Chapter 9: CHAPTER 9

"You're not actually a male witch trying to fatten me up before eating me are you?" Eva said suspiciously and Gage threw his head back and laughed.

The sound of his laugh was just so sexy, it was so pleasing to Eva's ears it sparked tingles in her auditory canals and sent delicious shivers down her back. Not only did the man cook yummy food, even his laugh sounded so mouth-watering! My god… this guy's really too good to be real, isn't it?!

Surreptitiously peeking at him through her thick lashes that were lowered, Eva realized he was truly looking so amused at her comments that she had thrown out earlier. Then her eyes just subconsciously fell on his thin sinuous lips.

A faint blush crept through Eva's cheeks so she quickly averted her eyes from his tantalising lips and suddenly just blurted out inwardly, 'Damn this man to hell! Why did he have to look this handsome? I should be negotiating with him right now, not admiring his handsomeness like he's some greek god! Get a hold of yourself Eva!'

"Hmm… What if I am indeed a male witch, pet?" he said as soon as he stopped laughing. He rested his head on his knuckles again as he stared at her, one sexy eyebrow lifted and a corner of his lips lifting. "What are you going to do about it?"

Eva face-palmed comically at the realization of what she had just blurted out. Her face reddened again as she wished that the floor would just open up beneath her and swallow her whole! 'Dammit!! Why the hell did I even say that out aloud!? What's going on with me embarrassing myself like this? This devil is really making me embarrass myself big time before him and he's even got the cheek to enjoy it! And right in my face too! Urghh…!'

However, though she could feel the heat radiating off her cheeks, she bravely lifted her eyes to look at him, trying to keep her face as straight as possible, pretending as though she had not said anything embarrassing at all.

Clearing her throat, she spoke in a matter-of-fact tone. "Well, if you're indeed a male witch, I'd like you to help me find my phone. I can't remember where I had left it. I just can't seem to find it no matter how I look."

Gage just smiled. "Ah, yes. Your phone." It was a suave smile that sent another round of shivers up and down her spine and caused her to be wary of his actions. He then casually slipped his hand into his pocket and pulled out the said phone before handing it to her in his outstretched arm.

"I took it along with me when I saw it sitting at the bar's counter just before we left. Because I noticed it was in front of you when you left it there, pet. I had just forgotten to hand it over to you a while ago since so many things had been happening."

Eva took the phone back from him hesitantly, a little worried if he would pull a trick on her. Then she immediately flipped it open to give it a quick check.

After turning on her phone, it immediately started ringing. Notifications for messages continued ringing one after another, telling her – and Gage – that there were tonnes of messages that had come in while her phone was turned off. Listening to the constant ringing of her phone's notifications it surprised her as she had not expected any calls or texts to be coming for her. Then her ringing tone sounded. Looking down at her phone screen, she saw that it was her secretary calling.

Eva stared at it for a few seconds, not knowing how to react. Then she looked at Gage and politely excused herself. "Sorry, I need to pick this up."

"Go on." Gage replied casually and waved his hand, indicating him not minding her taking that call.

Eva walked to a corner of the kitchen and swiped across her phone. "Yes, May? What is –" before she could finish her sentence, her secretary cut her off on the other end.

"Oh my god, ma'am! You're finally answering your phone! Where are you? Did you see the news? The commotion it stirred up on social media is fanatical!" May did not give her anytime to respond and blurted out everything at one go, sounding so relieved that she finally managed to get to her boss.

Eva frowned to herself. What commotion was her secretary referring to? "Slow down. What do you mean by commotion? My phone was turned off the whole time, so I have yet to check the news."

The secretary exclaimed. "My god! Boss!! I'm talking about your announcement! You even made an announcement that you have officially stepped down as CEO last night, effective immediately!"

Eva's eyes widened as her secretary's voice was still ringing in her ears. All the anger that she felt yesterday until last night was coming back. "I never made any announcement." She bit out. Her tone was cold and sharp, sounding as blades that would draw blood to whomever it was directed to. "I didn't step down! They…"

"I know, Boss. But now rumours are already spreading that the real reason why you submitted your resignation is because you have been found guilty of fraud and misconduct! My god! I'm not sure of what to do anymore, ma'am! My phone is ringing off the hook from the reporters that are trying to get an inside scoop on this. Where are you? Please tell me. I can come get you." Her secretary rambled on.

Eva's grip on her phone tightened until her knuckles turned white. What? Fraud? Misconduct?!

She ended the call without answering and quickly browsed through the messages in her phone inbox and skim read all the texts asking her if the rumours were all true. Her fingers started to shake.

Her phone rang again but this time, she did not bother to answer it. Her shaking just became stronger until the phone fell from her hand.