Eternally Seduced(39)

There were screeches, cheers, and loud sobbing coming from other nearby offices.

George whispered, "Wow."

Arian stalked out of our office and I didn't have the heart to tell her  that she'd still hear Constantijin's next words no matter where she  went. The speakers for the P.A. system were everywhere.

"And to celebrate this momentous occasion, we'll have an open bar and a  buffet table. I look forward to having you all join me later at  five-fifteen. Thank you."

Forty minutes later and I still had no success in reaching Constantijin  by phone. "Answer the phone, you ass," I muttered as I redialed his  number. The same robotic tone answered me instead, telling me that  Constantijin had switched his phone off.

I tried going to his office to put a stop to his madness, but he had a  human barricade by the name of Glenda. "Mr. Kastein," she said stiffly  even as her eyes twinkled, "is not taking any visitors right now."         

     



 

"Really, Glenda? Really?"

She didn't even blink. "Really." And then she slammed the door shut.

Five-fifteen came before I was ready for it. I stared at my hands, which were shaking so badly.

With Charli out of her office and Arian still not back from wherever she  was probably cursing me to perdition, I felt it was safe to tell George  my greatest fears. "What am I going to do, George? I'm so nervous. I  don't want people to laugh at him if they think I'm the worst girlfriend  he could pick." I was hyperventilating by the time I finished.

George rushed to my side. "Breathe, Yanna, breathe."

"I-I c-cant."

"It's going to be okay. I'm sure people have no expectations at all. The  women will just be sad that someone finally got to claim Mr. Kastein  and the men will just be there for the free beer."

He pulled me out of my cubicle. "Now, let's go out and just enjoy this. It's going to be all right."

The moment we stepped out of our door, we were immediately swept away by  the noisy crowd heading to the cafeteria. There was a long pileup near  the entrance as we had to swipe our cards one at a time. As we queued  up, I began to hear what the other people were saying.

"Who do you think Mr. Kastein's new girlfriend is?"

I choked.

"I bet she's super tall."

Did being tall in hobbit standards count?

"I bet she's gorgeous."

Did being voted Ms. Beautiful in kindergarten qualify?

"For sure, she's rich."

I turned around. "I'm going now---"

George laughingly spun me back into place. "Forget about them, Yanna. This is your day. Don't let what they think ruin it."

Easy for him to say, I thought waspishly. He wasn't the one the women  were expecting to be a supermodel, beauty queen, and heiress all rolled  into one. There were no available seats left by the time we got in.  George and I had to sit on the wide sills of the windows at the end of  the cafeteria just so we could get a glimpse of Constantijin, who stood  at the very front, on top of the company's mobile stage. He appeared  gorgeous and utterly relaxed  –  the ass.

"Oh my God, I wish I was able to have sex with him before he found a girlfriend."

"Who said that?" I hissed at George, who only laughed in answer.

Another one muttered, "This has to be serious  –  he never introduced the other ones."

Charli went up the stage, microphone in hand. "Hello, everyone!" The  whole crowd instantly cheered at her words. She was stunning to look at,  the perfect choice for a host of this occasion.

"You know why we're all here."

The men cheered and the women booed.

I just wanted to go. So this was what he meant I'd have it easier if I  had just confessed about us first. In hindsight, I should have totally  done what he said. I could have just changed my status on Facebook to In  a Relationship and that would have been it  –  everyone else would have  spread the word for me.

Now I was stuck with Constantijin's insane ability to torture me with embarrassment.

"Ladies and gentlemen, without further ado, I give you Constantijin's girlfriend."

Charli's last two words made me jump, my head immediately jerking back  towards the stage. But Constantijin was nowhere to be found. Shit  –   where was he--- "Aaaah!"

If people had also been wondering where he was or where he was going, my  scream totally gave his location away. And the presence of his  girlfriend.

