Chapter 48: Office Play
Asher Keating grabbed her wrist, stopping her. He looked into her eyes and smiled. "We slept together? Is that it?"
Madeline Sterling’s face paled. Although Asher Keating was smiling, she could see that his eyes were void of warmth, as if coated in a thin layer of ice. Just as she was about to speak, the door was thrown open with a BANG by Ethan Shaw.
"Asher! I just saw some people from your company..."
A dead silence fell. Asher Keating and Madeline Sterling looked up at the doorway. Standing there were not only Ethan Shaw and Riley Sterling, but also Zion Sawyer, Todd Coleman, and a few others. All of them were staring at Asher’s hand gripping Madeline’s wrist.
Asher Keating also caught a glimpse of a fleeting figure. He frowned almost imperceptibly, then calmly released Madeline Sterling’s hand.
Zion Sawyer and the others had just finished dinner and were about to head out for karaoke. On their way out, they happened to run into Ethan Shaw and Riley Sterling. Riley almost called out Leah Sinclair’s name directly but was stopped by Ethan. Zion and Todd Coleman had met Ethan before, so they greeted him.
Ethan asked what they were doing next. Zion Sawyer replied that they were going for karaoke—not everyone, just a group of seven or eight of them. On a whim, Ethan offered to treat them and take them out.
After a brief discussion, the group excitedly agreed. Zion Sawyer even gossiped with him, asking if Madeline Sterling was inside and if they could get her autograph.
Ethan figured getting an autograph wouldn’t be a problem, as Madeline Sterling was easygoing about that sort of thing, especially with her fans, so he brought them over. Leah Sinclair had been dragged along by Zion, but the moment the door opened, she ran off. She didn’t want Madeline to see her.
Asher Keating stood up, grabbed his jacket, and walked toward the door. Zion Sawyer and the others quickly greeted him. He gave a slight nod. "You all ate here?"
"Yeah, Manager Langdon treated us today. President Keating, sorry, did we interrupt you?" Zion Sawyer asked, craning her neck to look at Madeline Sterling, who had already composed herself inside.
"It’s fine. We were about to leave anyway. What are you all doing later?" Asher Keating glanced to the side out of the corner of his eye but didn’t see any sign of Leah Sinclair. ’I wonder where she hid after running off.’
"We’re going for karaoke. Do you want to come, President Keating? President Shaw just said he’s treating and told us to go with him."
"Alright, let’s go together."
"Um... can we ask Madeline for an autograph?" Zion Sawyer asked excitedly, holding up a notebook.
"Of course, you can," Madeline Sterling replied, putting on a professional smile, her face radiant.
The group hurried inside. Madeline Sterling took the pen from Zion Sawyer and signed a series of autographs with a few quick strokes.
"Thank you, Madeline! You’re so beautiful! Even more beautiful than on TV," Leo Lawson gushed, his eyes practically sparkling.
"Thank you for the compliment," Madeline Sterling answered as she signed, a perfectly measured smile on her lips. This made Leo Lawson and the other men even more excited.
Asher Keating raised an eyebrow at Ethan Shaw. Ethan glanced around and said in a low voice, "I’ll go find her. Let’s go to Zalant later? I heard Morgan Sterling and his crew are at The Dynasty Club today. Best to avoid them."
"Okay."
"Zion Sawyer, you all follow President Keating and Mr. Sterling later, don’t any of you run off! President Shaw is going to show you a good time," Ethan Shaw shouted into the private room.
"Thanks, President Shaw!" Zion Sawyer yelled excitedly.
Once all the autographs were signed, Asher Keating had Riley Sterling take the group to wait by the entrance. They all left quickly with knowing looks on their faces.
After they left, Asher Keating turned back to Madeline Sterling and said coldly, "This ends here. Don’t bring it up again, and I might still afford you some dignity."
With that, he walked away without a backward glance, leaving Madeline Sterling tightly gripping the back of her chair.
