All of a sudden, he paused in his footsteps and added, “You should stay here. Lucas will tell you what to do.”
Lucas balked at this.
He was supposed to babysit this woman while Brettley was gone? He would rather die!
By the time Brettley made his way to the building lobby, the driver from Morrison Mansion had just pulled the car over.
Bethan opened the door and was just about to get in when someone grabbed hold of her arm.
She turned around with a frown and came face-to-face with Brettley’s chiseled face.
Bethan rolled her eyes as soon as she saw who it was. “What are you doing here?”
He sure seemed to be enjoying his meal with that attractive young woman, so why was he here all of a sudden?
“Lucas told me you came and left without saying another word, so I came to see what was happening.”
Brettley gestured for her to get in the car. “Why did you leave without saying hi?”
Bethan rolled her eyes, then got into the car and turned to shoot him a murderous look. “Well, I saw how engrossed you were in that conversation with the charming young girl and didn’t think it was my place to interrupt, Mr. Morrison.”
Then, she glanced at him out of the corner of her eye and added, “Is that your new secretary? I’ve never seen her here before.”
“Yes.”
Brettley nodded earnestly. “She’s my new secretary, and she just joined two days ago. She–“
“She had the privilege of dining with the esteemed CEO after just two days of starting work here?”
Bethan cut him off with a scoff and shot him a contemptuous look. “You’re getting more and more shameless, Mr. Morrison.”
Whether it was Cynthal or Fiona, Brettley never once allowed them into his office to have lunch with him like this.
This woman had just joined the company for two days, yet he had broken all his rules for her. Was he becoming more and more shameless, or just plain disrespectful?
Did this mean that he would go so far as to bed another new female employee when she was not around in the future?
The more Bethan thought about this, the angrier she got, so she turned her head aside to stare out the window and remained silent.
Brettley could not help feeling amused by the sight. He curled his lips into a smile, staring at her for a long time, before finally saying, “Her name is Tara Moore.”
Bethan glanced at him in disdain. “What a pretty name.”
“What I’m saying is…”
Brettley smirked, then reached out to pull Bethan into his arms. “Her surname is Moore, just like Christian Moore, Rianna Moore, and Eanne Moore.”
Bethan, who had initially been struggling against his grasp, froze when she heard this. She turned to gape at him. “Are you saying…that she’s a relative of yours?”
“Yes.”
Brettley sighed. “A few days ago when we got into that fight, I reflected on my part in this. You’re right; I failed to take your feelings into consideration, so I sent some of my men to track John down.
“According to them, John and Sammie had been to plenty of cities during these few months, with the most recent one being Jordan City, where my maternal grandfather resided.
“Therefore, I got in contact with my relatives in hopes they’d be able to help me.”
With that, Brettley pressed a kiss onto Bethan’s forehead and continued, “Although I didn’t manage to find John there, they sent Tara over in hopes that I’d be able to teach her my ways of business.”
As he said this, he gently pinched Bethan’s check playfully. “Why else would I allow her to have lunch with me in my office? It’s because she’s my cousin.”
“She’s my cousin.”
These three words rang in Bethan’s ear and seemed to make all her boiling rage disappear. She furrowed her brow, shoved Brettley away, and gaped at him incredulously. “You have a cousin sister?”
Brettley smiled, then reached out to pull her back into his embrace. “Hey, you have a brother that you didn’t know about, so why can’t I have a cousin sister too? Besides, didn’t I tell you this back in Saigen City?
“My mother and Aunt Eanne are twin sisters born into the Moore family. It’s just that both of them ended up rebelling against their family and chose to marry outside of their homes. Aunt Eanne chose to be with Thomas’ father, whereas my mother ended up with Adrian.”
Bethan could not help sighing when she heard this. “Rianna and Eanne are both decent women. It’s just sad that…”
Unfortunately, neither of them had good taste in men. Thomas’ father, Howard, and Adrian were equally sly, deceitful, and cunning.
Brettley knew exactly what Bethan was talking about even before she finished her sentence. He smirked and said, “Thankfully, I took after my mother, and Thomas took after his. The bad-father gene didn’t pass onto us.”