He glanced up at me, even though I wasn't really that far from him, with  Constantijin's exceptional height. A sexy, lazy smile touched his lips  as he drawled, "Now, my beautiful little girlfriend, why don't you give  me a kiss so that everyone here knows how proud you are to be mine?"

I choked on my laughter as the women around us let out an audible sigh. "You really had to say that?" I whispered.

"Yes, and you really have to kiss me n---"

I covered his lips with mine, hoping to surprise him. And he was, but  this was Constantijin and he recovered in a moment, his hand curling  around my nape to pull me closer. It was supposed to be a chaste kiss,  but then he was licking my lips, applying pressure, and I had to part my  lips open so his tongue could enter my mouth.

And that was it.

I totally lost all sense of propriety. All I knew was that Constantijin  was kissing me hard enough to have my senses totally reeling. Without  breaking our kiss, he suddenly swung me off the window sill, his arms  tightening around my waist as he slowly lowered me to the ground.

When he lifted his head, I immediately tried to catch my breath.

One arm around my waist, he had us turning together to face the  now-silent crowd. I paled, seeing how all eyes were on us, but  Constantijin didn't appear to mind or maybe he was used to this kind of  attention.

He addressed the crowd, but his gaze was on Drake as he said succinctly, "My woman."





Lesson #7




Your billionaire will only stay in a cage with you

if it is a cage he has designed.



Constantijin Kastein as a boyfriend was more than any woman could ever  want. I knew that ‘boyfriend' would seem like a tame word to describe  someone like him. Yet I liked it  –  and he seemed to like it, too. He  told me he had never been any girl's boyfriend. If I had my way, I'd  always be his girlfriend.

Whenever he was with me, he would occasionally show a childish side to  him, the side you'd expect from a boyfriend who cared for you and not  from a complex and enigmatic lover who used to be the most famous  playboy in the Netherlands.

I loved it.

I loved him.



Day Two

The first thing I wanted to make sure was that everyone in the office  would understand nothing had to change with how they treated me. I might  be the boss' lady, but I was also just Yanna Everleigh  –  one of the new  girls in Kastein, Inc.

I sort of made the right  –  and wrong  –  decision telling Charli about it,  and the next thing I knew she was walking past me, my latest report  folder tucked under her arm, heading towards the door of her office.  Then she threw the folder on the floor and started screaming.

"Are you seriously giving me this crap just because you're Constantijin's girlfriend now?"

In the act of kneeling down and picking up my report, I froze, staring at her with my jaw on the floor. Was this for real?

Charli's eyes narrowed. "And now, you don't think I'm even worth answering to?"

Report now in my hand, I stammered, "No! I mean, oh my God, no. I  just---what's wrong with the report?" Did she really hate my report that  much? She asked for a sexy paranormal romance that could compete  against The Vampire Diaries. I gave her Love Monster, which told the  story about a girl who just discovered her demon parentage (the good  kind) and found out she was a living legend among other supernatural  creatures. The twist: she got kidnapped by a handsome and powerful demon  who was pissed by the fact that she had forgotten he was her fiancé.

Did that not sound good?

"There are so many things wrong with it. The report's good but it's not  the best you can do! I don't want you to be suddenly complacent just  because you're with the CEO."

"I won't be," I promised her fervently.

Constantijin appeared at the doorway, a frown on his face. "Everything all right, ladies?"

"Don't interrupt!" Charli snarled.

Behind her, I quickly shook my head at Constantijin, warning him silently not to meddle.

He stared at me for a moment before turning away without a word.

Charli stalked back to her table, saying loudly, "Thank God Constantijin  at least knows better than to interfere." Her narrowed gaze swung back  to me, and I did my best to meet it. "You know better than to play  spoiled with me, don't you, Yanna?"

"Yes, sir."

"Charli!"

"Sir Charli  –  I mean, Ms. Charli."

She nodded. "Good. Now close the door and get back to work." With shaky  legs, I went to her door, conscious of how everyone was deliberately  slowing down in front of Charli's office to hear more of how she was  scolding me.