Filed to story: Watch Me Win Alpha (Olivia & Ethan)
Naomi and her friend shared a surprised glance and shifted uneasily on their high heels. I couldn’t help but watch the awkward scene unfold before me. It was like how you couldn’t help looking at a car crash.
Naomi seemed to want to retreat. She tightly gripped her friend’s arm and began to pull her away from Alexander’s table. But her friend shook her off. She lifted her chin and looked right at Alexander.
“Could we please sit down, Mr. Green?” she asked.
Alexander didn’t even look up from his menu to answer her. “That would be hard to do since there aren’t any seats left at our table.”
My mouth dropped open at his audacity. Then, he did something that sent an electric shock down my spine.
Alexander turned around and locked eyes with me.
For a moment, it was like we were the only two people in the restaurant. Something passed between us, and I would have given anything to know what he was thinking. But then the moment passed, and my heart lowered when I noticed that Alexander was looking at me with the same cruel indifference in his eyes as when he looked at Naomi.
Maybe all of us girls were just interchangeable to him.
I wouldn’t allow him to intimidate me, though. As my hand tightened around my cool water glass, I returned his cold stare with one of my own.
“If you need a place to sit, you could share a table with my secretary,” Alexander said and waved his hand at me like I didn’t matter.
These cruel words froze everyone in place for a moment.
At this point, my rage toward my boss was boiling inside me, and I was about to erupt like a volcano. How dare he treat me with such callousness? For a moment, I honestly considered standing up and splashing my cold water in his face.
But after a moment of stewing in my burning rage, I managed to reel in my anger. If I reacted, then he would know that he had gotten to me.
And above all, I wouldn’t give him that kind of satisfaction.
Meanwhile, Naomi and her friend seemed to be stunned speechless by Alexander’s rude suggestion. The seconds ticked by, and Aiden raised his eyebrows and gave me a questioning look. All I could do was shrug. There was no way I could explain why this situation was so awkward out loud. That would only make everything even more uncomfortable.
Then, Naomi did something even more surprising than Alexander’s rude proposal. She actually took him up on it and sat down in the chair beside mine and gestured for her friend to sit next to Aiden.
When the two women were seated, I gestured for Aiden to get up. There was no way I was going to suffer through a whole dinner with Alexander five feet away to witness this awkward exchange. But when I started to get up, Naomi grabbed my arm and widened her eyes, silently pleading with me to stay.
I sighed and sat back down, knowing that if the situation was reversed, I would want someone to stay and help smooth over this strange turn of events.
Aiden got the attention of our server and asked him for two more menus for Naomi and her friend.
“Thank you for allowing us to intrude on your dinner,” Naomi whispered. “The bill is on me.”
Aiden grinned. “In that case, I’m getting the steak,” he said,
The four of us chuckled. Maybe tonight wouldn’t be so bad after all.
Then, Alexander’s phone rang, and when he answered it, my stomach jolted.
“Hello, Mother,” he said in a voice just loud enough for everyone at our table to hear.
Oh, this night just kept getting better and better.
Alexander’s mother, Helen, spoke so loudly that her voice rang clear through the phone’s speakers.
“Good evening, darling,” she said. “I heard that your date with Naomi went well. I’m so happy to hear that my attempt at matchmaking worked! I heard through the grapevine that Naomi was a ‘foodie’ like you kids are calling it these days and that Naomi has a good appetite.”
At this, Naomi turned red and slid down in her seat.
“Oh, yeah,” Alexander replied with a sarcastic edge to his voice. “I like girls who can eat a whole pig in one sitting.” Then, his tone became serious. Alexander’s voice became so grim that it sent a shiver down my spine. “Honestly, Mother, you need to stop setting me up on blind dates. Your meddling in my dating life caused a big misunderstanding between one of my more imaginative subordinates and me.”
My eyes widened when I figured out that he was referring to me. What misunderstanding was he talking about? With a jolt, I realized that he might not be in Luceland to see Naomi. Had I gotten it all wrong? I had heard the information by listening to the secretaries gossip,
“I’m not going to pursue anything with Naomi. When I’m ready, I’ll find my own girlfriend,” Alexander said, “Goodnight, Mother.”
After Alexander hung up, our two tables were silent for a full minute. I looked over at Naomi with sympathy for the poor girl churning in my stomach. Her face had gone white, and her friend was rubbing her back soothingly.
“I can’t believe how delusional I’ve been,” she whispered as embarrassed tears filled her eyes. “I had begged my mother to arrange a second meeting between Alexander and me. I thought that we had hit it off on our first date.” She sucked in a sharp breath. “I’m such a fool.” Naomi paused and wiped a tear off of her cheek. “I never thought that he would be so heartless and reject me by allowing me to overhear a call with his mother.”
I crossed my arms and shook my head at Alexander’s cruelty.
“Honestly, I can believe that he would do something that cold,” I told Naomi in a voice loud enough for Alexander to overhear. “That’s just the kind of man he is.”
This made him whip around his seat, and we stared at each other, unblinking, not wanting to be the first one to speak.
I hardened my gaze and refused to look away.
I wouldn’t allow myself to be a pawn in his game.
Charte 180
*Author*
To the surprise of everyone, it was Alexander who looked away first. A smug smile spread across Olivia’s face from her small victory, but Alexander turned his back on her and picked up his menu, winning this round with his continued fake indifference toward her.
Olivia’s back straightened as anger ran up her spine, but she tried to seem unaffected by Alexander’s treatment on the outside.
“Don’t pay Alexander any mind. You’re better off,” Olivia said loudly to Naomi.
This made Alexander’s hands grip onto his menu, and he spun back around to face Olivia again. He ignored the way his stomach jolted when he looked at her long, silky auburn hair. He wasn’t going to allow her to distract him with her stunning looks or charming personality.
Tonight, Alexander wanted Olivia to know that she shouldn’t spread rumors about him. That was why he had made her sit next to Naomi.
There was a small pang of regret inside of him for being cruel to Naomi with that phone call, but he had researched her social media in the car earlier and discovered she had posted a picture of him and his location without his consent. That wasn’t okay. Alexander was an important man, and every high-status business owner had enemies, Alexander didn’t want his location to be leaked, especially for the plans he had for this weekend.
“Would you like to inform Naomi that none of us would be in this situation if you just learned to mind your own business?” Alexander asked Olivia in a teasing, light tone.
But everyone could sense that there was an edge to it.
Naomi’s eyes flashed to Olivia, who she had thought was on her side.
“That’s not true,” Olivia told the other woman, her cheeks heating with embarrassment.
Olivia glared at her boss as a tightness formed in her chest. She could feel everyone’s eyes on her. A bead of sweat rolled down her temple, and soon, it seemed like everyone in the restaurant was looking at her. And maybe they were. She was near Alexander Green and Naomi Wright.
“Next time, don’t believe everything you hear,” Alexander told Olivia, his voice still playful, but it was more like how a lion played with its food before they ate it. “If you discover something about me from someone else, maybe you should ask me if it’s true before you spread it around the whole office.”
Alexander and Olivia’s eyes were locked together. Their tempers were rising to a dangerous level.
“I didn’t spread any rumors about you,” Olivia said through gritted teeth.
Unconsciously, they were leaning closer to each other until their faces were only inches apart.
“Yes, you did,” Alexander snapped. “Now, turn around. I’ve had enough back and forth tonight. I’d like to enjoy my dinner in peace.”
Olivia reared back like he had slapped her. She had never felt so disrespected. He had spoken to her like she was a child. With a sinking feeling in her gut, Olivia realized that she had become her boss’s punching bag.
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