Open in App for a smoother reading
Free preview · Faster loading · Save to library
The Boss's Jealous Game
When my boss took me to meet a major client at an upscale private lounge, the last person I expected to see was my own brother, wearing that infuriatingly smug grin.
He patted the seat next to him, asking me to sing him love songs, critiquing my outfit, and trying to get handsy with me.
The devil in me couldn't resist. I started flirting shamelessly with my brother, completely oblivious to my boss's darkening expression.
When my brother went to the restroom, I asked innocently, "Boss~ Did I do well? I'm pretty good at client entertainment, right?"
My boss looked like he was about to crack a molar. "Since you're so good at entertaining, why don't you just go home with him tonight?"
When my brother returned, I leaned against him with a coquettish smile. "Mr. Jiang~ I'd love to come to your place tonight."
My brother's face fell. "Damn! How did you know Mom made chicken soup tonight?"
When my boss came back from his phone call, he stared at the empty private room. "...What?"
Midnight.
I woke up from my chicken-soup-induced food coma to find 99+ messages on my phone.
"Ivy Jiang, I was JOKING. You actually went home with him?!"
"Get back here! Or don't bother coming to work tomorrow."
"Just kidding, you're very capable. I've decided to give you a raise."
"Are you just looking for a sugar daddy? Fine, cards on the table—my dad's the richest man in this city. I'm better looking than him AND I have a six-pack. Come be with me instead!!!"
"WHERE ARE YOU?? TEXT ME BACK!!!"
1
Before I pushed open that heavy door to the upscale lounge's private room, the atmosphere between Ethan Quinn and me had been... complicated.
Before we left, he'd been characteristically concise: "Close the deal with the Jiang Corporation heir, and your bonus doubles."
I'd nodded in agreement, but my mind had been on something else entirely.
Lately, Ethan's gaze lingered on me with an intensity that was hard to miss.
During meetings, his attention stayed on me longer than anyone else.
And I'd be lying if I said I didn't have my own ulterior motives.
So when I saw the man lounging on the sofa with his legs crossed and that irritating smirk—and realized the Jiang Corporation heir was none other than my own brother, Alex—a devious plan instantly formed.
Though I had no idea why my brother was so eccentric that he'd conduct business meetings in a lounge.
But whatever. I might as well roll with it and see if Ethan actually cared about me.
Alex clearly spotted me too, shock flashing in his eyes.
Ethan had just started introducing me: "Mr. Jiang, this is one of our key employees, Ivy Jiang. Let's discuss the project first. We have several excellent proposals—"
Alex waved his hand dismissively, cutting him off and patting the seat beside him.
"No rush."
He spoke in that flirtatious tone I'd heard my whole life, the one that always made me want to punch him.
"Well, well... this young lady is quite beautiful. Come sit next to me."
I got it. This jerk was planning to roast me alive.
Fine. Bring it on.
Who could out-roast whom? Not you, bro.
I immediately plastered on a sweet fake smile and sat down beside him, completely ignoring Ethan's instantly darkening expression.
"Hello, Mr. Jiang~"
Alex pushed his luck, lifting my chin to examine my face. "Dressed so lightly—aren't you cold? Young people these days need to take care of their health."
I dodged "shyly" while keeping my smile fixed. "Thank you for your concern, Mr. Jiang. I'm not cold at all."
Internally, I'd cursed him out a thousand times.
Just then, I heard a sharp, barely audible crack—the sound of knuckles being clenched.
I glanced at Ethan. He was staring down at his whiskey, his profile a study in cold, hard lines. His jaw was clenched so tight it could've been carved from stone.
That mischievous impulse inside me surged to life.
"Mr. Jiang, let me sing you a song~"
I stood up, my voice dripping with sweetness as I deliberately drew out my words. "What would you like to hear?"
As I went to select a song, I could feel two gazes boring into my back.
One playful. One ice-cold, practically piercing through me.
I deliberately chose a sickeningly sweet old love song we used to listen to as kids.
When I turned back around, Alex was clutching his stomach, his shoulders shaking suspiciously as he stood up with a twisted expression.
"You two chat. I need to hit the restroom... Haha... It's urgent."
He practically fled, clearly having reached his limit trying not to laugh.
Once he left, only Ethan and his oppressive aura remained in the room.
I immediately sidled up to him, close enough to catch the crisp scent of his cologne mixed with barely suppressed anger.
"Boss~"
I tilted my head and blinked. "How did I do? I'm pretty good at client entertainment, right?"
Ethan whipped his head toward me so fast we were almost nose-to-nose.
His voice came out through gritted teeth, laced with barely controlled fury. Those dark eyes swirled with emotions I couldn't quite read.
"Since you're so good at entertaining clients, why don't you just go home with him tonight?"
Oh boy.
The jealousy was strong with this one.
Just as I was about to fan the flames further, Ethan's phone vibrated.
He glanced at the screen, his brow furrowing instantly. He looked at me with a complicated expression, then at Alex, who was humming cheerfully as he returned.
Finally, with extreme reluctance, he grabbed his phone and strode quickly out of the room, his face grave.
Alex came back and resumed his spoiled playboy persona, lazily settling back beside me.
I turned slightly, lowering my voice to a volume only he could hear, tinged with complaint and intimacy. "Had enough fun yet? Did Mom call again?"
Alex's devil-may-care expression froze instantly, like someone had hit pause.
He blurted out instinctively, "Damn! Yeah, Mom made chicken soup tonight!"
He completely forgot his act, forgot about the project, forgot about everything.
Like a reflex from childhood—like when he'd drag me home to do homework—he grabbed my wrist with urgent familiarity.
"Quick, quick, quick! We gotta go! If we're late, Dad's gonna finish it all!"
