(Cal’s POV)“Congratulations!” Bob’s face lit up with a triumphant smile as he handed me a crystal glass filled with a deep red liquid.When I did not answer, he followed the direction of my gaze. The two best friends were at the table; Eve, with her animated gestures, was engrossed in conversation with Bethany. Whatever they were talking about seemed to be a source of amusement for them. They were laughing at something… or maybe someone.“How’s Eve?” I asked, taking the glass from him.I had my eyes on Eve while sipping the wine. Before the event, I told Bob about her relationship with Marcus, but as expected, my cousin didn’t care about it. He said he was indebted to Bethany, not to Millicent or me.“That’s the consequence of you hiring someone immediately without checking the background,” he said annoyingly when I instructed him to fire Eve tonight. “I’m not firing anyone tonight. If you want, do it yourself.”Yes, I would do that tonight. Instead of offering her a contract, I woul

(Eve’s POV)Callahan pressed his mouth into mine, kissing me fiercely like he had been angry and hungry. I could not decide which of the two was the reason, but I was just glad he had satiated my cravings. He was the sweet dessert I had dreamed of tasting. He thrust his tongue into my parted lips, delving deeper and exploring my mouth. When he found my tongue, his demanding but sweet invitation told me he wanted more.This was definitely not a dream. I wrapped my arms around Callahan’s neck and pressed my breasts against his chest, wanting to feel his warm skin and think this was real. His hand was on the back of my head, pushing me toward him like he wanted to ensure I would not escape from him.I moaned and eagerly responded to the stroke and swirl of his tongue. If that night in the hotel was a dream, then Callahan did meet my expectations. He was indeed an expert kisser. Tension built up inside me as he kissed me harder, and then he groaned, breaking the kiss and grabbing my shoul

(Eve’s POV)“This host is making me unhappy,” Marga pouted as she sat at the quaint bistro chair. “Hmm…”She closed her eyes, a smile spreading across her face. She must have forgotten what she was previously complaining to Bethany when her bottom touched the cozy cushion on the seat. I pressed my lips, suppressing a laugh. Between them, Marga was easy to please, and I knew this seat made her feel happy.“Is there something in the foam of this cushion?” She giggled but pressed her lips together when she opened her eyes and saw our best friend frowning at her. “What?”Bethany rolled her eyes, and I was sure when she widened her eyes at her, it meant Marga should not change the topic because I could easily escape from it. As much as they wanted to ask about Callahan while we ate pasta, they could not do it because the children were there, except for Jessy. Rosie said her twin sister was talking to her friends on the phone and didn’t want to be disturbed.As if Rosie knew this moment wit

(Eve’s POV) “Then leave the decision to her,” Callahan snapped, cutting Wyatt. “Why are you so concerned about her welfare?” Ben snarled, looking at Callahan with frustration and confusion. “Grr!” I growled, raising my hands. They were making me dizzy, and my headache was becoming worse. I winced and shouted, “I’m the caretaker of this place. I’ll decide what to do with it.” There was silence for a few seconds, then suddenly Theo spoke. “Aunt Moira told Wyatt to look after us while she’s away,” he wriggled his body, and when Wyatt put him down, my eight-year-old son, who most of the time didn’t want to share his world with us, ran to his little sister. My lips parted, but a sigh escaped my mouth instead of words. I blinked, curiously stared at my son, and wondered how or what had changed. In his growing years, he rarely participated in our daily conversation. Although my son was not disabled, interacting with him was a bit challenging. Since we moved to Moira’s house, I had not

(Cal’s POV)I had been watching the orientation of newly hired employees on the screen from the CCTV camera in the HR conference room. There were ten, seven of whom would be assigned to shopping mall stores across the country, while three, including Eve, would stay in the office.Eve looked tired but attentive. She wrote notes every time the HR personnel flashed a new slide in the presentation. Whenever she furrowed her brows, I wished I could know what she was thinking.“You want popcorn? It’s always fun watching movies with popcorn and soda,” Bob smirked as he entered my private office, placing a pile of folders on the incoming tray.He glanced at the screen but did not bother coming closer. Instead, Bob sat on the couch, picked up his drawing tablet, and continued the design he had stopped doing when he saw Bethany with Eve.“I can’t wait to have her around,” he said, his eyes on the screen of his tablet. “It’s not that I don’t want to follow you around, Cal, but I want to focus on