CEO’s Seduction Trap

“It’s rush hour, indeed hard to get one. Can I give you a ride?”

Leila sensed something off about him and glanced at the back seat of the car.

Daniel’s sudden offer to give her a ride was likely at Mason’s behest.

Awkward.

As Leila pondered, a car honked nearby.

Leila looked up to see Samuel waving at her from the car.

Without hesitation, Leila smiled at Daniel and said, “No, it’s fine. I’ll take a ride with my boyfriend.”

Leila made sure to emphasize the words ‘my boyfriend’ quite clearly.

Relieved, Daniel said, “Alright, then. I’ll head off.”

To prove she wasn’t lying, Leila didn’t wait for Daniel to drive away but simply walked off.

Daniel didn’t immediately leave. Through the rearview mirror, he watched as Leila got into Samuel’s car. He awkwardly touched his nose and said, “Leila and Samuel seem to have a great relationship.”

As Daniel spoke, he cautiously glanced at Mason in the backseat.

Mason’s voice was cold as ice. “Is that so?”

Daniel didn’t dare to respond.

On the other side, Samuel had no clue what was going on.

“You and Shirley have dinner plans tonight?” he asked.

Leila, distracted by Daniel’s passing car, replied absentmindedly, “Yeah.”

Unaware of her distraction, Samuel continued, “What are you guys having for dinner tonight?”

Leila remained silent, not responding.

Samuel, noticing her lack of response, tilted his head and joked, “What? Afraid I’ll crash your dinner?”

It took Leila a moment to snap out of her reverie. “What?”

Samuel chuckled and tapped the steering wheel. “Seems like I’m the only one here talking to myself. You didn’t even hear what I said, did you?”

Feeling embarrassed for being caught off guard, Leila replied, “Sorry, I was lost in thought.”

Samuel teased, “Work stuff?”

Leila lied, “Yeah.”

Samuel chuckled, “Don’t be so diligent.”

Leila smiled at his comment. “Would you dare say that at the office?”

As they chatted, the car arrived at Leila’s apartment complex.

Out of hospitality, Leila invited Samuel to join her for dinner. She expected him to decline, but to her surprise, he readily accepted. As they headed upstairs, he even grabbed two boxes of gifts from the trunk for her.

Seeing this, Leila remembered what he had said last time: “I go on blind dates every weekend. The first step in dating is giving gifts. My mom prepared a bunch for me.”

It seemed he had indeed prepared quite a lot.

Just as they got upstairs, they spotted Shirley standing in the hallway.

Upon seeing them come up together, Shirley’s eyes widened. “Are you two together?”

Leila replied, “No.”

Samuel chimed in, “Yep.”

Samuel teased, “We’ve pretended to be a couple before, but how come there’s no telepathy between us?”

Leila felt a bit embarrassed by his comment, “I’m not good at lying.”

With that, Leila unlocked the door and let Shirley and Samuel enter first.

Avoiding Samuel’s gaze, Shirley asked Leila in a hushed tone, “How’s your mom doing?”

Leila whispered back, “She’s doing alright. The situation is currently stable.”

Shirley grumbled, “My boss refused to give me time off. Otherwise, I would’ve come to be with you.”

Leila chuckled softly, “I know. I could tell from your phone call last week.”

Shirley paused for a few seconds before asking, “Did you find a suitable kidney donor?”

Leila didn’t hide anything and replied honestly, “Yes, we found one.”

After saying that, she added, “It was Mason who helped.”

At the mention of Mason, Shirley was momentarily speechless. After a moment, she leaned closer to Leila and said, “Leila, I can’t help but feel that Mason’s feelings for you… are not ordinary.”

Some things, even if others don’t say them, the person involved knows. They were all adults, and no man would go out of his way to help a woman without some kind of goodwill.

Leila had thought about ignoring the question, but faced with Shirley’s inquiry, she couldn’t stay silent. “I know,” she admitted.

