Monday
Hailey was in the entryway, putting on her brown vegan high heels, when her phone rang a particular song.
In her contacts, she assigns a song to determine if the caller is her friend, teacher, or just a random person. And the music playing at the moment is set for Vince. She opens her Gucci black backpack instantly, and takes out her phone to answer the call.
"Hello?"
"Hi! Are you still home?"
Hailey could sense an anxious tone in Vince's voice. She wonders if something has happened. But why is he calling her? She mused while responding to him.
"Yes. I'm about to step out of the door. Do you need anything?" she asked.
It seems Vince heaves a sigh of relief upon learning she hasn't gone to school yet.
"Thank goodness."
Hailey heard Vince mumble. So she guesses Vince has a matter to deal with at the moment. She wondered if it needed her help, so she asked him, "What's the matter? Can I help you?"
"Um. The thing is... I left my Flash Drive, where I saved the presentation I was about to demonstrate to our new prospective investor. But I couldn't find it in my suitcase, and I wondered if I had accidentally left it in the study. Can I ask your favor to look for it?"
Hailey listened to Vince's timid and soft tone; she wanted to giggle. He seemed shy to ask her a favor this time over such a small thing.
"Okay, I'm heading upstairs now. What color is your flash drive?" Hailey asked while she pushed the door open.
"It was a small silver-black. It will be a bit hard to notice, I think."
"Hm... Let me see you at your desk."
Meanwhile, inside the SHEN GROUP Conference Room. Vince was standing close to the floor-ceiling window, and his left hand was in his pocket while his right hand held the phone close to his ear.
Yet, early in their meeting with the prospective investor, Vince had already gathered his executives to discuss something. Just then, he realized he left the flash drive with the presentation he prepared over the weekend.
In an hour, their prospective investor will be here. With the presence of the Board of Investors and Shen Group Managing Directors, they were eyeing the CEO, who talked leisurely on his phone after the fact that he had done a stupid thing for the first time in history.
The CEO left his laptop at home, where he saved the files. And on the flash drive, he transferred the files left at home as well. They all can't believe it! Is it stupidity?
But as usual, the CEO doesn't show any hint of panic or worry. Instead, a smile played across his handsome face. The person he was talking about was someone living with him. And who is living with him? None other than his mistress! So they have guessed.
They glanced at each other with a question in their eyes: 'So what will happen now?'
Back in the penthouse... Hailey had already searched Vince's study table, but she couldn't find the flash drive. She opens the unlocked drawers, but there are still none inside.
"I can not find it." She mumbled helplessly, but Hailey kept looking around. Her eyes sweep the entire room.
She walked toward the couch and checked if maybe the flash drive had fallen on it. She also searched around the coffee table when a shiny thing caught her eye. She focuses her gaze on the study table.
"I found it!" She burst out happily.
"Really? Where did I leave it?"
"I found it under the table," she told Vince, who bent down to pick up the flash drive on the carpet.
"I see. Um, is it okay if you will bring it over? It will save time, rather than Tim coming to pick it up."
She agreed, "Sure! No problem." As she cannot say no, is that it? Hailey sighed in silence.
"Great! I'll be waiting for you to bring it over! Call me if you arrive at the entrance. Okay. Thanks!"
It is what the executives heard, the CEO mumbled into his phone.
'Who's coming over? The mistress?' They have the same question stuck in their head, but they would not dare spit it out. They only observe him silently.
The moment Vince ends the call, his facial expression changes. He cleared his throat and took a seat.
Sweeping his gaze throughout the room, he nodded. "Okay. While waiting, I want a quick report from last week's matters."
Vince is glancing at the General Manager and Head of Finance, and they are all have rendered speechless. This CEO is a real piece! He will leisurely listen to the reports as someone brings the presentation he forgets at home.
Why is he careless this time? Or maybe he left the flash drive because he made out first with his mistress before going to the office?
Vince has no idea that the people in front of him have dirty thoughts about him.
Meanwhile, Hailey stepped out of the elevator and walked toward her car. Before reaching her yellow Ferrari Aparte, she bumped into a couple living on the 26th floor. The couple glanced in her direction... while the man nodded at her, the woman peered at her with scorn.
If she didn't know that woman was only clinging to that man, she was not interested in comprehending their real relationship.
The thing is, they could not have a gut to voice out their thoughts when they knew that talking wrong about her would bounce back at them once they provoked Vince by creating malicious gossip around the building.
Rather than ridiculing Vince's mistress, these people think more about their partnership than putting themselves into the trash bin. And that was her.
The only people who had the guts to cackle at her were the university's affluent students and a few netizens of this city.
Shrugged a shoulder, Hailey pulled up her car door and slid her slender body into the driver's seat. She turns up the engine and warms up the car.
Unfortunately, the couple's car she bumped into parked next to her.
She studied the couple inside her car, particularly looking at the woman.
And because it could not see the person inside, the woman didn't notice that Hailey studied her expression, and her eyes filled with envy and disdain. Hailey contorted a smirk in the corner of her mouth.
This woman is one of the countless girls who envied her for having a luxurious life as Vincent Shen's mistress.
Yay! More chaps later!