One Night with the Cold CEO

"Honestly, when you're doing it with a guy for the first time... it literally feels like dying, coming back to life, and then dying all over again."

"It was just so embarrassing. Neither of us even dared to move!"

On the night of their high school graduation party, Chloe Bishop overheard a group of female classmates huddled in a corner, whispering about losing their virginity. Her face instantly flushed bright red. Her fingers curled tightly around a hotel key card.

Her boyfriend had given her the card through her younger half-sister.

She wasn't naive. She knew exactly what it meant.

That night, to build up her courage, she drank until she was thoroughly tipsy before stumbling up to Room 909 and pushing the door open.

The moment she stepped inside, a large, warm hand clamped around her wrist and yanked her onto the king-sized bed.

She remembered how impossibly broad and powerful that hand had felt-how effortlessly a single palm pinned both of her wrists above her head. It was completely unlike Liam, whose lean, youthful frame was all she had ever known.

In the haze of the night, his broad shoulders, sculpted back, and raw, overwhelming force left her breathless, unable to even wrap her arms around him. Every touch, every movement blew right past her innocent, inexperienced imagination.

Only one thought echoed through her mind:

Those girls lied to me.

The whole "dying and coming back to life" part was real enough, but what did they mean neither of them dared to move? This man wasn't hesitant at all-he was ruthless!

Dazed, drunk, and completely exhausted, a random line she had read somewhere floated into her mind: Raw strength is the line that separates a boy from a man.

When she woke up the next morning, she didn't find a boy. She found a man-a fully grown, breathtakingly handsome, imperious man with broad shoulders and endlessly long legs.

Panicking, she gathered her clothes and fled.

It was only later that day that the cruel truth unravelled: her half-sister had set her up. Her boyfriend broke up with her on the spot, and under the combined manipulation of her stepmother and half-sister, her own father disowned her, throwing her out into the cold.

Five years flew by in the blink of an eye.

Chloe Bishop returned to the country with her five-year-old twins. But she never expected that on her very first job interview, she would run into a man who looked like the spitting image of her eldest twin, Adrian.

Sitting in the CEO's office, the man possessed the kind of breathtaking, timeless looks that could stop traffic. His features were deep and carved, and his eyes were dark and icy as a frozen mountain lake-sharp enough to see straight through a person's soul with a single glance.

"You're a fashion designer by trade," the man said smoothly. "Why are you applying to be my executive secretary?"

Even sitting back casually, he exuded the aura of an absolute monarch, heavy and suffocatingly intense.

Chloe had heard that Xavier Grayson, the head of the powerful Grayson Corporation, was surprisingly young for his position. But seeing him in the flesh was still a shock. Who could have imagined that the ruler of the city's-and the entire nation's-business world would be a man this young, and this devastatingly handsome?

What unsettled her most, though, was his face. He looked too much like Adrian.

No-to be precise, Adrian looked like a miniature version of him.

She desperately tried to recall the face of the man from five years ago, but her memory was a blank. As panic began to set in, she suddenly remembered a piece of gossip she'd overheard from the female staff while waiting downstairs for her interview: word on the street was that the CEO suffered from a hidden medical issue.

Right, a medical issue. That meant he couldn't be the man from that night.

Because if there was one thing she distinctly remembered about that night... it was that the man was more than capable.

Chloe let out a quiet sigh of relief.

Xavier Grayson lifted his head. The moment his gaze locked onto her clear, resilient eyes, his heart unexpectedly skipped a beat.

For some reason, that look in her eyes felt strangely familiar... as if he had seen it somewhere before.

Before Chloe could answer, the man's younger brother, Samuel Grayson, hurriedly cut in.

"Big Brother, just because her degree is in design doesn't mean she can't be a great secretary! Besides, those actual secretarial majors we hired before were totally useless anyway! Degree doesn't matter!"

He leaned in, his voice taking on a desperate, almost tearful tone. "The main thing is, she's already a mother of two! She definitely won't harbor any inappropriate feelings for you! The new executive secretary we poached from America won't be back for another two weeks anyway. Just make do with her for half a month, okay?"

