Timothy's Office

In the lobby, she was greeted by the sound of bickering. A pair of girls who looked a little lost in a room full of suits. The two looked like they came straight out of a magazine.

The shorter of the two paused from their conversation to look at her, and Emily couldn't help but look away and try to walk like she wasn't staring at them.

"Hey, wait—you're Tim's fiancée, right?" asked the blonde as she walked towards her. Emily nodded intent on making a quick escape to her fake fiancé's office, but the shorter of the two only walked closer. She still towered over Emily but she knew she shouldn't cower.

She was Timothy's fiancee, damn it!

'You're my fiancee, you defer to no one.' She remembered him remind her when she asked who should she be respectful to.

"Nat, come on. She's not worth it." The taller of the two said and Emily couldn't help but feel a little insecure from her tone.

"Aren't you a little curious about your cousin's fiancée, Cas? Besides, if Tim is really marrying her, then she'll be your cousin-in-law." The girl called Nat said, and Emily couldn't help but feel invisible. They were talking about her as if she wasn't there.

She looked toward the door to Timothy's office, debating on whether to leave the two model looking women to themselves or to join them and perhaps tell them to politely go away.

She went with the latter. "Sorry, I can't help but hear you talking about me. I'm Emily. Timothy's —" she wasn't even able to finish her sentence when the girl called Cas cut her off, "—fiancée, we know. We've heard about you from Laurence."

Nat frowned at this and tried her best to look accommodating—"I'm Natasha Harris, and this is Cassandra Angeles—a cousin of Timothy." Emily could only nod. She didn't know if she should try to get a conversation going or duck out and into Timothy's office.

She didn't have to worry, though, since the man himself went out of said office with a phone pressed to his ears.

"I specifically told you to cut them down. Our costs went beyond the threshold at 35%. Do you want me to go over there and do it myself?" He snapped harshly onto the phone and Emily couldn't help but frown at the man's outburst.

'He's playing the ice king role.' She thought as she chewed at the bottom of her lip.

"No, Either have them forcibly resign or fire them. I'm only giving you a day, Mr. Robbins. I want at least 20% of that manpower cut down."

She broke away from the women and made her way to him, her free hand already reaching out to comfort the man. It was instinctive but perhaps she had already schooled herself in acting like the kind fiancée she was supposed to be.

She didn't spare the women another look and focused her attention on Timothy.

So, you're Emily Choi, you're a year younger than Timothy. You grew up in Leifsh and you're sweet and gentle—but you can hold your own ground. You're a bit rough around the edges since you grew up without your parents' eagle eyes on you. You sometimes clash with Timothy, but at the end of the day, it's still you guys. You balance him out, yeah? Got it? You think you can act that out?

For the money? Of course, she could, and she would. She would even go beyond what is expected of her if that meant that Mr. Reed would get off her case.

Timothy also didn't disappoint. He reached out to her and twined their fingers together, rubbing his thumb over Emily's knuckle. She thought nothing of it, but there was something that pulled at her heartstrings with this action. 'He's acting, of course.' She reminded herself, shaking the emotions that began to take root.

They were a couple in love and to be wed. This was nothing.

"Sorry, just leave it in the office, we'll eat together after I'm done," he whispered to her with a soft smile, eyes crinkling with exhaustion. There was the sudden urge to reach out and touch his cheek at that moment and the feeling was so jarring that Emily only nodded before glancing at Cassandra and Natasha, giving them a small wave and shuffled into his office.

So, she waited.

Once seated on one of the sofas in the office, she found herself looking around and digesting every detail of the room. As someone who arranged flowers for a living, she found that even interior design was somewhat akin to her profession.

The minimalistic design of the room gave off an aloof impression to anyone who walked in. As if the owner didn't want them to feel comfortable in the office. It's all business and professionalism to Timothy Angeles. Although Emily didn't miss the personal belongings that were littered randomly in places. A figurine as a bookstand. A picture frame on one of the shelves. A stuffed bear between plaques and framed certificates.

There was also a yellow fountain pen on the mahogany desk. Something that's seemingly out of place in the cold and daunting office of Timothy Angeles. Did he like the colour yellow?

She sighed and took her personal phone out, checking the messages from her brother and from Joshua. It was mainly Michael updating her on the current events that were happening at home, how her aunt was relieved to have them out of her hair. Joshua, on the other hand, had only said that if she could give a tenth of her initial for this month, then she's still in the green. She did a quick calculation: That's 30,000 Luna so at the end of the month, she'll only be left with 20,000.

She switched to the phone Laurence gave her, checking the apps he downloaded, ensuring she had read all the notifications, and ticking off her to-do list.

Emily was reading an article about finance and marketing when Timothy walked in, forehead creased, lips pursed tightly in a grimace, his eyes glued to his phone as he typed away. The familliar urge to to press her fingers to his skin and smoothen the lines of frustration on his face.

She pushed the desire away and shifted her gaze on the lunch box she placed on his table, "You should eat. Food is probably cold by now," she muttered and began unpacking them. She would have ordered from a restaurant, but Timothy had a predilection for home-cooked meals and would also point out that it was part of the contract he would rather not do without. A staple, if you may.

There was silence and the gentle taps on his phone echoed in the room, the hum of magic loud in her ears. A shiver ran down her spine and she had to wipe her hands on her skirt with how clammy it had gotten. "Alright," Timothy said and sat across from her. Emily waited for Timothy to finish whatever he was doing on his phone. Soon enough, the young CEO was digging into Emily's cooking

"By the way, Emily, you're coming to dinner with me the Friday after next and spend the weekend at the Estate,"

Emily looked up from her phone and looked at him. The finality of his tone made her dread the idea of spending three whole days with him at their Estate. There was a party lined up for this weekend and now there's a dinner at Hadriya?

"My cousins will be there and some high-profiled guests, so please be on your best behaviour." Timothy continued, pausing to stare at the food he was eating.

"Are these homemade? And did you put seasoning?" he asked, suddenly changing the topic as he stared questioningly at the limp pasta buried in broccoli and beef.

She gave him a tight smile," As homemade as possible and no, you said you don't like spices." Emily said slowly, reaching for her chopsticks to sample her cooking. She didn't have the time to taste them, either.

"Well, did you at least put salt in it?" Timothy asked, chewing thoughtfully. "It tastes a bit bland." He then took a large serving of the cuisine and motioned for Emily to open her mouth. "Here, try it." Emily automatically opened her mouth to accept the offered food. She didn't know what came over her to do that, but she chewed intently and paused. "I added salt and pepper but didn't put in a lot. I wasn't sure how salty or peppery you wanted it to be," she said, eyes glazing over as her palate registered the lack of flavour.

Timothy stared glumly at his food, probably half wanting to chuck it at the cook and half thinking that at least Emily tried. "Well, anything is delicious to a starving man, as they say." He grumbled as he ate.

'At least he didn't say he hated it, that's a win in my book.' She thought and watched him eat.