’She didn’t know what Asher Keating meant by his rhetorical question earlier. Could it be that he knows something? Is that why he’s acting this way toward me now?’
’But it was all done so secretly back then. Morgan Sterling told me it was absolutely impossible for anyone else to know. Asher shouldn’t have been able to figure it out.’
She tried to reassure herself and calm down, but her legs still felt weak as she collapsed onto the sofa behind her.
Asher Keating was generally mild-tempered and rarely lost his cool, but when his expression turned cold, it was enough to make one’s heart pound with genuine fear.
Leah Sinclair hadn’t actually run far. She had just hidden by the door, standing with two other colleagues who hadn’t gone to get autographs.
The ones going for karaoke were a few of the younger colleagues. Mr. Langdon and the others with families had mostly left. Before leaving, Mr. Langdon told them not to get too wild, and they all promised they wouldn’t.
Ethan Shaw called to ask where she was. When she said she was right by the door, he came back. Asher Keating was just coming out as well, and Zion Sawyer was excitedly pulling Leah Sinclair over to show her the autographs.
Fearing that Madeline Sterling might come out and see Leah, causing a scene, Ethan Shaw quickly ushered them away. He was still rattled by the close call.
When they went back to the room earlier, he had been at the front and hadn’t noticed that Zion had pulled Leah along. If Leah hadn’t run off so quickly, she would have come face-to-face with Madeline Sterling.
Zalant was right next to The Paramount, only a few minutes’ walk away, so there was no need to drive. Leah Sinclair and her colleagues walked ahead, while Asher Keating and the other two followed behind.
Riley Sterling stared at Leah Sinclair’s back, asking in disbelief, "Asher, how is Leah Sinclair at your company?"
"She’s an intern there. She started even before Asher did."
Ethan Shaw passed cigarettes to both of them and lit one for himself. "Oh, and pretend you don’t know her later. No one at their company knows about her and Asher’s relationship. We don’t want to make things awkward for her."
"Tsk tsk, that’s exciting, huh?" Riley Sterling, on the other hand, looked thrilled. "Some office play?"
"Get lost."
Asher Keating smiled faintly and lit a cigarette as well. He watched Leah Sinclair up ahead, chatting with Zion Sawyer. ’Looking at her is so much more comfortable.’ The scent of Madeline Sterling’s perfume from earlier still made him feel unwell—it was just sickly sweet.
Leah Sinclair didn’t wear perfume, but her body wash had the clean scent of fresh grass after the rain.
"Whoa!! This private room is huge! I’ve never seen anything like it! President Shaw, you’re really showing me the world." Zion Sawyer was stunned the moment she entered the room. ’You really do see new things when you hang out with the rich kids. This room looks bigger than my apartment.’
Ethan Shaw told them to sit wherever they liked, then leaned back on the sofa with a roguish look and asked, "So, are we keeping it clean or getting wild?"
"What do you mean, ’clean or wild’?"
"It means... OUCH." He was cut off by a kick from Asher Keating.
"Don’t mess around. Just order drinks."
"Alright, alright! Ladies and gentlemen, your President Keating won’t let us go all out, so tonight, we sing and we drink!"
Zion Sawyer realized what he had meant and said to Leah Sinclair with a look of regret, "Tsk, I was hoping to see some ’young masters.’ The guys who work at a place like this must be high-quality, right?"
Leah Sinclair laughed at her comment. "Why don’t you ask President Shaw to order one just for you?"
"No, no, no, I’m afraid President Keating would fire me."
After saying that, Zion Sawyer excitedly went to pick a song. The others were a bit reserved at first, but with natural extroverts like Ethan Shaw, Riley Sterling, and Zion herself around, a few songs and a few rounds of dice games were all it took for everyone to loosen up and start having fun. Asher Keating didn’t participate much, quietly smoking on the side as he watched them.
"President Keating, aren’t you going to join in?" Zion Sawyer asked, a little curious to see him just sitting there.