave up the thought of calling back. She just couldn’t spare any more strength. She did not have the energy to care.

Niki recovered very well because of Scarlett’s careful nursing and comforting words. They went back to Irving after a few days’ rest.

During this time, Francis did not call again, and Scarlett also pretended not to care.

Niki did not want to go back. She was afraid that Fannie and her gossipy friends in the class would say mean things and spread rumors everywhere. So, Scarlett asked Dan to find a nice apartment not far from school.

“Do you have enough money?” Scarlett was worried that she could not afford the rent.

“I’ve got nothing but money.” Niki gave Scarlett a wink.

In the afternoon, Dan came by and offered to help Niki move her stuff. Scarlett packed Niki’s luggage from the dorm, and Dan helped deliver everything to the new apartment. Scarlett didn’t tell the two girls in the dorm any details about Niki’s abortion. She just assured them that Niki was safe and fine; she just wanted her own apartment.

By dusk, when everything was settled, Dan said, “Alright. It looks like I’ve perfectly completed my mission for today. Gotta go, girls.” Scarlett’s voice came from the kitchen. “Stay with us for dinner, Dan! Gonna be finished in a sec!”

Dan answered with a smile, “Is it kind of urgent. I’ve got a meeting at 7, so I really gotta spring.”

“Forget those bullshit meetings, just skip it, dude!” Scarlett was always good at giving advice.

“Not this time. It’s very important. It’s about the Teach For America project we’ve been preparing recently.”Contentt bel0ngs to N0ve/lDrâ/ma.O(r)g!

“Oh, nice, didn’t know you were involved with them! They’re a great organization, I’ve heard. Doing really good work at schools with fewer resources, especially in the inner cities.”

“Yeah, I’ve enjoyed working with them. The work is really fulfilling. You wanna join in?”

“Of course I do! I didn’t know they worked with UI students.

“Yeah, this is actually the first year that they’re working with UI students to source new and creative solutions.”

Dan pulled out a piece of paper from his backpack and handed it to Scarlett. “You need to fill in this application form and hand it into the secretariat before Friday. By the way, a kind warning, it’s really challenging and quite tough. It’s not a cakewalk, and it requires a lot of time and effort. Think twice before you hand it in.”

Scarlett raised his eyebrows and said, “Got it, bro. Thanks a lot!”

Dan knew that Scarlett would be a competitive candidate for that project as long as she applied for it. But it was also clear to him that participating in that project would be much more laborious than Scarlett expected. He had always wanted to protect Scarlett and help her to have the most carefree, relaxing, and enjoyable college life. But despite everything, Scarlett always took up massive challenges. She loved to take crazy risks. This time was no exception.