Date The CEO.com

Chapter 311: No Refund and No Return Policy

"Eve…" Ambryan started over. He watched her face as a million emotions painted over it. She fluttered her eyes at the velvet box, hardly believing what she saw. 

"Would you…"

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

"... move in with me?" 

A gold-coated key sat inside the velvet box. It had a tiny strawberry keychain attached to it made of glass beads in red and green. Both glinted under the lamp lights. The teardrop shape of the beads added an extra effect much like the twinkling Eiffel Tower.

Eve bent down and inspected the key closer. It had an ordinary shape but not like the one she had become familiar with. "That's… not your apartment key is it?"

"No, it's not," Ambryan replied, riding to his feet. He plucked out the key and held it up by the ring that connected the key and the strawberry. "It's my house key. I have a residential house as you know. If Jared and Andie can live together, I don't see why we can't when we get back."

Slowly, Eve grabbed hold of the key. She had heard of Ambryan's house but had never seen it. He never hosted parties outside of work. If it's anything like his penthouse, the place had to be pre-furnished when he purchased it.

"Why does the keychain look weird?" She asked. The strawberry had been welded onto the ring instead of having a string or a chain to dangle from. 

"I find that they easily break," Ambryan explained. "I had the strawberry made so I thought you wouldn't want to lose it like how I don't want you to lose it."

"For a second there, I thought you were going to ask something else," Eve joked. 

"Well…" 

Her body had turned into ice strong enough to wreck the Tita—a ship. It was a trap! Yet, another thing she failed at today. Of course, he had something up his sleeve! This was all a ruse to mislead her and to weigh her reaction.

Ambryan checked his other pocket and took out a white leather box. Eve widened her eyes. Her heart threatened to jump out of her chest. How dare he let her go through this a second time—

He opened it, handing her a second key. "This one is for my residence here in France."

Eve felt her knees go weak. She had lost years of her life from the anxiety he caused her in a span of minutes. 

"You…" she breathed out. Her voice gradually grew stronger as she spoke. "Have a house... in France?"

"More like a floor space," Ambryan explained. It was nothing like his residential home and was more similar to his penthouse. "This garden is included."

"This is yours?!"josei

"Yes, this garden is on top of my residence. Your wardrobe from earlier should be in the closet. I was worried that you might not like to stay here because it's not near the hotel but Cale told me to let you decide." 

Ambryan grasped her other hand and placed the key on her palm, folding her fingers over it. "It has more space for you to practice and more privacy if you need it. We can stay every weekend or whenever you feel like it. Your choice."

Eve blinked and looked around. She had taken the elevator here with Ambryan and thought it was an exclusive cafe. The waiter—servant—had greeted them, asking what they wanted to drink. 

She backtracked to their earlier conversations. It was Ambryan who said he knew a place which served better hot chocolate than the cafe she wanted to try. He never once hinted that it was private property—

Shaking her head, she let the sequence of events go and focused on the next step. "Aren't you ever going home?"

Ambryan pulled her back into his arms. "I will go back with you for the holidays. Then, stay in Maize City while you fly to Paris once again." 

He gripped her tight, already dreading the near future. "I just wanted you to know that you have a home here to run to whenever you feel unsafe."

Eve tightened her hold on the two keys. She threw her arms around his neck and rose on her toes for a kiss. "Thank you."

"You can't return it, okay?" Ambryan warned.

She giggled in response. "I won't." 

He held her in place, deepening the kiss. Snow began to fall from the dark sky—a perfect setting for a new chapter in their lives. 

The couple spent the remaining days in Ambryan's residence. Although Eve wouldn't have minded staying in the hotel during weekdays, she found out that Ambryan would also do the same which meant he'd be spending unnecessary money. 

And so, that led her to choose staying in the residence. 

Nothing else happened at this time. Both focused on their jobs and spent time together whenever free. It was a sneak into their lives once they permanently moved in together—forming a new routine. 

Their "Good Morning" and "Good Night" messages had become whispers in bed. They shared both the start and the end of their day together. Ambryan cooked breakfast while Eve washed the plates. 

The days passed by in a breeze.

Soon, they hopped on a plane and travelled back to Maize City.

