The Enticing CEO’s Chosen Bride

Serana glanced at Boyd, her mind a blank slate as to what to say next. However, nothing was

inappropriate about Yasmine’s actions afterwards. They munched on slices of cake and sipped on

coffee, making small talk about how each other had been lately.

Aside from her initial sharp words, Yasmine’s demeanor was so faultlessly normal you couldn’t pick a

bone with it. If there was anything to comment on, it was that her phone never seemed to leave her

hand for long.

But the more she played it cool, the more both Serana and Boyd felt something was off.

“Do you come here often?” Boyd asked casually as Yasmine’s plate became crumb-free.

Yasmine gave a half-smile. “Yeah.”

“It is a nice place,” he admitted.d2

Taking a sip of her coffee, Yasmine leaned back in her chair. “Yeah.”

Boyd pursed his lips, and silence fell like a curtain.

Serana looked on, worry creasing her forehead. For years, Boyd had always been the one looking

down on others, never the one to seek out chit-chat.

Serana could tell he was trying to find common ground, to say something – anything – to ease the

tension with Yasmine.

Even though Yasmine was sitting there with them, who could really say where her thoughts were?

The misunderstanding that had started over a jar of flowers seemed resolved, and they were

interacting like before. But was there real forgiveness from Yasmine? Not likely.

There they were, sitting across from each other, yet it felt like miles between them. Serana was curious

– could Yasmine ever truly like someone?

What would she be like? What lengths would she go to? She’d love to see that.

But who would be the one to break through?

Yasmine’s phone rang, but she ignored it, standing up instead. “You guys carry on. I’ve got something

else to attend to. I’ll head out first.”

She answered the phone as she pulled out her chair.

Boyd stood, reaching to catch Yasmine’s wrist. Phone to her ear, Yasmine looked at him. “Something

else?”

Boyd stared for a moment. “Where are you off to?”

“Home.”

Derek’s figure appeared beside them. He eyed the hand Boyd had on Yasmine. “You want something?”

Boyd’s grip tightened unintentionally.

Yasmine pulled her hand back, phone down. “Should be clear now.”

—

Serana watched through the glass as Yasmine’s car pulled away, and only then did she breathe a sigh

of relief. “She’s still the same.”

Boyd didn’t respond.

Inside the car, Yasmine’s expression remained unreadable.

Derek glanced her way more times than necessary within five minutes.

“Do you need glasses?” Yasmine casually commented.

With a constipated look, Derek focused on the road. “You got nothing to say? No contact for two

months and suddenly you’re sharing desserts and coffee? What’s going on in your head?”

Yasmine traced her finger across her phone’s screen, engrossed in Candy Crush. “Their treat.”

Derek’s twitch was barely perceptible. “All this for a free meal?”

Four stars on the level, “Am I that cheap in your mind?”

“Then what’s your reason?”

“Just feeling annoyed.”

Derek nodded, a classic Yasmine response. “Those were just kid’s squabbles from when we were ten.

Holding onto that, or keeping score with them, it’s pointless.”

Impatient, Yasmine cut him off. “Do you want me to jump out and end it?”

Derek gripped the steering wheel tighter. “Can’t do that.”

Yasmine still went to school, not avoiding Boyd. She didn’t care, but he wouldn’t allow distance. His

watchful eyes seemed to follow her more closely than ever. Any guy that approached her would be

“taken care of” by Boyd before she even noticed.

Eventually, everyone got the impression that they were an item. Rumors reached Yasmine, and she

found the idea absurd.

In a relationship with Boyd?

At lunch in the cafeteria, ignoring Serana sitting across from her, Yasmine addressed Boyd directly,

“Rumor has it we’re dating?”

Serana blinked, turning to the ever-composed Boyd, and silently shoveled food into her mouth.

Boyd’s eyes flickered. “You’re a bit slow on the uptake, aren’t you?”

Yasmine paused. “When did this start?”

Silence.

More silence.

Yasmine turned to Serana, “Clearly, there’s some misunderstanding. Don’t overthink it.” She wasn’t

about to deal with a surprise rival.

Serana opened her mouth to speak, but Boyd set down his fork.

Yasmine stared into his eyes for two seconds. Almost as he stood up, she abruptly stood up as well.

“Feeling queasy all of a sudden. Enjoy your meal. I’m out.”

Boyd’s expression darkened.

She hadn’t taken two steps before being pulled toward the exit. They stopped at the basketball court

next to the cafeteria, where Boyd finally let go.

The silence stretched between them until Boyd inhaled deeply and spoke, “Were you trying to escape

just now?”

Yasmine frowned. “Escape? Why would I?”

“You know what I mean.”

