Cursed Boss: Stay Away From Me!

Valerie Reese awoke with a frown. Groaning in discomfort, she rolled over, and her hand landed on something warm. Only then did she realize that a man was sleeping next to her.

With clenched teeth, she sat up and flipped on the nightstand light. Beside her, the man sighed deeply out of frustration.

The dim light from the lamp illuminated his bare back as well as the side of his face.

Valerie crept to the closet, changed, and returned to the bed's edge, where she reached out to gently touch the man's back.

"Mr. Layfield, it's already six in the morning. You have a meeting at seven-thirty."

The man swatted her hand away and growled hoarsely, "Go away!"

Valerie, who had long since gotten used to his temper, got to her feet with an air of nonchalance.

Quietly, she made her way downstairs to the kitchen to prepare some breakfast. Without waking the man, she finished her food and left the house. She then took a cab to the company.

During the day, she worked as the chief secretary of Edwin Layfield, the CEO of the Layfield Group. At night, she was his bed partner.

Valerie arrived at the company and soon got everything ready. Her gaze remained icy as she waited for Edwin outside the conference room. Everyone who walked by her spoke to her in a respectful and fawning tone.

Two minutes before the start of the meeting, the CEO's exclusive elevator chimed.

Valerie breathed a sigh of relief but remained rooted in her spot.

Edwin's towering stature of about 6.5 feet contributed to his authoritative demeanor and he always had a stone-cold facade that made him appear untouchable.

When compared to him, Valerie's height of 5.5 feet suddenly seemed somewhat diminutive.

Edwin ignored her completely, as though the man who had sex with her the night before was someone else entirely.

The meeting lasted for quite some time. Valerie had to leave in the middle of it to go to the secretary's office and order breakfast for Edwin.

She was scanning the menu when her fellow secretary, Marisa Kendall, walked up to her and asked, "Valerie, have you checked Mr. Layfield's afternoon schedule?"

Valerie looked at her with furrowed brows. "Is there something wrong?"

Marisa made a clicking noise with her tongue and murmured softly, "Later, Mr. Layfield is scheduled to have dinner with Brent, the president of SHINE Corporation."

It took a while for Valerie to remember who Brent was.

Brent Clark was well known for his tendency to sexually harass female employees. There was even one time when he drugged another company's secretary and forced her to sleep with him. Rumor had it that he also tried to harass Edwin's aunt, Ivanna Layfield, before.

Edwin always took one of his secretaries with him to business dinners. Because the others were reluctant to go with him, Marisa approached Valerie to ask her about it.

"Don't worry. I don't think Mr. Layfield will take any of us with him," Valerie said nonchalantly.

As soon as she was done speaking, someone opened the door to the secretary's office. A colleague stuck her head in and looked around until her eyes landed on Valerie.

"Valerie, Mr. Layfield wants to see you."

Valerie promptly completed her order and left the secretary's office without changing her countenance.

She had been Edwin's secretary for five years. Not long after she joined the company, they had sex in the lounge, marking the beginning of their odd arrangement. She had dealt with several difficult clients over the past few years, but he had never asked her to engage in shady activity.

When Valerie entered his office, Edwin did not even look at her. He continued signing documents as he instructed, "Get ready. You're joining me for dinner tonight."

Valerie froze.

When she still did not respond, Edwin finally raised his head and looked at her with a frown. "Valerie?"

Valerie snapped out of her reverie and finally replied, "Yes, sir."

The man threw a folder at her and demanded, "How long have you been working for me?"

She did not know why he was asking that, but she nonetheless answered, "Five years."

"You've been working for me for a long time, so you should know your place by now. Do your job properly, will you?"

"Of course, sir."

Valerie left the office with a straight face. Her hands were cold and trembling.

It seemed that Edwin had gotten tired of her and was looking for an excuse to give her to another man.

She went back to the secretary's office, where she snacked on grapes all afternoon. Before the office hours ended, she stuffed a dagger in her bag.

If Brent drugged her, she would stab herself to wake up.

The sky had already gotten dark outside. Valerie got up when she saw Edwin come out of his office. The other secretaries gave her sympathetic glances.

