Filed to story: The CEO’s Wife Is a Secret Boss Novel (Allison & Jeremy) Free Online
The timer on the screen began its countdown. “Five, four, three, two, one. Let the game begin!” Landon exclaimed, waving his hand with a wide grin.
The crowd quickly dispersed to each corner of the club. It was a scene to behold from the vantage point of the stage. Lauren blinked in awe, her jaw practically dropping to the floor.
Landon’s eyes deepened when he noticed the astonishment on her face. He said to her, “Come, let’s wait together in the lounge. We’ll find your teddy bear soon.”
Landon led Lauren to another lounge, where the escorts were drinking with three other young men. The men were Landon’s friends in Solana City.
Lauren blushed at the intimacy among the strangers, to the point she wanted to bury her head in the sand. Landon had to drag her into the room.
Upon their entrance, the men started whistling and cheering.
One of them joked, “Oh! Hello there, future sister-in-law! Aren’t you young and successful for nailing down Landon at this age?”
She panicked and paled at the joke.
“Shut your trap! She’s…” Landon stopped himself before introducing Lauren. He was reminded of Jeremy’s remark and quickly explained, “She’s my sister. Stop with that nonsense!”
*Hey, Landon, her teddy bear is pretty expensive, though. You could easily rack up tens of thousands of dollars in spending per visit to ACE.
‘That will be hundreds of thousands a year if that lucky customer swings by daily! And this is all for her teddy bear? You can supply her a ton of teddy bears with that reward you dished out!”
Landon’s friends refused to change the way they addressed Lauren. They knew Landon gave Lauren a special treatment not accorded to the other ladies who swooned at him. There was definitely som more between the two!
“Lauren only has eyes for that teddy bear. My first love gave it to her. It’s meaningful.” Landon rolled hi eves at his shallow-minded, rich friends.
“F-First love? Do you mean Alyssa?” Lauren widened her eyes.
“Yeah, I had a crush on her. She’s my first love,” admitted Landon with a smile. Although he was painfully rejected, he took pride in the fact that Alyssa was his first love.
That immediately set off Lauren. She yelped and said to him, “No, you can’t fall for Alyssa! She belongs to Jeremy! Nobody should take her from Jeremy!”
“Don’t you know the bro code? How could you go after his girl?” Lauren clenched her fists indignantly. “He would be really upset if he found out that you were courting his woman! If you take her away, I-I’ll never speak to you anymore!”
Lauren couldn’t think of a better way to scare him and blurted out a comical threat. Laughter ensued in the lounge.
She blushed even deeper and nervously played with her sleeves.
Landon initially found it amusing but stopped laughing when he noticed her embarrassment. He glared at his friends, who promptly caught themselves and refrained from laughing at Lauren’s expense.
“Laurie, you’re a good egg.” Landon bent over and caressed her hair. He squinted and added, “I know you’re speaking up for your brother. But the others might think you’re bitten by the green-eyed monster.”
“Bitten by a monster? I did not get bitten anywhere,” Lauren replied earnestly.
Landon was rendered speechless. He finally learned that he and Lauren were not of the same world. However, he found himself increasingly intrigued by her world.
The glammed-up guys and gals in ACE were running all over the place in search of Lauren’s teddy bear. The glass door of the lounge opened out to a huge balcony.
While Landon enjoyed drinks with his friends in the lounge, Lauren stood on the balcony, gripping the railing tightly and praying that someone would find her beloved teddy bear.
“I found it! I found it!” A woman jumped on stage and held a teddy bear above her head.
“Damn! Where the fuck did you find it?”
“In the water tank of the men’s restroom!”
The men at the nightclub instinctively covered their crotches. Women could be crazily competitive wi they were serious.
Lauren jumped around like an excited child.
“Wow, that was faster than I expected. Money sure holds power. I bet they’d still wear a grin if I jokingly asked them to do the unthinkable,” Landon quipped and stretched his neck.
