Downgrading Miss CEO

Chapter 11

Chapter 11:

"So Allison, what's it going to be? Are we going or am I leaving?"

I let my eyes roam over him and finally, they rested at this face, his deep dark eyes grabbing my full attention. The way they were almost pleading me to come with him, ignited something deep within me. A flutter in my stomach and a tingling feeling in my knees. What was happening to me? Was I ready to find out what these feelings meant, or was I going to bolt? Averting my gaze to the white tile floor, I deliberately avoided his gaze. I needed to avoid his gaze in order to be able to think straight.

"I will take you looking away as my cue to go. I am sorry I misjudged you based on your appearance, that was in no way fair to you and I genuinely regret it. Goodbye, Allison."

Not knowing what I was exactly doing and not knowing what I was thinking or feeling, I took a step forward to him and reached for his arm. He turned around instantly, his face showing an unreadable expression.

"I will come with you, but only for the sake of my own sanity. But you really have to promise me to let the 'daddy's princess' thing go because that certainly is not the case. And secondly, you need to stop spilling coffee all over my clothes, those coffee stains are a bitch to get out."

A cautious smile appeared on his face. "Are you serious? Or is this a joke to get back at me?"

"No joke, no catch. However, the minutes are ticking, and I have to be back at my desk in about an hour. So how about we go get something to eat. There's a great food truck a block away. It may not be very classy, but I promise you, it will be the best quesadilla you'll ever have."

He offered his hand for me to take, and after a small moment of hesitation, I decided to take it and together we walked out of the building, all the while ignoring all the stares of my employees.

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I had no idea how many times I've asked myself this, but what was I thinking when meeting up with him, or going with him after I've found out who he was? Okay, the picture on his profile wasn't all that clear, but neither was mine. I couldn't afford for people to find out who I was, let alone that I was profiling myself under a fake name. I was slowly getting stuck in my own web of lies and I had no idea how to get out of it.

The walk to the food truck was silent and therefore a bit awkward, but that was to be understood given the past meetings, or rather run-ins we've had. "So, I must admit this to be a bit weird after verbally attacking you basically every time I saw you. There was just something about you that screamed money to me. And people who come from money just don't really flow my boat if you get what I mean."

He may have finally broken the silence, but I never would've thought this was the way it would happen. It didn't happen often, but I was at loss for words. I was speechless. Basically, he told me he could never like me before he really knew me, or my story. That knowledge ignited some strange feeling deep inside me. Was it disbelief? Disappointment? I had no idea.

"Yeah, sure," I said just to say something. I had to change the subject, and I had to do it quick. "So tell me, how does someone start an advertising business and with what intentions. I mean, don't people start their own businesses to make it big? To make their stamp on the world? To make big money?"

"Most people would, in my case it's more to have something of my own, to actually have to work for something and then have the satisfaction of my hard work paying off. And I know it may seem like I'm in it for the money, and don't get me wrong, it would be amazing if it could give me enough to live a comfortable life, but I don't believe we need money to be happy. I don't believe people's successes should be measured by their salary or their position in a company." He replied.

I have always known that the subject of money can be a sensitive subject a first date, but somehow his answer to my stupid question was the best one he could give me. He literally told me he doesn't care about money, about where people stand in their career. That answer should have made me want to come clean about how my name isn't really Allison, and that I'm really a CEO instead of an executive assistant. I used to be a sensible person, and I used to know that you can not base a relationship on lies, but right at this moment, I could just not tell him.

"Are you okay?" His smooth voice broke my train of thoughts.

I looked up to him and was surprised to see his soft and caring eyes focused on mine. I had to look away in order to prevent him from seeing the blush on my cheeks. What was wrong with me? What twenty-six-year-old woman would blush when a guy was genuinely looking at her?

"I am fine, I was just in my own head I guess. It is a busy time at the office and a lot of pressure is on my boss at the moment, which means there is a lot of pressure on me."

Of course, it was not a real lie, I just left out a big part of the entire truth. I could only imagine his reaction when I would tell him I would have to be engaged in only one-hundred days. The guy would run for the hills, and I couldn't blame him.

We talked for a bit longer until it was time for me to head back to the office and mentally prepare myself for a late lunch with my mom and sister. He walked me back to my office building and softly pressed a kiss on my cheek after we exchanged phone numbers. Again ignoring all the stares of my employees, I said my goodbyes to Julian then made my way to my office on the top floor.

Sorry for the short chapter guys, but I felt like I should get something up for you all to read. I really hope to get the next chapter out as soon as possible. I apologize for the delay on this entire story!

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