Chapter 20
1/3
In the dim light, Autumn was completely enveloped by Dawson’s shadow.
A second later, a warm coat fell over her shoulders.
She caught the scent clinging to it–crisp and woody, like fir trees standing tall in snowy weather.
Because he had given her his trench coat, the man was left wearing only a thin black shirt. The diamond cufflinks on his sleeves caught the light, glinting with a quiet edge–refined, but dangerous. There was something about him that made you want to look twice and then step back.
Autumn hadn’t even cried in front of Olivia, but now Dawson had caught her like this.
The shame and helplessness were overwhelming.
Still, she didn’t panic and wiped her tears. She simply stared at him with a blank expression. Under the yellow light, the tear tracks on her cheeks shimmered faintly.
To her, Dawson was practically a stranger–someone she’d barely exchanged two words with, difficult to approach, and not someone she ever intended to get close to. She didn’t know what expression to make or what to say, so doing nothing became her response.
After five seconds, he spoke first. “Can you drive?”
She nodded.
He tossed her a car key, and she caught it reflexively.
When she looked up again, Dawson had already opened the Bentley’s back door and gotten in. As he passed by her, the same cool scent from the coat drifted to her.
His meaning was clear—he wanted her to drive him home.
They weren’t close. There was no reason, no explanation. He just handed her the keys and expected her to be his driver.
Autumn looked at the coat draped on her, then at the key in her hand.
She really was cold, so she didn’t return the coat. Instead, she slipped her arms into the oversized sleeves, tightened the belt, and rolled them up.
She also really wanted to leave this place. So she gripped the car key, turned around, got in, and started the engine.
Neither of them spoke.
To avoid waking anyone at the Caldwell residence, she drove off slowly and steadily. But once she got some distance, she almost couldn’t help herself — her speed picked up, hands and feet working together in perfect rhythm.
After two turns, a low, cool voice came from the back seat. “Slow down.”
The tone was calm, but the pressure behind it was heavy.
Autumn froze instinctively.
Only then did she realize she had been driving way too fast for a mountain road. The person in the backseat must have been very uncomfortable.
She felt a twinge of regret she had been so focused on venting through the drive, she had forgotten there was someone else in the car.
She eased up on the gas.
After a while, she glanced into the rearview mirror–and was startled to meet his eyes, dark and intense like ink.
It wasn’t some accidental glance. He had been watching her the whole time.
She had no idea how long he had been staring, but there was none of the awkwardness people usually showed when caught. His gaze remained bold and unrelenting, mysterious and invasive.
Autumn couldn’t handle the pressure. It felt like being scorched. She quickly looked away and focused straight ahead,
A few seconds later, she murmured, “Sorry.”
There was no response. But before long, the pressure from his gaze lifted.
She dared a glance into the mirror again.
Dawson had closed his eyes, resting
From the Caldwell residence back to the underground garage of Flery Residences, no one spoke.
Apart from the hum of the engine, it was silent the whole day.
When riding with Damien, the silence would’ve felt stifling. But this time, despite the heavier pressure Dawson gave off, it didn’t feel the same–it was
strange.
Before long, the car reached the garage.
Dawson seemed to be asleep. Autumn didn’t want to disturb him, but she wasn’t feeling well and needed to get home for her medicine. So, she had no choice but to wake him.
Chapter 20
2/3
“Mr. Faulkner, we’re here.”
He didn’t open
“Mr.-
his
eyes.
His eyelids lifted. Their eyes met. His dark gaze showed no sign of sleepiness.
Was he actually asleep, or just pretending?
Autumn dropped the “Mr. Faulkner” and simply said, “We’re here.”
The elevator reached the top floor. They stepped out together and each unlocked their own doors with a fingerprint scan.
Before stepping inside, Autumn turned toward him and politely said, “Good night.”
Dawson had opened his door but didn’t go in. He stood there, expressionless, staring at her.
Autumn was left speechless momentarily.
She had already returned the car key. Did he have something to say? Or was he waiting for her to thank him?
After two seconds, Autumn realized and quickly slipped off the coat she’d been wearing and folded it neatly.
Dawson, watching her hands, said, “Toss it to me.‘
”
She didn’t toss it. Instead, she walked over and handed it to him. “Thank you.”
He took the coat, turned without a word, and shut the door behind him.
Autumn stood there in silence.
Cold. Distant. Heartless. That was Dawson, through and through.
But whatever his reason for tonight’s actions, Autumn truly felt the need to say thank you, even if he probably didn’t care about her at all.
Back in his apartment, Dawson held the coat that now carried the scent
Of
e
woman.
He was a clean freak. Without hesitation, he tossed the coat, worth tens of thousands of dollars, into the trash.
He poured himself a glass of warm water in the kitchen, placed his phone on the counter, and played a voice message from Jamie.
He drank while listening.
“Mr. Faulkner, Ms. Coffrey just sent me some information about the company. I believe there’s something I should report–Autumn is your secretary.”
Autumn had taken her cold medicine and gone straight to bed.
The next day marked the start of a new week.
M7
She’d thought she’d be too sick to get up, but the strong medication seemed to have worked–she felt fine when she woke.
Today was the day Faulkner Group’s CEO was returning from overseas, and everyone at the company was buzzing with anticipation.
The colleague who sat beside her, Rachel, had taken the day off. Autumn was covering her duties.
Rachel called. “Autumn, I’m so, so sorry. My husband’s company is holding a ceremony with a partner, and he insisted I attend. I actually said no at first, but the dress was already picked out, so I had to take leave. I really owe you.”
Rachel was the coworker Autumn had once run into–her husband had come to pick her up from work
They met in college and had been happily married for years.
Whenever her husband had an important event, he always brought Rachel along. He’d prepare her dress and jewelry in advance and proudly introduce her to everyone, eager to let the whole world know he had married her.
Autumn said, “It’s fine. Really, no trouble at all.”
Rachel cheered, “You’re the best, Autumn! If you see the CEO, secretly take a photo for me! Hope he’s hot–some eye candy might give me motivation to
work!”
Autumn was curious about the mysterious CEO, too. “No problem.”
But by noon, the CEO still hadn’t shown up. Even the vice president was nowhere to be seen.
Then Autumn got called into the executive secretary Della’s office. That was when she learned both the CEO and VP were attending a summit on Al development. She was now tasked with delivering a document to the venue.
Autumn was given a pass and left immediately.
Since it was related to the Al Summit, dozens of tech companies were also in attendance, making it as much a tech expo as a summit.
She showed her pass and entered the venue.
The hall was massive to accommodate the crowd. She walked for quite a while and still hadn’t reached the right spot when two security guards suddenly
Chapter 20
stopped her.
Without warning, they grabbed her arms and started dragging her away.
Startled, she shouted, “What are you doing?”
“Wait a minute.”
She looked toward the voice and saw Scott, his expression dark.
The guards froze at his word. So, they were acting under his orders.
Autumn frowned. “Tell them to let go.”
Scott sneered coldly. “You chased him all the way here? What if Mr. Caldwell sees you and gets angry? Autumn, a little drama is fine, but too much scheming will only backfire on you.”
