Chapter 10: The Contract
Two minutes later, Rachel walked in, dressed in a short red gown that exposed her cleavage. She swayed her hips as she entered, ready to pull out a seat for herself, but stopped when she saw me sitting there.
"I didn't ask you to sit down," Adrain's cold voice cut through the air, heavy with authority.
"I'm sorry, Boss. I thought I could sit since Joi is already seated," she replied with a smile, unfazed by his cold demeanor.
"I need you to send Joi's profile to me again."
"You need her profile... is she getting fired?" Rachel couldn't hide the excitement in her voice.
"It's your ass that's getting fired," I retorted, still angry over her intentional attempts to get me in trouble.
"As far as I remember, I wasn't talking to you," Rachel snapped, her eyes narrowing.
It seemed like our fight was out in the open, even in front of our boss. I decided to take the upper hand, pretending to be weak in front of him, acting as his fiancée.
"I know Rachel knows your likes and dislikes, but I don't like having her around anymore. Can you at least contact me directly? How can I be your fiancée if I don't have your contact?" I decided to play my last card.
"Rachel, you've been working with me for a long time. You know my preferences." Adrain's words felt like a slap to my face as he ignored me completely.
He had been ignoring me for a while, but with Rachel there, I couldn't take it. I bit my lip in frustration as Rachel smiled smugly at him.
"Yes, sir, I do," Rachel answered sweetly, clearly trying to impress him.
"I appreciate your hard work, but from now on, Joi will be in charge of handling my matters. If it's something you need, she will inform you." Adrain's gaze shifted from Rachel's shocked face to mine. "This will give you the chance to get to know me better, working more closely with me."
"Yes, sir," I replied with a smile, trying to suppress the satisfaction I felt at defeating Rachel in front of him.
"You can call me Adrain," he said, his tone dismissive. "You don't need to keep calling me sir or boss."
I couldn't resist. I smiled sweetly and called him by his first name, deliberately doing it in front of Rachel. "Yes, Adrain."
Rachel's face twisted in anger, but she tried to keep her composure. "If that's all, I'll go back to work, sir." She spoke through gritted teeth, but Adrain didn't acknowledge her. He simply waved her off, dismissing her without a second thought.
I sat back in my chair, feeling triumphant. It was a small victory, but it felt good. I had no idea what was going through Adrain's mind, but it didn't matter for now.
The door opened and Alexander walked in. "Good morning, Boss," he greeted, then turned to me. "Joi."
"Hi," I smiled at him, giving him a closer look. He looked even more striking up close.
"I've arranged the contract for the two of you. I have two copies. You can read through them, and if you have any concerns, now's the time to bring them up." Alexander handed Adrain the first document and then passed one to me.
As I skimmed through the contract, one clause caught my attention—there was no mention of sex, which made me pause. I waited for Adrain to point it out, but instead, he just took his pen and signed the document without a word.
"I have an issue with the contract," I said quickly, once Alexander had taken Adrain's signed copy.
"What's the matter, Joi?" Alexander asked, his attention fully on me.
"It says here there's no emotional attachment between us, and that's fine. But there's nothing about sex. How can we be sure this is just a contract and not something more?" I felt my face flush with embarrassment at the question, especially with two men in the room.
"Miss Joi," Alexander said, his tone amused, "are you thinking of having sex with my boss?"
My face turned bright red, and I found it hard to breathe. "No! No, of course not. I just think it should be stated clearly so everything is... clean between us," I stammered, trying to explain myself.
"Don't worry, my boss won't ask for anything you don't want. He has plenty of people to handle that for him," Alexander said, his tone light. "It's not a contract marriage."
I felt relieved, though embarrassed. Maybe I had been overthinking things. "Okay," I said, nodding. I signed the contract and handed it to Alexander.
"I hope you understand the consequences if you break any of the rules," Adrain said, his tone serious.
"Yes, I understand. I won't back out now. I'll fulfill my obligations," I reassured him, trying to sound confident.
"Alright, I'll submit this now. I'll take my leave," Alexander said, giving us both a nod before leaving the room.
I stood up, a bit unsure of what to do next.
Adrain didn't waste time. "About the auction tonight, a red dress will fit better." He handed me a black card and leaned back in his leather chair. "That's your pay and for the dress."
"Thank you," I said, ready to leave. But then I hesitated, remembering something important. "Is there anything else you want me to do for you tonight?"
Adrain didn't seem interested in my choice of dress, but he was clearly concerned about his reputation. "You can try to impress me tonight," he said, his tone dismissive, almost bored.
I almost called him a pervert, but I held back, instead nodding. "Okay, I will." I tucked the card into my bag. "Since there's nothing else, I'll take my leave and prepare for the evening."
He nodded in agreement, still reclining in his chair.
It was only 12 PM, which gave me plenty of time to prepare. I took the elevator up to the top floor and immediately called Emily once I got outside.
She picked up right away. "Hey, is everything okay?"
"Yeah, I need your help. I'm coming over now," I said, already heading toward a cab. I wasn't about to walk to the subway like I usually did; this was important.