Chapter 8 Glances

• Hugo’s Point of View
• A smirk formed on my lips when Nala suddenly rushed towards the door with a flushed face after that delectable kiss that we’d shared a few minutes ago. I bit my lower lip to prevent a smile from escaping from my lips. I sat in my swivel chair with my feet crossed over each other. Still looking at the door.
• Since I kissed her yesterday, I can’t stop thinking about her luscious and sweet lips. It was just a quick kiss, but fuck—I’d gotten addicted to it real quick! And when I saw her red lips a while ago, it hypnotized me to kiss her, so I did.
• In my twenty-eight years of existence, this is just the first time I’ve felt this way. My heart is pounding loudly inside my chest when she’s around. My blood inside my veins was being active like crazy. And my cock behind my undergarment is always reacting when she’s near me. Her presence has a big effect on my entire system! And this is fucking bad!
• All this time, torturing and killing without mercy became second nature to me and the work I learned to love. I worked hard to get where I am today. It earned me respect from my associates and fear from my enemies. I thought it was enough, but I feel empty and not content with everything. Something is missing.
• When my dad passed on the highest rank of the organization to me at twenty, all the organizations that were trying to knock off my society were being crashed with my bare hands. I left no one. They were begging me to spear their lives, but I don’t feel any sympathy for anyone. Samson and Dad taught me to be merciless. To become heartless.
• My father doesn’t trust me. He is still mad at me because of my mom’s death, but I don’t fucking care anymore. He doesn’t have a choice but to pass the thrown to me because I am his son. And I am more capable of that position than he is. He’s old and weak.
• I took out my phone from my welt pocket upon hearing it ring loudly. My lips turned to a grim line when I saw Edwin’s name on my phone’s screen. He is my dad’s loyal dog, like Samson.
• “What do you need?” I quickly answered the call and stood up, facing the glass wall that offered a panoramic view of Manila.
• “I heard you already caught Samson.” My dad’s voice occupied my ears on the other line.
• I smirked. I knew it.
• “Yeah. You are kind of late for the news, old man. Your dog is dead. So, I already disposed of him like you always do to your useless men,” I sarcastically said.
• “What?! You are the son of a bitch!”
• “Yes. I am your son, old man,” I jeered.
• “What the—”
• I didn’t wait for him to finish speaking. I hung up the phone, my eyebrows practically touching. My hand clenched, my fingers folded into my palm, and my thumb tucked in tightly. I may not be an underground mafia boss for nothing. It’s not like I’m stupid and didn’t know my dad was behind the ambush that almost killed me five months ago, leaving my left upper bicep with a third-degree burn.
• My angled jaw clenched. I gulped my whiskey straight down my throat without blinking. Hearing my dad’s voice brings back all my childhood memories that I want to bury and permanently forget because all of those memories are pain in my ass.
• My dad is my nightmare. That’s the truth.
• I received punches, whips, slaps, and even torture from my father before. He said it was part of the training, but it wasn’t. I used to believe it because I was young, but as time went on, I realized he was trying to kill me. He despises me as his son, and now, because of what he did to me, I despise him as my dad.
• If only I could change my blood, I would have done it already.
• I took a deep breath and dialed Fang’s number.
• “Yes, my lord?” Fang greeted me as he answered my call.
• “Send my schedule to my secretary, even the major meetings that I need to attend,” I seriously said, gulping my whiskey.
• “Copy, my lord.”
• I hung up the phone and sat again in my swivel chair in front of my laptop. I read the report from a different department of my company. Not just here in the Philippines, but also in a distinct part of Asia.
• My eyebrows rose upon seeing a new email from my secretary. I didn’t expect to receive an email from her. As soon as I saw her email, I opened it immediately.
• A chuckle escaped from my lips when I saw the content of her email. It was my schedule for today. Fang probably sent this to her, and she forwarded it to me. I shook my head slowly. This woman is really unbelievable.
• She’s courageous. I don’t see any fear in her eyes when she faces me. I don’t know if she will feel the same way if she witnesses how cruel I am. If she realizes that, I can cut off her head without a trace of regret in my eyes.
• I quickly got up and neatly buttoned my suit. I had a meeting with Ms. Corporal at Paragon Dine, a fancy Filipino restaurant in Manila. Before leaving the office, I grabbed my car keys.
• The majority of my employees looked in my direction, and some greeted me with a sign of respect. I walked towards Nala’s table. She wasn’t looking at me. She was busy typing on her phone with a genuine smile plastered on her lips.
• I wonder who her text buddy is? I cleared my throat to grab her attention.
• “Sir?” she said, standing up. Did she just notice me now?
• “Let’s go,” I said coldly and turned around.
• My brow furrowed. Who the hell is she texting? She didn’t come into my office to tell me my schedule because she’s busy texting with someone else during working hours, huh?
• I haven’t seen her smile at me like that. Tsk! Should I ask Fang to hack her phone and know who this woman is talking to? Well, that’s absurd, Lion.
• I honked my car when we arrived at the parking lot. It was my black BMW M6. I noticed her hesitation as we got into my car. Maybe it’s because of that kiss that she’s feeling awkward like this.
• I hopped inside my car and sat in the driver’s seat. I waited for her to enter the passenger seat, but the door in the backseat was the one that opened. My brow furrowed as I looked at her through the rearview mirror.
• “What the hell are you doing there?” I snapped.
• “Huh?”
• I massaged the bridge of my nose and faced her. “I said, what are you doing there? Why are you sitting there?” I asked.
• “Where should I sit, anyway?” she asked, confused.
• I look at her unbelievably.
• “Where else? Here beside me, of course! I am not your driver, for Pete’s sake!”
• Her face crumpled. She shut the door and left the backseat before entering the passenger seat. I even heard her murmuring something, but it wasn’t clear in my ears.