Yasmine fell silent for a moment, then nodded. “Years ago, suddenly getting a ‘friend’ like Serana

nearly did me in. Now, out of nowhere, I get a ‘boyfriend’ and a love rival? Boyd, are you trying to say

I’ve had it too easy, or that I didn’t die thoroughly enough?”

“Who’s your love rival?”

Yasmine tapped her temple and exhaled, “Alright, so I’m being paranoid, okay?”

“Yasmine, Serana and I aren’t…”

“Stop.” Yasmine held up a hand. “Your thing with her is none of my business. As for the rumors, we

know what’s up. I don’t mind, but if it bothers you, I can clear things up.”

“Yasmine!” Boyd’s voice cut through the air, sharper than before.

Boyd fixed his gaze on her with a penetrating intensity, “You sure you’re not just playing dumb with

me?”

Yasmine paused for a moment, leaned against the nearby railing, and let out a laugh. “Me, playing

dumb? What’s up? Are we, like, actually dating or something? How come I, the person involved, am

the last to know? Have you been openly courting me, or poured out your heart in a confession, or have

we held hands and kissed?”

Boyd stepped closer, his eyes never leaving hers, “So, all of that has to happen for it to be considered

real dating, huh?”

There was a brief furrow in Yasmine’s brow as she spoke after a moment of silence, “When I first heard

the rumor, I found it ridiculous. Just the rumor alone seemed absurd to me, so the idea of it being true

is even harder to swallow.”

“Why?” he pressed.

She shrugged, “No particular reason. But if I had to give one, it’s probably because I’m too narrow-

minded to fully let go of the past misunderstandings between us. After all, if it weren’t for your

insistence on linking our childhoods together, I would’ve probably stayed completely cut off from you. I

think I’ve been pretty generous by interacting with you and Serana up to this point. If I had to get

involved with you in any other way, that would really be asking too much of me.”

Boyd’s brows knitted together, clearly displeased by Yasmine’s words.

“And let me remind you,” she continued, “don’t use your guilt towards me as a way to make amends,

and don’t confuse those childhood bonds and the so-called love from us spending a few years together

as kids.”

Yasmine was brutally honest. Her confidence was disarming, silencing any retort before it could be

voiced.

If all of this was just a big misunderstanding, it might have become a pathetic joke of unrequited

feelings. However, the look in Boyd’s eyes that she had seen in the cafeteria left no doubt about his

sincerity. He was serious.

She had no intention of responding to his seriousness. Who knew what mixture of feelings his

seriousness contained? When he eventually came to his senses, she would be the one left looking

foolish.

Besides, she had no obligation to respond to him unconditionally. It wasn’t just up to him.

“Anything else to say?” Boyd finally broke the silence.

“No, I think you’ve got the gist of it.”

Boyd took a deep breath, closed his eyes for a couple of seconds, then managed a smile.

“At the end of the day, you still resent me.”

She nodded, “Yeah, that’s right.”

He chuckled ruefully, “Your personality really is something.”

“Indeed.”

“I get it now.”

Yasmine looked at him, puzzled.

After that, Boyd didn’t say anything more and certainly didn’t discuss how they would move forward.

However, his behavior was as if this entire conversation had never happened. He was ever-present by

her side. Their relationship was neither clarified nor confirmed.

Despite things seeming unchanged, both Yasmine and Boyd started receiving confessions.

They came in all forms: love letters, texts, phone calls, even face-to-face confessions. Some with a bit

of fanfare, the pursuit tactics dazzling, and the locations for confessions ever-changing.

Boyd always had the same response, rejecting each one. Yasmine did likewise, though her patience

seemed to be wearing thin.

This time she was cornered in the cafeteria.Books Chapters Are Daily Updated Join & Stay Updated for

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Staring at the bunch of bright red roses thrust before her, Yasmine’s patience was on the verge of

snapping.

Boyd, standing by her side, asked calmly, “You planning on dating anyone right now?”

With a frosty impatience creasing her brow, she replied, “No, I’m not.”

“Neither am I. But it seems they’re not taking the hint.”

She shot him a cold glance. How many times had she said she had no intention of dating? These

people acted as if they were invigorated by defeat; the more they were rejected, the more they

persisted.

Boyd, unusually, flashed a smile and pulled her to his side. “We’ve been friends for years. Maybe it’s

time we help each other out?”

Yasmine looked up at him, probing, “How do we help each other? I don’t see how I can be of any help

to you?”

“I have a plan, nearly a hundred percent certain it’ll work. Wanna give it a try?”

Squinting slightly, she scrutinized him, “What’s the plan?”

Boyd glanced at the man standing not too far away, the roses in his arms glaringly bright. “Since you’re

curious, I’ll take that as a yes.”

Yasmine, tired of his evasive tactics, showed her annoyance. She tried to free herself from his grasp,

but his other hand encircled her waist, holding her close, and his lips found hers in a cool, unexpected

kiss.