CEO’s Seduction Trap

Shirley scoffed, “I heard he’s been having a tough time lately.”

Leila was curious, “What?”

Samuel chimed in with a smirk, “Mr. Brown’s wife.”

Leila raised an eyebrow, “Are they together now?”

Leila had heard Mr. Brown mention that he was in the process of divorcing his wife, but she hadn’t followed up on the details.

Shirley sarcastically remarked, “I don’t know if they’re officially together, but I heard that Mrs. Brown has basically attached herself to him. She barges into his house, picks fights with Hunter’s mom all day long.”

With just a few words from Shirley, Leila could imagine the chaotic life The Brooks Family must be leading now…

After dinner, as Leila was clearing the table, her phone on the table suddenly rang.

Leila glanced down and saw Mason’s name on the caller ID. After hesitating for a few seconds, she swiped the screen and answered the call.

“Mr. Ramirez.”

There was no response from the other end.

Then, a stern and authoritative voice came through the phone, “I know what you’re thinking. You don’t want this union; you want to break free from The Ramirez Family, from my control. But have you even considered whether you have the capability for that?”

Leila recognized the voice immediately. She had just heard it in Mason’s office today. It was the old Mr. Ramirez.

Not knowing what the situation was on the other end, Leila didn’t dare to speak or hang up. So, she just listened in silence.

Seemingly irritated by Mason’s lack of response, the old Mr. Ramirez suppressed his anger and demanded, “I’ll ask you one thing today: will you marry or not?”

Mason’s voice was cold, “Not marrying.”

“Not marrying? Let me tell you, whether you want to or not, you will. Do you even realize the benefits of the alliance between The Powers Family and The Ramirez Family?”

Mockingly, Mason replied, “I don’t know. And frankly, I don’t care.”

“Mason!!”ConTEent bel0ngs to Nôv(e)lD/rama(.)Org .

With a contemptuous laugh, Mason retorted, “There’s no need to get so worked up. The Ramirez Family has more than one grandson; my uncles have two sons, both older than me.”

The old Mr. Ramirez was thoroughly infuriated, “But you are the head of The Ramirez Family now!”

“Should I step down then?”

Leila couldn’t see the scene on the other end of the call, but just listening to this tense exchange was enough to make her heart race.

For some reason, Leila suddenly recalled something Shirley had mentioned before. Shirley had said that years ago, The Ramirez Family had experienced a kidnapping incident. What exactly happened during that kidnapping was unclear, but it was known that after the grandsons of The Ramirez Family were rescued, some died, some went insane, some fell ill, and the only one who remained unscathed was Mason…

Lost in thought, Leila was brought back to reality by the sudden outburst from the old Mr. Ramirez, “You were the one who should’ve died in that kidnapping incident!”

With a cold chuckle, Mason replied, “The ones who should’ve died didn’t, and the ones who shouldn’t have died did. The ones who should’ve gone mad didn’t, and the ones who shouldn’t have gone mad did. It seems that God isn’t favoring The Ramirez Family.”

After Mason’s words, there was a crisp sound of a slap over the phone.

Leila sucked in a breath through the phone’s receiver, instinctively gripping the phone tighter.

After a while, Mason’s deep voice resounded, “Is it over? If there’s nothing else, I’ll leave.”

“Get out, just get out, now!”

After a while, Leila heard the sound of a car engine starting through the phone.

Leila pursed her lips and tentatively spoke, “Mr. Ramirez?”

There was no response from Mason’s end.

Leila paused for a moment before speaking again, “Mr. Ramirez, can you hear me?”

With the sound of a lighter igniting a cigarette, Mason’s low voice responded, “Hmm.”

Leila had been waiting for Mason to respond all along, but now that he had, she suddenly didn’t know what to say.

After a long pause, Leila asked, “Mr. Ramirez, did you call me for something?”

Mason’s voice carried a hint of suspicion, “I called you?”

Leila was momentarily taken aback, and it dawned on her what had happened. Could it be that Mason accidentally pressed the dial button? The thought made Leila feel suddenly embarrassed. If Mason really did accidentally press the dial button, then she had been eavesdropping on this call for so long…

Leila was contemplating how to explain when Mason’s voice came through the phone, low and tired, “Is dinner still on? I haven’t eaten yet, and I’m starving.”

The sudden change in topic caught Leila off guard. Instinctively, she wanted to refuse, but then she remembered Daniel’s message from earlier today and replied, pursing her lips, “Yes, are you coming over now?”

“Mm,” came Mason’s weary response, sounding drained. “Is it convenient?”

“It is,” Leila replied.

“I’ll be there in about an hour,” Mason said.

Leila asked, “What would you like to eat?”

After a few seconds of silence, Mason responded, “Anything is fine.”

After hanging up with Mason, Leila sighed as she held onto her phone. She had never imagined that someone as dominant as Mason would have such a side to him.

After her moment of reflection, Leila turned and headed into the kitchen.

Scouring through the few remaining ingredients, Leila managed to put together a couple of dishes and soup.

As she heard the door ring, Leila turned to open it.

Mason stood outside in a white shirt and suit pants, holding a bottle of wine, with a visible handprint on his left cheek. The slap had clearly been forceful, and his left cheek was showing signs of swelling.

Leila looked up at him, took a quick glance, and then looked away. She stepped aside to let him in. “Come in.”

As Mason changed his shoes, he handed the bottle to Leila and asked in a low voice, “Do you have a decanter?”

Leila replied, “Yes, but it hasn’t been used in a long time. Let me find it.”

With that, Leila took the wine and turned to search for the decanter in the TV cabinet.

As Mason put on the slippers, he glanced up and caught a glimpse of Leila’s slim waist. Leila had fair skin and a slender waist. Mason’s narrow eyes squinted as he suddenly remembered the feeling of his hands resting on it: delicate and soft.

As Leila found the decanter and stood up, Mason’s gaze shifted downward, his eyes hiding the surging emotions.

Leila asked, “Mr. Ramirez, how long does the wine need to breathe?”

Mason stepped forward, “Half an hour is enough.”

Leila nodded, cleaned the decanter, and poured a third of the wine into it.

With everything ready for dinner, Leila walked into the kitchen to serve the food.

Perhaps because of their recent phone conversation, Leila was a bit less guarded around Mason tonight. “Mr. Ramirez, are you waiting for the wine to breathe before dinner, or do you want to eat now?”

Mason rolled up his sleeves to his elbows. “Now, I’ll go wash up.”

The meal lasted less than ten minutes. After dinner, Leila cleared the table while Mason stood up and went to the window to smoke.

Twenty minutes later, Leila finished clearing the table. Mason stood with his hands in his pockets, gazing out the window. As Leila approached, he asked in a low voice, “Care to join me for a drink?”

Mason’s words sounded natural and calm, as if it were a normal conversation between two old friends.

Leila’s internal alarm bells were ringing loudly. She hadn’t forgotten their previous drunken encounter, and she didn’t want to make the same mistake again.

When Mason finished speaking and saw her silence, he turned back, “Hmm?”