"WELCOME BACK, LOVE BIRDS!" Avery yelled, running out of Hathaway Manor. She had specifically instructed Wen to drive the couple to their estate as soon as they landed. 

Safe to say, she had looked forward to it all week.

"Aunt Avery!" Eve greeted back with half of the enthusiasm. Tired from the flight, it was all she could manage. Servants came to take their luggage into the mansion. She opened her mouth to ask but the madam tackled her into a hug.

"Eve, I missed you! Ambryan wouldn't even let me inside his office anymore!" Avery whined dramatically, squeezing the life out of her future daughter-in-law. "I know it may sound like he has another woman but trust me. He has no one in his eyes but you!"

"..."

Eve shifted her attention in Ambryan's direction. His brooding eyes stared at the back of his mother's head. She gave him a look, signaling that he should let it go. He merely rolled his eyes and helped unload their bags.

"I believe you, Aunt Avery."

The madam cackled and pulled back, keeping Eve at arm's length. "Well, of course, you do! Being engaged and all."

"Engaged...?" Eve uttered, a confused expression on her face.

The smile on Avery's face stiffened. Like a robot, she let Eve go and stomped over to her son. Her hands went to her hips. "Yan, dear. Am I supposed to believe that you spent weeks together in Paris, the most romantic city in the world, AND YOU HAVEN'T PROPOSED?!"

Eve jumped from the sudden 

Ambryan hadn't flinched at all—as if used to this scenario. He stared his mother down and said, "Eve still has a lot of things she wants to do, mother. Getting married isn't in her current priorities and I respect that."

"But she can still do all of that even when married!" Avery shot back, throwing her hands in the air. "It's not like you're lacking in money. The sky is the limit for you both whether married or not."

Ambryan lifted the last bag out of the trunk and gave his mother his full attention. "Mother, I know you believe in fate, destiny, the right time or whatever you want to call it. Proposing is one of those moments."

"And how is now not the right time?!"

"I'm sorry, Aunt Avery. There seems to be a misunderstanding." Eve came up behind the madam and touched her shoulders. "Ambee had proposed."

That immediately caught Avery's attention. She snapped her head towards Eve. "What?"

The latter had shifted her gaze in her fiance's direction and morphed it into a glare. "It's more like he tricked me into it."

"Trick?" The madam darted her eyes between the couple, getting confused by the second. "I'm too old for this. Can someone please explain?"

"I had asked Eve to move in with me and she accepted it," Ambryan clarified. He grabbed two bags and marched towards the house. Eve and his mother followed behind him.

"That's still not a proposal," Avery protested.

"He claims it is." Eve snorted.

The madam shook her head, tired of their evasive behavior. "Just tell me everything that happened!" 

Eve and Ambryan exchanged looks. 

It was quite the story. 

A few hours earlier, Eve and Ambryan sat in first class. Cale along with the rest also joined them from the other side of the plane. Mother nature had beckoned Eve to the restroom. She walked down the aisle and headed towards it, answering the call.

Ambryan read a magazine during the flight. It was the Winter Season issue that Eve shot a month back when he had visited her on set. A candid photo of them occupied two pages in the middle. 

He almost wanted to rip it off and keep it.

"What are you reading about?" Eve asked when she came back. She grabbed her purse and searched for candy.

"Decoration ideas for the house."

"Why?"

"It's the holidays."

Eve searched for her compact mirror to retouch her makeup. They should be landing soon. While pulling out the mirror, she bumped into her new house key and it fell to the floor.

Beads crashed, their strings snapping in two. They rolled across the floor and spread out on the aisle. Ambryan whirled his head towards the commotion—so did a few other passengers.

"No!" Eve gasped. She quickly dropped on her knees, gathering the beads together.

A flight attendant came to her aid. "Please, miss. Take your seat."

"But—" 

"You might injure yourself while in a state of panic. Let us clean up the mess. Here's your key."

"Thank you…" Eve whispered. 

She heaved a sigh and looked at her key. It seemed dull without the bright red beads. Her thumb and finger touched the spot where the strawberry hung from—a small pink bead had been left in its place.

Then, she stopped rubbing it.

And lifted the ring up to her eye level.