Cornered by the CEO

The itinerary also included time slots for fashion week that would be taking place in Paris that week and slots for meetings with fashion designers for possible collaborations with the brand. So, more fancy clothes. Looking over the whole thing, Qian Meng knew that she would get less than five hours of sleep every day.

At the end of the papers were two passes to fashion week, clipped onto the file.

Qian Meng smiled, feeling comfortable that most of her schedule was sorted out and she wouldn't need to think too much about what she was going to do or going to wear. With a relieved sigh, she took the file and slid it into her bag.

Finally, she was done for the day. The clock read seventeen minutes past midnight.

She was walking towards the entrance of the building when she saw a familiar car waiting outside. She stopped in her step, waiting for a little too long as she felt her gut twist. With a huff, she walked toward the exit with purpose.

Mo Qingchen was leaning against the car, seemingly waiting for her. She was about to make a beeline for the bus stand in the distance but his voice stopped her short.

"Ignoring me?" he asked, mirth filling his voice. She swiveled towards him, giving him a blank stare.

"Oops. Sorry. I didn't see you there." She gave him a saccharine smile before turning to go her way.

"Qian Meng, are you coming or not?" She looked back, awed to see him smiling at her. He seemed to understand why she was avoiding him. "Regretting your decision today?" he scoffed.

"Never," she hissed. She approached him without a word and pushed him aside. "Don't pretend to be a gentleman," she warned, opening the door herself and sliding in without his instruction.

He stood for a moment, staring at her, impressed. He shoved his hand into his pocket and approached the other side. He slid into the driver's side smoothly.

"Buckle up," he instructed, twisting his body slightly to get the seatbelt on.

"Am I being kidnapped?" she asked blandly as she did the same.

"No, just taking you out for a drink. You look like you need it." He glanced at her from the corner of her eye and saw her purse her lips in dissatisfaction.

"I don't remember earning more money than you today," she grumbled.

"Well, that was for having food together. I'm taking you out for a drink. It's not the same thing." He was confident in his words. After the day she had, she was also craving a drink. It might not be a good idea, but she needed something in her. It had been too long since she loosened up.

Recently, it had been one hard week after another. She just couldn't catch a break. 𝗳𝓇ℯe𝓌𝚎𝚋𝓃𝚘𝚟𝘦𝑙.𝑐𝚘𝙢

She persisted in her protest, though. She could grab a drink on her own. Why did he have to tag along? "Drinks are personal. I don't think we know each other well enough to drink together."

Mo Qingchen chuckled. "We've already exchanged bodily fluids. What is a drink or two compared to that," he said flatly. Yun Qian Meng gaped at him, feeling hate fill her body.

This man... 𝙛𝐫e𝚎wℯ𝗯𝒏𝗼ѵ𝙚l.𝒄o𝚖

She huffed as she pushed him aside. He smirked, seeing her opening the passenger's side door and sliding in. Within moments, he was hopping into the car.

"Buckle up," he urged, his voice light. She did that without a fuss but kept looking outside the window. They pulled up a couple of blocks later. The bright signs in front of the building showed that it was an exclusive bar called 'Peach Blossoms.'

Yun Qian Meng hadn't come here before but had heard comments about the exciting new drinks menu and creative tastes they had to offer.

'Good choice,' she thought to herself, peering at Mo Qingchen without any expression of joy. Seeing her peering at him, he chuckled and shook his head. He strode over to the pavement and waited for her with his hand shoved in his jeans pocket.

Yun Qian Meng cringed yet again, remembering that the man had a blasphemous sense of fashion. How had she agreed to accompany him when he looked like that... She fought back a groan that was about to spill.

"Do you need me to open the door for you?" Mo Qingchen suggested, cutting her thoughts off.

"I would rather drown in a glass of water," she huffed. She undid her seatbelt and quickly slid out of the car. Her eyes roamed over his body once before she marched towards the entrance. When she reached the front gate, she almost wanted to apologize to the employee who looked at Mo Qingchen with a critical look.

When he saw what she was wearing and the impressive car parked ostentatiously, he let them in without a hitch. The thing about these places is that they aren't too picky about the customers they let in, especially because the price of the items on the menu was slightly above average. If one could pay for it, the employees would not turn them out.

It was only bad press if word got out that they discriminated against customers.

They were led to a table of two without much prompting and Yun Qian Meng had to marvel at how beautiful the interior decoration of this place was. She rarely visited fancy bars or clubs. She rather preferred the dowdy ones where people were many and alcohol ran like water.

You could freely mix in with the crowd and surround yourself with people without needing to think about who you really were. She liked those kinds of places where she was not Yun Qian Meng, but someone approachable and easy to talk to.

The stools were higher than anticipated and Yun Qian Meng struggled with her short height to get on. With her five-foot-three inches in height, she couldn't stabilize her body to hop onto the abnormally high stool.