But, why on earth would he suddenly decide to give her the job, especially when he had blatantly rejected her earlier with a flimsy excuse of not having any experience.
She did not know, and yet she did not want to ask, she did not dare to push his buttons, knowing that the moment she does, she loses everything in an instant.
She sighed.
The man had allowed her to contemplate. Although she had hurriedly accepted, he still wanted her to think more about her decision, which is why he did not interrupt. He briskly walked towards the telephone stand and dialed a number.
A second later, the call connected.
"Come pick me up from the company in about half an hour. Do not delay."
He ended the call and finally turned, facing Evelyn. "This badge will give you instant access into the company. You will not have to be stuck between getting permission from the manager or the directing head."
He lingered a while and added.
"I still have some things to sort out, you can either leave or sit still."
Evelyn finally smiled. "It's fine sir, I'd take my leave now."
Jared fumbled with his laptop and said, not hushed, but loud to be heard.
"It's Jared."
Evelyn, amused, could not leave this particular response of his unattended.
"Do your workers call you by your name? I actually expected that maybe, a chieftaincy name like, sir and boss fits your personality."
Jared looked up from his laptop and said calmly. "The very moment you stepped into this office, I swear I could have hired you instantly. Your energy reminded me of hard work."
Evelyn's eyes immediately twitched, she did not interrupt.
"What am I saying? Telling others to call me Jared instead of the usual boss? I'm actually easygoing but hot tempered. I could ask anyone to address me by my name, but none of them dares to. And I wonder why."
Evelyn tsked.
"Your hot temper."
Jared smiled. "Exactly! I could ask them to call me by my name, and yet when angered, if I hear it, I could even fire that person, so no one dares no matter how much I persuade them."
He immediately concentrated on his laptop, the mood he had now, shifting seamlessly— focused.
Evelyn suddenly realized that she could actually make this man tell her these lengthy words about his anger, and why no one dares call him by his name despite his persuasion.
Evelyn stared more at him, slowly unraveling something that she did not believe he possessed.
Humility?
She shivered.
Do humility and impatience go together? If you are humble, then one should be able to wait… however, this man could hardly wait.
Evelyn did not want to bother him, yet she still asked.
"So… about the scope of my work as a secretary? Earlier, you didn't take me because I lack experience, so I'm a bit bummed that you had seemingly told me to resume work. What happened?"
She had never wanted to test the waters, but she decided to try.
Jared's hands which clicked on the laptop froze for a while— not that he was angry, but because he was interrupted.
"I remembered your energy and decided to try you. Earlier, I had said that there was no luxury of time to train you, but do not worry, I'll personally teach you."
He seemed to unmask himself for a bit, like— he was exasperated, or frustrated about something.
"I had to think more about my decision. What if I don't find anyone willing to work. Recently, ladies had been trooping in with the excuse of searching for a job just so that they could confess their love to me."
Evelyn's eyes widened.
"What?"
She couldn't believe her ears… that such an unbelievable method existed?
"Serious?"
Jared sighed, his gaze shifting to his laptop and Evelyn stood up. "Alright sir—"
She suddenly felt the air thicken and she sighed.
"Alright Jared, I'll take my leave."
She turned to leave as Jared spoke, not glancing at her at all.
"Do not wake up late. I have a meeting due tomorrow 10am, you're to be by my side and help me document some information."
Evelyn's mouth made an, "Oh" sign despite not really applying her vocals.
And finally, she left the man alone, who focused on his work like nothing else mattered.
And an hour later, a man knocked once and walked into the office.
"Boss, the vehicle is ready." The chauffeur said but there was no excitement in Jared's tone.
"You're half an hour late Michael."
Chills immediately ran up his spine.
"Sir, I had to stop at the gas station for fuel. I almost jumped the traffic. Luckily, I could pay off the cop so he wouldn't bother me."
Jared slowly cracked his knuckles and then closed his laptop. He did not look up, just, slowly arranging his things.
And when he was done, he said. "Michael, after tonight I don't want to see you again."
The chauffeur's expression changed drastically. "I'm so sorry sir, please pardon me."
Jared did not give the man a second thought and simply walked out of the office.
The man despaired, slowly following behind… he had already delayed once, anymore delay could be dangerous knowing that this CEO is an impatient man.
***
The tires of an expensive vehicle screeched softly to a halt in a massive compound. Jared did not wait around, he gathered his properties and walked without saying a word. He got to his apartment and unlocked the door.
Jared exhales softly.
This apartment is the one he had bought for his mother so that at least, she would always see him return from work, just like she had demanded. Not just about seeing him return, but making sure that her son was able to court a woman.
Jared remembered that his mother had lived alone in Hong Kong, not until she heard that her twenty-six years old son is yet to get married. She even started to label him a gay which caused Jared to go into a contractual relationship with Phoebe, so when she moved in, she saw that a woman stayed here, learning also that she was Jared's girl.
The kitchen door was pushed open and Phoebe hurried towards him.
"Welcome honey."
She kissed his left cheek, causing Jared's body to stiffen. He carefully observed, knowing that Phoebe would never be this careless as to kiss him and call him honey. And then, he saw his mother, observing from the window upstairs.
Seeing her, his tensed and stiff body loosened up and relaxed. He stared into her eyes, passing a silent message.
Both he and Phoebe did not need words to understand that he wanted them to talk privately.