Chapter 17 Restrictions #3
Her response came almost immediately.
"Right? I thought so too. I knew you'd like it."
The excitement in Juliet's voice brought an unconscious smile to Cassian's face.
The tension that had been sitting on his shoulders throughout the meeting eased slightly as he listened to her, his attention drifting further and further away from the presentation playing on the screen in front of him.
"Look, what about these ones?" she asked.
A second later, several photos appeared on his screen.
The moment the first photograph loaded, Cassian's heartbeat faltered.
His fingers loosened around the phone so suddenly that it almost slipped from his hand. He caught it at the last second and stared at the screen, his body going completely still as his eyes locked onto the image in front of him.
Juliet stood inside a fitting room, smiling brightly at the mirror while showing him one bikini after another.
She looked completely unaware of the effect she was having on him, posing naturally as she snapped pictures and sent them to him as casually as if she were asking him to choose between two dresses.
Cassian swallowed hard.
Then another photo arrived.
And another.
Soon his phone was filled with pictures of Juliet trying on different bikinis, each one making it harder for him to focus on anything else.
His jaw tightened slightly as his gaze moved from one image to the next.
The meeting room, the executives around him, and the discussion worth billions of dollars gradually faded into the background until all he could see was her.
"Does this one look nice?" Juliet asked.
Several more photos appeared before he could even answer.
Cassian leaned back in his chair and slowly dragged a hand through his hair, releasing a quiet breath as he tried to regain some measure of self-control. It was a hopeless effort. Every time he thought he had recovered, another photograph would appear on his screen and completely ruin it.
On the other side of the call, Juliet lowered her phone and turned toward the mirror again, studying her reflection. She shifted slightly from side to side before smoothing her hair over one shoulder and looking at herself one last time.
"Which one looks best on me?" she asked. "Which one should I buy?"
The question immediately made the smile on his face deepen.
Only a few minutes ago, he had been completely focused on business, listening to reports and discussing company matters. Now every thought in his head revolved around her. What amused him most was that Juliet wasn't asking anyone else's opinion. She was asking for his.
His choice.
His preference.
For some reason, that simple realization filled his chest with a warmth he couldn't quite explain.
His eyes drifted back to the photographs again, lingering on them longer than they probably should have before he finally lifted the phone to his ear.
"You look good in every outfit," he said honestly.
Juliet laughed, clearly pleased with the answer.
"Good. Then I'm buying all of them."
Cassian couldn't help smiling.
"And I'm putting them on the card you gave me because I'm not that rich yet. So you might get a very big bill under your name, Mr. Han."
The playful teasing in her voice only made his smile widen further.
"I'll survive."
Juliet laughed again, the bright sound warming something inside him.
"Okay, I'm heading home now. Bye-bye. I'll see you at home."
Before he could say anything else, the call ended.
Cassian lowered the phone slowly, still looking at the screen.
A few seconds later, another notification appeared.
It was a red heart emoji.
His gaze settled on the small heart.
For a long moment, he simply stared at it.
The corners of his lips lifted again, and despite every attempt to stop himself, the smile remained. Just moments ago he had been discussing business worth billions. Now a single heart from Juliet had completely destroyed his ability to think about anything else.
Eventually, he lifted his head.
The room had gone silent.
Every executive at the table was staring at him.
Some looked shocked.
Some looked confused.
Others looked as though they were questioning their own eyesight.
After all, nobody had ever seen Cassian Han smile at his phone like this before.
Cassian glanced around the room calmly before making a small motion with his hand.
"Continue."
His voice was as composed as ever, but the smile lingering on his face remained impossible to miss.
The presentation resumed immediately, yet the atmosphere in the room had changed completely. People exchanged subtle looks while pretending to focus on their documents, and by the time the meeting ended, whispers had already begun spreading through the company.
The news traveled from one department to another at unbelievable speed.
Their boss had a girlfriend.
Not only that, but she could make the cold and intimidating Cassian Han sit through an entire executive meeting smiling at his phone like a man hopelessly in love.
Within an hour, the rumor had spread throughout the entire company.