Richard Hans stands at the pinnacle as the CEO of the billion-dollar empire, Hansla. Adored by many and envied by more, Richard has mastered the art of having everything, yet he harbors an unshakable sense of loneliness up until he met Charlotte, an intern at his company, she had caught his eye from the very beginning and now he can't bring himself to think of anything else other than her. He wants her but at the same time, he wishes to keep her away from himself and his ravaging demons because like every wealthy man, he has a cupboard of secrets that he never wants to let out.
Chapter 1 The Beginning
Richard's POV
I glanced at my watch the moment my car pulled to a stop. HANSLA stood magnificently in front, with sharp cerulean colors that reminded me of the ocean Dad used to take me to when I was young. I had specifically chosen that color, while building my company; an enterprise that has gotten me featured in Forbes Magazine, as the youngest tech billionaire to ever do it.
In all, I had my Dad to thank for this feat. Growing up, we visited the beach a lot, my Dad would hold my hand in a strong grip and we would run to the shores, tapping our feet in the wet sand. Afterwards, we would play a game of tag and then sit on a blanket not too far from the shores, so we could watch the ocean.
Dad would chatter like a magpie about his childhood, the good old days when he was a chess champion, but my favorite story of his was how he had met Mum. She passed away when I was six.
Dad described her as sassy with a sense of humor, eyes that would put one in their place, and lips that would have them jumping into her arms. He called her the moonlight in his darkness, and his face would always gleam with each mention of her name, Hannah.
Each time he spoke of Mum, I wondered what it would feel like to have someone be my home and peace.
I had smelt her perfume before I saw her, a flowery scent mixed with fresh morning dew. She flashed a smile toward my direction, but I threw my face away hastily walking to the elevator. "Emotions were a sign of weakness, and weakness would never get you where you should be," that was Dad's favorite quote. He had said it was written in a Bible Gran had given him, but I knew Dad all too well and Gran would rather crochet the whole day than quote bible verses, she had been catholic but not a devoted one.
Charlotte had me wondering from the very first day, that her muscles ached from all the smiling she did. She was an intern and had been among the company's latest recruiters. I had heard a worker call her name during break period, and it had stuck like a leech in my memory. Like a Cheshire cat, Charlotte would flash her teeth here and there each time I saw her.
"Was it a thing she did or was it a me thing?"
She was always smiling and to top it off, her dimples were beautiful. Not that I would ever tell her though. As I passed, I took a whiff of my scent, and wasn't going to let anyone pick up on me getting intimidated by the scent of flowers. And just as I had done that action, my cologne hit me, a reminder that I hadn't forgotten to wear it.
"Good morning sir," Her voice had a lilt to it. Damn! Charlotte, must you always be so happy? I walked towards the elevator and pressed the button. Pretending to have not heard her, I checked my watch. I needed a little distraction, cause I didn't want her invading my thoughts. Swiping my key card on the door, I was immediately met with cold air mixed with a flowery scent the moment I stepped into my office.
The pile of documents awaiting my approval graced the desk, while the shelves filled with programming courses, gleamed with pride. Everything stood out and so did the light dent on the swivel chair. I made a mental note to tell the maintenance to handle it.
Dropping my bag, I took a drink of water from the fridge, before a knock came on the door and in a second it was already open.
"Good morning sir, I wanted to remind you about the document you need to sign, so I can get it across to Flintpay." Fred cracked his knuckles, a thing he was fond of. He was the only one who ever spoke like this to me, in a casual way probably, it was because of the way we had started. He didn't flinch back when I was being snobbish, and he probed whenever I refused to talk.
My forehead creased and that's when it struck me. I had forgotten all about it last night. "Oh that, I will see to it."
"Ok and also, the meeting will be starting in an hour. I just wanted to remind you."
I chuckled, "Are you my secretary now?" I ran my hands through my hair.
We both laughed.
When Fred left, I brushed through the documents on my laptop, I had a few minutes and I wasn't going to waste any more time. Tuning out intrusive thoughts of Charlotte that had already begun making their way into my head, I began coding.
And just then, the alarm went off. I hurried for the documents and bolted out the door. My secretary greeted me and I acknowledged her by raising my hand. A look of surprise crossed her features and I realized what I had done.
I have always had a standoffish demeanor around my workers, didn't smile much and tried not to interact for too long either. So whenever I made even the slightest gestures, the Guinness Book of Records added a new feat.
Ignoring her, I walked towards the board room. There were already five seated in the room when I arrived, Fred had his eyes cast on me the entire time I had walked in. That man sure admired me, that I knew.
"So uh," Fred pointed towards the empty seat left, "Who has this?"
He had barely finished speaking before the door opened, and a flowery scent wafted through. I rolled my eyes inwardly.
"Good afternoon everyone." The bubbly sound of her voice filled the room. Charlotte.
I was squirming inside, Charlotte had no idea what she was doing to me, her voice was sending shock waves of arousal down my spine. I tried to think of something else, to block her out of my thoughts, or else it would end in a catastrophe and thankfully, Sandra stood to speak to her.
Chapter 1 The Beginning
20/09/2024
Chapter 2 Her First Presentation
20/09/2024
Chapter 3 Her First Sign of Love
20/09/2024
Chapter 4 Acing The Examination
20/09/2024
Chapter 5 Fighting The Thoughts
20/09/2024
Chapter 6 The Second Boardroom Presentation
20/09/2024
Chapter 7 Craving for Her-longing for her Compliment
20/09/2024
Chapter 8 The Contract
20/09/2024
Chapter 9 Visiting The Lounge -Guy's gist
20/09/2024
Chapter 10 The Sister's Little Secret Conversation
20/09/2024
Chapter 11 The presentation at Baker Tilly Technologies
22/11/2024
Chapter 12 Her Inner joy
22/11/2024
Chapter 13 Charlotte's rising fame
22/11/2024
Chapter 14 Charlotte's rising fame 2
22/11/2024
Chapter 15 The request from Good morning london
22/11/2024
Chapter 16 The Boardroom decision
22/11/2024
Chapter 17 The Heart of envy
22/11/2024
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