Winning My Ex-Crush

Fenella’s POV

It turned out that all copies of the contract documents for Gene and the talents were ready. Laird already had an appointment to meet with his paralegal at the office to pick up all the documents.

Coming to Laird’s office? Of course, I wouldn’t miss this opportunity!

“Are you sure you won’t be late?” Laird asked me.

“It’s okay; don’t worry. Today, I only have a scheduled appointment at 1 p. m. for a treatment at the sponsor’s clinic,” I replied.

“Are you sick?” he asked.

“No.” I chuckled softly upon hearing the question. “It’s a skin and beauty clinic,” I said, blushing.

“But you’re already beautiful,” he frowned. Hearing that, my face turned even redder.

“I still have to take care of it and keep it in the best condition, Laird,” I said. He pursed his lips and nodded as if understanding me.

When we arrived at the lobby of Laird’s office building, I immediately adopted a more formal demeanor. Around me were many office workers in full suits, mostly in black, gray, and other dark colors. The women also mostly wore formal blazer suits or dresses in almost the same earthy and monochrome spectrum.

I immediately felt out of place with my current outfit. A brown knit long-sleeve turtleneck shirt with light blue jeans. I also wore a mustard yellow midi crop canvas jacket.

The atmosphere was also vastly different from, say, the Vogue magazine office building. Or the buildings used for events like New York Fashion Week.

“Put this on.” Laird handed me a guest access card, and I immediately hung it around my neck.

We then took the elevator up to the 18th floor. When the elevator doors opened, I immediately saw a large nameplate with shimmering acrylic gold letters. Bell, McNaught, & Evans, the New York branch.NôvelD(ram)a.ôrg owns this content.

“Wow. How does it feel to see your name displayed as a partner in a major law firm?” I whispered quietly as we walked in through the large glass door.

“Like crap,” he snorted.

I didn’t quite understand, but from what I knew from the dramas I watched, becoming a senior partner with your name displayed in a law firm’s office like this took a lot of effort. A lawyer had to have a lot of experience, win many cases, bring in many big clients with contracts worth millions of dollars, and play some kind of office politics.

I knew Laird’s father was a famous and wealthy corporate lawyer. But I only realized how great he was after seeing his name clearly displayed on the office wall like this. Maybe it’s similar to a CEO, which means Laird is the CEO’s heir.

I used to be the daughter of a CEO too, but everything changed after my father died. All that’s left for me and my mother now is a house in Boston that we’ve lived in since I was born. There’s no more Baxter Food Distribution Company.

“Hey, Laird,” a few people greeted him as we passed, but Laird just nodded with a humble nod.

Laird led me to his office desk. It turned out he shared a large room with about ten other desks. Most of them looked young like him, and they all seemed to be new lawyers.

“Wait at my desk while I fetch the documents. Would you like a cup of coffee while you wait?” he asked.

“If it’s not too much trouble,” I replied with a quick nod.

“Hey, Laird.” A brown-haired man approached him before Laird could go to the pantry.

“Yeah, what’s up?” he asked.

“Dude, I finally managed to ask Melanie out for a date tonight,” the guy chuckled with enthusiasm.

“Melanie, who?” Laird furrowed his brow as they began walking away from me.

“Melanie is a beautiful and sexy girl. I met her on an online dating app. She’s really excited to meet me,” the guy laughed again.

Hearing the guy’s loud statement, I couldn’t help but become curious. Instead of sitting at the desk as Laird instructed, I quietly followed them. Call me bold and daring, but they were talking about women!

“Huh? Are you sure she’s not a prostitute offering herself?” I faintly heard Laird’s voice.

“How dare you? She’s a professional hair stylist at a major salon.”

The guy then talked about his plans with a woman named Melanie. I listened from a distance, but I could still catch bits and pieces of their conversation.

“Hm. Yup. Then?” Laird seemed to respond briefly as he busied himself making a cup of coffee.

“So, you have to help me out. I don’t want her to think I don’t have any friends. She’s bringing her friend along too. Who knows? Maybe you’ll get lucky with her friend. What do you say?”

What?! My heart pounded as I waited for Laird’s response.

“You said she really likes you. If that’s true, logically, you won’t fail just because you didn’t bring a friend.” Laird still tried to decline.

“Oh, come on, Laird. Hey, you owe me one. Remember yesterday when you were late to the office after lunch and almost got yelled at by the boss for being late to the meeting?” The guy kept pressing him.

“I helped you out, buddy.” He puffed out his chest.

“Ah, damn it.” Laird grumbled irritably.

“Let’s call it even after you help me tonight. Deal?” The guy extended a handshake towards Laird.

Uh oh! It seems the guy held Laird’s secret card. Just as I was sure Laird would accept the guy’s invitation, I entered the pantry and cleared my throat loudly.

“Hey, Laird.” I walked into the pantry and interjected between the two men.

“Can I help with anything? I mean, I’d feel bad if I didn’t help make my own coffee,” I laughed awkwardly.

The guy and Laird widened their eyes. The guy scrutinized me from head to toe and looked surprised.

“Is she your client, Laird?” the guy quickly asked.

I immediately looked at Laird. He just stared at me intensely, and suddenly my heart raced. Was he going to introduce me as his girlfriend to his colleague?