The Ceo’s Contract Lover

Nina’s eyes widened when she saw the watch. She had no clue how his watch got left behind.

Her fingers fidgeted nervously as she tried to gather her thoughts.

“Nina, I know he has occupied a big part of your life and perhaps your heart, too. But have you forgotten that you’ve ‘divorced’ him?” Tyler continued, with a lump in his throat.

Nina’s eyes welled up with regret. She bit her lip and finally confessed, “I… It’s not what you think.”

“And what does it make me, then?”

Since she had already decided to date him, was she still in contact with her ex-husband?

Taking a deep breath Nina explained, “It was an emergency. I’m sorry, and I understand how this looks, but please, trust me. I promise it won’t happen again.”

“I trust you, Nina. But we’ve been together for a while now. I thought we were building something special. I can’t help but feel hurt that you kept this from me.”

Nina watched the sadness etched across Tyler’s face, and her guilt deepened. “I’m sorry,” she whispered, her voice heavy with remorse.

She couldn’t shake off the guilt for not being honest with him, but she had no other option.

She had lied to him, not out of malice, but because she didn’t want the events of last night to affect their relationship. Last night had been an emergency and she couldn’t explain it to him because he might not understand her reasons.

Also, she couldn’t just turn her back on Jayden, especially when he had been in such a dire state.

Nina reached out to him but Tyler turned away and walked toward the door of her apartment.

His heart was heavy with disappointment and he couldn’t bear to stay any longer.

—

In the CEO’s office.

“Have you settled everything?”

“Yes, Master. The drug you were injected with has just been released on the black market. Its source is unknown, but our men are looking into it.”

Jayden nodded. “Good. No matter what happens, don’t let her go until I give the order.”

After escaping last night, Jayden asked his men to capture Emilia. He never expected her to stoop this low. Not only had she drugged him, but she’d drugged herself too.

Just the thought of it made him disgusted.

Since she was so obsessed with sleeping with him, his men threw her naked on the streets.

The beggars who lived on the streets were excited to see a young and delicate woman in their territory. Before they could do anything, Emilia threw herself on them and started grinding on their bodies.

With Emilia’s fate sealed, Jayden fell into a deep thought.

Amid his contemplation, the door opened with a bang.

A furious Isaac stormed inside the office, his eyes blazing with anger as he demanded. “Where’s my daughter?”

Jayden acted surprised, feigning ignorance. “How would I know? It’s not like I’m her father.”

Hearing his words, Isaac’s face contorted with anger. “Don’t play games with me, Jayden. I know Emilia is with you.”

“Before you ask me, do you even know what your ‘precious’ daughter has been up to lately?” Jayden asked, his tone icy.

Isaac’s confusion deepened. “What are you talking about?”

Jayden proceeded to lay out the details of Emilia’s actions. As he spoke, Isaac’s eyes widened in shock. “She would never do such a thing!” He said in disbelief.

“It’s your choice if you want to believe,” Jayden said, his lips curling into a mocking smile.

“Tell me, as the ‘dignified’ heiress of the Moore family, isn’t she ashamed of behaving like a prostitute who goes around drugging men to sleep with them? Is this how the Moores teach their daughter?”

His words carried no filter as he ruthlessly exposed her deeds.

Isaac, still reeling from what he had just heard, stood there, his breaths heavy and labored. His face paled as he couldn’t believe his ears.

How could his own daughter, whom he had nurtured and watched grow, commit such a heinous deed? The weight of the revelation hung over him, pressing down on his heart with an unbearable force.

“I understand what Emilia has done is wrong, but she’s my only daughter. Tell me where she is.” Isaac clenched his fists in desperation. No matter what she did, as her father, he couldn’t abandon her.

But, Jayden’s resolve was unyielding. “Isaac, I’ve already told you, it’s not time yet. I’m handling the situation, and when the right moment comes, she’ll return home.”

“What do you want, Jayden?”

Jayden’s face hardened as he enunciated each word. “I want to ensure that Emilia faces the consequences of her actions. And if you don’t want to implicate the entire Moore family, you better stay out of it. Once I’m done avenging, I’ll return her to you.”

Isaac’s patience had worn thin, and he felt cornered. “I’ll ask you one last time, Jayden. Take it that I’m begging you. Where is Emilia?”

But all he received was an eerie silence.

“Fine. Since you don’t want to open your mouth, I have no choice but to make a move on your ex-wife. She’s your weakness, Jayden. I know you care about her the most. If you don’t cooperate and tell me where my daughter is, I’ll make sure Nina pays for your silence,” Isaac threatened.

A dangerous glint flickered in Jayden’s eyes the moment his words landed.

Leaning forward, his voice contained a chilling warning.

