Jonas growled, trying not to slam everything on the desk. His face was flushed and sweat splashed on his forehead. The boiling emotions were hard to control.
The air around him felt heated, the temperature rising, burning all of Jonas’ memories. It wasn’t just the dinner invitation; reports of declining sales followed shortly after. Then came unpleasant rumors that were escalating among the shareholders.
It must be Andreas.
Jonas clenched his fists tightly and punched the desk with a conviction that swirled in his head.
Surely. Andreas must be the mastermind behind all this.
Jonas’ fingers turned white. He looked furious, his breath roaring in uncontrollable anger.
“Sir.”
Alan’s voice was heard. Jonas turned around, completely unaware of his arrival.
“Everyone’s gathered in the conference room.”
Jonas growled, adjusting his slightly disheveled suit. His appearance was obvious and would not escape Alan’s observant gaze.
In less than thirty minutes, Andreas set foot in Progun. He also found Jonas within ten minutes. Still, his presence had a significant effect.
“I don’t want Andreas to come back here. Make sure he doesn’t set foot in this office again. Do you understand?”
Alan nodded weakly.
“If he dares to come back, call security immediately. Throw him out,” Jonas ordered with a hardened jaw. Veins stood out on his forehead. “You work for me, not this scoundrel.”
Alan was taken aback. Coinciding with the end of Jonas’ words, Andreas’ voice echoed in his mind.
“Alan, tell me. What’s your price? Jonas or Progun?”
*
Although the internal company meeting was intense, Jonas was not focused on the plans and opinions presented. Andreas remained the occupier of his thoughts. He continued to brainstorm on how to eliminate Andreas.
“Calm down, sir. Mr. Andreas can’t do anything. The only thing he can do is disturb you and make you angry. That’s it.”
That’s what Alex said when he visited Jonas later that afternoon. He knew about Andreas’ arrival and the likely consequences for Jonas.
Alex’s guess was right on the money, and it was not surprising. Regardless of the story and the events, anything related to Andreas would always manage to ignite Jonas’ emotions.
Always. Jonas’ self-respect made him intolerant of any disturbance from Andreas.
“How can you talk about this so lightly, Alex?”
Jonas took off his jacket and loosened his tie. He leaned to one side and pointed somewhere.
“He can’t bluff if he has no bullets to attack me with.”
Alex took a deep breath. Without commenting on Jonas’ thoughts, he refrained from hiding his own curse.
Only one Andreas. How could he be so frustrating? It doesn’t make sense.
The eyeballs turned and closed dramatically. Once again Alex could only sigh as he heard Jonas’ growl.
“Definitely him. Yes, it’s undoubtedly Andreas who orchestrated the recent drop in sales. The damned scoundrel! He chose the right time on purpose.”
It wasn’t hard for Jonas to connect the dots. He could guess where Andreas would make his next move.
Andreas waited patiently. He assessed the situation accurately and only needed to provide a small spark; a trigger powerful enough to ignite everything-the patience of those who were already wearing thin.
In fact, Andreas did almost nothing. He only made an already bad situation worse. So, you could say that he didn’t even break a sweat to make things worse.
Andreas simply exercised patience. It sounded easy, but it was not so easy to execute.
“I am confident that the presentation of the new product will allay the shareholders’ concerns, sir. So, you don’t have to worry too much.”
When Alex finally decided to speak, he received Jonas’ outburst.
“That’s what you said before, Alex! And now? Is there any guarantee that everything won’t fall apart again?”
Alex remained silent. For a moment he just stood there and let Jonas vent his emotions.
Jonas paced up and down. Curses escaped his lips again and again. Often, he punched the table, kicked chairs and let them collide with the wall.
“There’s a saying that successful people are those who can always turn adversity into fortune.”
Jonas stopped. Frowning slightly, he looked at Alex.
“What do you mean?”
Alex smiled. His demeanor was casual but full of confidence. “We can use this situation to destroy Mr. Andreas.”
“Destroy Andreas?”
Alex nodded. “Yes, sir.”
“How?”
“At the general meeting later, we can turn the tables,” Alex replied, taking a long breath. “We’ll use Mr. Andreas’ presence to bring him down.”
“Explain it to me.”
Alex adjusted the position of his chair to face Jonas directly. With a meaningful smile he explained his intentions.
A moment later, the tension on Jonas’ face slowly disappeared. Joy appeared and visions of the future filled his mind.
*
“You look happy. What’s going on?”
The constant whistling and smiling raised questions in Vlora’s mind. Andreas wouldn’t show such behavior without a reason, especially since she had noticed that since the afternoon, Andreas had been showing relentless joy. It seemed that the source of Andreas’ happiness this time was not ordinary.
“Is it that obvious?”
“With your whistling and smiling?” Vlora asked again, causing Andreas to burst out laughing. He approached Andreas and sighed softly. “Oh, really now.”
