CEO's Substitute Bride

Chapter 58

Even after Alyssa sent the message, she still couldn't be at ease. All she could do was sit back and stare at her screen from time to time, awaiting his reply. Her finger refreshed the screen a few times in the last hour.

'What's wrong with me?' She ran her fingers down her hair irritably as she placed her phone on the corner of her desk, not wanting to look at it any longer. She had never been this nervous with Henry before! And to be this anxious for a man she had never actually seen was...weird.

Just as she was concentrating on her documents, she heard a few whispers from the other cubicle.

"I heard that Dawson applied for a leave."

"What? He used to be so eager in coming to work."

So the man had already retired? Alyssa leaned against her seat as she pushed herself to the wall behind her, interested in hearing more of this. Just then, another colleague quickly joined the discussion and she frowned.

Their voices had become much softer now.

However, she still caught a few words, "I heard Alyssa's the one who did it yesterday."

At that, she suddenly sneezed. Were they talking about her?

…

At Nine Clouds Media.

The meeting room was so silent that they could hear a pin drop. With the unnerving tension rising every second, Emmett took his time as he flipped the project report in his hands. His face showed no expression as he scanned through the documents.

All the senior management staff sat upright, not daring to make a sound. Sweat trickled down their foreheads as they all exchanged looks of anxiety and worry. After all, the man behind the scenes had a worse temper than Xavier.

The outside world only recognized Xavier as the boss of Nine Clouds Media. When in actuality, only the senior management knew the man sitting in front him was the real man working behind the scenes. Although his whereabouts and identity were kept a secret from all of them, they knew that every major decision was run through by him. As such, they knew just how important he was.

Emmett hadn't come to the company for a very long time, and all his responsibilities had fallen to Xavier. Even today alone, he had to admit that it was tough to do all the groundwork. However, it still must be done.

As Alyssa had gone to Moore Group today, he thought of handling these matters himself.

There were a few directors in Nine Clouds Media who were determined in creating beef between some senior management staff, but that wasn't a big problem. As long as these things don't escalate, then they could easily be managed.

Finally, once Emmett was done reading through all the documents, he picked up a few folders and placed them neatly on one side. The rest was thrown directly onto the middle of the conference table.

The sound echoed across the room, as a few papers fluttered to the side.

Everyone froze.

Emmett swept his gaze across everyone present. He said sternly. "We're all senior members of the company. As we've worked together for so long, I'll give you one last chance to make those right. I suggest you start working now."

Without another word, he stood up and strode out of the meeting room. Xavier followed right behind him, with the neatly folded documents under his arm.

After coming to his own office, Emmett finally loosened his tie and rested on the leather chair behind the desk. He slowly rubbed his temples. Sometimes, handling a large company had its pressure points, but it did have its perks.

Xavier placed the documents on the table and frowned. "You think they'll do as you said them well?"

"If they couldn't, then we'll just fire them." His face remained indifferent. "Besides, if they were fired by Nine Clouds itself, who'd dare accept them?"

Emmett sounded arrogant, but Xavier knew for a fact that the man had every right to be. After all, he had built this company from the ground up not because he had entertained slackers like those bozos, but because he had actually concentrated on hiring the best of the best.

Although he knew that his friend was known for his bad temper, Emmett was actually a kind person. Those bastards really had gone too far this time by providing such substandard work on the table.

"If you have nothing to say, you can leave." With a wave of dismissal, he pulled open one of his drawers and took out his mobile phone.

He turned it on, the screen lit up and he found an unread message.

"Hi, this is Alyssa. Thank you for giving me this phone. I like it very much!"

At the sight, Emmett’s lips curled up into a smile.

Xavier was about to go when he saw Emmett smiling at the phone screen. Not being able to help himself, he inquired, "Why the hell are you smiling at your phone? You know how scary it is to see you like this? So...so...weird?"

Normally, Emmett would've glared at him, but the text had regained his good composure. "Since you're so scared of me, why aren't you leaving?"

Xavier wanted to see what the man was looking at, but just as he was moving closer, Emmett flipped his phone and hid it underneath his desk.

"Are you kidding me?"

The man was ruthless!

After Xavier left, Emmett started typing up his message.

"I am glad you like it."

But before he could send it, he paused. That didn't seem to fit his style, did it?

"Frank bought it."

That seemed too cold.

In the end, he decided on this, "You're welcome."

Putting down his phone, he leaned back against his seat. A trace of irritation flashed in his dark eyes before it disappeared. This was getting all too ridiculous! Not only was he hiding his identity, but he was playing two men!

Xavier came again into the office, bringing a few documents with him. "Emmett, this is the big IPO that the company had invested in recently. All the information is in here. You can take a look at them later."

"Wait." Emmett stopped him.

Xavier paused. "Is there something else?"

Emmett coughed awkwardly, knocking the table a couple of times. "Do you think I should tell Alyssa that I'm Emmett?"

Before Xavier could react, Emmett threatened, "If you dare laugh at me, I'll make sure that the little star of yours wouldn't be able to accept any scripts. She wouldn't have any life in show business from then on." Nôvel(D)ra/ma.Org exclusive © material.

Although he knew that the man was only playing tough, Xavier still suppressed the smile on his lips.

Holding back his laughter, he nodded. "You should tell her right away. In fact, I suggest a rather big event, like a baby shower, but instead of having a mascot pop out of the cake, you can do that instead."

Asshole.

Emmett picked up the documents and threw them in Xavier’s direction. "Get lost!"

"I'm going, I'm going!" Xavier didn't even bother trying to hide his laughter as he strode towards the door.

It seemed that his working in Nine Clouds Media wasn't in vain. After all, when could he see Emmett so conflicted over a woman, a woman who he was already bound to marry? He slapped his thighs and shook his head. For someone so powerful, his flirting skills needed some work.

"Oh, wait till Arthur hears about this!"

Emmett tightly pursed his lips and expressionlessly picked up the pen holder. He quickly and ruthlessly smashed it towards Xavier, watching in satisfaction as it smashed onto the latter’s head.

"Ah!!"

Xavier’s miserable scream made Emmett feel a little more comfortable.

However, as soon as Xavier left his office, he felt the stress driving over him once again. He pinched the space in between his brows. If he told Alyssa that he was Emmett, she wouldn't believe him. It was

obvious that the timing wasn't right.

He needed an opportunity.

…

Alyssa had waited for half a day when she finally received his message, "You're welcome."

Although it was only two words, it still made her day.

During lunch, a few of her female colleagues came looking for her.

"Alyssa, why don't we eat together?" They called out, hooking their arms around hers.

They hadn't really communicated with her on the first day, so she was surprised that they would approach her like this.

Perhaps it was because of the gossip? After all, she had overheard some of them saying how she was the one responsible for Dawson's unannounced exit. They didn't seem too bad too.

As she didn't know how long she had planned to stay in Moore Group, she smiled and nodded. "Okay."

Even though they were all women, they couldn't help but be a little stunned at the brightness of Alyssa’s smile.

There were not a lot of restaurants near the company. Even though they just randomly chose a restaurant, it wasn't much of a shock that they coincidentally met Skylar and Jason along the way. They

were eating at the same place.

As they were both their bosses, it was only natural for Alyssa’s colleagues to greet them with respect, "Chairman, Manager Moore."

In the Moore Group, Skylar was the project department manager. It was obvious that she didn't have the ability to carry such a large responsibility on her shoulders. The actual people running the work were her subordinates.

Alyssa didn’t want to be eye-catching, so she also stepped forward to greet them.

"Dad, Sis."