Date The CEO.com

Chapter 240: Honey for Dinner, Yes?

"Eve, it's terrible! Sir Hathaway wouldn't answer any of my calls or my messages. I thought he'd have more sense of responsibility than Sir King but they're almost the same! He said he would go out for lunch but never told me when he'd be back. The standard lunch break is an hour and it's been an hour and a half since then! Work is piling up and I am going under stress because I don't know what to tell people when they ask about him!"

Keeping the phone at an arm's length away, Eve squeezed one eye shut. She sat on the edge of the bed with one leg up on the mattress. Ambryan stayed in the living room while she excused herself for an upcoming call.

She looked at the time. Had it been that long since Ambryan showed up at her door?

Somehow she felt guilty that Riffle was having a hard time on his first day on the job. She should have monitored the time better. Then again, it might not have been possible. The small bar didn't have enough space for the food so they moved lunch onto the coffee table. They spent the time sitting on the floor together to eat.

Time simply vanished inside their bubble. 

It didn't even exist in that place.

"Eve? Eve, are you there?" Riffle's panicked voice broke her from her reverie. "Are you also not answering me? Great. This is quite the day, isn't it?"

"Okay, okay, Riffle. Calm down," she tried to convince him. "Have you tried checking again? Sir Hathaway may not always get back to right away but you can depend on him doing it eventually."

Surely, Ambryan responded now that she was out of the room. The line went silent as Riffle peeked at his emails. Then, he glanced at the business phone. Finally, he pulled down the notification bar of his personal mobile device.

"Oh, he just messaged. He'll be back in half an hour," Riffle spoke through the receiver. A huge sigh of relief flowed out of his lips. "I must be more nervous than I thought."

"See? I told you it was going to be fine."

Eve thanked the heavens that her hunch was right. Her gaze unconsciously flickered to the wall on her right—which had the living room on the other side. A small smile blossomed on her lips. It was only the first day of a new chapter in her life.

She wondered if this lunch date could become a regular thing now. 

"Yeah, yeah, you're right." Riffle resumed his work, plugging his earphones to free his hands and type on the computer. "Anyway, how's your hometown?"

"Good. Nothing has changed at all," Eve lied through her teeth. It was true for the last time she visited and her opinion hadn't modified since then. Speaking of which, she should pay another visit soon. Maybe she could bring her sisters this time.josei

"Really? Maybe I can visit when I finally get to travel."

Eve choked at the sudden plan. "Do me a favor and notify me a week before it happens, 'kay?"

"Alright. And are you sure Sir Hathaway will be back soon?" 

"He already said he'll be back," she pointed out. Getting up from the bed, she walked over to the door and held the knob. "Even if he didn't, he normally doesn't take more than 2 hours max."

"Fine," Riffle conceded. Then, his tone turned serious once again. "But if he doesn't and still ignores my inquiries, expect a call from me."

"Gotcha."

Heading back to the living room, Eve didn't know what to expect. 

But Ambryan washing the dishes wasn't one of them. Her eyebrows shot up at the sight of his back. He had rolled up the sleeves of his dress shirt and organized the finished tableware on the drying rack. He moved like he lived in this apartment.

Eve left her phone on the TV stand and circled her arms around his waist. 

She shifted her weight onto her toes and peeked over his shoulder. 

Ambryan gazed down at her. "Done?"

"Mhm." Eve nodded, inhaling his scent. She could get used to this.

He chuckled and finished rinsing the last plate. Leftovers were in the fridge. He found smaller containers for them in the cupboards. It surprised how well-stocked the apartment was since she didn't use it much before. Sometime later, he realized Nanzie also stayed in this place.

Eve leaned her head sideways to see his progress. "You know there's a dishwasher, right?"

"Yes, but I had no idea how to use it." He dried his hands with a hand towel hanging on a hook. 

"Good point."

Grasping her wrists, he turned around and placed them behind him. His own arms also went around her waist. He leaned on the counter to support her weight against him. "Now, what was that all about?"

"The call?" Eve blinked, thinking of a quick excuse. "Nothing much. Cale just informed me about an update on tomorrow's photoshoot."

