The Unwilling CEO’s Love Game



Yasmine's cheeks were flushed with the effort of struggling, her breathing uneven and strained.

She glared at Zachary with a fiery intensity. "You're upset about this?"

Zachary's brow was furrowed in frustration.This belongs © NôvelDra/ma.Org.

With a scornful laugh, Yasmine said, "And when you parade those women around, bringing them home, did I ever lash out at you like this?"

Zachary's chest heaved with quick breaths, his gaze darkening with each word she spoke.

"So, is that what you call love?" she challenged him further.

Zachary swallowed hard, his lips parting as if about to speak, "I never laid a hand on any of them!"

"Oh, so it only counts if you sleep with them, right?" Yasmine mocked with a sneer. "Did I sleep with that guy just now? Did that count as something?"

"You and I are not the same!"

"What's the difference? Just because I'm a woman and you're a man? Ha, Zachary, do you think you can flirt around just because you're a guy, and I, as a woman, should remain pure and untouched just for you? Who do you think you are?" Yasmine raised her voice without mercy, "Let's be clear, if I want to sleep with you, I will. And if I don't, I can find someone else. Do you really think I can't live without you?"

"I'm telling you, stop talking about love and doing it all for me—I don't need it!" Yasmine glowered at him, "After all you've done, how can you come to me pretending to be the devoted lover?"

Having had her say, she saw the iron-clad grimace on his face but remained unmoved.

She pushed him away forcefully, "Stop feeding me lines. I'll take your sweet talk if it pleases me. If I don't want it, you mean nothing to me." Yasmine flung open the car door and stormed off.

In the rear-view mirror, she saw Zachary standing there, taking deep breaths to calm himself.

On her way back, Yasmine received a call from Soren.

"He came to see you, didn't he?" Soren cut straight to the chase.

Yasmine hummed an affirmation.

Sensing her mood, Soren asked, "Did you two fight?"

Annoyed, Yasmine said, "Get to the point."

There was a brief silence before Soren continued, "He's never touched those women. Delphine was sent abroad now."

Yasmine remained silent.

"He told me his priority now is to win you back, to live the life you want with you. I'm taking over the business here. From now on, it's none of his concern. I'm not like him. I have no attachments, and no one cares about what I do," Soren's tone was calm, merely stating a fact. "The empire we've built over the years isn't something we can just walk away from. I want to hold on to it, no matter what the outcome might be, and to preserve the dream we once had. Yasmine, just live a good life with him. From now on, we'll each live the life we want."

Listening to Soren, Yasmine's emotions were stirred.

She knew how hard they had worked over the years, the wealth and status they had earned with their lives at stake.

She also knew that in their world, only strength could ensure the safety of one's family.

Zachary couldn't just step back. He knew too well the consequences of doing so.

With enemies like the smuggler who nearly killed him earlier, there were too many to count.

It was for these reasons that Yasmine yearned for a simple life.

Ever since she'd entertained the thought, Zachary had been entangled with other women, and that was when she began to consider divorce. And Zachary complied with her wish.

She knew that by divorcing her, he was trying to protect her.

But Yasmine had her pride. Why should she live an ordinary life out of fear? If that's what he thought, why should she prove her willingness to share life and death with him?

If he wanted peace of mind, she'd let him have it.

"The business here doesn't need him anymore. Don't hold it against him. He loves you, everyone knows that. He fought for this dangerous empire to give you a better life, and now he's giving it all up to live simply with you. You're always the most important person in his heart. The hardest times are behind us. There's no reason you can't make it through now," Soren chuckled lightly. "Preston had called me once during the holiday, hoping you two would get back together, maybe even give him a little brother or sister. It's something you could consider now."

Hearing Soren's words, Yasmine couldn't quite describe how she felt.

"Alright, I won't keep you, I've got things to handle. Just tell him to forget about the business here. Everything's clean on that end, and with Melvin there, everything will be fine."

Soren called out again, "Yasmine."

"Yes?"

There was a deep inhale on the other end, "I want you to be as happy as you were the first time we met."

Yasmine paused, a moment of disorientation hitting her as she pulled over.

"I hope you can find your happiness," Soren added, not waiting for her response, then said, "Goodbye."

After the call ended, Yasmine came back to her senses.

She stared at the call log on her phone. That conversation felt almost surreal.

Especially when Soren said "goodbye," she felt her heart skip a beat.

For some reason, she felt like she was losing her grasp on something elusive.

She immediately redialed Soren.

After just one ring, he picked up.

"What's up?"

"Why did you say goodbye?" Yasmine asked, bemused by her own peculiar question.

Soren chuckled, "Isn't 'goodbye' what you say when a conversation is over?"

Yasmine herself realized how silly she sounded.

Isn't 'goodbye' just a normal thing to say at the end of a call?

"Say 'take care' instead," Yasmine insisted oddly.

Barely suppressing his amusement, Soren asked, "What's wrong?"

"Don't say goodbye," Yasmine stubbornly repeated.

"Alright. Is there anything else?" Soren inquired.

"No."

"Well then... take care."

Yasmine drew a deep breath, "Yeah, take care."

Hanging up this time, Yasmine felt a profound sense of relief wash over her.

It was a strange feeling, one she couldn't quite explain, this sudden need to avoid a simple 'goodbye'.

It was just Soren who would follow her stubbornness. Anyone else would probably think she was nuts.

The drive home took a long time with all the stops and starts on the way. When Melvin called her, she was just pulling into the underground parking garage.

Seeing Melvin's name pop up on her phone, she didn't even want to answer.

And then the phone rang again - this time, it was Jocelyn.

Yasmine was ticked off at Melvin, but she couldn't stay mad at Jocelyn.

She picked up.

"Yasmine, can you swing by the house?" Jocelyn whispered. "Mr. Turner is on the warpath, glaring daggers at Melvin. I swear they're about to throw punches."

Jocelyn cringed. "But what if Mr. Turner ends up getting hurt?"

"It's none of my business. It's not like he's mine anymore." Yasmine stepped into the elevator, her voice icy. "Best case scenario, he's bedridden for a few days. Tell Melvin if he wins, I'll send him a big present. Hanging up now."

Meanwhile, in the living room, the two men were sitting with stony expressions.

Jocelyn shook her phone with a

frown and looked at them, shaking

her head, "Maybe you two should

just duke it out. If one of you ends

up in the hospital, it might just

soften her heart."

Melvin rolled up his sleeves and turned to Zachary, "The sympathy play always works. Make it convincing, and she'll definitely feel bad for you."

Zachary raised an eyebrow at Jocelyn and Melvin, "Are you serious?"

"Yep."

Both Melvin and Jocelyn nodded.

Zachary pondered for a moment before standing up and stepping up to Melvin, "Alright, let's do this. Make it look good."