Married with the Broken Hearted CEO novel Chapter 17

After working so hard, Adira stretched her hands sideward with a groan. 
“Argh.” 
She’s sitting in front of her desk almost all day, so her body feels so sore.
Three days ago, her secretary called her to say that their schedule for the wine that they will launch has changed. And so, they had to hurry and finish finalizing the project with her team.
At last, after three days working like a zombie, Adira and her team finished the project.
This isn't the first time that Adira almost lived inside her office. She is so dedicated to her work that she even set up a room for her to rest.
So, she basically lived at her company; slept there, took bath there, ate her meals there and rested there.
Work occupied her mind and she momentarily forgot she had another home to stay in.
Looking at the ceiling with aching nape, Adira’s mind wondered here and there; what food she should eat, if she can watch Netflix movie tonight or if she can go visit her favorite bar.
However suddenly, her husband's face came inside her head.
Bit by bit, his horrific expression while looking at her after they kissed, vividly appeared in her eyes.
She held her lips and traced the smoothness of it.
"He's a good kisser. I need to accept that fact," Adira said, chuckling.
It was her first kiss.
A first kiss that ended miserably.
She intended to seduce her husband, and that's why she pulled him for a kiss. But unknowingly, as they did, she was getting so into it she's about to lose her sanity.
It was getting so better and deeper, not until she felt him touch her back and almost put his hand inside her shirt.
Although she's seducing Chadwick, she never had other skin contact with anyone.
That night, everything was a first to her too.
So, at his touch, she flinched and accidentally touched his injured arm, causing them to pull away from each other.
Then what welcomed her next was her husband's bewildered expression.
He looked so surprised and terrified, as if he just realized he had a kiss with the woman he hates the most.
Adira slowly blinked her eyes, making her long lashes flutter under the dim light of her office.
She could not erase that expression from her memories. She cannot.
"He must feel so disgusted. Just like him," she whispered.
For a moment, Chadwick reminded her of the chairman of Crimson Meadow company — her father.
She remembered the day she touched the hemline of her father to ask him if he was okay.
But his father pushed her away and looked at her with frightened expression.
Adira did not kill her mother.
But the way her father looked at her, it was as if she's the monster who took the woman her father loved the most.
It was the same.
The horrified look of her father and her husband resemble each other.
"Thank goodness I have work," she added with a forced smile on her lips.
She doesn't want to avoid Chadwick because that will make her look weak. But maybe, being busy will give her a good excuse.
Although she can't admit it, he indeed had touched a fresh wound of hers that will never heal. And she was so bothered.
 
Therefore, after work, Adira promised to brush it off and pretend nothing happened.
After all, she used the cocktail as excuse too.
Her husband must be blaming her again, saying that she fooled him. And she would rather choose that. For Chadwick to think that he got disgusted because he did something awful when he was drunk.
"But that does not mean I will stop," Adira said.
After resting for a while, she stood up from her desk and carried her bag. She called her secretary and said that she wanted to drive home by herself.
At first, Hansel disagreed because she worried that Adira must be so tired right now. However, Hansel soon gave up convincing her boss to accompany her. Adira will always be a stubborn lady who doesn't want to look weak in front of anyone.
So, Adira drives alone on the highway.
The road is clean, empty, as if to say this was done only for her to drive freely.
The darkness around, the trees that look menacing every time the light shone them and the endless road did not scare her, but rather gave her a comfort after the exhausting day.
She wanted me to just lay down and sleep. But driving along the straight highway does not look really bad.
Adira put her elbow on the windowsill and brushed her finger on her lips, while her other hand handles the steering wheel.
With slightly messy red hair, red lips and droopy eyes, Adira looks sexy while driving with hand.
Men wouldn't be the only one who might get seduced at her current appearance right now, but also maidens.
Truthfully, she was called the 'ultimate girl crush' in their company. Not only is she pretty, but she also looks cool while working.
“I need to use my beauty more to get that man,” Adira murmured. 
She decided to forget anything that’s bothering her, and just focused on her goal – to have a sex with her husband and get pregnant. 
Adira wore her earpiece. She placed her left hand back to the wheel, while her right hand went to dial the number on her phone. 
Kring~ Kring~ 
After a few rings, the person on the other line answered. 
[“Y-Yes Madam?”] Neil answered, stuttering. 
Adira’s eyes narrowed. 
Why would he stutter like that? Although Neil sometimes acts nervous in front of Adira because she’s striking hot, she noticed that he is suspiciously weird tonight. 
At first, she wanted to say that she was going back home so he did not need to stay in their house  anymore. However, she changed her mind. 
“Is my husband at home?” 
[“Y-Yes madam! And I am still here. I AM HERE. I WON’T LEAVE. I WILL NEVER LEAVE HIM.”] 
‘What’s with his reaction?’ Adira wondered. 
She knows that Neil is so close boss to his boss but not to this extent. Then, a silly idea came to her mind. 
‘What if… my husband likes men and that’s why I had hard time seducing him?’ 
She laughed at her own thoughts. 
‘Impossible. I almost forgot that Isa exists in his life.’ 
[“Then, will madam go back home tonight?”] Neil asked the quiet Adira who just finished questioning her husband and husband’s secretary’s genders. 
Adira opened her alluring cupid lips. She will say that she’s going back home but…
[“Is that Adira?!”] 
She stopped when she heard a woman’s voice. Even faint, she could recognize whose voice is that. 
‘Ahhh. I got it. That’s why Neil got so nervous.’ 
Today, she worked so hard she barely had the time to eat. But now, she had to see Isa as soon as she goes back home? 