"Why did you have to leave the room?"

"Because… you are very distracting." She beamed. Hearing her own words made her giggle. Then, she nudged her head in the direction of the front door. "Isn't it about time you get back to work?"

Ambryan shifted his attention towards the time. A quick calculation ran through his head, estimating the travel time he'd consume on his way to the office. He promised Riffle to be back soon. 

"I suppose," he relented with a sigh. "I need to work overtime today." 

For the remainder of the time, his fingers memorized her face. His thumbs brushed over her red eyebrows. Nothing came off as expected of her natural hair color. If it wasn't for Madison's intervention during her application process, he might have recognized her sooner.

Eve clicked her tongue. "Huh. I thought you always worked overtime."

"Very funny." Ambryan snorted. After her face, his hands slid up to her hair and played with the loose strands. They had fallen out of the bun during their lunch date. "And you? Still nothing on the agenda?"

"Nothing but staying here and wasting my time."

"Hm." Ambryan became quiet. If he was being honest, he didn't want to leave. It would be easy to cancel all his activities for the rest of the day but he knew that she wouldn't like that. With that in mind, he resorted to prolonging this date and placed his phone on DND mode. 

"What is it?" Eve asked, seeing conflict in his eyes. 

"I was wondering if you can drop by to feed the cats," he revealed. His fingertips found their way to her messy bun. They traced along the edges in search of the hair tie.

"The cats?" 

"There's much to be done so I'm not sure when I'll be able to get back," he elaborated, pinching the hair tie and pulling it off her bun. "There's no need to hurry though. You can feed them when you're free. It would surely be earlier than when I can get home."

"Hey—" Eve began to protest as her hair fell down her back.

Ambryan sealed her lips with a kiss. They tasted like strawberries. The flavor brought a smile to his face. There wouldn't be a time when he wouldn't think of her in association with the fruit. 

"Have I mentioned how I love your hair?" He told her when they broke apart.

"Maybe once." Eve said after some thought. "As for the cats, I don't see why not. I'm looking forward to seeing them together anyway."

She hadn't been there for their first encounter. It sort of broke her heart. But her best friend needed her at the time. She wouldn't have changed her mind even if time turned back. On the bright side, she'd be able to see them soon.

"Thank you." Ambryan stole a peck before unrolling his sleeves and reaching for his suit jacket. The fabric had wrinkled due to the folding but the jacket hid them well. 

Eve escorted him to the door. "Take care."

"You too." 

He leaned down for the last time and parted her lips open. It didn't matter if they were out in the hallway. He wanted everyone to see that this woman was his. If this was how he could enjoy strawberries then maybe, just maybe, he'd have a new favorite food.

Eve had to push him away just to get him to leave. 

"Get to work," she scolded lightly.

"You really are so sweet."

Her eyes rolled before she shut the door.

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Eve unlocked the door to the penthouse.

Her pattered on the floor as she hurried inside. She craned her neck in search of the cats on her way to the living room. Everywhere her gaze looked, they weren't any felines in sight. Their bowls in the kitchen laid empty on the floor.

As a last resort, she stuck her head into Ambryan's home office.

Furballs of black and white slept on the couch. Kiri left her star-patterned pillow in favor of lying close to her new companion, Blueberry. Their heads nearly touched as their bodies faced one another. 

"Aaww, that is so cute," Eve cooed, taking a quick photo and sending it to Ambryan.

Now that she found the cats, her next goal was in the kitchen. 

Dry cat food clattered into two empty bowls. Eve filled them according to the instructions. She also replenished their water containers. Done with that, she inspected the penthouse. 

The only thing that caught her interest was a slice of pie on the island counter. The golden crust invited her in as well as the filling. It was in pristine condition—like it was fresh from an oven. It couldn't be true though since Ambryan was in the office. 

How did this gorgeous pastry taste then? 

To satisfy her curiosity, she grabbed a fork and lifted off its glass cover.

"Do you have permission to eat that?

"AH!" Eve screamed. She spun on her heels and pointed the fork at the culprit. Her hazel eyes nearly popped out of their sockets. "Are you supposed to be here?"