XY XX

FOX

Cassie Jensen was the kind of woman who never let go of anything she flared until she got all the answers.

Gregory Carlton was an Enigma. The man stood out for so many reasons, and no one knew much about him. The people who had the opportunity to work with him said Gregory was thorough and correct. Women quickly fell under the spell of his English man courtesy.

Since the arrival of the English team, archaic Astoria Edmonds underwent an extreme makeover. Finally, there wasn't much to complain about concerning their team's work ethics.

The director Wendon Everett already possessed quite a reputation regularly spotted in the French capital's most renowned nightclubs and lounges. Wendon fitted the description of the young, dynamic, and sexy CEO in the fifty shades of Pantone colors, for he was a joyful man who didn't seem to have any skeletons in his closet.

Still, like Gregory, Wendon had a professional eye on every situation. The man never stepped out of line with a compliment, which could bring incomprehension. Outside of Astoria, even drop-dead drunk, his mouth remained tightly shut. No one could squeeze a secret out of him. Wendon and Gregory were different yet complementary.

As for Jaila Pratt, since the Xenia gate, she concentrated her efforts on the company's sex equality. She skimmed all the laws and regulated all the fields where Astoria lacked.

The team members who first arrived with the trio left. They were replaced by other experts from Norway and Germany who also possessed a modern vision of management. Gregory's audit ended way back. The reports were sent to the British headquarters, but the man still lingered, bringing the finishing touches to what Cassie knew was an acquisition. Astoria Edmonds would no longer be French but a branch of a more significant conglomerate.

Wendon Everett's team accomplished what would have taken France bureaucratie a few years within a few months. In an exact Anglosaxon way of working, they made the cuts without any sentiments attached. It was harsh but necessary; the company results attested to the efficiency of the method.

Those who lost their jobs left for the most, with hefty paychecks, which some did not deserve as they were the heads that caused Astoria's losses.

So now, there was nothing to provoke a trench war. The positive results spoke for themselves. Unfortunately, everything the trio accomplished didn't change the fact they were impostors.

"Cassie."

"Gregory, we finally get to work together."

"I saved the best for last," Gregory said as he took a seat.

"Oh, oui, please take me by the sentiments, Mr. Carlton. I wonder what Xenia would think of that remark?"

Gregory smirked, "not much, I hope since Xenia plays in a league of her own."

"Touché," Cassie crossed her legs and arms. Gregory knew he was in for some complicated verbal mind wrestling.

Gregory smiled; he liked a little spice when it came to negotiations. Cassie was the last on his list. He made it that way once he flared the danger she represented.

"I have to admit I was quite offended; I felt like you avoided me. Your behavior urged me to use drastic majors."

The mink tone of voice employed made Gregory cringe; still, he rebounded on her words, drastic as in spending your weekends in London to dig up my past, I hope you had a good find."

"Oh, Mr. Carlton, it was such a delight. I mean, I imagined everything except this. You did an Undercover Boss on us. You applied fiction to reality; it's hard to swallow but quite entertaining."

Gregory frowned as he reflected, "I hope everyone else will see it in the same eye."

Cassie found the situation fun, but Gregory doubted it would be the case for the rest of Astoria. The redhead was another species of women that the man fled. Career-driven women like Cassie thrived on scandals, which made them climb the social ladder. Cassie wasn't Gregory's cup of tea and crumpets.

Like Xenia, Cassie probably had scars that forged this shell, and her office bitchiness hid her true nature. Gregory suspected a softer side to the woman, which one could only find after scratching her to see if they won the lottery.

Sitting across from her, Gregory noted Cassie had her charms. He hoped a man would come along to scratch her surface. The man wouldn't be him since he possessed his golden ticket to which Gregory tried to cling to with all his might.

Nevertheless, the man wished Cassie to thrive on happiness rather than on office conspiracies.

Women were complex, and Gregory found them fascinating, now that he pondered on their profound nature. He who had a hard time expressing his feelings understood the importance of observation, but above all, communication appeared to be the ultimate key when dealing with women.

Gregory saw the predominant role of communication in a relationship. Silence never solved any issue. If anything, it made things worse. However, Gregory could not deny that the beginning of his reflection came way before Xenia. His mother was the first to show him a woman's capacity to wear masks as she sat silently while his father devoured every secretary in and PA within his reach.

It surprised Gregory not to have hidden siblings appearing at the reading of his father's will, but that was how sly his wolf of a father was. No flirt or concubine managed to make him a hostage of an extra-marital birth.

Gregory sat in front of a sly fox, one who called offices in London under fake names to get information. The woman's resolve was endless as Cassie even took the Eurostar to approach the goal, which the smile she wore attested she attained.

"So now you know what are you going to do?" Gregory found his confidence decreasing when he entered Cassie's office.

"Do, you say, I won't do anything, Mr. Carlton. I'm going to indulge myself in the fall of the chateau de cartes. I mean, I worked hard to unravel this ploy. I'm not going to serve the truth on a platter to those lazy buggers."

Yes, Cassie was a real fox.

"Oh, how I can't wait to see all their faces when they find out," Cassie squealed in her seat like a child waiting for a treat.

"ㅡEh, Cassie, may I ask you a favor?"

"A favor, from moi? This show keeps getting better and better," Cassie leaned forward, "yes, Mr. Carlton demandez-moi [ask me]," Cassie said, pointing at herself.

It was artificial, but still, the woman appreciated having the impression of holding Gregory.

"Could you not reveal this to Xenia, please."

"Xenia, what has Xenia got to do with this?" Cassie asked.

Gregory's response made the woman ponder, and her eyes became slits as she read the man's expression. "Oh, god, she is one of the crappy ones. Wait a minute, but Xenia's a lesbian, isn't she?" Cassie asked for confirmation.

Gregory's silence made Cassie lean back in her chair, "well, well, what can I say, Gregory? How did I miss this?"

"Perhaps you missed it because you were too busy digging up my life to take notice."

It was true, finding out who Gregory became Cassie's obsession, and she overlooked the romance which played out every day on her office's floor.

"I won't ask your motivations. For when one starts doing that, they begin to pity the transgressor. All I can say is you are one Vilain garçon [a bad boy]. Goodness gracious, Gregory, this is more than one can handle."

Gregory felt the break of sweat for the first time. Even Margaret had not managed to mount this much pressure when he met her. Cassie made Gregory doubt even more; it was a euphemism, as Cassie brought Xenia into the picture.

The knot was already tight when Xenia said she loved him, and Cassie came to finish him off with her amplifications.

Once more, he thought about Xenia's reaction. Gregory sometimes tried to shrug off the issue by saying it was a big deal when it was all the matter.