CEO's Runaway Mate and Her Cubs

Talking about business wasn't easy at all. Yet, Lara could reply to generic questions and express her opinion without much effort.

Nate felt proud for having her by his side, and he didn't need to look for topics for a conversation because she could talk about anything not very specific.

It was a relief, for he feared she was actually shy. Her solemn expression while asking for clarifications and thinking about the answers was so beautiful and charming.

She had started college, after all. She left it midway, but she must have collected some of the knowledge needed to deal with business.

Even if Lara had the vice to underestimate her capabilities, with such a stubborn and believable conviction at that, she had enough wits to keep a conversation going even if not at the same level as an expert.

Moreover, she was having fun. She liked parties, and she liked people. In the end, bringing her there wasn't such an awful decision: it was a risk he was glad he took.

When the conversation drifted to a topic Lara had no interest in, she quietly stood next to Nate. She listened, sometimes pretending to be following, but she didn't add anything anymore.

LY Corp worked in many fields, from clothing to services. Being a company to host werewolves, most of the business was taken care of in the headquarters. Still, there were a couple of subsidiaries - run by humans - who would bring some stable profit to the mother company.

Samantha and the other agents were responsible for contacting the clients and sometimes even suppliers or transport agents. The factories producing the goods were scattered in different areas. Nate and his team had made sure everyone was satisfied with the working conditions and benefits so that no one had any reason to come to the headquarters and complain or ask for more.

Everything was arranged so that humans wouldn't have any reason to visit the building, except for stakeholders, who would be welcomed by a trained team.

«Your high-end clothes are getting more famous each day, Mister Woods. By the end of the year, at this rate, you'll enter the top ten companies in the luxury clothing market.»

«Oh, we don't aim that high,» Nate chuckled. «We're more focused on middle-tier and cheaper layers of materials for now. We have four factories and seven facilities for sewing the clothes. Producing luxury items does not require so much manpower and infrastructures.»

«I've heard you were going to enter the tech market as well, but voices are confusing. What is it that you'll start producing?»

Nate shrugged, wondering how gossip could be faster than his own decisions.

«I was considering wearable devices.»

«To keep in contact with the clothing industry? So that you can merge the two in the future and create something new and unexpected?»

«That's a possibility.»

While the conversation proceeded, Lara touched Nate's arm and showed him her empty glass.

«I will be right back,» she said before turning and reaching the bar counter.

The barman was serving another couple, so she patiently waited for her turn.

«How could I help you, Miss?»

«A sweet sunrise,» she said.

It was the same cocktail she was drinking when she met Nate for the first time. Except that it had Tequila... The Tequila sunrise was one of her favourite cocktails, and she hadn't had one in years. Since she didn't drink anymore, she had opted for the virgin version - without the Tequila.

«Yes, sure!» the barman said, starting to mix the ingredients.

He was distracted by the arrival of a group of young couples, everyone with a different order.

It took him a few minutes to hear everyone's preference, and he returned to Lara's cocktail.

«I'm sorry for the wait, Miss,» he said, delivering the glass to her.

Ice filled half of it, and the liquid at the bottom had a vivid orange, almost red colour. On top it was lighter, reminding of a real sunrise.

«No worries,» she said with a smile. She turned back to reach Nate, but she was stopped by a couple of strangers.

Everyone - literally, everyone! - at the party came together with a partner. Whether they were married couples and fiancés or just friends, Lara did not know. Still, she understood why Nate would bring Samantha along.

It made him blend with the crowd, as much as not noticing him was an option. Still, she knew from experience that he would always attract attention, especially from newspapers and curious guests.

«Hello, Miss,» the woman said. «You're here with CEO Woods; what a surprise!»

«Hello,» Lara replied. She observed them, waiting for their names. They had approached her, so they should tell theirs before she could say hers.

They felt a little familiar, though. Had she seen them somewhere?

«We were just wondering what kind of woman could entice Nathaniel Woods... No ill meant, just curiosity,» the man said.

Something in the way he moved his arms, the way he talked, suggested he was assuming Lara knew who they were. The woman was not as obvious, but she also hadn't introduced herself yet.

«May we know your name?»

«Yes, of course,» she said. «But I'd like to know yours first.»

She sipped her cocktail, too focused on the two to actually feel any taste. She looked at them with calm, pretending to have no hurry to reach Nate.

She wasn't just as easy to intimidate, she thought with a grin. Still, the two were weird rather than intimidating.

They observed her with wide eyes, wondering if she was playing with them. Was she pretending not to know them because of her high status as Nathaniel Woods's woman?

«I am Michael Clarke, and this beauty by my side is Katy Dixon. We are models, Miss. Soon, we will sign an endorsement with the LY Corp. How come you don't know about us?» the man explained.

The woman rolled her eyes. Not only were they going to sign that contract, but they were the hottest topic in the entertainment circle.

«Oh, is that so? My name is Lara Clayton.»

She would have liked to say something else, but she didn't know what to add.. In the end, she had only her name to herself.