Chapter 12: Chapter 12

Chapter Twelve

Ava POV

"Ava?" I heard. I stopped in my mid - work and listened. No more voices.

"Ava?" I heard somebody call out my name, again. My head was fuzzy with all the work images that I was doing and the one that I had to do.

All of a sudden, a shadow appeared in the doorway. A tall man, with sparkling green eyes and well built structure.

Jasper.

Even though I could not see his face from all the lightning, his well built structure told me that it was him. Why did I even notice his looks?

Also his voice, deep and melodious.

"Sir?" I asked him. It took me some time to adjust to all the brightness that was pouring out from different directions. I was so focused on my work that it took me a little while to get used to my surroundings.

"Ava, what are you doing here this late?" He asked me. My first reaction was to ask him the same question but I chose to answer his question instead.

"Umm ... Completing my work." I told him simply. He walked inside the room and I stood up.

My hands felt sticky from not washing them for so many hours but it was the cramps that took most part of my attention. Everytime I try to straighten my fingers, they get stuck.

"Completing your work? You could have completed it tomorrow. Why are you here even though everyone left?" He questioned, his voice sounding mildly shocked. When I saw his face I knew I was right. There was shock and incredulousness written all over his face.

"Oh, I was told that I can't leave until I finish my work off. So I decided to complete it tonight itself." I told him simply.

All of a sudden, my vision blurred and I swayed. I fell forward but was able to catch myself as I clutched to the table beside me. Also Jasper grabbed my shoulder in mid fall and supported my weight.

I gave him a small, embarrassing smile.

I was always like this in front of him.

"I could not eat lunch today because of work. That's why this is happening." I told him as an answer to my weakness. As if on cue, my stomach grumbled loudly, making enough noise to wake the whole city up. My stomach felt hollow and I desperately wanted to eat something.

I thought all of this was ridiculous.

"What did you say? Why didn't you eat lunch? Didn't you have money?" He asked. For some reason, his voice sounded serious.

So damn serious.

I straightened myself, making him stop holding me up. I shook my head.

"No, I had money. This morning, I withdrew some money." I answered him.

"So?" He prompted.

"It was because I was busy working. I had so much work today that I was unable to take a break. So I stayed hungry." I answered him. Now, I thought I saw a flash of anger in his eyes.

"Who gave you this much work and who told you to stay until you finished your work?" He growled. His reaction startled me. He looked crazy, mad.

Did he forget that he assigned me to his secretary?

"Uh ... Charlotte Ma'am. You assigned me to her." I explained it to him.

As soon as he heard my answers, he closed his eyes and looked away. I thought I heard him saying a curse word under his breath.

"Pack up your stuff and get ready to leave." He ordered me.

"But Sir, my work ..." I argued.

"You can complete your work tomorrow but for now pick up your stuff. We are leaving." He told me. I wanted to argue but did not, instead I did what he had asked me to do. There was no point in arguing with the CEO of the company. I picked up my stuff which was not much and followed him to the elevator. I still hesitated before entering the VIP elevator.

However, I did enter.

Jasper pressed the button for the down floor and the lyft started descending.

"Ava." He said and I glanced up at him. He was so damn tall. It was hard to pay attention to his words when all your efforts were spent looking up at him.

"Nobody works at my office past hours. Unless they are working overtime which they get paid for. Otherwise no one." He clarified it to me, putting his hands in his pockets.

"So no matter Who asks you to stay after the office hours, even me, then you won't. Unless, like I told you about overtime. But other than that, no matter how much work you had left to do or who had asked you to stay and complete your work, you leave. It is against this office's policy to hold someone for extra time." He said.

"And no matter what, no matter how much work you have left, you never and I mean Never miss your lunch. If you don't have money then contact me. But from now on, don't ever miss your lunch. Especially you. Now that you are pregnant. Now there are two of you who are hungry and not one. Got it?" He asked me. I nodded my agreement.

"Good. Now, we are going to have dinner at home. Or for you to have dinner and lunch together." He told me.

I tore my gaze away from him, feeling relieved. I was so bloody hungry that I thought I would pass out from hunger if I did not find something to eat soon enough.

This time when we reached his car, I saw that his driver was there. The driver opened the door for us then settled himself down in the driver's seat before he began driving us.

In the middle of the drive, my stomach howled loudly. Letting everyone know that I was hungry. I saw from the corners of my eyes both men giving each other a look.

I rubbed my stomach, trying to calm it down so that I could be spared from my embarrassment. The driver parked his car on the side of the road and disappeared somewhere.

I gave Jasper a suspicious look.

After five minutes or so the driver re-appeared with lots of snacks in his hands. He gave them all to me.

I stared at them both incredulously.

"Eat them during the drive. It will help ease your hunger a little." He said.

I was so damn hungry that I didn't even try to protest for modesty's sake. I mumbled a vague thanks to both of them before I began gulping down the snacks. I did not look up to see if any of them were looking at me or the way I was eating, because I knew they were.

Now they had heard my hungry stomach and now they were seeing how I ate like an animal.

God!

Finally, I ate all the way to Jasper's home and finished everything that the driver brought.

"Leave the rappers in the car. Mark will take care of it." He said and I nodded a little, glancing at all the opened packages and rappers. All of them empty.

"Good night. Boss." The driver named Mark, said.

After that we went inside, ate and went to sleep. Jasper never commented on the way I ate or how I did not speak to him while we ate dinner. I was so tired from work that I doubted that I would be able to hold a conversation.

I was so glad when we didn't.

That night I went to bed tired but full and happy.