Samuel Grayson was practically begging.

Over the years, he had lost count of how many secretaries he'd hired for his older brother. And every single one had been fired for the exact same reason-trying to hit on the boss.

He spent every month tearing his hair out trying to find new candidates. When he saw Chloe applying for a designer role today and realized she was already a mother, he decided to bring her up on a whim just to test the waters.

To be honest, Chloe didn't really want to be a secretary either; she wanted to work in her actual field.

However... the money was simply too good to pass up.

Sixty thousand Dollars for just half a month. With two hungry little mouths to feed at home, why on earth would she say no?

Xavier Grayson retracted his gaze from her face and let out a low, deep, "Mm."

Hearing his brother actually agree, Samuel Grayson almost broke down in tears of relief.

Meanwhile, the corner of Chloe's mouth twitched.

What does he mean, 'make do with her'? I'm a human being, not an appliance! She had graduated from a top-tier university and won awards in international young designer competitions, thank you very much!

"Come on, follow me out," Samuel said.

"Alright." Chloe immediately plastered on a professional, polished smile and followed him out of the main office.

"This will be your workspace."

Samuel Grayson led her to the executive secretary's room. It was located right outside Xavier Grayson's office, close enough that she could rush in the second he called. Directing her gaze straight ahead, she noticed a floor-to-ceiling glass wall, though the blinds inside were drawn shut, hiding the main office from view.

"Samuel, if I may ask, what are my general day-to-day duties?" Chloe asked attentively.

Since her background was in design, she had zero experience handling executive secretarial work.

"Honestly? As long as you don't get fired by my brother and survive these two weeks until the new secretary arrives, you've done your job!"

The corner of Chloe's mouth twitched again. Was the word "survive" really necessary?

She could already picture how chaotic the next half month was going to be.

"Once the new secretary arrives, can I transfer back to the Design Department?" she double-checked.

Samuel Grayson nodded without a second thought. "Of course! I'll personally fast-track you back into Design!"

Chloe nodded, her resolve hardening. "Understood."

For the sake of the paycheck, she could endure anything!

Samuel Grayson called over a senior staff member to walk her through the daily workflow. It didn't take long for Chloe to realize that every single item on her task list revolved entirely around Xavier Grayson.

And the man was insanely high-maintenance.

"Every morning at ten and every afternoon at two, prepare a fresh cup of coffee for President Grayson. No sugar, no cream, and the temperature needs to be kept at exactly seventy degrees Celsius."

Chloe jotted every detail down in her notebook, secretly rolling her eyes at the coffee temperature requirement.

What a nightmare of a boss.

"President Grayson dislikes being disturbed. If a name isn't explicitly on the daily schedule, no one is allowed to see him."

"If President Grayson works late and needs to stay overnight at the office, you must call the restaurant in advance to order his dinner..."

"Um..." Chloe raised her hand, breaking in carefully. "Excuse me, but if my shift ends, how am I supposed to know whether President Grayson is staying overnight at the office?"

The staff member gave her a look reserved for the hopelessly dense. "If President Grayson hasn't clocked out, do you honestly think you get to leave early?"

Chloe: "..."

"Got it." It seemed overtime was going to be her new best friend for the next two weeks.

After rattling off a dozens-long list of rules, the staff member gave her one final, stern warning.

"Most importantly, President Grayson dislikes women. Please make sure to maintain a distance of at least one meter from him at all times."

"Understood." Chloe nodded in comprehension.

It all makes sense now, she thought to herself sympathetically. He's a big-shot CEO with a secret medical condition... Since he can't get it up, he must feel insecure and resent women altogether! How tragic.

After giving her the breakdown, the employee turned on her heel and left. Chloe Bishop sat down at her desk and began familiarizing herself with the work layout.

Suddenly, the landline on her desk rang.

Chloe picked up the receiver. "Hello, how can I help you?"

Her clear, sweet voice traveled straight into Xavier Grayson's ear through the receiver.

It was soft and soothing, like a gentle spring breeze sweeping across a quiet lake, sending faint ripples through his heart.

