Filed To Story: Finding the Secret Daddy for My Baby Novel
Over at Bourgeois, Elliot’s car pulled into the basement parking lot, and Anastasia opened the door to get down from the vehicle the moment it rolled to a stop. However, she had only just stepped out when the man next to her pointed out sourly, “I’m good enough to be in paparazzi shots with you, but not enough to show up at work alongside you, eh?”
Anastasia stopped in her tracks, and sudden realization dawned upon her as she said, “Sorry, I forgot about that.”
Elliot sighed, for he wasn’t sure what to do with her. He couldn’t believe that someone who took her work and life so seriously would treat their relationship with considerable laxity.
He marched up to her and grabbed her hand. Then, he led her to the elevator without another word.
For some reason, she felt like her heart was suspended on a tightrope, ready to take the plunge and fall freely into her stomach at any given moment. She had yet to get used to such public displays of affection with this man.
Sure enough, the moment she arrived at the department of design, the employees lingering outside the elevator lobby instantly caught sight of her and Elliot holding hands. She flushed and turned to him. “I’ll be going to my office,” she said quietly.
With that, she turned to walk into the office under the envious gazes of her co-workers.
“Hey, Anastasia.”
“Good morning, Anastasia!”
“You look so pretty today, Anastasia!”
“I love your purse, Anastasia.”
The way to her desk was paved with endless compliments as the girls in the office greeted her with unprecedented enthusiasm, but she regarded them with the same smile that she would any other day. She never cared about how others looked at her, and she still maintained her indifference even though they were throwing compliments in her direction to get in her good books.
Not long after, Felicia turned up at her office and braced her arms against the desk as she eyed Anastasia’s outfit meaningfully. “Oh, someone didn’t change out of their clothes! I’m guessing you had a pretty good night.”
Anastasia blushed as she pleaded, “Please don’t make fun of me, Felicia.”
Knowing how shy Anastasia was when it came to the subject of men, Felicia stopped teasing her. “Okay. I’ll stop, but I will still congratulate you for bagging President Presgrave! Also, those pictures are more than enough to make a woman jealous!”
Anastasia was amused and embarrassed at the same time. The pictures were going to be the bane of her existence for a while.
Upon noticing the flustered look on the younger woman’s face, Felicia pointed out comfortingly, “We’re all adults here, and whatever you did in those pictures is completely normal. There are plenty of young couples in the park who go twice as hot and heavy as the both of you, and the only difference is that you were caught by the paparazzi. I don’t know any young couples out there who haven’t done all this lovey-dovey stuff.”
Anastasia was practically dying of embarrassment as she buried her face in her hands, but now that everything was out in the open, she had no choice other than to accede to reality.
Just then, her phone rang. She picked it up and glanced at the caller ID, wincing when she saw Nigel’s name. She was far too flustered to put his call through.
“Answer it,” Felicia encouraged before walking away to give her some privacy.
Anastasia took a deep breath and picked up the call. “Hey.”
“My fair Lady Tillman, so you have indeed left me for my cousin!”
“Please stop teasing me about this,” she begged exasperatedly.
Nigel chuckled. “Who would’ve thought that my walking iceberg of a cousin could be so passionate when he’s with you?”
“Nigel,” she warned.
“Okay, okay, I’ll stop. I only called to congratulate both of you, and I’m really happy for you guys as well. I wouldn’t have allowed any man other than Elliot to be with you,” he pointed out playfully.
“Thanks,” she said. This was quickly followed by a panicked, “Hey, you didn’t show Jared the pictures, did you?”
“The pictures are a little PG-13, so of course I didn’t show them to him,” he replied matter-of-factly.
Anastasia’s face grew hot. “You can’t ever let him see those pictures!”
“I know, and I won’t. He told me he wants to stay over at my place, so I’ll pick him up this afternoon and bring him home. That way, you and Elliot can get some much-deserved quality time.”
She felt bad for saddling Nigel with babysitting duty and said, “I don’t want to impose on you, Nigel.”
“It’s not imposing at all. You know how much I adore the little guy; he brightens up my day like no one else!” Nigel was already treating Jared like his own nephew.
“Okay, then. Thanks for offering, Nigel,” Anastasia said. She felt like she was asking too much of him, but nothing else mattered as much as Jared’s happiness.
“There’s no need to thank me. Just go and capture my cousin’s heart before some other damsel comes and snags him! He’s a popular catch, you know,” Nigel said jokingly and hung up the phone.
Presently, Anastasia propped her chin up with one hand. She couldn’t focus on work, so she held her phone and scrolled through the pictures before blushing. She knew that these were candid shots, but she still couldn’t believe that Elliot looked good from every angle, and she was flustered to see how her face lit up while they were kissing. I look like I’m enjoying his kiss a little too much, she thought.
She scrolled down to the comments section where the netizens had erupted into a frenzy. Without a doubt, she had become the object of everyone’s envy as heartbroken women announced that they wanted to die after seeing the news. Some even went so far as to call Elliot their husband, though that was more comical than anything else. I didn’t know he had tens of thousands of admirers, Anastasia mused.
A laugh escaped her at the thought of that. Life would be meaningless if she couldn’t appreciate the humor of this situation.
When noon rolled around, Elliot called her and suggested that they go out for lunch. She did not turn him down, and the both of them headed over to the restaurant next to Presgrave Corporation.
After lunch, Elliot offered to give her a tour of Presgrave Corporation and his office. Given that she wasn’t in the mood for work, she decidedly went along with him.
She found herself standing in the company building, which was a landmark in the central business hub of Averna. It was also known as the building of all buildings in the area.
This was the first time Anastasia had dropped by Elliot’s office in Presgrave Corporation. As expected, it boasted a stunning view of the skyline and masculine decorations. It gave the illusion that it was built above the clouds when it really was just the pinnacle of a skyscraper. She had a feeling that it would still be bright and sunny here even if there was a storm brewing over the city.
“Do you like the view?” Elliot murmured as he wrapped his arms around her waist from behind.
She nodded and said gently, “Yes.”
“You can drop by anytime to have coffee and take in the scenery,” he offered in a husky voice.
She sensed something dry and cool press against the back of her ear. He had kissed her there, and she quickly shrunk away from him as she grumbled, “Do you make a habit out of kissing people at the most random of times?”
He straightened up and eyed her solemnly as he corrected, “No, I only make a habit out of kissing you, randomly or not.”
This made her heart flutter, but at that moment, she heard his phone ring and prompted, “Go and answer the call.”
He returned to the desk and picked up his phone. “It’s my grandmother. She probably saw the pictures,” she said.
New Book: Returned To Make Them Pay
On her wedding anniversary, Alicia is drugged and stumbles into the wrong room—straight into the arms of the powerful Caden Ward, a man rumored never to touch women. Their night of passion shocks even him, especially when he discovers she’s still a virgin after two years of marriage to Joshua Yates.