As soon as he was seated in the car, Edwin closed his eyes to rest them. Then, he said, "I was informed by HR that you had checked the employment agreement two days ago."

Valerie's heartbeat sped up, but she maintained her composure. "I can't remember the exact date I started working here. I need it to update my residency status."

Edwin opened his eyes and looked at her profile, smiling slightly. "I thought you didn't like working for me anymore and were planning to resign."

"No. It was an honor to be your secretary."

Valerie fought to stay calm, but her thoughts were a jumbled mess.

Edwin said nothing more, but her heart continued to race.

She was indeed planning to resign and leave. Recently, working for Edwin had never been more challenging, and she decided that the best course of action was to resign as quickly as possible.

Five years ago, she wanted nothing more than to be his wife, but she knew now that it would never happen.

"We're here, Mr. Layfield."

Valerie was snapped out of her train of thought when the car stopped in front of the Grandness Hotel.

The manager of the hotel had some staff wait outside the establishment so that they could welcome them as soon as they arrived.

After she had collected herself, Valerie accompanied Edwin to the elevator. She pushed the button for the top floor where they could see the night scenery through the massive French windows.

When the elevator doors opened, Valerie was immediately hit with the offensive odor of someone's perfume.

Brent had light brown hair and green eyes, and the collar of his shirt was unbuttoned. He approached Edwin to give him a hug.

However, Edwin stepped to the side to avoid his arms.

Then, Brent's attention focused on Valerie.

His eyes lit up in an instant. He grasped her hand and remarked, "Edwin, what a lovely lady you brought here."

Brent's hand then slid up to Valerie's arm.

Valerie resisted the need to run away by clenching her teeth and bearing through the nauseating experience.

Edwin showed no more reaction than a little frown before walking inside as though he did not see what Brent was doing to her.

Brent took this as encouragement and draped an arm over Valerie's shoulder.

With her smile not leaving her face, Valerie tried to get away from him but failed.

She tried to catch Edwin's eyes several times, but the man ignored her each time. From time to time, he would respond to the gushing praise of the executives who accompanied Brent.

Everyone sat down, and Brent settled across from Edwin with his arm still on Valerie. "Edwin, I want your secretary. How much should I offer to poach her from you?"

The atmosphere became a little awkward. The executives at the table studied Edwin's face, dreading lest he should take offence.

Valerie's hands began to clench unconsciously.

"Her?" Edwin cocked an eyebrow as he stared at Valerie. "She's been working for me for five years. I don't think she'll settle for a small amount of money."

Understanding dawned on everyone's faces.

Edwin had probably gotten tired of her.

Suddenly, everyone was smiling lecherously.

Valerie inhaled deeply before meeting Edwin's cold gaze.

When Brent leaned in to kiss her, she turned her head to the side.

Edwin's eyebrows shot up at this.

"Let's drink first, Mr. Clark."

Forcing a smile, Valerie poured wine into a glass and handed it to Brent.

Everyone watched them quietly, intrigued.

Brent laughed in delight and took the glass of wine, purring, "You're a sweet one, aren't you?"

Valerie's grin broadened under Edwin's intense gaze. When Brent emptied the glass, she refilled it.

"Please drink more."

The men around them hooted as Brent downed the liquor without hesitation.

Then, Valerie deliberately spilled wine on his clothes.

"Oh! I'm sorry! I'm so sorry!"

Valerie kept apologizing, her face flushing in embarrassment.

Instead of getting mad, Brent grabbed her wrist and said, "It's fine, honey. It's just a shirt. I'll just change in the lounge. Why don't you come with me?"

Valerie did it to distract him, but she had no idea that the bastard would ask her to go to the lounge with him.

She turned to Edwin in panic.

"Oh, do you need your superior's permission first?" Brent reached for Valerie's chin before looking at Edwin with a playful glint in his eyes.

Without batting an eye, Edwin reclined in his chair and sipped from his wine glass.

"You ruined Brent's shirt, so you should go help him,"

Edwin declared without hesitation.

Valerie clenched her jaw tightly.

Before she could completely register Edwin's response, Brent wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her up from her seat.

