Days flew by, and it was radio silent in Henry Lin and Rona Co''s camp. It was not like Olivia worried about their welfare.

    Those a.d.u.l.terers didn''t even cross her mind until she had to rip the page on her desk calendar to welcome a new month.

    Swamped with her own schedule, Olivia always passed out in the bed like a starfish as soon as she arrived home at Notios Estate.

    Lately, however, something was whispering behind her ear and an ominous grey cloud hovered on her head.

    The absence of sound and lack of movement told her that the quieter the two were, the more deadly they would attack like snakes slithering on the ground, waiting for that perfect moment to b.a.r.e their fangs.

    Shrugging the feeling off her skin, Olivia twisted the doorknob leading to the Board Room where a pack of wolves waited for her with mouths drooling with the ambition to covet her CEO chair.

    She pushed the door open, and everyone inside straightened their backs in attention.

    "What a lovely sight to see everyone in attendance today," she greeted with a smile on her face, yet the underlying meaning of her words made some flinch in their seats.

    Transitions were always messy and Olivia knew that, so she did her best to keep everything afloat by reminding her company''s board members where exactly their places were—beneath her.

    As a member of the Pyxis, it tremendously helped Olivia with having eyes and ears everywhere, giving her a heads-up of the whispers from places she couldn''t reach.

    Unlike those who withheld information and preferred surprise attacks, Olivia would immediately notify those who had intentions of wreaking havoc in her company, therefore, hindering whatever plans those usurpers had in mind.

    The oldest board member, who was sitting next to her, stood from his seat and pulled out the chair for Olivia. She thanked him with a curt nod and sat on her throne, steepling her hands on the table as she regarded every man in the room.

    Since the seed of retiring was planted in her mind, she had a person in mind for the CEO position.

    At first, she considered an outsider to replace her, however, the idealistic promise of a fresh face to captain the ship was colorful and hopeful, her vision for Oakwood Capital was to keep it rooted and stable to the ground.

    Doing so would just cause another year and a half of adjustment, not only for that person but also for the company as a whole—and Olivia didn''t want to go down that route.

    Another factor to consider were the men sitting inside the room. She had to factor in those who were with her since the inception of her company.

    Years ago, some of the men in the room took their chances in her, investing in her start-up company who seeds capitals to micro-businesses.

    One thing that Olivia had to tick in the box was: Age. Her eyes connected from one board member to another, and she let out a soft sigh.

    She didn''t want to pass the baton to someone who had a high probability of seeing the creator soon after her retirement.

    Olivia wanted someone who would hold the fort for a decade or better yet, until his last breath.

    Finally, Olivia''s eyes landed on the gentleman who was silently sitting on the far end of the table. He was playing swords with both of his thumb, seemingly bored that he had to sit inside the room.

    Or that was what he wanted to portray.

    He knew days ahead that he would be named CEO after she sought him in his mancave. He knew before the day ends, that his name would be splashed all over the news outlets, yet he acted nonchalant at all. His act of indifference made a smile ghost Olivia''s lips.

    The sole heir of an aristocratic military family and a war veteran of the Capital, Nisia''s neighboring country.

    His bushy jet black hair with a streak of peppery strands might be the only telling sign of his age since he looked as if he got stuck in his late twenties instead of his real age of forty.

    Olivia was glad she didn''t have to look far enough in her search for the next CEO. She had the perfect candidate right under her roof. All she did was check his background and make sure it was as clean as to her liking.

    To her surprise, she dug a sealed medal of valor to his name. Olivia wondered why such honor wasn''t published, but seeing how silent and broody the man was, she had an inkling he didn''t like the spotlight at all.

    Giving her go signal to Secretary Gail, the meeting was set into motion, and by the end of it, Grant Wan was named as the new CEO of Oakwood Capital.

    …

    Lying down on the couch, her feet dangled on the armrest while her eyes were glued to the ceiling. She was contemplating whether she did the right thing of retiring.

    The thought of doing nothing was clawing on her. It felt like an itch she desperately needed to scratch.

    Now she had all the time to herself until her and Maxen''s engagement announcement, and she didn''t know what to do with it.

    Sighing, she swung her legs and sat and as she did, she stretched her back and cracked the tension on her neck.

    "Let''s see what I can find in the servers," she uttered under her breath. She dragged her feet to the mahogany table in the center of the room.

    Knowing Maxen''s password by heart, she typed and tried to access the Sui''s database, yet all she received was an error command, prompting her that the password she entered was incorrect.

    Scrunching her nose, she grabbed her phone on the desk and opted to send Maxen a message so she could ask him whether he changed the password. After all, what chose was a weak one and badly needed updating.

    …

    Meanwhile, inside the War Room at Nisia''s military camp, Maxen snorted in his seat, attracting everyone''s attention in the room.

    Swiping his hand over his face as if it would wipe the goofy grin on his lips, he read the message on his phone for the third time.

    Olivia: Baby, I can''t log in. I need your password.

    Maxen: Baby, who? I don''t remember Beauty having a password. [thinking face emoji]

    Olivia: Who else is my baby?

    Maxen: I don''t know. [shrug emoji]

    Olivia: You know you''re my one and only baby, Max.

    Maxen: Thanks for the reminder. Unfortunately, the password comes with a price. [grinning face emoji]

    Olivia: Enlighten me, please.

    Maxen: Show me your t.i.t.s, baby. [drooling face emoji]

    Three dots danced on the screen, and the longer it did, the faster Maxen''s heart raced in his c.h.e.s.t.

    He felt himself harden under his pants as he anticipated Olivia''s photo.

    Hiding the phone under the table, his foot tapped on the floor and he felt his heart drop to his stomach when a grey frame popped up in his screen.

    Slowly, the photo came to life. It was a photo of Olivia''s covered c.h.e.s.t with her middle finger straight as a rod in between her cleavage.

    Maxen almost dropped his phone on the carpeted floor, had his reflexes failed him. He was snickering on his seat that Wyatt had to elbow him to get his attention.

    Closing the photo, Maxen quickly typed the new password before locking his phone screen.

    Noticing Wyatt''s curiosity, Maxen growled at the former. "Did you see something?"

    Flashing a cheeky grin at Maxen, Wyatt riled him up and responded, "Yes."

    "You''re lying," Maxen called his friend out his friend''s lie, pocketing his phone.

    "No, I''m not."

    "Yes, you are. Your nose twitched."

    Subconsciously, Wyatt touched his nose. "Damn it. It did?"

    When Wyatt''s gaze landed on Maxen and he saw the latter smirking, he realized that it was when Wyatt touched his nose that Maxen got the truthful answer to his question.