" hehehe. . . you can also have plenty of time for sister-in-law. "
When Carl heard his brother's last sentence, he promptly agreed and replied with an " Mm. ".
He had been overworking himself these past few days, barely having time for his love and even forgot to text her sometimes. He had faith in his assistant and felt that his brother was right. David was the right person to handle that project and he trusted him so much. He stood up from his chair then strolled toward the large floor to ceiling window and stared at the bustling street ahead while standing beside the large flower vase. This office was more spacious than the one in the software company as he mostly frequent here where he handled most of his works. A small smile appeared on his lips when he thought about Clara and an idea quickly came to his head.
David was baffled and stared at the scheming Zach with disbelief. He should have seen this coming when he noticed the mischievous guy constantly glaring at him earlier, but that was not the important thing right now as something else had caught his attention. His eyes widened slightly and he glanced at his boss who had his back facing them and was staring at the street ahead through the large window. He wondered when his boss got a girlfriend and even married with disbelief and why he wasn't aware, he then tiptoed toward Zach and silently whispered, " What do you mean by sister in law. "
" Hehe. . . the literal meaning, " Zach whispered back.
" When did boss get married?. " David gasped and whispered again looking baffled.
" Idiot. . . he's not married yet. . . but__ shit! David can't I call her sister-in-law "?. Zach gave him a ' you are a fool ' look and David scratched his nose wondering what he said wrong.
The two guys were still whispering to each other when they heard movement behind them and their heads snapped in Carl's direction then saw him heading out of the office.
What made them more baffled was the small smile on his face.
" Big bro, wait for me. " Zach quickly followed behind him and David was left baffled once more and he watched as the two brothers walked out of the office then wondered why his boss suddenly left the office which was unlike him ' and what was with that smile. ' his mouth was wide opened.
_____
" Big bro, where are you going,? " Zach said while running behind his brother who was striding toward his car.
Carl dismissed his driver who opened the car for him and got inside without looking back at the noisy person behind him.
" Big bro, wait.. wait.. take me with you. " He did not want to miss whatever it was, his brother was up to and pounded the car window rapidly.
Carl frowned from inside and slowly rolled down the car window. He wanted to see Clara and did not want Zach to disrupt their time together after remembering what happened in the hospital.
" Have you finished the work I assigned you?" He gazed at him coldly with a raised brow.
Zach scratched his nose and softly said, " B..big bro, I__"
" Scram. " Carl interrupted him then zoomed off.
Zach watched in astonishment as his brother's car zoomed out of the car park and he whined silently then turned back and headed to the elevator while cursing David who landed him in this trouble in his mind and vowed to deal with him when he reached his brother's office.
********
Derek stared at the girl beside him who was still engrossed with her phone with a small smile. " Still didn't reach her,? " he said softly.
Clara slowly nodded her head and looked up at him with a worried expression. She had been trying Mira's number again after they left the coffee shop which kept ringing without anyone answering.
She sighed and prayed nothing bad had happened to her friend then made a mental note to go directly to her address after office hours.
Derek watched her sad expression and also sighed, " Don't worry, I'm sure she will be fine," he muttered and slowly patted her shoulder which made her flinch a little.
" I'm sorry. . ., " He quickly said and scratched his lowered head. He had only touched her impulsively in an attempt to comfort her.
Clara looked at the embarrassed guy and slightly felt guilty. " It's nothing, " she said softly and added " Thank you. . . "
Derek's eyes brightened and he clumsily adjusted his glasses then replied, " You're welcome. "
They both entered the company and headed toward the cafeteria as they still had fifteen minutes left before the lunch break was over.
Meanwhile, Carl was inside his car as he watched the two figures entered the company and his knuckles turned white from gripping the stirring wheel very hard.
__ A Few minutes ago __
Carl was happily driving toward the company as he knew she would be there when he sighted two figures walking in the same direction at the side of the street. Although he only saw her back, he instantly recognized the figure which was engraved deeply in his mind.
He drove slowly behind them and studied the guy's back with a frown, he was holding a lavender-colored bag that obviously belonged to her.
He watched while his frown deepened as they both stopped at the company's entrance seemingly discussing something and he also stopped his car, then his eyes turned cold immediately when the guy placed his hand on her shoulder.
__ The Present __
Carl accelerated his car to the parking lot and strode out toward his private elevator with a dark expression.
All the way to his office, his mind was engrossed with the picture of the guy's hand on her shoulder.
The secretaries rushed out of their cubicles and lined up in a row to greet him but they all cowered back when they felt the dangerous aura emanating from him.
" The CEO's obviously enraged, I wonder who got on his bad side. "
" I'm sure someone's going to get fired today. "
" But it had been long since he came here. . . who do you think might offend him? ".