Then, he shifted the topic back to the Moore family. “Although both my mother and Aunt Eanne had left Jordan City, they were still a part of the family and were still related to them by blood.
“Thomas and I have three other uncles. Do you remember Christian, who came all the way to Banyan City to find you and is now still serving his time in jail? Well, he’s the son of my third uncle.
“My first uncle is already old now, and his sons and daughters have built their lives outside of the family.
“My second uncle, on the other hand, got his heart broken when he was a young man and swore not to marry. Tara is his adopted daughter. Although she does not carry the blood of the Moores in her veins, my uncle has always treated her like his own. Therefore, she’s still a part of the family and is technically my cousin.”
Bethan rolled her eyes at this. “She’s not even related to you by blood?”
“So what if she isn’t?”
Brettley gently pressed another kiss onto her forehead. “Just because we’re not related doesn’t mean I can’t talk to her or have lunch with her, right?”
He could not help reaching out to pinch her cheek once more. “Are you getting jealous of my cousin?”
Bethan pursed her lips at this. She had gotten over the fight with Brettley with Gwen’s help, and since Brettley had explained everything to her, she could not stay mad at him for another second longer.
She pouted and burrowed deeper into Brettley’s embrace, then lifted her head to stare at his chiseled face. “Who’s jealous? Not me.”
“Alright. It’s just me, then.”
Brettley gently tapped her chin and kissed her on her rosy lips, then added, “She’s been working for me for two days now, and I wanted to tell you this, but we were so engrossed in our fight that I forgot all about it. However, the truth is, she’s not suited to be my secretary.
N
Brettley sighed. “Why don’t I let her work for you as an assistant in your studio instead? Your work is more boring, so I’m sure after a few months, she’ll lose interest and decide to go home.”
Bethan rolled her eyes at him. “You’re asking me to babysit your cousin? Besides, what makes you think my work is boring? Jewelry design is fun and interesting, okay?”
Brettley was amused by this and decided to change the subject. “Well, my men have already tracked down the city John is in right now. Do you want to go check on him in secret?”
Bethan was immediately intrigued by the prospect of being able to see John and Sammie again, despite Gwen having shot down this idea of hers just a few hours ago. She bit her lip and glanced at Brettley. “Can I do that? Are you sure no one will catch wind of where they are and find them? I-“
“No one will.”
Brettley knew precisely what she was worried about. He curled his lips into a smile as he pulled her closer to him and replied, “Don’t worry. We have Tara to help us.”
Bethan froze in surprise. “Tara? What does she have to do with this?”
Brettley smiled again. “Well, the Moore family owns plenty of businesses in Sharnwick City, and that’s exactly where John and Sammie are now.
“This was also one of the reasons my uncle sent Tara over to visit us; to act as a cover-up for when we travel to Sharnwick City. That way, even if anyone intends to take revenge on me by targeting the people around me, no one would dare to lay a finger on the Moore family.
“You should come with me to Sharnwick City. We will use escorting Tara back home as an excuse to travel there, and while we’re there, I’ll secretly arrange for you to visit John and Sammie before returning.
“I promise that no one will find out about this, not even John himself.”
Bethan’s heart lurched when she heard this.
This meant that Tara’s arrival in Banyan City and subsequent employment at Morrison Group was all a part of Brettley’s plan.
It turned out Tara was just a tool for him to arrange a trip to Sharnwick City to fulfill Bethan’s wish of visiting John and Sammie in secret.
All ounce of Bethan’s jealousy dissipated when she connected the dots. She pursed her lips and gently reached out to wrap her arms around Brettley’s slender waist. “Thank you, honey.”
She rarely addressed him this way ever since her accident seven years ago, even after they settled their differences and reconciled once more.
Therefore, Brettley could not help stiffening in surprise when he heard this.
A split second later, however, he leaned down and gently pressed a kiss on her cheeks. “You’re not mad at me anymore?”
Bethan shook her head. “No more!”
“That’s good to hear,”
Brettley chuckled, “Pack your bags.
New Book: Back Home to Marry Off Myself
Loredana’s father left the family for his mistress, leaving them to fend for themselves abroad. When life was at its toughest, her father showed up with “good news” after 8 years of absence: To marry off Loredana to a paralyzed son of the wealthy Mendelsohn family.