Chapter 8 – Unknown Feelings

• After eating lunch, Jacob cleans his area right away. He then picks up a folder from his table, gets out of their office, and goes straight for the CEO.
• He enters Tristan’s office as soon as he hears him respond to his knocks. “What happened to you? You almost broke the door!” Jacob tries to be funny but Tristan just glares at him.
• His boss let out a sigh before leaning on his chair. “Belle didn’t tell you anything?” he asked. Jacob shook his head, clueless. “He kissed Eric! Right in front of me and everyone else at the restaurant!” he narrates through gritted teeth.
• Jacob’s forehead creases, “What’s the matter then?” he asks Tristan, unsure what is making him angry. ‘So what if Belle kissed a man in front of him? It doesn’t have anything to do with him anyway.’
• “I don’t know…” Tristan mumbles. He stands up to face the window and slips his hands into his pockets. “To be honest, I don’t know why I’m mad…” he confesses. "Her constant displays of guts annoy me, I don't understand why…"
• Jacob couldn’t help but smile. Something was playing in his mind but he didn’t know if he should voice it out or not. “Do you happen to like her?” he inquired anyway.
• “Don’t tell me you believe in love at first sight, because that’s just ridiculous. It hasn’t been a month since I met her.” Tristan retorted before sitting down. He shook his head before opening the folder placed on his table.
• “Don’t you?”
• Tristan paused for a second, pondering on the thought, "As I said, it's ridiculous!" he responded.
• Jacob shrugs, but in his mind, ‘If you say so!’, is what he wants to tell his boss. “This is the proposal from Williams Corporation. If you think we can go with this, you can sign it so I can send back the copy before tomorrow’s meeting.”
• “Yes, that is fine. Give them what they want, then we’ll get more later on. That’s their prize,” Tristan smiled while signing the papers. Jacob is aware of his plans and he can only feel sorry for Williams.
• “By the way,” he then turned his swivel chair to face Jacob. “Should we buy a foot massager for your office?”
• Jacob was surprised after hearing this. ‘What do we need it for?’ He wanted to ask but he can only stare at his weird boss.
• “Belle stood for a long time earlier at the restaurant. Her feet might be hurting,” he informed Jacob in a very low voice. The man could barely hear it.
• When Jacob realizes that Tristan is concerned about Belle, he can’t help but smile. ‘You can deny all you want that you like her, but you are rather obvious.’
• Meanwhile, at Williams Corporation, Lawrence is busy meeting his executives for the contract signing with De Clarion Empire. They were given two days to prepare the proposal and, thankfully, Tristan signed it.
• “The deal in actuality is in our favor. I wonder why Mr. De Clarion agreed to it. Do you have any idea what he’s up to?” Francis asked Lawrence.
• The proposal sent to De Clarion will help secure the second top spot for the Williams Corporation in the business arena. If one looked closely, it was rather obvious that there was nothing in it for De Clarion Empire, but Tristan still signed it.
• “What do you expect of a womanizer pretending to know anything about business?” Lawrence chuckles. He is blatantly mocking the heir of the De Clarion Empire.
• Francis nodded in agreement. It was a well-known fact that before Tristan became the CEO of the Empire, he was no more than a party animal and a famous womanizer among all the bachelors in and out of Bree.
• When he was announced as the successor of the company, everyone was surprised, especially their investors and shareholders. But of course, they cannot go against the decision of Frederick De Clarion. They can only nod and keep their mouths shut.
• Lawrence glanced at the documents on his table before letting out a sigh. “In all honesty, whether we succeed in our plans or not, it wouldn’t hurt the Empire. Maybe that’s why Tristan decided to just sign it. Besides, if it wasn’t for my stupid daughter, he would have been my son-in-law by now,” then he shook his head after recalling what Vernice had done.
• The next day, Lawrence went to his office earlier than usual to prepare for their meeting at the Empire. "Is everyone here?" he asked Francis as soon as he went into his office.
• “Yes Sir, they’re all waiting for you in the conference room” his secretary responded.
• He then goes straight to the meeting to finalize some important details with their project and finance department. After doing so, he goes back to his office for his morning coffee.
• When the clock above his door strikes nine in the morning, he calls for Francis to prepare the car and get ready to leave. He can’t be late for this meeting or Tristan might cancel the deal, and he can’t afford that.
• “Good morning Mr. Williams!” the receptionist greets him before calling the executive office to let the secretary know of Lawrence Williams’ arrival.
• After checking the list, Belle instructs the receptionist to let them go upstairs. She then fixes herself and goes out to usher the guests to the conference room.
• She is busy fiddling with her nails while waiting for visitors when she hears someone clearing his throat behind her. It was none other than Jacob.
• “Belle, I’ll wait for them. You call the café and ask them to prepare breakfast for everyone, including Mr. De Clarion,” he instructed her.
• “Everyone? Including us?” she wanted to make sure, but Jacob shook his head in disagreement.
• "Food for visitors is of course shouldered by the company. We, on the other hand, have our salaries, so we buy our food,” he explains.
• Belle rolls her eyes and smirks. “He’s so stingy…” she whispers to herself, at the same time, she hears Jacob chuckle. “You heard?” she asks and when Jacob nods, Belle stomps her foot. “How can you hear everything?!” she spat at him before turning around and entering their office.
• Jacob wants to laugh after she leaves, but he stops himself from doing so, as the guests might show up suddenly. He doesn’t want them to think of him as a weirdo, laughing all by himself.
• Minutes later, the elevator dings, and its door opens. He then bows to Mr. Williams and gestures towards the conference room.
• After making sure that everyone is settled and all the documents are properly distributed, he asks them to wait a bit while he informs Mr. De Clarion.