Inside a moody office at the top of a high-rise building in Lieren City’s business center, a man rose from his swivel chair. “Sir, Miss Leila encountered Miss Ayla in the mall earlier today. They have a small argument with you being their topic.”The corners of his lips curled. Hearing Leila argue to Ayla about him elated him. “It seems her attempts to find another man is futile…”“What happened to Nikolai? Did he date the model that we sent?” he asked. His subordinate promptly nodded. “He is, sir.”“See? No men will last for two weeks for her. That’s why she’s labeled as a playgirl. They cannot handle the simple tests I’m sending her men. How can I sleep soundly if I will hand her over to cheating assholes like them?”Julius smirked. All along, he was manipulating Leila’s dating life. As such, Leila was not able to find a stable relationship to settle into. Even though she has a long list of suitors, they are not able to go further with her mainly because of Julius’ interference.
His voice was deep and hoarse. And his light peal of laughter caught Leila off guard. He was extremely charismatic!‘It’s no wonder why he’s the country’s famous playboy! He is so charming!’This was not the first time that Leila met such a handsome man. She has encountered a lot of handsome and manly gentlemen that she’s so used to. Since she is working in the fashion industry, she is, of course, surrounded by beauty. Phyllis’ report did not mention that his presence would be this… memorable. “Mr. Lown, I heard about you from my mother. You invested in NM Group, right?” she directly asked. Taylor nodded. “Yes. It seems that you know a few of your mother's business dealings.”“Well, I need to know. After all, I have to be careful around our partners.”Leila’s voice was calm, but there was a hint of mischievousness in her tone. She was not shy nor reserved. She was confident and elegant. Taylor got a hint of what Leila was implying. Of course, it applies to anyone in the same busi
She slowly stepped back as she gripped her phone tightly. “I’ll talk to you later. Send me the deets, please. Thanks.”Her hands started to tremble in his presence. But she tried her best to conceal it. She forced a smile before turning to leave. “Are you leaving already? This is the first time that I've seen you in a while,” he directly said. His voice became deeper, but his tone… It never changed. His tone was as gentle as ever. “It’s so nice seeing you again,” he added. Leila awkwardly looked at him. ‘You speak as if we had a very amicable relationship. The audacity!’She smiled. “It’s not,” she said, as a matter of fact. She stood tall and confidently faced him. If there’s anything that she feels for him, it’s fierce anger. Her blood is curling at the sight of this man. She hated him to her core, and her whole body was trembling. Still, she acted cool. She cannot let him see that she’s affected by the issue that they have forcefully thrown in the bin. ‘If it’s scrappe
Taylor carried Leila out of the bar by using the VIP exit, exclusive to the room that they booked. The VIP room that Taylor usually books has exclusive access straight to their own private parking space. This is very useful for artists like Luna who want to avoid the press. He did not waste any second and hopped inside the van. He carefully let Leila rest on the seat next to him. “Are you this weak with alcohol that you pass out out of nowhere?” he asked as he stared at her. He noticed the frowns on her forehead and so he smoothened them with his long and bony fingers. She seemed to be having trouble sleeping.‘What happened to her? Do I need to bring her to the hospital?’ he thought. His assistant, Eric Jang, rushed to sit on the passenger seat with the stuff that Taylor left inside. “Sir, I heard someone looking for Miss Leila…”Taylor’s brows raised, intrigued. “Who?”“They’re Mr. Yu’s men…”“How come they’re looking for her?”“I saw them talking outside before she went inside
“Sir, Miss Ayla is downstairs. She wanted to invite you for a meal.”Julius continued to flip through the reports he received, not paying attention to what his assistant just said. “Should I invite Miss Ayla in?”Julius blankly looked at his assistant as if he was asking a ridiculous question. Ayla Parker is Leila’s half-sister. She’s the daughter of Allen Parker, their business partner. The Parker family has always acted so arrogant around them. It was as if he owed them a favor for getting them as their manufacturer. Truth be told, he was so dissatisfied with their work for the past few years that he’s considering manufacturing their products in-house. The quality is just incomparable to NM Group’s. The only reason why they remained as a partner is because of their prices. And now, Ayla is acting as if she’s the mistress of this building. She visits his office as if they have a close relationship with each other. “Annoying.”“When did I ever eat with her alone?”“What right does
“That guy isn’t good! I already sent you all his details thinking you’d be smart enough to stay away from him.”Phyllis reached out for Leila’s hands. Her expression is serious and Leila could feel the weight of what Phyllis was sharing. Her friend is always happy-go-lucky and always goes with the flow. Whenever she mentions something about a guy, Phyllis would be the first one to cheer her on. Well—after she background checks the men that Leila dated. But this behavior is different…“Leila, listen to me. I know that guy, we’re business partners.”“You know how my media company gets first-hand information from GEM Entertainment? It was because Taylor asked to work with me. This is how they maintain an excellent image for their artists. Whenever there are rumors involving his artists, he asks me to make an article with insider info.”“Isn’t that biased to his artists?” asked Leila. Phyllis shrugged. “Well, nothing’s real in the media. We choose what we let the people know. So this co
Ding!Leila’s phone lit up as the message notification popped up on the screen. [Hi, Leila. Here’s Luna’s latest measurement. I also want to know when you’re free so I can hook you up with a virtual meeting with the boys to discuss the design.][Thanks!]It was a concise message from Taylor. He spoke directly that Leila did not have any other thing to ask about. “See, Taylor’s only talking about business. He already sent me their measurement. Nothing more, nothing less.”Phyllis pouted, not willing to believe that Taylor would be this decent. “Besides, Rui already promised me that she’ll introduce me to a guy! Don’t you trust Rui?”Phyllis scoffed. “How many men does Rui know? Aside from her son and husband, she only knows her cousin, my twin, and Carter.”Leila casually patted Phyllis’ shoulder. “Just trust our friend, okay? She said it herself.”She stood up to get her iPad from her bag. She then checked her calendar to see her available schedules so she could set up a meeting wi
Weeks passed by in the blink of an eye, Leila was occupied with the commission pieces for Luna and the pieces that she’ll be presenting for her atelier opening. She did not leave her apartment and just immersed herself in work. She was currently under a lot of pressure since in a month, she will open the doors of her studio to her clients. With the help of Michaella, the opening fashion show is well taken care of. Now, the only thing left to do is to finish all her remaining designs. Right now, she is on her way to GEM Entertainment’s office in Dixon City. She doesn’t know why but her appointment is with Taylor Lown, the President of GEM Entertainment not with the general manager of GEM Models. She found it weird but she still needed to go. It’s better than meeting the guy that Julius mentioned. The traffic on the way to Taylor’s office was okay. It was good that the scheduled meeting was not a rush hour, or else she’d be stuck in traffic by now. The business park in Dixon City is