Love Slave to My Devil CEO Boss R18

309 Peaceful Battle

A nagging feeling at the back of my mind told me that somehow, she was going to be a part of my life. I hated the restless feeling that bubbled up inside of me and the shiver than ran up my spine just at the thought. Elizabeth didn’t seem like someone that I could get along with no matter how she was supposed to be so good at her job.

“I see. Is that why you agreed to let me join your little date today?” Elizabeth asked teasingly.

Watching Elizabeth laugh so brightly only added to my doom and gloom. Kyle had a very awkward look on his face like he wasn’t sure how he was supposed to react as well. As for me, I wanted to strangle Kyle just so that I could take out my anger on someone in that moment.

If he was with Elizabeth, how come he didn’t talk her out of coming here?

I told myself to calm down and to try to make the most of the situation in front of me. Perhaps it was the perfect opportunity for me to finally learn something about what was really going on between Ace and Elizabeth. My eyes narrowed suspiciously as I stared at the woman sitting on the opposite side of the dining table.

What game is she playing now?

“I’ve heard many great things about you from Ace regarding the work that you’ve done and how you manage your company. I’m sure that there are many things that I can learn from you,” I said with a polite smile.

“You’re right about that. It’s always good to learn from everyone around you. Just learn from everyone that you can. Always try to see the best in people. See what they excel at and learn from them,” Ace said to me encouragingly.

My eyebrows almost shot up questioningly at his attitude and his words. I had no idea what I was supposed to learn from Elizabeth and why I had to learn from her of all people when she didn’t even work at our company. It wasn’t like I could learn anything about work from having dinner with her here in this luxurious restaurant. Once again, nothing was making any sense.

.....

Suddenly, my chain of thought was broken when Elizabeth started laughing even louder than before. I had no idea that Elizabeth could laugh so loud and so carefreely like that. Her laughter caught the attention of a few people who sat at the tables surrounding ours, but she didn’t seem at all apologetic. I stared at her while trying to keep myself from glaring at her as I demanded silently for the explanation behind her sudden outburst.

“I’m sorry. Karina just looked so confused and lost that I thought that it’s a little funny. Ace, you haven’t told her anything at all, right?” she asked before shaking her head in mocking disapproval.

“We’re not supposed to tell anyone. Have you told your husband?” he asked.

Ace didn’t seem to find anything funny, and he sounded as serious as he would have sounded in a proper business meeting. Overall, that confused me even more and I found it strange. This mix of informal yet business-related talk wasn’t something that I was used to at all. Then there was this thing that was supposed to be kept a secret. I was so frustrated at that point that I just wanted to go home, and I prayed that this misfit of a dinner would come to an end as soon as possible.

“Of course, I haven’t. You don’t have to keep reminding me to keep it a secret. We even signed an NDA, so I’m bound by that if nothing else,” she replied with a sigh.

Her words did not surprise me because the blank look on Kyle’s face was enough for me to know that he was as equally as clueless as I was about what was going on. I balled my fists under the table where hopefully no one would see it as I thought of how much I hated being on the same and unknowing side as Kyle while Ace was on the other side with Elizabeth. The thought was childish, and I knew that; however, I couldn’t help how I felt at all.

“Is there some secret business deal that we’re not supposed to know about?” I asked while trying to keep my tone light.

Elizabeth did let it slip that there was an NDA between them, so it had to be something business-related, right?

“Maybe. I’m not going to say anymore, and Elizabeth won’t either,” Ace replied with certainty.

“You know, I really pity you for being kept in the dark. I mean it, truly. I know just how uncomfortable this must be for you but please hang on for a bit. Everything will come to light soon enough,” Elizabeth said as she directed her words at me.

I wanted to yell at her that the last thing that I needed in this life was her pity, but I couldn’t do that. All I could do was plaster a smile on my lips as my lips turned numb before that sensation spread to the rest of my face. I couldn’t remember the last time that I felt that angry before. Suddenly all the things that Kyle did to me seemed insignificant because he probably got more than he deserved for marrying the wrong woman.

I glanced over at Kyle who was toying with something on his plate with his fork absentmindedly. Joining a dinner and then being treated like you were invisible by your wife must have been a hard thing. If Kyle cared about how he was being treated very much, he didn’t show it. For a moment, I wondered if he was used to be treated that way and perhaps this was how things usually were between them.

“Be patient. You’ll find out soon enough, Rina,” Ace said.

I knew that that was his attempt to console me and no matter how much I appreciated his effort, I couldn’t bring myself to feel any better about the situation.

–To be continued…