Olivia Sparks

Oakwood Capital

Inside a meeting room, Olivia tried to dodge the small talk that Chanel Greene attempted, but she knew that she could only hold the fort for long as it was impolite for her to ignore her client for an extended amount of time.

She just smiled and smiled while Chanel Greene talked non-stop whilst signing the doc.u.ments. 

After almost an hour which should have been only a ten-minute engagement, all thanks to her client's cacophony, Chanel Greene finally finished signing the doc.u.ments. 

Olivia swiveled her chair and stood up, walking as far away as possible to grab a glass of water for her guest and herself. 

She need not do it, but she volunteered herself just so she could breathe a little away from Chanel's potent perfume. 

While she was pouring the water, Olivia couldn't help but wonder whether Ms. Greene also showered with Chanel soap.

"Oooow, you're back! I was just talking with your secretary. I noticed you're using a competitor's security system. AHAHAHAHAHA!"

Olivia's lips twitched, but she was quick to hide it by taking a sip of her water. She didn't know whether Chanel Greene was tactless or just plain clueless. Giving her client the benefit of doubt, she chose the latter. Yeah, she looked clueless to her.

"The system's installed when we leased the space," she lied. Though a security system was in place, she still had it replaced because of the unreliability and untrustworthiness of the existing one which was a product of Ms. Greene's company.

"Really?" Chanel Greene pulled a duck face as she tilted her head. She remembered winning a bidding on this project a decade ago, but shrugged it off when Olivia flashed her a smile.

Seeing her client in deep thought, Olivia knew it wouldn't be long before she'd be placed on a hot seat, so she straightened her spine, weaved her fingers, and rested it on her l.a.p.

Magnetized by Olivia's smile, which she practiced and perfected in time, Chanel Greene's focused her attention on the lady across her. 

She listened and answered to the string of questions that Olivia prepared for her starting with the most important of them all, "So, Ms. Chanel, how do you see yourself in the future?"

…

Shibumi Hotel

After three hours and a change of scene, Olivia and Chanel just finished their kaiseki meal—a multi-course Japanese dinner in Shibumi Hotel which houses one of the hotspot restaurants in the business district.

"I'm surprised you haven't asked me yet. How I got where I am now." Placing her sakazuki sake cup back on the table, Chanel Greene looked straight into Olivia's eyes, gauging the enigma in front of her.

"Are you talking about what I found in the dark web about your… history?" Olivia took a sip of her sake, hiding a smirk. "Personally, I don't dwell too much on what happened in the past. It's there for a reason, nothing but a blip in time."

"AHAHAHAHA! I really like you, Ms. Lin! See. Only a woman could understand a woman. I mean, we had to work twice as much as our male counterparts. That's why I can't believe some ladies who pull other ladies down instead of helping each other up. Gosh, it's so hard to be on top."

Locking gazes, Olivia asked, "How does it feel? To be on top knowing that people were talking behind your back about what you did just to be up on the pedestal?"

Chanel Green pulled a duck face, a single eyebrow raised at the sudden slingshot of insult. She leaned on her seat, crossing her arms over her c.h.e.s.t and posed a question, "Was it my fault to see the loophole in the system? Was it my fault that I used my robots to my advantage?

"As I said, women like us need to work harder. We need to play dirtier because if we don't, well, the system would only swallow us whole. Do you think if I played nice, I would have the riches that I have now? No.

"It's easier to judge people like me because unlike you, who's born with a silver spoon, I was born to a family of salarymen—people who had to sell our souls to the devil just so we could get a taste of heaven here on Earth.

"So to answer your question, I don't care what people think. They could eat my dust for all I care. HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

Olivia offered to pour a sake on Chanel Greene's cup to which the other returned the favor too, pouring a serving to the former's empty cup.

Clearing her throat, Chanel Greene continued to wash her hands, "And it's not like I'm trampling other people. As a matter of fact, I am helping less marginalized communities by giving them jobs—doing the assembly and botting for me. It's just that I pay them minimum wage, while I earn millions in return. AHAHAHAHA!"

