The following morning, Laura woke up with the worst hangover. When James took her back to her room the previous night, she took a quick shower and fell asleep. She squinted as she looked out the window from her bed and groaned when the memories from last night came pouring in.
She was planning on cutting back on alcohol for the next few weeks after going so hard the previous night. She fell into a daze as she looked at the bright scenery outside the window and remembered what happened when she was alone with James. After leaving the pool, they took the elevator and arrived at the ground floor.
She complained that she was hungry, so he went to see if there was any food left and brought some back for her. She ate her food while James, who was sitting on the opposite side, watched her eat. He would even occasionally pick something up and place it in front of her lips.
He did it so seriously that she felt a bit embarrassed by his actions. In reality, he was also just drunk, not as much as she was, but enough to significantly soften his personality.
If Jason had seen his brother’s actions, he would have been really surprised. Lucas, on the other hand, wouldn’t be too surprised since he had already experienced a lifetime of his brother’s doting.
After Laura finished eating, James took her back to her room and waited for her to go inside. Laura looked at him with eyes that were so full of regret that he felt slightly guilty.
“Just one kiss,” Laura negotiated, and James shook his head. He knew himself well, and he was not as calm as he appeared to be.
“On the cheek?” Laura continued to negotiate, and James smiled helplessly when he saw her point at her own cheek as she asked him.
“Fine, I’ll take one on the cheek,” James said and before he could react, Laura had already jumped forward and kissed the corner of his mouth, right where his dimple was located.
“Goodnight,” Laura said and dashed into her room without waiting for his reply.
James stared at the closed door for a bit before he left for his own room. Laura was now lying in bed in the morning, remembering how cheeky she had been the previous night and groaned again, but this time, she got up and off her bed.
She was only wearing her underwear with a tank top so she took the covers with her and stepped out of the room, only to come face to face with Nancy and Leanna, who looked like an even bigger mess as they lay haphazardly on the sofas in the living area.
She woke the two girls up so they could go and sleep in their rooms lest they were seen by their host before going to look for something to drink. Her throat felt dry, her head was pounding, and she was craving something refreshing. She opened the fridge and found some tonic water and after making sure the two girls were back in their beds; she went back to her room.
She went to take a shower to get herself out of her funk and put on a robe. She sat on her bed and went through her phone while drinking her tonic water, she was already feeling much better. She logged into her social media account and uploaded some of the photos she took the previous day before getting up and going to get dressed.
After putting on a pair of short shorts and a tank top, she tied up her long hair into a high ponytail and only put on some gloss on her lips before leaving her room. She was starting to feel quite stuffy by herself in her room.
She wondered if anyone was going to be awake at this time with how wildly things seemed to have gone last night as she went down the stairs, but before she could even contemplate on it, Jason appeared out of nowhere.
“Laura!” he called happily, his voice echoing across the area.
“Good morning Da... Jason,” Laura said and smiled at the man, who was smiling at her brightly.
“Good morning. Are you feeling like breakfast?” Jason asked when Laura stopped next to him.
“Maybe?” Laura said, not knowing whether or not she could stomach any food yes.
“Then let’s go. There is catering so you can just eat whatever you want,” Jason said as he walked with her towards the living room. As they got closer, Laura couldn’t help but wonder whether James would be there, too.
Once they arrived at the large dining area, there were only a few people there eating. Jason’s previous group members were there, since they crashed at the mansion the previous night, Ethan and David were also there, but none of them had any food in front of them.
“Why aren’t any of you eating yet? I carefully organised catering that suited your tastes and you lot are going to waste it?” Jason asked as he pulled a chair for Laura. Laura thanked him and sat down before greeting the clearly hungover group at the table.
“Shut up,” David said, stunning Laura, who had never heard him be rude, even jokingly, since she met him. Albeit, it was not like she had known him for a long time, but it still came as a surprise. The only other person that looked like he was equally surprised was Ethan. Everyone else looked like they were expecting him to say that.
“David, I know you are close friends with my brother, but don’t pick up his manners,” Jason said, referring to James rather than Lucas.
David ignored Jason because he knew if he engaged with him in conversation, he would end up being irritated, making his hangover even worse.
“He knows how to pick his battles,” Ethan commented with a laugh when he saw David ignore Jason. Laura was also mildly amused by their interaction. It looked like this bunch of rich and influential people were actually quite simple in reality.