He strolled over to the balcony. A cigarette dangled from his lips, its orange ember flickering Intermittently.
“I’ll I’ll go get the teddy bear!” Lauren was wary of being in the same space as Landon,
When she was about to slip past him, he stood in her way.
He had learned his lesson from the car crash. Since then, he vowed not to let her slip away.
“There’s no rush. Your teddy bear’s wet. I’ll get that other lady to dry it and return it to you,” he suggested.
Lauren cast her eyes downward avoiding his firtatious gare She mumbled, “Thank
“Congratulations to this young lady for winning the prizer You are the winner of one year covered expenses at ACE Angelina beamed and took the bear from the patron who found it
Much to everyone’s jealousy, the patron was over the moon, for ACE was the most expensive nightclub in Solana City. This was a bonanza
Landon narrowed his eyes and gestured at Angelina with the cigarette between his fingers
She got the hint and announced with a smile. “We appreciate everyone’s efforts in finding the lost item Mr. Harper will foot your bills tonigh
Lauren cast her eyes downward, avoiding his flirtatious gaze. She mumbled, “T-Thank you.”
“Congratulations to this young lady for winning the prize! You are the winner of one-year covered expenses at ACE!” Angelina beamed and took the bear from the patron who found it.
Much to everyone’s jealousy, the patron was over the moon, for ACE was the most expensive nightclub in Solana City. This was a bonanza.
Landon narrowed his eyes and gestured at Angelina with the cigarette between his fingers.
She got the hint and announced with a smile, “We appreciate everyone’s efforts in finding the lost item! Mr. Harper will foot your bills tonight!”
“Long live, Mr. Harper!”
“Wow, he’s really going big! I’ll get myself an ACE membership as well!”
“And I’ll renew my membership for two more years! He has my trust!”
The patrons were deeply moved and thrilled.
Almost instantly, Angelina received a text from the sales department, reporting that it was a record-
breaking night for sales that year.
Landon might be incredibly wealthy and generous with his money, but he also possessed a keen business acumen.
While footing the bill of all the club’s patrons might seem like a financial hit, it garnered him immense goodwill. His decision not only reinforced ACE’s positive image but also encouraged spending, effectively killing three birds with one stone.
“I-It’s a huge waste.” Flustered, Lauren stared at her feet and pursed her lips.
“Oh, did my lavishness make you uneasy?” He arched a brow in amusement. Indeed, he had splurged and created a huge fuss for Lauren that night. However, it had been a long time since he had felt genuinely happy.
At one point, he couldn’t tell if he was trying to please her or simply satisfying his own desires.
She blinked at him and nodded.
“Pfft, this is interesting. Of all the women I dated, every single one of them wished I could splurge on them. But you feel guilty that I spent a fortune on you.”
Leaning against the railing, he studied her flushed cheeks with a charming smile. Then, he teased, “So, are you thinking of managing my finances in the future, you little thing?”
His words took on a rather suggestive tone in his slightly tipsy state. They stood closely together.
shoulder to shoulder.
Lauren didn’t immediately grasp the underlying meaning of his words, but she could feel his warm, ticklish breath against the tips of her ears.
She shivered and timidly shrugged as she retorted, “I … I am not the bank. I will not manage your money for you.”
“It’s not just banks that manage finances, Laurie,” Landon remarked with a soft smile. His chest rose and fell while he casually ran a hand through her soft, long hair. He found himself addicted to the feel of it.
“Why did you stop perming your hair? I loved seeing those curls on yo you.
Feeling a pang of pain in her chest, she looked away with teary eyes and confessed, “I do not like curls.”
“You don’t?” He was astonished. His heart felt empty the moment her hair slid through his fingers.
She went on, “I don’t like that hairstyle. By the way, I am also not a fan of nicknames, but I’ll let you call me “Laurie.” After all, you saved me once and helped me find my teddy bear tonight. So…”