"Coffee."

With those two clipped words, the line went dead.

Chloe froze for a second before snapping back to reality. She glanced at the clock and realized it was ten in the morning on the dot.

Right, this is an internal extension! The only person who could possibly call this line is Xavier Grayson! To think she had just asked who was calling-she felt absolutely brain-dead.

Knocking a fist lightly against her head in frustration, Chloe scrambled out of her chair and rushed to the breakroom.

The breakroom was pristine and spotlessly clean. Sitting on the counter was an exquisite, high-end espresso machine. Even the coffee beans were imported Panamanian Geisha-one of the most expensive coffee varieties in the world. Sipping a cup of this was basically the equivalent of drinking liquid gold.

After carefully brewing the coffee, Chloe brought the cup back and headed toward Xavier Grayson's office.

Knock, knock, knock.

"Come in," the man's deep voice echoed from inside.

Chloe took a deep breath, adjusted her posture, opened the door, and stepped inside.

"President Grayson, your coffee."

She walked over to his desk and set the cup down.

The man's eyes remained glued to the computer monitor in front of him. He reached out, picked up the cup, took a sip, and immediately knit his brows.

"It's cold."

Chloe stiffened. Remembering the seventy-degree requirement she'd been warned about, she was sure she had timed it as closely as possible.

"I'm terribly sorry. It's my first day, so I'm not fully accustomed to the setup yet and misjudged the temperature." She offered a polite, respectful apology.

"Make another one," the man said casually.

Chloe blinked in surprise. She had assumed that since it was her very first attempt, he would at least make do with this one. She never expected him to order a total do-over.

This man is unbelievable! How can anyone be this high-maintenance?!

"Yes, right away, President Grayson. Please wait a moment."

Back in the breakroom, Chloe carefully estimated the temperature and brewed a fresh cup before returning to his office.

Plastering a polite smile across her face, she set the cup down.

"President Grayson, your fresh coffee."

Xavier Grayson took a sip, then set it right back down. "Too hot."

"It'll cool down if you let it sit for a moment-"

"That ruins the flavor profile. Brew another one." Xavier Grayson spared her a brief glance before turning his attention right back to his screen.

"..."

In all her years on this earth, Chloe had never met a man so insufferably picky!

For the sake of sixty thousand Dollars, I will swallow my pride!

With a smile on her face and a string of curse words running through her head, she chimed, "Of course, President Grayson. Please give me a moment while I prepare another cup."

Returning to the breakroom for the third time, she used her two failed attempts to meticulously calculate the water temperature as she brewed a fresh batch.

She lightly touched the side of the cup to test the heat.

This has to be right, doesn't it? It's not like I can carry a thermometer around to test his drink every single time!

Carrying the fresh cup back inside, a picture-perfect professional smile brightened her clear, delicate face. "President Grayson, your coffee."

Xavier Grayson took a quiet sip.

Chloe watched him with bated breath, her body tense.

After swallowing the sip, the man set the cup down without saying a single word.

Chloe let out a quiet sigh of relief. Just as she turned to leave, his deep voice cut through the silence.

"Prepare the materials for this afternoon's meeting and bring them to my office."

Chloe had seen it on his schedule: there was an executive board meeting scheduled for two in the afternoon.

The problem was, she had just started today! She had no idea which files he needed!

Then again, when the CEO gives an order, who would dare say no?

"Understood, President Grayson."

With a polite nod, she hustled back to her desk and threw herself into work.

Before she knew it, lunch hour had arrived. A staff member from a local five-star restaurant personally delivered Xavier Grayson's lunch, pushing a sleek dining cart down the hallway.

The deliverer was a handsome man in his mid-twenties.

"Hello, are you here with the lunch delivery?" Chloe stood up and walked over, introducing herself smoothly. "I'm the new executive secretary, Chloe Bishop."

"Ah, hello. I'm the CEO's special assistant, Ubba."

Chloe blinked. Since he already has a full-time special assistant, why on earth did he need to hire an executive secretary too?

"Secretary Bishop, I'll have to trouble you to bring his lunch inside. Just head back in after half an hour to clear the dishes."

