novelraw Chapter 144 - 142: Climbing onto His Body
Chapter 144 - 142: Climbing onto His Body
After that tirade, Simon Adler was more exasperated than angry.
He could tell Silas Grant wasn’t in a good mood.
No need to ask. It was definitely about Mia Grant again.
He recalled the photos his assistant had been sending him nonstop for the past half hour.
Yeah, Silas Grant had every right to be angry.
"Did you need something?"
The two of them knew each other well. Seeing him lingering, Silas Grant figured he must have something important to discuss.
Simon Adler stared at him for a few seconds. It wasn’t anything important, really. He just wanted to show Silas Grant the photos.
But given the circumstances, there was no point.
Simon Adler made some small talk about work and didn’t bring up Mia Grant again.
He left the company building and got into his car.
His assistant, Simon, was in the passenger seat. He turned back with a smile. "Did you show the photos to Mr. Grant?"
Simon Adler was resting his head on one hand, elbow propped on the center console. At Simon’s words, his eyes cracked open. "His people are much faster than you."
Simon gave a sheepish laugh. "You know Jynsia isn’t our turf. That Miss Grant has too many people around her, and it’s not easy to avoid getting spotted. We almost got made a few times..."
"But even though it was tough, I still got all the shots I needed."
"I have to say, it’s no wonder Mr. Grant is so smitten. These were all candid shots, taken on the sly, but Miss Grant looks stunning in every single one. The fifth one, especially, looks like a still from an arthouse film. It could probably win a photography award."
"If I weren’t your assistant, I could have been a brilliant photographer!"
Simon was a chatterbox, and since he and Simon Adler were on good terms privately, he spoke without much of a filter.
Simon Adler’s head started to ache from all the chatter. On a whim, he picked up his phone from the center console and opened the chat history.
He scrolled up, looking for the photo Simon had just described.
Simon had sent over twenty photos.
There was Mia Grant walking down the stairs, Mia Grant talking to the dorm manager, Mia Grant greeting Felix Sinclair, Mia Grant getting into a car... a whole series of them.
It was like a minute-by-minute log.
At the time, Simon Adler had only glanced at the vaguely incriminating photos of Mia Grant with another man.
He hadn’t bothered to look at any of the solo shots of her.
The fifth one...
He tapped it open.
Night had fallen, and the moon cast a hazy glow.
Behind the girl, a sea of brilliant lights twinkled. She stood by the side of the road, clutching a man’s jacket.
The wind tousled her curly hair, and a dry, yellow leaf landed on her head. Her expression was vacant as she freed one hand to pluck the leaf off, studying it closely.
The girl puffed out her cheeks, her delicate lips forming a slight pout. Her brows were gently furrowed, making her look charmingly naive and innocently bewildered.
The image was frozen in time.
’Strange,’ he thought, ’the last time I saw her, she had straight, jet-black hair. Today it’s curly.’
’I don’t know what kind of equipment Simon used, but even the tiny, sparkling fleck of glitter under her eye was crystal clear.’
’This was supposed to be a covert tailing job... so why does it look like a professional portrait?’
He flipped the phone screen-down and tossed it back onto the center console. Picking up on what Simon had said, Simon Adler agreed, "You really are more talented at photography than you are at being an assistant."
"Write your resignation letter tonight. We’ll process it tomorrow. I’ll approve it instantly."
"Make the handover quick, and don’t disrupt our work."
Simon: "...?"
Of course, Simon Adler wasn’t serious.
But it was strange.
He always slept well, but that night, he had a long, chaotic dream.
When his alarm rang in the morning, he jolted awake.
He stared at the ceiling, eyes unfocused, his chest heaving.
The alarm was still blaring.
After a long moment, Simon Adler came to his senses, rolled over, and fumbled for his phone to turn off the alarm.
He kept his alarm on even during holidays.
But it was mostly just for show.
His internal clock was so consistent that he always woke up a few minutes before it went off.
The last time he remembered being woken up by his alarm was two years ago.
He glanced at the time, then threw back the covers and sat up.
Suddenly, his gaze froze.
"..."
The man sat stunned on his bed for a full five minutes.
When he finally snapped out of it, he clenched his jaw and, with an unreadable expression, stormed into the bathroom for a cold shower.
—
Downstairs, Lee and Simon were already waiting.
Simon yawned again. Lee looked puzzled. "Did the boss work late last night? He’s fifteen minutes later than usual today."
"He did." Simon leaned his head on her shoulder, looking listless. "Not only did he work late, he almost fired me, too."
"Huh?" Lee’s eyes widened.
"Why?"
Simon waved a hand dismissively. "Let’s not talk about it."
As they were chatting, footsteps sounded from the direction of the stairs.
The two immediately snapped to attention, standing up straight.
Simon Adler fastened his cufflinks as he walked past, not giving them a second glance as he headed straight for the door.
"Boss—" Lee started to greet him, but Simon clapped a hand over her mouth.
Lee was a trained martial artist. It was pure instinct, a reaction that bypassed her brain entirely. She grabbed Simon’s hand and flipped him over her shoulder.
"..."
Sprawled on the floor, Simon wailed and cursed, "Vera Lee, you psycho..."
"Oh, sorry, sorry! I didn’t mean to! Are you okay? Simon! Say something!"
"Goddammit!"
Behind him, the two continued to scuffle, but Simon Adler acted as if he heard nothing, getting into the car with a dark expression.
Simon knew how to read a room and could tell Simon Adler was in a foul mood. During the drive, he wasn’t his usual chatty self, and Lee quieted down as well.
Once the office door closed, Simon and Lee both breathed a sigh of relief.
Lee didn’t get it. "Why is the boss in such a bad mood?"
Simon wondered the same thing. "How should I know?"
"He’s not really going to fire you, is he?"
"..." Simon poked her on the head. "Is your brain full of water?"
Simon pulled her away from the line of fire. "Just forget it and stay out of his way. He probably just had a nightmare and didn’t sleep well."
"Really?" Lee was still doubtful. "It didn’t seem like a nightmare. Aside from the gloomy aura, he looks pretty energetic."
"Come on, if it wasn’t a nightmare, what else could it be?" Simon was exasperated with her. "You think he had a wet dream or something?"
"It’s possible."
Simon rapped his knuckles hard on her head. "Come on, the boss is a grown man, not some twenty-year-old kid."
Behind them, Simon Adler, who had come out to ask Simon for a file, happened to overhear that last line. His expression turned even darker.
But he wasn’t angry that they were joking about his age.
He was angry because...
...of the dream.
In the dream, the girl had climbed on top of him, lowering her head to meet his gaze.
Her innocent, questioning eyes were like hooks.
They snagged his gaze, and he couldn’t look away.
"Aren’t you going to hold me?"
she asked, tilting her head in confusion.
His Adam’s apple bobbed. As if possessed, he reached out, his large palm settling on her slender waist.
The sensation was too real. It was only then that he realized she was...
...wearing nothing but two thin, close-fitting pieces of fabric.
His palms were burning hot.
Perhaps it wasn’t just his palms.
He couldn’t tell. All he remembered was her slowly lowering her head to kiss him.