Chapter 4 An Old Photograph

• Knock, knock, knock.
• Bai Yunjin mustered up the courage and knocked on the door as she stood outside the CEO's office on the 17th floor.
• Knock, knock, knock. She tried again but was only greeted by silence.
• She held her breath, ready to knock for the third time when someone reminded her kindly, “Ms. Bai, Mr. Huo is in a meeting with the senior management at the conference room. He won't be back so soon. You may leave the documents on his table instead.”
• She glanced around the office. Some employees were not at their desks, which could only mean that they were involved in the meeting.
• “I will do that. Thank you,” she smiled in gratitude and opened the door.
• She had been in the CEO's office several times before. Nevertheless, she was always amazed by its tidiness.
• Huo Chen was obsessed with cleanliness. He would assign several maids to clean Bai Yunjin thoroughly and remove her pubic hair before he shared his bed with the latter.
• His office reflected his personality as a minimalist. The decor was simple and nothing was misplaced.
• She left the folder on his sandalwood desk and was about to leave, but something in the opened drawer caught her eye. It was the corner of a photograph.
• Unable to contain her curiosity, she took the old and yellowed photograph out of the drawer.
• Its worn edges showed that its owner had held and caressed it often.
• When Bai Yunjin saw the subject's face in the photograph, she was dumbfounded.
• It was taken when she was in her first year of university, dressed in a short skirt. Her hair was plaited in braids and she was smiling.
• It's me! But why is this with him?
• Instead of putting the photograph back into the drawer, she gripped it in her hands.
• “What are you doing?” A low, gloomy voice asked from behind her. The man sounded unhappy.
• Shocked, Bai Yunjin whirled around hastily as she tightened her hold around the photograph and hid it behind her back.
• She struggled to force a smile on her pretty face. “A-Are... you done with your meeting?”
• An uncontrollable fear and unease welled up inside her.
• “I-I brought you a-a document. You-You were away, so I l-left it on your desk. I'll... take my leave,” she stammered.
• Am I dismissed?
• She felt his domineering aura through his slightly narrowed, oval-shaped eyes. Huo Chen said nothing. There was little expression on his face. In his suit and a white shirt, he looked absolutely stunning, like a charismatic psychopath with dark yet emotionless eyes and thin lips.
• From where he stood at the doorway, he couldn't see her tiny movement earlier. However, something at the crook of her elbow behind her back caught his attention.
• “What do you have in your hand?” he asked in a flirty, hoarse voice as he approached her slowly.
• “Nothing.” She shook her head. Anxiety was welling up inside her and her palm was getting clammy.
• Naturally, her boss didn't believe her. “Humph.” He tilted his head and tried to see what she was hiding from him, but the former slanted her body away.
• Her reaction caused the latter to frown more. He advanced with lightning speed and backed her into his desk. She had nowhere to escape.
• Huo Chen reached out and snatched the photograph from Bai Yunjin without giving her time to react. Before she knew what had happened, he was waving it in front of her triumphantly.