Ariel wasn’t in the mood to entertain any male, but she couldn’t be rude to someone who had done nothing to her.
“Hello, Ken,” She managed to give him a slight smile.
“Hi, Ariel,” Jess said enthusiastically, holding Ariel’s hand in her.
She leaned in and whispered, “Want to get out of here?”
Ariel nodded without thinking.
She did want to leave, but she knew Ken was looking for a way to chat with her, and she didn’t know how to turn him down, so Jess was her best option.
“Brother! Guess who I saw in front of your company, Ken! He’s back from Canada!” Jess announced to Aiden, hoping the two friends would be happy to meet each other after so long.
But she noticed that the tension between them was very palpable, making her feel awkward.
“Wrong timing?” She whispered to Ariel.
Ariel subtly nodded in reply.
Aiden’s eyes narrowed at Ken’s sudden appearance. What was he doing here? And why was he talking to Ariel the first? This was his office.
“Ken,” Aiden said curtly, his tone a clear warning.
“Hey, Aiden,” Ken replied, finally taking his eyes off Ariel and seemingly oblivious to the tension hanging in the air.
“I didn’t know you were having a meeting with your… secretary. I’ll come back later.” Ken said.
“Wife, Ken,” Aiden corrected, his features hard as he stared at Ken.
Why was Ken’s presence making him feel insecure?
Fuck this! Insecure over Ariel? He had to go see his doctor. It seemed like something was going wrong with him.
Ken smiled. Aiden was his best friend, and he sure loved to annoy him, but he knew when to get serious, and he knew Aiden didn’t appreciate it when you messed up or meddled with his business.
No matter what he knew about Aiden and Ariel’s relationship, he wasn’t going to use it to disrupt their working environment.
“No, it’s fine,” Ariel said quickly, her eyes darting between Aiden and Ken. “We were just finishing up,” she looked at Aiden briefly and removed her eyes.
“Please, excuse me, Mr. Chaz, I’d like to go do my job,” Ariel said.
She would have just loved to walk away, but that would have been disrespectful to her boss, and not in front of a visitor either.
Aiden frowned, gritting his teeth. “You’re excused,” He said coldly.
Ariel didn’t waste any second longer as she quickly turned and walked out of the office, anger steaming within her.
“I’ll… go back to my office,” Jess lied and quickly escaped the tension-filled room.
The girls walked out of the room, leaving Aiden and Ken in a silent standoff.
Ken turned to Aiden and slowly walked over to the chair in front of his desk and lowered himself. “Seriously?” He asked.
Aiden’s face remained expressionless, “What do you want, Ken,” He asked.
He was feeling those unrecognized feelings pushing harder and harder to consume him, and he had noticed that it got worse as he stared at his friend. Why was Ken’s interaction with Ariel making him feel uncomfortable?
Ken sighed, “I want two things, Aiden,” He replied honestly.
Aiden raised his brow at Ken’s reply, not saying anything.
“First, I’ve come back to continue my business collaboration with you, second…” Ken paused, looking at Aiden’s cold face.
“I want Ariel,” He said.
Aiden snapped his head at him, his features hardening as he glared at Ken.
“What did you say?” Aiden asked menacingly.
“Relax, I’m not saying I’ll sleep with her right away; I’m not here to play her; I’ve really fallen in love with her,” Ken said seriously.
Aiden scoffed unbelievably. Shaking his head as he slowly stood from his chair and walked around the table, leaning down on the side, beside Ken.
“You’ve fallen in love? With someone’s wife, Ken?” Aiden asked incredulously.
Ken relaxed back on the chair and stared up at Aiden.
“My sister told me everything,” Ken replied simply.
“Fuck this,” Auden muttered.
“I know you don’t love her, or, do you?” Ken asked, looking into Aiden’s eyes to gauge his reaction.
Aiden didn’t reply. He removed his face from his friend and stared at his door.
“You don’t. I know you, Aiden, you think every woman is your-”
“Don’t fucking mention her!” Aiden flared, glaring intensely at Ken.
“Okay, okay, I’m sorry. But, you can’t treat Ariel the way you do just because you don’t love her. You can exist peacefully with her until your contract is over,” Ken reasoned.
