The Secret Island
CHAPTER 53: Celine’s Office

Kathy was finding an answer to the difficult situation she had to face. It should be business as usual after her boss was back in the office. She had to guess the mood Celine was in. Kathy had been working with her for the past three years as a personal assistant, and it was her role to be aware of office politics or gossip.

The biggest gossip for this whole day was the talk of a certain handsome man at the reception. He sat at the reception for the morning and waited. He talked to her boss when she walked past, although she seemed to ignore him. When Kathy asked whether she should call security to escort the man out, Celine promptly rejected. She gave her no further instruction nor explanation.

"If he wanted to wait, just let him. Tell Martin he can stay as long as he wants, but don't expect me to be accommodating. I have work to do."

And that was what Kathy did. Nothing. Although she suspected that man was the same man she saw in the picture frame. The same picture on Celine's work desk. The gossip had it that he was the reason her boss was still single. The three years Kathy was working here were the three years she didn't see Celine dating anyone despite flowers and gifts sent from various admirers. Celine's best friend once told her that her boss was waiting for someone she loved to come back. He mysteriously disappeared with a promise.

So...his name is Martin...

Kathy knew that her boss was a beautiful woman that hung out in a beautiful crowd. And being Celine's personal assistant for years, she came across multiple men that tried to win her heart; all the rich and handsome, and powerful men that befriended Kathy to find a way to get closer to Celine. From all those men, she hadn't seen someone who emanated an air of quiet charm. Martin appeared warm and mature. She wanted to talk to him out of curiosity, but she didn't have the courage. This was the first time she met her boss's boyfriend, after all. At least she guessed he was still Celine's boyfriend-she still had a couple of photographs on her work desk anyway. "Hmm...sir, hello, here is some tea. I see you sit here a long while without drinking anything, so I take the liberty to make you a cup of tea. I hope this is ok. Do you need anything to eat?"

Martin looked up from his book. He seemed wary. He smiled and politely thanked her.

"Oh, thank you so much. You are very kind. Just tea is fine for me. I don't want to bother you too much. I'm just sitting here to wait for Celine."

Kathy couldn't get over his faint smile and politeness. She secretly admired him. She didn't know much about the man, but she could sense why Celine chose him. Her boss was quick-witted, a workaholic, full of energy, and had a fiery temper. He definitely had a calming effect on her. Kathy could easily understand why he was the man Celine was waiting for.

****

Celine let him wait. She probably wanted to get back at him. Maybe this was her form of punishment.

Martin didn't respond. He understood that she had all the right to be displeased about his actions. And all she did was no more than ignore him and proceed to work as if he was not there. She let him wait and read books in her office reception.

He glanced around the elegant space and recalled that day. The day Celine was sitting on his lap and went on about her dream office down to the exact location of the furniture. He remembered her complaint when he asked her to do the financial planning.

Martin saw this office from the day it was merely conceptual planning, and now it was a real physical space and an operating business. He smiled with pride at what Celine had accomplished.

She could do it all to a tee, and she did it well. The design of the reception area was vivid, with a shade of bright red reception desk and modern art furniture. He always knew she was a lady of good taste. She was different from him on stylistic details, the area he rarely paid any attention to. Quite possibly, this was part of the reason he loved her-she was the color in his world. The only colors he wanted to admire time and again for as long as he could.

As it turned out, Martin observed and concluded that Celine had become a workaholic. We just landed yesterday, and she went back to work straight away without a break. Instead, it was he who felt the full effect of jetlag. He was exhausted. But he had no work to speak of. All he had to do was wait. Waiting for Madam CEO and hoped he could take her out for a meal.

He got a chance to talk to Kathy, Celine's personal assistant. She delivered the bad news that Celine refused to have lunch with him. She had an urgent meeting she had to go to in the afternoon and soon she had to rush out.

"Oh, she has a meeting, right after she landed? Then that's alright. Please tell her I'll be here waiting. Don't worry too much about it."

"Would you like something to eat? I can order in a lunchbox."

"No, never mind me. I really don't want to bother you. Besides, I'm still not hungry."

Once Martin heard that she refused to go to lunch with him, all his appetite disappeared. But to tell the truth, he rarely had an appetite. After all that happened to him throughout his life, his apathy to pain and bullying, his experience of having trash on his food tray in prison, or worse, no food at all from other inmates thrashing his food tray. He got used to not eating for days, and from then on, it was as if he adapted to living without eating much.

"Can you please tell Celine that I will just wait here? And I bid her good luck for the meeting." He said unemotionally and went back to reading.

At lunchtime, Celine walked past him as if he was air. Martin didn't even have a chance to say anything to her. She treated him as if he didn't exist.

Martin knew he should be patient. We still had a lot of time together. And all his time was hers.