Capítulo 45: Auction
Blocking the sunlight from her sight, Selina squinted as she woke up from her sleep. The warmth of the sun heated up her palms as her mouth stretched for a quick yawn. Turning her head sideways, she felt the heavy weight on her hand.
Blinking, she shifted her position to take a look at the edge of the bed where Jason was sleeping on his arm. His hand was linked to hers, refusing to let go.
Last night, after she had fallen asleep, he tried prying her fingers open one by one. Unfortunately, every time he managed to get up to her pinky, her other fingers would go back to squeezing his hands. At the end, he surrendered and decided to sleep by her side.
Since he didn't want to wake her up nor scare her in the morning when she sees him sleeping next to her; he resorted to leaning his head on his arm on the side of the bed.
Selina stared at the peaceful sleeping face in front of her. A soft smile appeared on her face as she slowly removed her hand from his grip. Taking her pillow, she slowly slid it under his arm and head for better support. Then, she took a small blanket and covered it over his back.
Quietly, she moved out of bed and went to freshen up. When she came back, he was still asleep. She snuck out of the room, into the kitchen and started preparing breakfast. From her memories, they should have a few eggs and some chicken left. That was enough for her to make something out of it.
By the time she had finished making breakfast, Jason was already awake. He was surprised to see the empty bed at first, but that feeling drifted away as his stomach growled at the delightful fragrance coming from the kitchen. Out of habit, he rearranged the pillow and blankets before freshening up.
In the middle of brushing his teeth, Aaron gave him a call informing him about an auction that seemed suspicious to him. Within seconds, an email notification popped up on his laptop. With the toothbrush in his mouth, he clicked into the email and started scrolling through the attachments.
His squinted eyes observed the artwork on the screen as his fingers zoomed into the photo. 'Isn't this artwork...'
Aaron asked, "Boss, have you seen the email I just forwarded you? One of the artworks looks very similar to the style Selina paints. Whether if it is the colors of the paint or creativity; everything matches with her works. I also forwarded a picture of her artwork submitted for the national contest where she won the Mystic Fairy nickname."
Clicking into the following email, Jason started brushing his teeth again. "Too similar. Have you researched about the person behind this artwork? The bidders are anonymous, but I want a name."
"I've already sent our investigation team on it. In an hour or two, we should be able to figure it out. On the other hand, this whole thing seems a bit fishy. Normally, it would be easy for me to find out who the bidders are. For some reason, this person made precautions and eliminated any tracks tracing to himself. The information provided to the auction was all fake."
Jason listened to Aaron's perspective of the situation while he compared the paintings to see whether the product put for auction was authentic. After a few minutes, he spotted something similar between the two pictures. Moving quickly to the bathroom, he gurgled and washed his face.
Once he was done, he remained on the call as he walked to the art studio to take another look at her new work. His eyes darkened mysteriously and a smirk appeared on his face. 'Just like I thought..'
"Bryan will definitely attend the auction. Reverse the track and find out who received the auction invitations. See if Bryan's email is a part of the list. If so, he will definitely show up." Jason instructed.
Within a few minutes of continuous keyboard tapping noises, Aaron reported his finding. "Boss, as you have assumed, Bryan is part of the recipients. From the records, it shows he already opened the email attachments."
"Okay. Inform me once the bidder's identity is found. Gather the guards and have them prepare for the upcoming mission. Bryan and his friends must remain safe. Nobody can lay even a strand of their hair. Let the guards know I will soon give them further instructions." Jason stuffed his hand into his pocket as he exited the art room.
The moment he stepped out, he saw Selina peeking into her room and slowly tiptoeing inside of it.
"That's all for now." Jason hung up the call and silently walked behind her. Inside her room, she looked at her tidied bed and opened bathroom door while rubbing her chin. Tilting her head slightly, she scratched her head.
"Mm... he's not in his room. Not in my room. Where could he be?" She asked out loud without noticing he was standing right behind her with a silly smile on his face.
"Looking for me?" He asked after clearing his throat.
"Wahhh!!" Startled by his voice, she hopped forward a few steps like a bunny. She turned around to catch him holding back his laughter at her half squatting position. Her cheeks flushed as her hands covered her ears.
"Hahahaha~" His soft laughs escaped his mouths, making her rush to his side to cover his mouth.
"No laughing!" She pursed her lips as his laughter muffled against her palm. The sensation of his warm breath moistened her palms, tickling her.
"Hehe.." A small giggle left her mouth as she bit on the lower lip to prevent herself from following his laughs.
"S..Stop laughing or I'll laugh too! Pfft.."
Bending his arm upwards, his hand covered hers and slowly pulled it away from his mouth. As her fingers loosened around his cheeks, their eyes maintained eye contact. Their crescent moon shaped eyes smiled along with their laughter.
It was the first time he had laughed over nothing, but it was blissful. After a while of silliness in her room, Selina wiped a few tears from her eyes and asked, "What were we laughing about again?"
He shrugged, "Don't remember."
"Pfft, how could a CEO have poor memory?" With their fingers intertwined, she started leading him downstairs for breakfast.
"I usually don't have poor memory." He said.
"Oh? Really?" She blinked at him innocently.
"Mm. Only when you come into the picture that all my principles collapse." He nodded sincerely without a hint of joking on his face.
"Hahahha, then I'm the one at fault? Should I take responsibility or something? Pffft." She didn't catch the meaning behind his words as she continued speaking.
"Mm. Good thing you know to take responsibility. Since you offered, I can only comply with your request." He chuckled as he followed her to the dining table.
"Uh huh~ Eat your breakfast! You have to go to work soon." Selina cheerfully removed the cover on the plates, revealing the breakfast she made for two.
He took a seat across from her and smiled at the colorful breakfast. "I know you like art, but I didn't know you make vibrant meals too."
"Hehe~ Eat~ Eat~ We need to do grocery shopping when you come back later." She happily poked her sunny side up egg and watched the egg yolk spread all over her toast and chicken. The fresh tomatoes from the side added color to the breakfast.
After he had taken the first bite of the meal, she smiled. "Well?"
"Mm.. Very good." He noticed she had finished her grape tomatoes already and started placing his share on her plate. From his past observations, she eats her favorite foods first.
She looked at the grape tomatoes rolling on her plate and then at him. "Do you not like tomatoes? It's really sweet. Try one!" Rolling the tomato onto her spoon, she extended her arm and fed it to his mouth.
Nodding, he agreed with her comment on the tomatoes. "Very sweet."
"Right?" She continued eating her breakfast. Once again, she didn't catch the meaning behind his words. When he complimented the sweetness of the grape tomato just now, he was looking at her.
Buzz
Aaron's caller ID flashed on Jason's phone screen...
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