Laura went to get herself something to eat and went back to the dining area to watch the excitement. She was quite amused by how the guys joked around and how down to earth her idol actually was. When she appeared with her food, Jason took the initiative to help her carry it back to the table and even pulled the chair out for her again. “Can’t you lot be like Laura? She at least knows how to appreciate my efforts,” Jason said as he glared at his friends. “Looks like you have been too idle recently. Already making trouble so early in the morning,” a deep voice was heard at the entrance of the dining area and Jason, who had been joking around, paused for a bit and slowly turned to see his older brother. “James, you are awake,” Jason said and stepped away from Laura, who had been chewing her food while watching them in amusement. “Mmmh,” James said and dragged the chair next to Laura and sat down. This was his usual seat, and Jason had made Laura sit next to it so that they would be s
Breakfast was very lively, and the group of friends ended up spending a long time chatting. Jason and his friends left early because they had plans to attend to, and the others went back to their rooms. Jen and Lucas decided to go take a short walk before they left, and James took Laura with him as well. The two of them lagged further behind the pair of lovebirds as they took in the whole atmosphere of the impeccably maintained garden. “Have you really made up your mind about dating me?” James asked Laura, who had been asking herself whether or not it was okay to hold his hand the entire. “Hm?” Laura asked, not expecting him to ask this. “Our conversation from last night, do you still stand by your words?” James asked and slowed to a stop. Laura also stopped next to him and raised her head to look at his face. His hair was loosely tied at the nape of his neck, combined with the loose white sweater he was wearing. He looked relaxed and easygoing. It was as if he was planning on spen
Laura stared at the man sitting next to her with a shallow smile on her lips. James had called his driver to come and pick him up and decided to drop Laura off at her hotel before he went back to his place. It was rare for him to have a free weekend, so he was planning on making the most of it. “Is there something on my face?” James asked as he turned to look at her. “No, but I can’t help but look at you,” Laura answered honestly. James chuckled when he heard her response and continued to read the script he was holding. He had changed into more formal clothes before they left. He was wearing a beige turtleneck with a black blazer and a pair of black slacks. It was simple, but it made him look both ascetic and sexy, which was very contradictory but somehow worked with him. “Why did we have to leave so early? We could have gone horse-riding,” Laura lamented, as she finally looked away from the handsome man to stare at the scenery outside. “We’ll go ride horses next time. We can also
Movements outside her room woke Laura up. After feeling alert for a while, she relaxed once she determined that it was a familiar noise from the kitchen. She squinted as she clumsily fumbled around her bed to search for her phone. She quickly checked the time and saw that it was 6:30 am. She groaned before pulling the covers over her head. She didn’t understand Rachel at all. Why was she waking up so early even though they were on vacation? She asked herself before continuing to sleep. She only woke up after another two hours and got out of her room. Rachel was drawing on her tablet while enjoying a cup of tea when she heard the door to Laura’s room open. She looked at her half-asleep friend walk towards the kitchen and take out a bottle of water from the fridge and downing it in one go before joining her at the table. Laura rested her chin on her hand as she sleepily watched her friend who had turned her attention back to drawing. “Why are you working during vacation?” Laura asked
Laura walked into Diamond Star’s company building and headed straight for the reception desk without looking around. But from the moment she walked in, everyone’s attention was drawn to her. Even the cute receptionist girls stared at her for a while before hearing what she was saying to them. “Yes, how may I help you?” one of the more experienced receptionists asked Laura, snapping the rest of the girls out of their daze. “I’m going to see James Lewis,” Laura said as she leaned on the desk, her cleavage peeking out the top of her dress. The employee smiled politely and focused her gaze on Laura’s face while trying to maintain her professionalism. “Do you have an appointment?” she continued to ask, feigning nonchalance, but Laura could see her ears redden at a visible speed. “Yes,” Laura answered with a smile, and continued to watch as the other party picked up her phone to call the CEO’s offices. “Please sit down, someone will be sent to escort you soon,” the receptionist said onc
Laura seriously went through the contract offer and would occasionally peek at James, who was holding another document in his hand. The contract offer was quite impressive, the terms were generous and she would be treated like an A-lister. “I’m going to sign under one more condition,” Laura said, drawing James’s attention to her. He put down the papers he was holding to give her his attention. “What is it?” James asked her. He wondered whether his team of lawyers rushed the job and forgot something. “My manager has to be you,” Laura said, and smiled at the subtle expression on James’s face. James was already managing his younger brother on top of managing the company. The only reason he took on the job by himself was because Jason would go overboard with his managers. It had taken him years to find staff that could understand and tolerate Jason’s antics, but the manager position was one that only he could fill, seeing as Jason was also on the board of directors. Now, on top of all
James got closer and closer to her and, as he did so, he could see the anticipation in her eyes. Laura swallowed nervously when she saw a strange glint in his eyes. He was making her feel really nervous. “Take off my glasses,” he said and Laura raised her hands to remove the gold-rimmed glasses and placed them a safe distance away and looked up at him once more. When he held her chin with his hand, Laura slightly parted her lips as she remembered being told to open her mouth. This made James smile even wider before he pressed his lips against her open ones. Laura did not even have the time to get surprised before he pushed his tongue into her open mouth. He moved the hand that was holding her chin to the back of her head to block any retreat as he swept his tongue over her own. Laura felt like a small boat caught in a storm in the middle of the ocean. Her heart was racing from the excitement she was feeling and held on to his jacket as if to ground herself. James wrapped his free ha
“You are going to drink now?” James asked Laura, who was sitting on the opposite side of the table. “Is that a problem?” Laura asked him with a raised eyebrow. James checked the time on his watch to make sure that he was not the strange one here. “You think it’s too early?” Laura asked when she saw him to check the time. “You don’t think it’s early?” James asked her back. It was a little past 1 pm. The only way he would be drinking at this time was as if he was taking a weekend off. “Then I'll drink later in the evening,” Laura said with a smile that made James nervous rather than reassure him. “You can do as you please,” James finally concluded, and Laura’s smile turned into a laugh. “But you’ll have to accompany me later,” Laura said and became silent once the waiter returned with the wine she ordered. “Okay,” James agreed. He didn’t have anything planned for the evening and since he just signed her, they might as well celebrate. “Really? Hey, I won’t be drinking anymore,” La