"Sure, no problem."

Ubba offered a polite nod before turning and making his exit.

Chloe pushed the dining cart up to the heavy double doors and knocked softly.

"Come in."

Those same two terse words echoed out. Even though it wasn't her first time hearing them today, they still carried a strange, suffocating pressure.

"President Grayson, your lunch has arrived."

Xavier Grayson gave a brief grunt of acknowledgement.

Assuming her task was done, Chloe left the cart near the entrance and turned to leave. Out of the corner of his eye, Xavier Grayson noticed her movement and instantly frowned.

"You expect me to eat like this?"

Chloe paused, her mind blanking for a second. Panicking, she tentatively probed, "Do... do you need me to hand-feed you?"

Xavier Grayson's gaze snapped directly onto her face.

If any of his previous secretaries had dared to ask such an absurdly dense question, he would have fired her on the spot.

Yet, looking straight into those clear, innocent doe eyes-eyes that practically screamed I am genuinely confused-Xavier Grayson pursed his lips tightly.

"Move it to the dining table."

Only then did Chloe realize there was an actual dining set arranged in the corner of the room.

Can you blame me?! This office is so massive you can't even take it all in with one glance!

She walked over and lifted the silver cloches covering the dishes. The moment she saw the meal spread out before her, she gasped inwardly.

This man's dining habits are ridiculously lavish.

When she returned half an hour later to clear the dishes, Xavier Grayson was already back at his desk, buried in work.

What an absolute workaholic, Chloe muttered silently to herself.

Just in the nick of time, she finally managed to put together all the required documents right before the meeting was set to begin.

Chloe hurried into the office with the stack of files. "President Grayson, here are the materials you requested."

Xavier Grayson glanced at the desk clock. "From now on, hand them over at least half an hour before the meeting starts."

"I'm so sorry, President Grayson. Today is my very first day, so-"

Chloe instinctively apologized with a flawless attitude.

"I don't need excuses," the man interrupted, his voice completely devoid of emotion.

To Xavier Grayson, things were binary: you either got the job done right, or you failed. He cared only about results, never explanations or excuses.

If it weren't for Samuel Grayson's begging, he would have fired her for a blunder like this ages ago.

"Understood. I will make sure it doesn't happen again," Chloe replied quickly.

She knew how the corporate ladder worked-superiors only cared about the end result, not the sweat and blood it took to get there.

Once she exited his office, her schedule finally cleared up for a moment. Sitting down at her desk, she pulled out her personal phone and sent a quick message to the phone she'd left at home.

[Adrian, Sara, have you guys eaten lunch yet?]

A reply came back almost instantly, consisting of just two words:

[We ate.]

It was unmistakably Adrian's work.

Her eldest son was a boy of extremely few words. If he could wrap up a thought in two words, he would never bother using a third.

Seriously, who on earth did he inherit that trait from...?

Knowing it had to be from Sara, Chloe Bishop turned down the volume, lowered her head, and held the phone close to her ear to listen discreetly.

"Mommy, we already ate lunch! Brother made it! He cooked grilled cheese sandwiches with tomato soup, mac and cheese with bacon bites, or scrambled eggs and buttered toast ... burp~"

She let out an adorable little hiccup before continuing, "Mommy, what did you eat for lunch?"

Chloe obviously wasn't going to tell them she hadn't eaten yet, so she typed back: [The cafeteria here serves amazing food, and Mommy ate a ton! Don't worry about me.]

"You gotta work hard and keep going, Mommy! Brother, don't you want to cheer Mommy on?"

Adrian's cold, aloof voice sounded from the other end. "No way." So childish.

Chloe could practically picture the disdainful scowl on her son's face as he uttered that cold "No way."

"Fine, then Sara will cheer Mommy up! Energy beam attack-pew, pew, pew! Did you get it, Mommy?"

Chloe's heart melted into absolute mush. "Mm-hmm, Mommy received all of it!"

Swoosh!

The office door swung open out of nowhere.