“Isaac Moore, on account that we’ve been friends for many years, I’ll let your threat slide just this once. But if you so much as breathe in Nina’s direction with ill intentions, I won’t hesitate to make your life a living hell. And I swear on my life that you and your entire clan, including your wife, Alaina, will pay the price for any harm that comes to Nina. You know very well how far I’m willing to go to protect what’s mine.”

Nina was his absolute bottom line. He had worked tirelessly to shield her from the dangers that swirled around his own life. But, if anyone dared to challenge his resolve, he was ready to move heaven and earth to protect her.

Isaac, taken aback by the menacing look in Jayden’s eyes, felt a chill run down his spine. He knew all too well that Jayden wasn’t the type to make idle threats.

As the tension thickened, realization dawned on Isaac. The young man had defeated him without even putting up a fight.

Faced with such helplessness, Isaac briefly closed his eyes. When he opened them again, his gaze bore into Jayden. “This isn’t over,” he declared. “From this point onward, the Luxtons and the Moores will be enemies.”

With those words, Isaac turned on his heels and left Jayden’s office without further explanation or negotiation.

Jayden was unfazed by his threats. “Like I care.”

Rick, who stood beside him, thought for a moment and asked. “Master, should we increase the security?”

Jayden shook his head. “He won’t dare.”

As soon as he finished speaking, a sharp pain shot out of Jayden’s chest.

Jayden’s face turned ashen, and he clutched his chest. Cold sweat dotted his brow, and his breathing became labored.

Jayden’s sudden bout of pain startled Rick. He rushed to his boss’s side. “Master, are you alright? What happened?”

Then, just as suddenly as it had come, the pain subsided, and Jayden’s complexion returned to normal.

Clenching his fists, Jayden took a few deep breaths, trying to regain his composure.

“Should I call for a doctor?” Rick asked.

Jayden let out a shaky breath and shook his head, “I’m fine,”

—

Nina’s heart skipped a beat as she swung the door open and found Jayden standing there. Panic surged within her, thinking that someone had drugged him again.

“You…” she began, however, before she could say another word, Jayden brushed past her, taking a seat at the kitchen counter.

“Hey, that’s my food!” Nina called him out in exasperation as she watched Jayden take bites from her plate.

“I’m hungry.” He said. “I haven’t eaten anything since last night.”

Nina couldn’t help but roll her eyes. “Then you should go home. Have the chefs at Meadow Residence stopped serving you food?”

Her irritation became more evident as she continued. “Also, why do you keep coming over? Stop treating this place like it’s your own. I have a boyfriend now, and he doesn’t like it when you keep showing up here all the time.”

Just hours ago, she had promised Tyler, vowing not to contact Jayden again. Yet, not even a full day had passed before he reappeared at her doorstep.

“That’s not what you said when you screamed under me last night,” Jayden said plainly.

“…”

Nina realized she couldn’t win against him.

With a resigned sigh, she gave in. “Hurry and get lost,” Despite her frustration, she couldn’t ignore his pale complexion and decided to let him have his meal.

She took a seat beside Jayden, her back facing to the kitchen counter.

As he ate in silence, Jayden kept stealing glances at Nina.

She looked as beautiful as ever, her eyes focused on her phone, her brunette hair cascading gracefully over her shoulders.

Nina’s cheeks flushed under the intensity of Jayden’s gaze. She cleared her throat, to break the awkward silence. “So, have you settled the scores with the person who drugged you?”

Jayden nodded, a hint of seriousness in his expression. “It’s taken care of, and it’s probably best if you don’t go into the details,” he replied.

He didn’t want her to witness the darker side of his life, to prevent her from getting scared.

“Why not? You seemed pretty confident about Emilia previously. What happened suddenly?” Nina could not help but say sarcastically. “You did not even trust me.”

Jayden leaned back in his chair, his gaze focused on her. “It’s not that I didn’t trust you. Though I have to admit, you were right about her. I should have listened to you from the beginning.”

Nina raised an eyebrow, “Do you finally regret it now?”

Jayden admitted. “I was careless around Emilia, and I let her get too close. If I hadn’t let my guard down, none of this would have happened.” He sighed with regret. “I also want to apologize for scaring you last night. It wasn’t your fault yet to have to deal with it.”

Nina fell silent.

After a while, she spoke. “Well, you did help me when I was drugged, so I guess we’re even now.”

The room fell into silence once again.

Seeing that Jayden’s plate was almost empty, Nina refilled his bowl again, her actions guided by instinct.

As she looked at the filled bowl, she paused, realizing what she had done.

A flicker of annoyance crossed her face as she realized she had acted on instinct, just like they had when they were married.

Old habits die hard, and in that moment, she was reminded of the life they had left behind.

After Jayden finished eating, he wiped his mouth elegantly and looked at Nina. “Do you really not want me to visit you?”