• “Are you saying something?”
• She shook her head repeatedly. “None!”
• My brow rose, and I maneuvered the steering wheel in a soft motion.
• “I guess Fang sent you my entire schedule this week, correct?”
• She nodded. “Yes, sir.”
• “So, why didn’t you go to my office earlier to tell me my schedule? That’s what the CEO’s secretary does, right?”
• She froze. She probably didn’t expect me to say that. What’s surprising about that?
• “That’s supposedly what your previous secretaries used to do, sir, because they said you didn’t want your secretaries coming into your office repeatedly."
• “So, you’re not upset because of the kiss?” I jeered.
• “K-Kiss? What?!”
• “Yes, that kiss in my office. You respond—”
• “Enough! Don’t you have any shame in you?!” she exclaimed, her brows furrowed.
• I smirked to hide the smile that was attempting to appear on my lips.
• “I don’t. Why? Are you embarrassed?” I teased.
• Her face turned even redder. I averted my gaze and gripped the steering wheel tighter. I made a conscious effort to avoid looking at her and kept my attention on the road. Upon reaching Paragon Dine, I promptly got out of the car and took a deep breath, relishing the fresh air.
• I handed the car keys to the valet and glanced at Nala. She was adjusting her pencil-cut skirt and walking with a slight limp, just like her first day.
• “Good afternoon, sir, ma’am. Any reservation?”
• “Hugo Lionel Fabellon,” I coldly uttered, and I roamed my eyes around.
• The server nodded. “Please follow me, ma’am, sir.”
• We followed her. I glanced at Nala once again. She looked like a child as her eyes roamed around the entire restaurant, with a wide smile on her lips.
• “Tsk, childish,” I whispered.
• “Are you saying something?” she asked, but I didn’t reply.
• We stopped at the two-seater table. Miss Kathy Corporal immediately stood up when she noticed us coming.
• “Good afternoon, Lion,” she said.
• “Good afternoon,” I formally greeted back.
• We both sat down, but Nala decided to stay on her feet.
• “What are you doing there? Aren’t you going to leave?” Kathy asked her with raised eyebrows.
• I cleared my throat and turned to Nala.
• “You can find a comfortable seat there, Ms. Cabral. You can also order whatever you want. I’ll pay.”
• She nodded slowly while secretly looking at Kathy from head to toe. Nala sat at the far end of the restaurant. From here, I can watch her every action.
• Ms. Corporal smiled sweetly and blocked my view of Nala’s direction.
• “So, nice to see you again, Lion.”
• My brow rose. “Be professional, Ms. Corporal. This meeting is not on a first-name basis.”
• He seemed embarrassed because of what I said. She sits up straight and smiles without showing her teeth.
• “I apologize, Mr. Fabellon. I was just used to calling you by your first name. I didn’t know that you were so serious when it came to work. I thought—”
• “The proposal.”
• “What?”
• “I said, where is the proposal? Can you give it to me now? I’m not here to chat with you, Ms. Corporal.”
• Her eyes wIdened as she frantically rummaged through her briefcase. Meanwhile, my gaze drifted past Nala’s seat.
• My jaw clenched when I saw her laughing and talking to a man in front of her, but I couldn’t see who he was because he had his back to me. They seemed to be engrossed in an interesting conversation.
• Was she talking to the same person on her cellphone earlier that made her smile so much? Did my secretary plan all of this? She told that man that my meeting would take place here, so they decided to have their date here too?!
• My blood boiled because of that thought. When I prove that my thinking is right, this woman will taste the agony of my cruelty.
• I won’t give her my schedule again!
• Nala’s eyes and mine met. The genuine smile on her lips disappeared quickly and was replaced by a serious, bitchy look. The person she was talking to probably noticed how she glanced at my side, so he also looked in my direction.
• Oh, this man seems familiar. He is the same man that Nala is talking to in front of my building. What is Lawrence? The robbery best friend.
• “Mr. Fabellon, are you with me?”
• “What?!” I snapped.
• She paled and gulped hard. “I was asking if the proposal was okay?”
• “No. It’s trash,” I honestly said. “I don’t like your proposal. If you really want to have a partnership with my company, then revise this proposal of yours and give it to my secretary tomorrow. 8:00 AM.”
• “T-Tommorow?”
• “Yes. Any problem with that? If you don’t want, then I’ll just talk to your father. That would be easy on my part.”
• “No, please. Don’t, Lio— I mean, Mr. Fabellon, I’ll do it.”
• I just looked at her coldly and stood up before walking in Nala’s direction.
• When she saw me approaching, she immediately stood up. Her mouth was full of food. I stopped at their table. The man that Nala was talking to stood up.
• “Good afternoon, sir,” the guy said.
• “Am I interrupting something?” I asked, instead of greeting them back. I was looking at Nala, who was drinking her coffee while panicking.
• “Y-You’re done?” zlshe asked and looked at the table where I was sitting.
• “Yes. Why? Are you expecting me to stay here for too long?” I put sarcasm in my voice.
• “It’s not like that, you know. It’s just that… I haven’t finished eating this bread yet.”
• “Sure thing, Nala. Just bring it, I’ll cover the payment,” interrupted her companion.
• “No. I’ll pay,” I contrast.
• I took out my black card from my welt pocket and placed it on the table in front of him. I noticed that, based on what this person is wearing, he is an employee here.
• “I-It’s fin—”
• “I insist. I told her she could order whatever she wanted, and I’d pay.”
• He didn’t do anything. He took my black card. We waited a while before he came back.
• “Thank you for coming, sir.”
• I passed him.
• “Let’s just meet at my place later, Lawrence! I’ll be the one treating you!”
• I raised an eyebrow. Are they living together? And does she really think I’ll allow that?