Shirley pressed further, “So, what are your thoughts?”

Leila uttered words even she couldn’t fully convince herself of, “I’ve already made it clear to him that from now on, we’re just boss and employee. I joined The Ramirez Group to work hard and repay the opportunity.”

Shirley also understood Leila’s current situation and dilemma; she was at her wit’s end with no other choice.

With four dishes and a soup on the table, Samuel stepped forward to snap a photo with his phone and posted it on his social media.

In the back seat of the car, Mason initially planned to send a message to Leila using Daniel’s name. But upon seeing Samuel’s social media post, he leaned back in his seat, squinted his narrow eyes, and liked the post.

As Leila was in the kitchen, she sent a message to Dr. Hans, inquiring about Mrs. Patel’s current condition.

After a few minutes, Dr. Hans replied, [Currently, the situation seems stable.]

Leila asked, [If there’s a matching kidney donor now, when can the surgery be performed?]

[At least three months from now. She’ll need three months of dialysis,] Dr. Hans replied.

Leila acknowledged, [Okay, I understand.]

[Was there someone who donated the kidney?] Dr. Hans asked.

[Yes,] Leila confirmed.

[About three months from now, I’ll send you some instructions for the donor to review,] Dr. Hans said.

[Thank you, Dr. Hans. I appreciate it,] Leila responded.

After finishing the conversation with Dr. Hans, Leila headed out of the kitchen and saw Samuel’s social media post.

The first post was the photo of the four dishes and soup that Samuel had shared, with only one like from Daniel.

Leila glanced at it and suddenly remembered her previous promise to invite Daniel for a meal in Yort city. She found Daniel’s profile and sent him a message: [Have you had dinner?]

Daniel replied instantly, [?]

Leila rephrased her question, [Have you dropped off Mr. Ramirez?]

Reading Leila’s message, Mason, sitting in the back seat of the car, stretched his legs. [What’s up?] he responded.

Leila: [Do you have any other plans tonight? If not, would you like to come over for dinner at my place?]

Mason’s face softened slightly, but he still seemed guarded. [I just saw Samuel’s social media post. Wouldn’t it be inappropriate for me to come over?]

Leila reassured him, [It’s fine. It’s not just the two of us; Shirley is here too.]

Mason clarified, [Isn’t it just you and Samuel?]

Leila countered, [Nope.]

Mason’s expression eased a bit. After about half a minute, he replied, [No, it’s not appropriate for me to intrude on your family dinner.]

Receiving Mason’s message, Leila had just taken a sip of water and almost choked with laughter.

Leila was about to reply when another message popped up on the screen: [Mr. Ramirez called me at the last minute to work overtime.]

It implied that he couldn’t come even if he wanted to.

Leila didn’t know if it was true or not, but she replied, “Then let’s reschedule for another day.”

Mason responded, “Sure. I think, considering how much Mr. Ramirez has helped you, it’s only right for you to treat him to a meal.”

Leila hesitated before replying.

The next message from ‘Daniel’ quickly followed: [I’m just suggesting; the decision is yours.]

After some consideration, Leila thought Daniel made a valid point. Mason had done her a huge favor, and she should express her gratitude. After all, finding a kidney donor wasn’t something money could buy. Many patients spent three to five years waiting for a match.

Since Mason was influential, simply giving a gift wouldn’t suffice, making a dinner invitation the best choice.

After about a minute of contemplation, Leila sent a message to ‘Daniel’: [Okay, sure. Then when you both are free and Let’s have a dinner together.]

On the other end, Mason’s expression remained inscrutable. After a while, he replied, [Just treat Mr. Ramirez. I’ve been busy lately.]

Seeing the message from ‘Daniel’, Leila wasn’t sure what to reply. She couldn’t shake the feeling that something was off about today’s Daniel, but she couldn’t quite put her finger on it.

Before she could dwell on it further, Shirley brought up another topic.

“Has Hunter been in touch with you?”

“No, why?” Leila asked.