He always had a calm expression and would even smile during their previous encounter. However, the look he was giving her now and his aura were completely different.
Carl watched with a frown as her eyes widened in disbelief when he asked the manager to leave then she looked down again still rooted in the same place with worry evident on her face. ' what is she thinking, isn't she happy to see me, is she afraid of me. ' every one of his thoughts was more brutal than the previous one.
He studied her silently, his expression darkening more with each second, then she finally peeked at him. However, he saw fear on her face and she cowered back. ' Am I really that scary, does that mean. . .' his heart throbbed painfully and he finally stood up.
Clara was still lost in her thoughts and flinched impulsively when she felt his presence, then her head jerked up and looked up at him with wide eyes.
She nervously watched as he slowly walked forward with the same expression on his face and she shrank back with her heart beating wildly until her back hit the door.
Carl watched in anguish as the girl cowered back, away from him. and his anger erupted.
He had intended to take things slowly but his heart ached and burned with jealousy whenever he saw her with other men and now. . . she was afraid of him?.
He walked forward until they were inches apart and slowly placed both hands on her sides, trapping her in between with no room for escape while gazing into her widened eyes intently.
Clara gasped at his sudden action and real fear overtook her. " C..Ca__, "she was about to whisper his name, then he cut her off.
" What am I to you, " he muttered coldly and glanced at her shoulder which was touched earlier and his expression darkened more.
" Huh?. " Clara was perplexed by the sudden question then her eyes widened. Did he find out her feelings, was he about to fire her, as far as she knew, she had tried very hard to conceal it. ' But How did he find out'.
" What am I to you, " Carl repeated unhurriedly, his heart beating in anticipation as he watched her staring at him with a flabbergasted look.
Clara finally snapped out of her thoughts then gradually lowered her head and softly muttered, " Y..you.. you're my boss. " she gazed down on the floor with glossy eyes and an unbearable pain flooded her heart. If she told him the truth, she might lose her job so lying to him was her only option.
Carl staggered back when he what she said. The word 'You're my boss' echoing repeatedly in his head. He slowly took two steps away from her then chuckled sadly. So she only saw him as her boss, not even as a friend talk more of. . .
He turned his back to her and tightly clenched his fists. Anger and pain building up in his heart." Get out, " he muttered gravely and strode toward the table where he pressed a small switch.
Clara looked up and bit her lip as she watched him turned away. ' no, I can't cry. . . he will know that I'm lying. . . I can do this, ' she chanted inside her head then took a deep breath and shut her eyes tightly, preventing the tears that were about to fall then his words made her snapped her eyes opened and she felt the door opened beside her.
She gave his back one last look and felt her heart tightened. ' Carl. . .' she whispered his name inside then ran out of his office with her hand covering her mouth, she ran toward the elevator not caring about her surroundings. . .
" Haha, another one down. "
" Such a vixen. . . trying to flirt with the CEO. "
" She has the guts. . . I'm sure her working days are over. "
" People with her looks think they'll get any man they lay their eyes on. . . hmph. "
" Well. . . the CEO's obviously out of her league. "
" Quiet girls. . . are you sure that's what happened?. and keep your voices down. "
" Hmph. . . Isn't it obvious? "
She heard the secretaries' hurtful words as their voices were very loud and her heartache increased. Even though most of the things they said were wrong, one word caught her attention 'he was out of her league'.
Why would he fall for a country girl like her?. " Hehe, " she sadly chuckled inside the elevator and wiped the tear that was already streaming down her face.
She went directly to the washroom and stared at the mirror, more tears streaming down her face. so that was it, Carl did not love her, but why did he text her every night. She remembered that he didn't text her yesterday and sniffed sadly. and here she was thinking maybe he was busy.
Shortly after, she heard footsteps coming toward the washroom and quickly opened the tap then washed her face and dabbed it with a tissue.
When she reached her cubicle, she saw the manager pacing around with a worried expression.
" What did he say? did you get fired?. " The manager asked hurriedly as soon as she approached. Even though Clara was new, he noticed that she was very smart and hardworking. He didn't want to lose such talent.
Clara gave the man a half-hearted smile and shook her head. " Don't worry Mr. Long I didn't get fired. "
" Ah, that's a relief. " the man's expression brightened and he wondered why the CEO called her, he gazed at her sympathetically but didn't probe further and quickly left for his office.
Clara sat down on her chair with a sigh. Her thoughts were about to wander again when her phone started ringing.
She picked it and saw Mira's name displayed on the screen. Her expression brightened up a little and pressed the receive button then came Mira's voice from the other side.
" I'm so sorry Clara, my phone was on silent. I just came back from the hospital and saw your missed calls, " Mira said guiltily.
" What happened to you, why did you go to the hospital,? " Clara asked worriedly with a frown.