Nodding, Evelyn gestured to Sara to proceed who then headed to discuss the outlay of the project. The employees were engrossed in noting down the details trying their best to get brownie points from their CEO. But they failed to notice the discomfort that her new partner was giving her with his stares.

Masking her annoyance with a blank look, Evelyn shifted in her chair. She would sometimes fiddle with the pen, scribble in her notepad, or would stare at the screen in front of her. Something which could hint to the man that he was making her uncomfortable. But no matter what she did, the man continued boring holes in her face.

The man was none other than Xander Knight.

Peeved, Evelyn shot a squint eye at him but he was unfazed. His red-rimmed eyes, clenched jaw, throbbing veins, and dark face were enough for one to run for hills.

Evelyn didn't know that Xander was the businessman with whom she was going to collaborate for this billion-dollar deal otherwise she would have canceled the project beforehand.

Swallowing her rage, she quickly broke eye contact and looked away. But she failed to notice the yearning and sadness hidden behind his counterfeit anger.

Soon the meeting ended. Evelyn after going through all the details and doing the complete analysis finally decided to give her decision.

"This project will definitely bring revolution in the market as firstly it's novel, secondly it will fulfill the flaws of the infrastructure sector that had always been a concern for the engineers and businessmen and thirdly, it will give rise to a new relationship of the two most powerful companies. Am I right Mr. Knight?" She chirped and looked at Xander for an answer only to earn a deadly silence.

Her employees shared a worried and confused look. Giselle, Xander’s secretary gave Evelyn an apologetic look before nudging his elbow.

Her action even caught Evelyn off guard but Giselle remained unbothered. Getting no response, she again leaned towards him but froze after earning a death glare.

Xander then shifted his eyes back to Evelyn who was staring at him with a scowl.

“Relationship? What do you even know about them, Ms. Clarke?”

His reply stunned everyone present in the room except Evelyn who kept watching him emotionlessly.

Scoffing, he grabbed the file from the table before tossing it on the floor.

"Breaking old ties just to establish new ones is your thing, not mine."

*****

Sitting on the bed with tired eyes, Evelyn adjusted her glasses before checking the presentation which her secretary had mailed to her.

"Mmm. But she hadn't attached the reports of last month, also the charts of stock prices are missing. They have to be added to show the performance of the company or else we'll miss this deal."

Talking to herself, she eyed every detail making sure not to leave any imperfections behind. The deal was important for her company. After all, she had waited for months to grab this opportunity. She had worked day and night just to get hold of this milestone.

"Yup. Now it's perfect." Smiling proudly, she saved the files and closed all the windows.

Heaving a deep breath, she turned off her mac before placing it on the nightstand. She then took off her spectacles and grabbed a scrunchie to tie her hair.

“Tomorrow is going to be a big day.”

Stretching her arms, she got inside the covers and was about to turn off the lamp when her phone pinged.

“Ahh!! What is it now”, she groaned and reached out to her phone before turning it on.

She immediately sat up as soon as her eyes read the message.

"Close your windows sleepyhead before I do the honors for you."

Her breath hitched. With the speed of light, she turned her neck to check the windows only to find the glass panes open.

"What the hell?"

Tossing the blanket with her legs, Evelyn jogged to the window and peeked outside. A gasp escaped her mouth as soon as her gaze landed on the brown-haired man who was staring at her with a wide smile etched on his handsome face.

"Brandon?"

*****

Stabbing the fork deep in the meat, Evelyn twisted it before shoving the crumbled pieces in her mouth. Theodore eyed her actions with a displeased look but was she to be blamed? He gave a last glance at her annoyed expression before shifting his eyes to the man who was responsible for irritating her date.

The man dressed in black from head to toe was watching them with a fiendish smile. Theodore gaped at his audacity as he wasn't a bit ashamed of his actions. Glaring at him, he shifted his eyes back to Evelyn who started wiping her lips with the napkin.

"If you're uncomfortable, let's go somewhere else." He spoke softly and tried to grab her hand but before he could do that, Evelyn stood up and grabbed her purse.

"I am getting late. See you later. And yes, thanks for the dinner."

She spoke hurriedly and stormed out of the cafe not giving him the chance to speak.

Theodore clenched his fists and stood up. He was furious with Evelyn's behavior. Pushing the chair back with a thud, he stormed towards the man who was watching him with an evil smirk.

"Dylan Black. Who do you think you are? How dare you harass my girl?" He growled and lunged to hold his collar but a painful grunt left his mouth when Dylan kicked him in his shin making him fall flat on the floor.

Exhaling a loud sigh, he then uncrossed his legs before placing his elbows on his knees. Leaning forward, he tsked at Theodore’s disoriented state making him shoot daggers his way.

"You love to learn things hard way, pal." Dylan mused as he gripped his collar and with a jerk pulled him to himself. Theodore was taken aback but all the color got drained off his face when his eyes met with his blazing psychotic ones. The humor was long gone in them and was now replaced with sheer rage and a tinge of craziness was also visible in them.

"First of all, she isn't your fucking bastard. She's mine, my wife, my Evelyn. Secondly, you made a grave mistake by asking her hand for marriage. And thirdly, you're going to pay for that. Right now." Growling he jerked him aside and shot him a feral grin.

Theodore was no doubt scared but he continued glaring at him. But the moment his eyes fell on the shining metallic gun that Dylan removed from his pants, he staggered back in shock.

“W-WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING? YOU FUCKIMG RETARD, PUT THAT THING DOWN, THIS INSTANT!!”, He screamed in fright and tried to move back but was held back by his men.

Removing the safety, Dylan aimed the gun straight at his forehead making him cry for his dear life.

"Any last words, pal?"

*****