She was surrounded by men, all of whom looked at her with scorn in their eyes. None of them showed any intention of helping her.

A wave of nausea washed over Valerie before she was pulled out of the room.

"Come on, honey. You should relax. I won't hurt a beauty like you."

With his hand around Valerie's waist, Brent dragged her into the private lounge.

The waiter that was inside scurried away in a flurry.

Brent pushed Valerie further into the lounge and went after her with his lustful eyes.

He brought his face towards her, aiming for her lips, but Valerie skilfully turned her face away.

After leaving a sloppy kiss on Valerie's cheek, Brent grunted impatiently and caught her hands. Looking up at her, he brought his lips down to kiss her chest and said hoarsely, "I'm finally going to have you."

Valerie struggled to get away from him, but he was just too strong for her.

"Stop... We're... We're in a lounge..."

"That's not a problem. No one will dare to disturb us, okay?"

Brent gave her a reassuring smile, as though that had been her problem. With a sly smile, he swooped down again, sent out his long wet tongue, and swept it over her neck.

Valerie whimpered and pushed herself back to avoid him.

How could Edwin do this to her? Give her away to this nasty man like she was some sort of object.

Valerie froze, her thoughts fleeing from her mind as she felt a cold hand on...

Her bra. Oh no! He unfastened her bra without her even realizing it.

"I'll be gentle, okay? You'll enjoy it."

"No! This can't happen!"

Valerie screamed in her mind and immediately dug her teeth into the man's shoulder.

Brent gasped in shock and pain. He instinctively stepped back and cursed, "Bitch! How dare you!"

With one hand on his hurting shoulder, Brent went to kick her, but Valerie didn't dodge. She just sat there on the floor and murmured one single name, "Ivanna."

Brent stopped abruptly. Then he squatted to her level and grabbed her neck harshly, pulling her face close to his.

"What did you say?" he spat into her face.

"You like Ivanna Layfield, don't you?" Valerie looked past her fear and tried to act bold. She straightened her shoulders and smiled at the man that gave her the creeps from the moment she met him.

Brent stared at her intently for a moment, then suddenly burst into laughter. "What does that have to do with anything?" His face was suddenly stone cold. "She was just like you. You know, resisting and all that. But just like her, you need to be tamed."

Valerie smiled wryly and stared fearlessly into Brent's eyes. "But all you want is to have sex with her, right? You don't want anything that has to do with love, do you?"

Brent tilted his head slightly, beginning to find Valerie more interesting. "What are you saying? Can you get her for me?"

Valerie was still scared, but she pushed it to the back of her mind and said boldly, "She will be coming back to Roseiron soon, and I'm a hundred percent sure that she will pass by the Layfield Group. When she does, I'll receive her..."

"And I'm just supposed to trust you?" Brent raised an eyebrow at her after she finished explaining.

"She's my boss' aunt, the apple of every Layfield's eye." Valerie shrugged and said innocently, "Don't you think the prize is worth taking the risk to trust me?"

"I'm confused. Aren't you scared of what Edwin will do to you once he finds out about this?" Brent observed her carefully, waiting to catch any fear on her face.

Valerie didn't shy away from his stare. "It's all his fault that I'm here right now, isn't it?"

After a short moment in silence, Brent suddenly laughed out loud and clapped.

"Fine then! I'll let you go. But mind you, you won't get another chance."

Valerie let out the breath she had been holding.

Suddenly, Brent grabbed her again and pulled her into his arms, sending another surge of fear through her blood. In a dangerous voice, he whispered, "If you're lying, I promise you that I'll make you regret it."

In the black commercial vehicle outside the hotel, the driver looked at the almost drunk Edwin through the rear-view mirror. The atmosphere in the car was downright depressive.

"Sir, will Miss Reese..."

"She won't come out!" Edwin snapped, looking at the driver with his cold gaze.

"So, uh... Should we..."

"Just start the car!" It was uncharacteristic of Edwin to raise his voice, but he did.

Startled, the driver complied and was about to start the car. From the corner of his eyes, he saw a slender figure walk out of the hotel.

"Sir, there's Miss Reese."

Edwin looked out of the window in surprise and, lo and behold, it was indeed Valerie.