“You’re lecturing me about my marriage?” Aiden questioned.
“No, I’m just saying, cut the girl some slack, she’s done nothing to you,” Ken replied.
“And, will you still love her after she gives birth to my child?” Aiden asked, smirking.
Which man would want to marry a girl who has a child with their best friend?
“Sure, love is love, Aiden. A child is never a determinant of love. I know what I feel, and I believe it’ll take more than just a child from another man to deter my decision.” Ken said, smirking back at Aiden.
Aiden was shocked by that reply. He never expected his friend to still be willing to be with Ariel even after she had given him a child.
What was so special in Ariel that made Ken this smitten by her? He suddenly remembered that Ariel hadn’t recognized Ken as the person Doc. Carla was talking to her about it. If not, she would have possibly been crazy about him just like Ken was. He frowned as he thought about that. Would he be okay with seeing her happy with someone else?
He should be; it was none of his fucking business who she chose to go into a relationship with.
“So, enough of Ariel. How have you been?”
“Do you realize she might be after your money? Divorce you after a year, and head out with half of your capital?” Aiden asked bluntly.
Ken chuckled. “I’ll be the judge of that. And one more thing, my dear friend, I just gave you a heads up, in case you see me in your house or you see the both of us on a date, you wouldn’t be shocked.” Ken smiled. “No one would discriminate against you anyway. The public still believes that you’re the most eligible and richest bachelor, so don’t worry, you’ll be her husband in the shadows, and I’ll be her boyfriend in the open public,” Ken patted Aiden’s knee.
Aiden frowned hard. He couldn’t dispute what Ken had said. No one knew he was married, and he wasn’t planning to let them know that he was married, especially not to Ariel. But why was the idea of people seeing Ariel and Ken as a loving couple in public disturbing him? He was the husband. She was supposed to be with her, not Ken, not anyone else.
But, they signed a contract, and he wasn’t about to break the rules. She could do whatever she wanted. He didn’t care.
“Suit yourself, Ken, do not say I didn’t warn you. Girls like her, I know them,” Aiden said, frowning.
“Thank you, friend, but I’ll be the judge of that,” Ken said with a smile.
***
“I’m sorry, Ariel, my brother could be so annoying,” Jess said as she lowered herself on the chair in front of Ariel’s desk.
Ariel smiled, shaking her head. “It’s alright, I’ve been through worse,” Ariel chuckled.
Jess was quiet for a while, staring at Ariel’s face. She’s been through worse?
What could be worse than her brother’s temper tantrum?
Well, she obviously couldn’t relate; she was born into money and hasn’t lacked a thing for a second in her life. She doesn’t know what hardship means. She and Ariel were in a parallel space on that topic.
“Regardless, I’m really sorry for whatever he’s making you pass through,” Jess said sincerely.
“That’s alright. But, what are you doing here, by the way?” Ariel asked.
Had she just come to visit Aiden or something else?
“Oh, me? Haha,” Jess chuckled.
“I work here. I manage the design department for him,” She informed proudly.
“Wow, really?” Ariel asked, impressed.
Jess nodded, “Yep, and I was about to come to invite you to the party,” Jess said, smiling.
Ariel knew which party she was talking about. The one for the new employees, which included her, but she didn’t want to go, how was she going to tell her that she wasn’t interested in going to the party?
“Um, about that… I – Ugh…” She paused, holding her hand against her head. She was suddenly feeling dizzy.
“Are you okay, Ariel?” Jess asked anxiously, standing and walking over to Ariel, who was still wincing in pain.
Ariel slowly nodded, “I’m fine, just… It’s just a slight headache…” she managed to lift her face to Jess.
“Oh, my god! Ariel, your face!” Jess screamed, staring at Ariel’s face in shock.
“I know, it’s the sal… Uh!” Ariel couldn’t finish her words as she suddenly slumped onto her chair.
“Oh no! Aiden! Aiden! Somebody help!” Jess screamed and quickly went to lift the unconscious Ariel.
“Move! I got her,” Ken suddenly rushed into the office and lifted Ariel into his arms, carrying her out of the office in a hurry.