Indeed, she does not care about her and her relationship with Chadwick. 
But that sly girl is testing her patience. 
‘What does she want this time? She really lacks attention,’ Adira thought. 
Fortunately, Adira does not have the strength she needs to deal with that b*tch. And so, instead of answering Neil’s question, Adira just hung up and removed her earpiece. 
“I wanted to watch Netflix movie tonight. But that does not mean I wanted a drama for myself,” she said, about to U-turn. 
Her destination? She wanted to sleep at her old condominium. 
The only reason for going back is to achieve her goal of seducing Chadwick. However, if Isa is in there, then it is another topic. 
She wanted peace at her age.  
Handling office matters is enough. 
However, before she could U-turn, she noticed something odd on her car. The car looks uneven and heavy.
Suspecting that the car’s left tire had a problem, Adira set her car aside and parked slowly. Then she checked the left side mirror. 
There she saw a single light from afar. 
“A motorbike,” she murmured. 
It was moving from afar, and so, Adira quickly got out of her car. If there is something room with it, then she can ask for help from the upcoming vehicle. 
She’s pretty, and she’s willing to use her beauty as her weapon. If the person in the bike turns out to be pervert, then she heeds no worries. Adira is a black-belter in Taekwondo, and she learned Martial arts too. 
When she hopped down, she saw the flat tire on the front left of her car. There’s a spare tire at the back of her car. She can call for her insurance to help her, but it might take a long time. So, the fastest way is…
“Now,” she mumbled. 
Abruptly, Adira stood near the road and waved her hand to the upcoming motorbike. 
Slowly but surely, the motorbike laggard down. 
Soon it stopped near Adira’s car.
Wearing helmet, the male driver looked at her who is in the middle of the empty road this late at night. 
Adira could feel the gaze behind the helmet. Then she did not forget to smile widely to attract him.
“Good evening,” she greeted. “I am really sorry for disturbing you. But as you can see, I have an emergency right now.” 
“...” 
Adira blinked her eyes and felt a bit awkward. 
‘Why is he not saying anything?’ 
The man in his helmet just stared at her while keeping wordless. 
‘Did I really… meet a weirdo?’ she thought and made a step backward. 
“But if you are busy, then it’s okay. Thank you for stopping though,” she said. 
Finally, the man behind the helmet, moved. He parked his motorbike at the side and then hopped down. As he approached Adira, she moved backward. 
“Where is your spare tire and equipment?” he asked. 
Adira flinched after hearing his voice. 
Somehow, it sounds so familiar as if she just heard it a couple of days ago. 
Nevertheless, she eradicated her suspicion to the kind Samaritan and answered his question. 
“At the back of my car. Wait a minute. I’ll open it.” 
She went back to her seat to get the key to her car. Then she opened the trunk. 
He followed her. 
“I will change the tire,” he said, carrying the spare tire and the equipment. 
“Thank you,” Adira said to the kind stranger who hasn’t removed his helmet. 
For quite a long time, Adira stood at the side while watching him all the work without saying a word. She wanted to ask him questions to lighten up the strained mood but wondered if telling him will make them fell more awkward. 
So just like him, Adira stayed quiet. 
However, from time to time, Adira looked at the helmet the man’s wearing. 
He did lift the cover of his eyes shade, but wearing it while working must feel uncomfortable. 
“Don’t you think you should remove your helmet?” she asked. 
The man stopped moving, as if panicking. 
“I-I’m okay,” he answered. 
“Don’t you feel hot?” 
“I don’t.” 
Adira looked at the darkened shirt on his back. He is definitely sweating a lot. 
‘But he is sweating so hard,’ she said inwardly. 
Adira detached her red lips, about to say that she if he wants, she can lend him a shirt. There’s a shirt she received from the orphanage, and it is still inside her car. However, the man stood up suddenly and closed the shade of his helmet again. 
“It’s done,” he reported. 
“Ahhh, really? Wow. That’s so fast.” 
The man did not reply. He just picked up the broken tire and the equipment. Then he carried it back to the trunk. 
“Thank you so much,” Adira said while following him.
He closed the trunk and stared at her through the shade of his helmet. 
“I don’t know how to repay you. But I should,” Adira said. She got up her wallet and got her business card. “This is my contact,” she said before she offered her card.
The man looked at the card and slowly reached for it. 
“My name is Adira. I don’t want to boast about my life, but if you name something, I will do my best to give it.” 
Actually, Adira at first thought that paying money to the person who would help her right now is a must. But when she saw his motorbike, she had a change of mind. The bike that the person is riding is Vyrus 987 C3 4V that is worth $105,000. 
She is so certain that the man is rich, so he does not need money. So all she can offer is her influence and support as the CEO of Crimson Meadow. 
But the man isn’t interested to her wealth or influence. Instead of looking at the card, which states her new surname when she got married, the man looked at her feet. 
‘Her wound healed. Thank goodness,’ the man said to himself. 
“Ahmmmm, are you listening?” Adira asked to the quiet guy.
“I don’t need anything,” he answered. “This is enough.” 
Enough? 
What is enough?
Adira got confused.
Looking perplexed, she watched him go back to his motorbike and start the engine. 
But before he could go, he felt the vibration in his pocket. He got his phone and read the text on the screen. 
[“Brother. Where are you right now?”] - a text he received from his stepsister, Isa. 
Not replying to her message, Geoffrey looked at Adira who’s staring at him. 
‘I am at the place where I can spend my time with the woman I love. Even if just a short time, this is enough.’ 
He smiled behind the helmet’s mask, while staring at the married woman; his first love, Adira Hale.