Andreas stretched out his arms and positioned himself to lean against the bed. The night wasn’t too late, and it seemed like a pleasant idea to spend a few minutes talking as a couple.
Vlora snuggled into Andreas’ relaxed embrace. Leaning against his broad chest, she heard Andreas answer.
“There are many things that can make me happy.”
Vlora’s fingers rose and landed on Andreas’ chest, feeling the steady beat of his heart. “For example?”
“An example is…”
Andreas took a deep breath. His rumbling breath was felt by Vlora, creating a feeling of calm and peace.
“… as long as it doesn’t hurt me, it’s good.”
Vlora grinned playfully, but also admirably. “You remember my words.”
“Of course.”
Andreas nodded slightly and exhaled deeply. He couldn’t deny that he still wondered about Vlora’s intentions when she snooped on his phone. But there was no clear answer yet.
Fortunately, Andreas’ fears could be alleviated by an indirect conclusion: Vlora was not working with Jonas.
This was undoubtedly the most important thing for Andreas. If Vlora had a relationship with Jonas, Andreas couldn’t imagine how disappointed he would be.
A month had passed. During that time, Andreas noticed that nothing had happened – neither from Jonas nor from Vlora.
Except for a few incidents, the current situation was that Jonas was increasingly cornered. He was getting more and more desperate, and Andreas was sure that this wasn’t something to worry about, quite the opposite.
Whether Vlora was waiting or her interests were different from mine.
Both possibilities made sense. It all came down to one thing.
As long as Vlora is not my enemy, she is my friend.
Andreas’ conclusion was strengthened by Vlora’s previous words. His confidence grew.
As long as snooping on my phone doesn’t hurt me, it’s a good thing.
Andreas exhaled deeply. His gaze fixed on something unknown, he stroked Vlora’s upper arm.
“Not just your words, Vlo. I’ll always remember everything about you.”
“Everything?”
Andreas nodded. “Everything. After all, you are my wife. It’s only fair that I remember all the details about you.”
“Oh, I hope it’s not about the mole on my back.”
Andreas burst out laughing. “That’s one of them. Did you know that you have a birthmark under the curve of your buttocks?”
Vlora’s eyes widened. Reflexively, she rose from Andreas’ embrace.
“Really?”
Andreas laughed even harder. The shocked look on Vlora’s face really amused him.
“It’s not a bad thing. Just like a stain on cloth. Don’t worry about it. It’s not annoying at all, quite the opposite.”
The laughter turned into a meaningful grin. Andreas narrowed his eyes and his gaze seemed to change.
“I think it looks exotic. Sexy.”
Vlora remained silent, a blush appearing on both cheeks. Andreas’ heart skipped a beat and he couldn’t resist the urge to reach for Vlora’s neck. Then he planted a kiss, undoubtedly receiving a similar response.
“Vlo.”
Andreas’ warm breath caressed Vlora. Indeed, one kiss was more than enough to darken Vlora’s world, and it took a few seconds for her to open her eyes again.
“Can I clarify something?”
Vlora held Andreas’ hand and blinked slowly. “About?”
“Did you really mean it when you said ‘our child’?”
Among the many possible questions Andreas could have asked, this was the one Vlora had least expected. Why did Andreas suddenly bring up this subject without any apparent reason?
Vlora gasped. Her nervousness showed for a moment.
“I-I…”
For the first time, Andreas saw Vlora’s lips tremble.
For the first time, Andreas saw traces of emotion on Vlora’s face.
Andreas was stunned. It was no longer a rarity, but something almost impossible for him to see from Vlora.
“… am serious.”
Vlora was indeed Vlora. But she remained human, a woman with natural instincts.
Andreas had overlooked that for a moment, but fortunately he hadn’t realized it too late.
Living almost ten years without a real family inevitably made Vlora hopeful. Everything was so natural and authentic. She had once been happy and felt complete, but fate took away all that happiness. In a cruel twist, it exchanged it for unimaginable suffering.
Vlora was undeniably strong. She had shown the world that she could stand in the midst of tragedy and tears. But that didn’t mean she wanted to live like that forever.
The hope in her subconscious often rebelled. It showed moments of past beauty. There was Vlora, there was Thomas, and there were two loving parents. They were happy.
“At least our child should not experience this conflict, Reas.”
On the other hand, Andreas saw it through a different, though almost similar, lens. He clearly knew that women tended to hold out and do anything when it came to matters involving children.
Andreas had seen the evidence for years. It wasn’t just Amanda; even Lucas had benefited from the natural tendencies of this particular woman.
All because of one thing: children.
But now Andreas was troubled by a question. Would the child, the reason for this endurance, bring happiness or the opposite? For the two pieces of evidence in his life led to different conclusions.
Could it be happiness? Could it be-
“I want to enjoy life as before, Reas. There are happy children. They play and learn with joy. And when they come home, there are parents to welcome them.”
All thoughts disappeared from Andreas’ mind.
“Don’t you think that’s happiness?”
*