Ficorpio
Chapter 1
Monday morning’s staff meeting.
The department head misspoke, and the entire room fell silent. I was the only one who burst out laughing.
His face darkened. “Claire Bennett, repeat what I just said ten times.”
Me: “…”
That evening, when we got home, Ethan was on his knees while I stood over him.
With my hands on my hips, I ordered, “Ethan Sterling, copy The Eight Wife Rules ten times.”
Ethan: “…”
Ethan and I had entered into a strategic family marriage.
His family was wealthy. Mine was wealthy too. We came together so we could both become even wealthier.
We had been married for three months when I developed a small problem.
I seemed to have fallen for Ethan.
It should have been perfectly normal. After all, his face was rumored to be the ultimate weapon—one more look, and anyone would surrender. It had taken me three whole months to give in. That meant I had held out with remarkable strength of character.
It should even have been something to celebrate. He was already my husband, after all. A marriage with feelings would probably last longer than one without them.
But…
Ethan and I had a Prenuptial Agreement.
Actually, we had several. Neither of our families was easy to deal with, and there were so many documents dividing up our respective assets that we had signed until our hands went numb.
The agreement I cared about was the one Ethan and I had drafted privately.
It laid out the rules for our life after marriage.
Ethan’s requirements for me were simple: be a suitable wife.
I had only three requirements for him.
First, keep his private life uncomplicated.
Second, maintain a healthy lifestyle and proper conduct.
Third, talk only about money, never about feelings.
When I signed the agreement, I had sworn with complete confidence that even after getting married, I could still live my carefree, independent life as a pseudo-single woman.
I never imagined that I would be the first one to cross the line and start talking about feelings.
What a spectacular way to make a fool of myself.
Being attracted to handsome men was dangerous.
Once I realized I had feelings for Ethan, things between us became awkward.
I couldn’t stop myself from looking at him.
Before that, we had gone about our lives peacefully at home, each doing our own thing. He reviewed his company’s accounts in the study while I researched beauty treatments and makeup.
Now, however, I couldn’t seem to settle down.
Knowing he was in the study, I would find myself bringing him a plate of fruit or handing him a cup of coffee.
Ethan took off his gold-rimmed glasses and pressed his fingers to his temples. Then he looked up at me.
“Do you need something from me?”
Chapter 2
“No,” I denied at once.
Then I thought better of it and admitted timidly, “…Yes.”
“Go on.”
He leaned back in his chair and reached for the coffee I had brought him. After taking a sip, he frowned slightly.
“Is it not to your taste?” I asked.
“It’s too sweet,” he said.
I was baffled. I hadn’t added much sugar.
Under the pressure of his impatient gaze, I finally got to the point.
“I want to work at your company. Find me any position you like.”
It had been Maya’s suggestion.
My leisurely life as a wealthy wife—shopping all day and drinking tea whenever I pleased—was never going to win over a workaholic husband like Ethan. If I wanted him to fall completely in love with me, I had to spend all day right under his nose.
Not just at night. During the day, too.
I understood the principle perfectly, so I offered, “How about becoming your secretary?”
Something seemed to cross Ethan’s mind. He choked slightly before answering bluntly, “Secretary is out of the question.”
My lips formed an unconscious pout.
“Then do odd jobs,” he conceded after a moment. “You can come to the Secretarial Office and handle the miscellaneous work.”
“…”
Fine. I could handle odd jobs.
At least it meant I had made it into his Secretarial Office.
Before long, I became an employee of Suncrest Holdings’ General Manager’s Office.
I ran my fingers over the employee ID badge in my hand and stared at the words “Executive Office” beneath my name. A grin spread across my face.
The department was separated from Ethan Sterling’s office by only one wall. It was perfect. I could wander around right under his nose.
My excitement didn’t last long before I spotted the problem.
Unauthorized personnel weren’t allowed into the general manager’s office, and Ethan himself rarely deigned to visit the Executive Office. Whenever he needed someone, he simply called them through the office extension.
By the end of the day, I hadn’t even caught a glimpse of him.
At this rate, when would I ever manage to seduce my workaholic husband?
I complained miserably to my best friend, Maya Carter, but she urged me to look on the bright side. “When people call you, it’s because they have actual work for you. You haven’t even touched the corner of a file all day. Do you really expect Ethan to call you just to flirt?”
The word flirt made me blush.
“If he dares to call,” I said through gritted teeth, “then I’ll dare to flirt back!”
I never expected him to summon me the moment I finished making that threat.
Chapter 3
The office extension rang. His cold, resonant voice came through the receiver.
“Bring me a cup of coffee.”
Click.
He hung up before there was any time for flirting at all.
I cursed the jerk under my breath for treating me like that, then obediently got up and went to the break room to make his coffee.
I knocked before entering his office. “General Manager, your coffee is here.”
“Put it there.” He lifted his chin toward the desk.
I moved forward at an agonizingly slow pace, unable to stop myself from glancing toward Ethan.
He sat behind a broad desk, with an entire wall of bookshelves behind him. His head was slightly bowed as his fingers gripped a gold-rimmed pen, tracing something across the page.
His perfectly pressed three-piece suit was still immaculate. The navy tie with its subtle diagonal stripes was the same one I had tied around his neck that morning.
I set the coffee beside his hand. He pushed his chair back and looked at me.
“Settling in?”
“It’s a little boring,” I answered honestly.
“I thought you’d prefer a less demanding job.”
I looked up at him. “Something busier would be better.”
Preferably the kind of busy that let me wander around right under your nose, I thought.
“Understood.” He nodded.
My workload increased noticeably. More specifically, every task involving delivering files or coffee now belonged to me. I had officially become the office gofer.
Of course, that also made it much easier for me to make myself noticeable to Ethan. I was perfectly satisfied.
While I was busy creating opportunities to see him, I also won over nearly all my coworkers with little gifts and afternoon snacks.
They finally included me in their gossip!
During the afternoon break, I stirred my cup of black tea while one of the women teased me.
“Claire Bennett, tell us something. What did you feel the first time you saw Mr. Sterling’s face?”
I smiled faintly. “I was pretty taken with him.”
It was the truth.
The first time I saw Ethan Sterling was at my father’s birthday party.
He arrived late, carrying his suit jacket in one hand and wearing only a shirt and vest. A delicate silver chain glimmered against his lapel, and his hair was slightly tousled.
A sudden gust of wind swept his hair away from his forehead, revealing the elegant line of his brow. When he raised his eyes, the brilliance in his expression seemed to drain the color from the entire party.
That face alone could command a room. No one remembered that he had arrived late. All that remained was the impression of a distinguished man greeting everyone with effortless courtesy.
“Careful with that crush,” one of my coworkers said, slipping an arm around my shoulders as if we’d known each other for years. “Mr. Sterling has a wife!”