Her hand dramatically flew to her temple, heaving an exaggerated sigh. Chanel Green felt it was time to conclude their dinner. "Ooow thank you so much for the scrumptious dinner, Ms. Lin. But I think we have to retire for the night."

Across Chanel Greene, Olivia let out a small smile before pressing the button on the table to call for an attendant.

In Shibumi Hotel's lobby, Olivia and Chanel's entourage just stepped outside the lift when the latter snorted.

"Look at that. I bet the Prime Minister's daughter is waiting for him in their lover's nest. What a poor little rich girl."

At that moment, everything slowed down as Olivia's neck snapped to the left in its own accord and there she saw a man she never dared see in another woman's arms.

She tried to keep her cool, afraid to let the sea of red consume her.

As if she was brought back in time, she felt every molecule of emotion she felt that fateful day.

She was once on the receiving end of a cheating and she hated it. 

She hated the feeling of being made a fool of that one person you least expect to hurt you.

She hated the feeling of being not enough. 

She hated that she questioned her own self when she knew the problem wasn't her, but the other party who chose to be tempted by the sins of flesh.

Chanel Greene snapped Olivia out of her trance, planting a hand over her shoulder. 

They exchanged smiles and motioned for her client to walk ahead. The entire time her fingers itched to call a friend, but she knew what needed to be done first.

Rockaway Tower

It was past midnight when Maxen arrived in Olivia's penthouse suite. To his surprise, their bed was cold and empty.

His attention was stolen by a tiny light that seeped through the crack of the ensuite door. His brows furrowed. Could it be?

"Okay, baby. These late night dips are getting frequent and may I remind you it's unhealthy." After entering the ensuite, Maxen's hands braced on either side of his h.i.p.s.

Olivia rolled her eyes, sipping her apple cider. "Welcome home," her curt reply.

"Have I done something wrong that I'm not aware of?" Maxen voiced out the question in his head. He hated it when she did that eye roll, but he knew something made his baby's blood boil.

Peeling off his suit jacket, he knelt before the bathtub and rolled up his dress suit's sleeves, gently massaging his baby's arms.

"Not you, but your friend Wyatt. Now I'm wondering why Ollie set me up with him before."

"As his friend, I'm biased too because I know the guy's a good son and a reliable person so… wait? Why are we talking about him?"

"I saw him."

"Oh." Maxen paused, reading in between the lines. It didn't take him forever to put the puzzle pieces together.

Earlier, he saw Emily with her father, the Prime Minister, in the state banquet. And he knew where Olivia was that evening. If his baby said she saw Wyatt, it only meant the fool was caught with another woman in a hotel.

"It made me think for a second what if it was you whom I saw? It's annoying."

"Except you know you won't because I always come home straight to you from any engagement." Smiling, his finger traced the bubbles on the length of her leg.

"True. And the next thing we know, our place is infested with felines. We're officially the cat couple."

Maxen was glad that she changed the subject. He took that as his chance to escape the possibility of sleeping in the doghouse that night.

"I don't need more cats. I have the best right here. Under. The. Water." Maxen's hand dipped in the tub, finding its way on her t.h.i.g.hs.

Olivia's fingers grip on the tub tightened at the crawling sensation. She took a sharp breath when she felt his fingertips brush her slit below. Her breathing labored when he sandwiched a digit between her folds. 

Her lips twitched. Of course, this little prince took a p.l.e.a.s.u.r.e in teasing her so she'd beg for him to touch her. Use her. Bring her to his promised high.

"Why are you still on your clothes?" she asked, succ.u.mbing to his ministrations. She placed her glass on the marble floor and scooted inside the tub, folding her legs to her c.h.e.s.t to give him space.

Yanking his tie in one swift motion. Water spilled out of the tub as he joined Olivia inside.

He dipped his head, planting a kiss on her lips and onto the length of neck down to her clavicle and then back up. 

Stopping by her ears, he bit the shell of it, his hot breath tickled her as he whispered, "Thought you'd never ask."