Chapter 39
Chapter Thirty-Nine
Madison
" C hallenges and Opportunities in Southeast Asia’s Renewable Energy Landscape"
“What?”
I glanced at the message and sent my response to Emma.
“This is the topic he’s giving the lecture on.”
“Wow, that sounds quite boring.”
“It is,” I replied with a smile as I reviewed my report.
“Shouldn’t you be up there on stage helping him navigate through his notes?” she asked. “And even if you didn’t have to, wouldn’t you just like to be close to him, hehe?”
This made me smile, and I couldn’t help but shake my head because no matter how much I tried to ignore her, I couldn't stop myself from talking to her.
“He’s fine. He told me not to bother; he knows how to use a clicker. He wasn’t given this company; he built it himself, and he’s had to present quite a number of slides on his own over the years to investors from all over the world.”
“Interesting,” she said while I returned to work.
I had to send the updated report on the breach and everything that had happened along the way to the entire team. It was due the previous night, and my plan had to finally get out of bed with Hunter and find a desk to work at, but several times I had tried to get up and his arm around my body pressed me right back down to the mattress. Just thinking about it now and watching him up on stage made butterflies fill my stomach.
When we were like this together, it was so hard for me to remember that he was my boss. But I couldn't forget. Forgetting was detrimental to my job, so I sighed and continued my work.
“Have you found a dress yet?” Emma's message popped up on my screen once again.
I looked at the message and thought about it. It had been on my mind ever since I had reversed the schedule that morning and realized that we had an event to wrap up the conference in a few days; it was going to be incredibly fancy, and I had been looking forward to it, especially after seeing just how excited and affected he had been by me dressing up the first time.
I replied then.
“No, I tried scouring the internet for something this morning, but then I’d have to try it on and return it if I didn’t like it, and I haven’t really seen anything that's good. Plus, I sincerely doubt anything of theirs will get past my hips, and I don’t have a sewing machine to adjust anything or know my way around getting one here.
“Wow,” she said.
“What?” I replied.
“If these were his problems, I am pretty sure you’d find a way to solve them. But because it’s yours, of course, you didn’t want to put in that much effort.”
This was true, and it instantly made me feel bad.
“Thanks a lot,” I replied, and sent a bunch of naughty smiley faces.
“My point is that you shouldn’t relent just because you have the man. I mean... this is a different environment. You’re across the world and far away from the reality of New York. This gala, I feel, is the last time for him to truly understand what he's missing by not being with you officially. Sorry, not the last time, but your last chance to show him that you’re a dream, and in my very humble opinion, you shouldn’t waste it. If you impressed him earlier on, then this is the time to blow him out of the park with how beautiful you are.”
“He sees me every day,” I replied. “I’m pretty sure he knows what I look like.”
“Exactly,” she said. “So you have to be someone else. Someone more alluring, unbelievable. You have to look like the dream he never thought he could have.”
“I don’t know exactly if I’m the dream he never thought he could have.”
“Then you better be,” she said. “You better be, and I’m the friend you have but don’t deserve, so I went ahead and found you a dress.”
I was about to shut the chat off completely so that I could focus on my work, but at her words, my eyes nearly popped out of their sockets.
“What?
“Strappy, elegant, jet black with the most gorgeous ash gradients. I was keeping it for myself for when I launched the brand."
“Send me a picture,” I said, and a few seconds later the image popped up.
I gasped.
“Right? You bought this and you didn’t tell me?”
“It was going to be a surprise; that’s how special it was to me.”
“So let it remain so, don’t give it to me. You’ll be launching your brand soon.”
“No,” she said. “I’m letting it go, and I won’t be launching soon. That damn manufacturer sent me back to square one. But it's okay. I’ll find another dress. A better dress. But this time around, you're the one who has to take drastic action and win, so I’m shipping it to you. It should arrive there in two days.”
“Oh my God!” My heart flooded with excitement and warmth. “I don’t know how to thank you.”
“I know,” she replied.
“I have some of your clothes here so I’ll use those for a little adjustment. Send the address of the hotel you’re staying at and contact information.”
I typed it all in immediately and sent them off.
“Done,” I said, and this time around the chat came to an end. I closed it and couldn’t believe how happy I felt. The last few hours and days had been put into this word, and as I recalled that we were back in Bangkok, which meant that the trip was slowly coming to an end, I couldn’t help but feel sad. But as I gazed at the dress once again, I found renewed hope because I definitely still had some cards up my sleeves. And if I didn’t, then at least on the last night, it would be unforgettable. At least I hoped it would.
A loud round of applause erupted, dampening the hushed hall. I looked up, and I could see that he was done with his speech. It had lasted more than forty-five minutes, and I knew by now that he didn’t quite enjoy it, so I was glad for him that he could return to his seat.
He told me the previous night in bed that sometimes during his talks, he had fought with just falling asleep right there, and at first, I couldn’t believe him. That was until I recalled the time I had fallen asleep standing in a club with deafening music and people packed together and rubbing on each other like sardines, yet I had fallen asleep. I believed him then.
I searched for his gaze, and I couldn’t believe I expected him to search for me and look for me.
I wasn’t too far away, and just before he returned to his seat, he found my eyes and sent me the sweetest, most subtle smile.
I lowered my head then, unable to help but blush. I hoped no one saw it, yet at the same time, I hoped everyone did. I hoped the whole world did and knew that I was having the time of my life.
Sighing, I reviewed the report once again and wondered why I hadn’t sent it yet, and that was when I recalled that it was taking forever to upload. The file was too heavy, but the internet here was abysmal. But it needed to get to New York, and I was slowly growing frustrated.
Sighing, I decided then to try sending it via email rather than uploading it to our server. Maybe that would be better.
I found the emails of relevant addresses and added them all to the send-to list. Afterward, I wrote a quick note, attached the document, and the email was sent off in minutes. Afterwards, I put my laptop away and couldn’t wait for our lunch break. We had decided to have it in one of the most critically acclaimed restaurants in the city. We were going for authentic Thai dishes this time around and not fusion foods, since our time here was coming to an end, and we couldn’t leave without properly exploring the country’s cuisines.