Like a kid caught red-handed doing something bad, Chloe instantly snapped her spine straight and turned toward the door in total sheer horror.

Xavier Grayson's imposing figure emerged from inside.

Though she had crossed paths with him several times today, this was the first time she was seeing him standing at full height.

He was tall and impeccably built, his long-limbed frame wrapped in an expensive, high-end tailored suit. With classic golden-ratio proportions, he had to be at least six-foot-one.

Standing up, he radiated an even more suffocating pressure, like an unshakable mountain peak. Simply by standing there, he seemed to look down upon the entire world.

The moment he stepped out, Xavier Grayson caught Chloe's panicked little movements, though he didn't call her out on them.

"To the conference room," he instructed, his words as brief as ever.

Chloe scrambled to respond, "Yes, sir!"

Gathering her notes, she followed right behind Xavier Grayson into the elevator.

Even though the spacious elevator only held the two of them, Chloe felt completely suffocated. The aura radiating from this man was simply too overwhelming; being trapped in a tight enclosure with him felt like the air itself was saturated with his dominance, making her heart race involuntarily.

At five-foot-five, wearing two-inch heels put her on the taller side for a woman. Yet standing beside the six-foot-one Xavier Grayson, his towering, powerful frame made her look delightfully petite by comparison.

Chloe stole a quiet, subtle glance up at him.

From her angle, she could only see the sharp, sculpted lines of his profile-a face so drop-dead handsome that it lacked a single flaw.

To think that a man this handsome, tall, capable, and ridiculously wealthy-the ruler of a mega-conglomerate worth hundreds of billions, standing at the absolute top of the city's food chain-was actually...

Dysfunctional down there.

Chloe felt a pure, genuine pang of sympathy.

Ah... God really is fair after all. He never lets anyone have it all. He gave this man everything, only to take away his most essential capability as a male.

Tsk, tsk, tsk... How tragic.

The very next second, Chloe's eyes collided directly with the man's downward glance. A cool, pressing voice fell over her from above:

"What are you thinking about?"

Xavier Grayson was more than used to people staring at him, but the way Chloe had just looked at him was completely different.

In her eyes, he had actually caught a faint trace of... pity?

She was feeling sorry for him.

Chloe snapped out of her daze with a violent jolt and yanked her gaze away. She hadn't expected to get caught red-handed stealing a look at him! In an instant, every hair on her body stood on end from sheer anxiety.

If he found out what she was actually thinking, she might as well pry open the elevator doors and jump straight down to save him the trouble of firing her!

"I..." Chloe's mind raced at breakneck speed, desperately cobbling together a cover story.

"I was just thinking... how can a man as perfect as you exist in this world, President Grayson?! You've managed every single good thing in life purely with your face! Anyone who says the stars are pretty clearly hasn't looked into your eyes! Getting to live a single day with a face like yours would mean dying with zero regrets!"

Xavier Grayson, suddenly hit with a wall of shameless flattery: "..."

Noticing the man's skeptical look, Chloe suddenly recalled what Samuel Grayson had said earlier-that every single former secretary had been fired for harboring inappropriate feelings for the boss.

He wouldn't think I'm hitting on him, would he?!

Driven by an absolute, desperate urge to survive, she hurriedly added, "Please rest assured, President Grayson! I have zero romantic interest in you whatsoever! I am already a mother of two children! If I ever harbor even a single drop of inappropriate intent toward you, you can fire me on the spot!"

Honestly, she had zero interest in men these days-she was only interested in making money!

She was going to cling to that sixty-thousand-Dollar paycheck for these two weeks with a vice-like grip!

Xavier Grayson paused for a second.

This woman... looked so youthful and pure that he constantly kept forgetting she was already the mother of two children.

What unnerved him, however, was the fact that this was the very first time in his entire life a woman had explicitly told him she didn't have a single drop of interest in him-and he could actually feel that she meant every word.

She wasn't playing hard to get; she was being entirely serious.

This was supposed to be something that pleased him-he had finally found a secretary who would focus purely on her work.

And yet, for some strange reason, a tiny, unexplainable flicker of displeasure stirred deep within his chest.