His movements were smooth as butter as he grabbed my bag and practically dragged me toward the door.
Meanwhile, Ethan returned from his phone call to find himself alone in an empty private room, frozen in place.
2
That night, Ethan absolutely bombarded my phone.
Scrolling through the screen full of exclamation points, I could practically picture him grinding his teeth in helpless frustration.
But I simply put my phone on silent, shoved it under my pillow, and happily finished my second bowl of Mom's chicken soup.
Honestly, I'd fought tooth and nail to get into Ethan's company, famous for its brutal hours and equally brutal paychecks, just to prove something to my annoying brother and my dad.
I, Ivy Jiang, could thrive without the family money.
Sure, Ethan's cold demeanor froze me out daily, but considering the salary and growth opportunities?
Totally worth it.
The next day, I pretended I hadn't seen those 99+ messages.
I deliberately brought the chicken soup Mom made in a thermos to the office.
"Wow, Ivy, that soup looks amazing!" Lily from the neighboring cubicle leaned over, her eyes full of envious stars. "Mr. Jiang is so sweet! You just met last night and he's already sending you breakfast? Is this the start of some fairytale romance?"
I unscrewed the lid, releasing the rich aroma of chicken soup throughout the office.
Taking a deep breath, I replied in a voice just loud enough for the entire office to hear: "Oh yes, Mr. Jiang said I worked so hard entertaining clients last night that he had his housekeeper wake up early to make this for me."
An icy gaze immediately stabbed into my back like a knife.
I didn't need to turn around to know who it was.
That familiar oppressive atmosphere belonged to none other than Mr. Quinn himself.
"Ivy Jiang."
Ethan's voice came from behind me, cold as a winter storm.
The air around us instantly went silent.
Lily immediately shrank back into her cubicle, pretending to work intently.
I slowly turned around, wearing an impeccable professional smile.
"Good morning, Mr. Quinn."
He completely ignored my greeting.
Those bloodshot eyes bored into me, fury practically erupting from them.
He walked up to my desk step by deliberate step.
"SLAM!"
A thick folder crashed down on my desk with a deafening bang.
Everyone in the office flinched.
"Since Mr. Jiang is so considerate of your hard work..." Ethan enunciated each word like he was forcing them through his back molars.
He leaned down, getting close, his voice dropping low but somehow even more threatening.
"You must be full of energy today."
As he spoke, his eyes locked onto mine like he was trying to see straight through me.
I could practically feel the jealousy and hurt radiating from him.
For a moment, I felt a pang of guilt and wanted to tell him the truth. But I was too greedy, too addicted to watching him jealous over me.
The next second, he ruthlessly shattered my fantasy.
"That abandoned project from last week that nobody wanted? You're taking it over. I want a complete, fully revised feasibility report by the end of today. If you can't finish it, don't bother going home."
The entire office fell deathly silent.
Everyone looked at me with pity.
That project was infamous—a death trap. Anyone who touched it regretted it. It had been rotting for almost two years.
A complete feasibility report in one day?
Even a miracle worker would shake their head at that.
This wasn't just making things difficult. This was a straight-up execution.
My smile froze on my face.
Oh, so that's how it was.
Playing dirty now, huh?
3
I took a deep breath and picked up the heavy folder, hugging it to my chest.
Then I looked up, meeting his furious gaze, and smiled even sweeter.
"Of course, Mr. Quinn. I'll get it done."
I paused, then deliberately lifted my thermos. "Good thing I had Mr. Jiang's love soup! I'm bursting with energy! One report? I could do two, no problem!"
Ethan's chest heaved violently. His jawline was clenched so tight I thought it might snap.
He glared at me like he wanted to devour me whole, desk and all.
Finally, he forced two words through his teeth: "Very good."
With that, he spun on his heel and strode toward his office.
"SLAM!"
The CEO's office door slammed shut so hard the entire glass wall rattled.
Nobody in the office dared breathe.
Meanwhile, I calmly sat down, unscrewed my thermos, and took another sip of that delicious chicken soup.
Mmm. Perfect.
I looked at that closed door, feeling my heart soften unexpectedly.
Those bloodshot eyes and dark circles under his eyes had been real.
I pulled out my phone and texted my jerk of a brother: "This is all your fault! My boss is about to lose it. He gave me an impossible assignment!"
Alex replied instantly: "Aww, worried about him? Want big bro to help?"
"Get lost! I'm not worried! I just don't want him dying before he can sign my paychecks! ...But you did work on something similar to this project before, right?"
"Hold on..."
Ten minutes later, an encrypted file of industry insider data and analytical models arrived in my inbox.
Attached message: [You're welcome. Gotta help take the fall for my future brother-in-law.]
[Shut up.]
Despite my words, my hands were already honestly digging into the materials.
I knew Ethan demanded quality. I couldn't half-ass this with garbage.
But my brother's data was genuinely a lifesaver.
4
The next day, the moment I stepped into the office, I knew something was wrong.
The air reeked of impending doom.
The receptionist saw me and frantically made eyes at me, her lips exaggeratedly mouthing, "RUN!"
Everyone kept their heads down, even their typing sounded cautious.
The entire company was so quiet it felt like a funeral.
I understood immediately.
Ethan's dark mood had descended over the entire office like a thundercloud.
I calmly walked to my desk, set down my bag, and opened my computer.
Before I could even settle into my chair, the desk phone rang.
Ethan's emotionless voice came through. "Ivy Jiang. Conference room. Now. Bring your proposal."
When I entered the conference room, it was already full of department heads.
Ethan sat at the head of the table, his expression darker than the lounge lighting from the other night.
His entire being radiated a "stay away" vibe.
I distributed my proposal and began