A Graduation Gift

When his secretary finished, Lionel squinted his eyes, moping.
His secretary knew the relationship between Cassandra and Lionel. Lionel, who had stamped with rage, now suddenly became
quiet. He stood there, pulling his vexed expression together. He didn't say a word because he seemed to have something on his
mind.
"When, exactly?" he asked.
Lionel barely made it to the sofa by the French window, then plopped his tired body onto it. It was impossible to guess how he
was feeling because his voice had gone soft.
"8 o'clock tonight,"
the secretary replied. Now she finally had the courage to lift her head to look at Lionel, but cautiously with fear.
Lionel asked no more. He stretched his arms to both sides of the sofa. He seemed to think deeply about something or even be
contriving some sort of plot.
The night was especially dark. But as a white Bentley drove to the airport, neon lights lit up the roadways, and the whole city
sparkled and dazzled with life.
Cassandra had been notified to get into Rufus's car when she got done with work. She got in and sat in the back seat with him.
She didn't have time to change out of her business suit into something more casual.
On her lap was a mess of business files. She read them, straining her eyes, using the lights outside the car to help her read. She
squinted a lot to catch key words. Rufus had fired the relevant staff. Since she was not involved in this project, she now had to fit
herself in and get familiar with the case.
Rufus relaxed beside her, looking dashing as always. He fixed his gaze on Cassandra, who was quietly absorbed in the
documents. He didn't disturb her. He just sat there, watching her quietly.
She seemed to sense his burning gaze, so she lifted her head. When their eyes met, she felt an immediate, irresistible
palpitation of her heart.
To break the uncomfortable gaze, she darted her eyes to view the scenery outside the window. 'Why can't I focus when Rufus is
sitting next to me?' she thought.

"Are you afraid to be with me on a business trip?" Rufus blurted out.
He couldn't help but inch his body closer to her. His low, magnetic voice lingered in her mind, making her heart beat faster.
"Not at all. It's just a business trip," she answered.
She tried desperately to erase the panic from her face, to make herself look fearless. Subconsciously, she started to rub her
hands on the documents in the files.
"Don't waste your time reading those. Just ask me anything you want to know,"
Rufus's voice boomed. His presence was very powerful wherever he was, not to mention in such a small car. Cassandra let out a
long-held breath at his words. She wished silently over and over that he wouldn't approach any closer.
The night wind tickled her face as it blew through the rolled-down windows. She closed her eyes to enjoy the gentle touch and
grew sleepy at its hypnotic rhythm. Rufus reveled in watching her obvious bliss and didn't say a word. Though a faint smile
secretly creeped onto his lips.
In a magnificently decorated presidential suite, a man and a woman were lying on a dark red king-size bed. The constant
seductive groans and grunts were endearing for a while. But the playful noise had given way to breathless silence.
"What's going on? You seem very distracted,"
said Ivy, who was lying cradled in Lionel's arms. Tonight, Lionel seemed especially agitated. He seemed to need to blow off
some steam.
"I doubt that Cassandra is having an affair with Rufus," Lionel said.
His eyes heavy with anger, Lionel remembered that Cassandra was going on a business trip with Rufus this evening. He
suddenly broke out in a gust of anger he couldn't hide.
As Ivy looked at the expression on Lionel's face, her eyes began to brim with curious, radiating vigor. Then she said playfully,
"Are you jealous? To be honest, Cassandra is really good at this kind of thing. Rufus just joined the Tang Group and she has
already hooked up with him."
Ivy's words added fuel to Lionel's flames and his anger mounted. His raised his voice, "I refuse to be jealous for a woman like
her. Even I won't lower myself to have sex with her, but that doesn't mean that she has any right to cheat on me! And with Rufus,

of all men! Argh!"
The mere mention of Rufus's name made Lionel gnash his teeth in anger. He would never forgive Rufus for humiliating him at
the meeting today. He would take his revenge when he got the precise opportunity.
"Okay, then. Don't get so angry. Rufus is a different sort of man. I don't think Cassandra has anything special to make Rufus
want her more than any other woman. He probably just does it to humiliate you on purpose, to make you frustrated in your
business dealings. And perhaps he wants to use Cassandra to hurt you more. Before he makes any further move, I think we'd
better ride before the hounds."
Although Ivy spoke in a thin voice, her words had hidden meanings, which contrasted with her innocent look.
"Continue," Lionel said.
Ivy's words alarmed Lionel. He furrowed his eyebrows in an attempt to think things through, to devise a plan to mess with Rufus
for revenge.
Ivy threw him a radiant smile, leaned toward him and opened her mouth to whisper into his ears.
The night was moonless, pitch black, and thick as a tree shadow where there was no slight gap of light. A sudden whooshing of
the wind brought faint flashes of city light, but soon the night turned as black as before.
After a bumpy flight, Cassandra and Rufus arrived at the hotel that had already been booked for them for this trip.
Cassandra was exhausted, and she had already dozed off on the way to the hotel.
She leaned her head against Rufus's shoulder with her mouth slightly open. He could hear and feel her feeble breaths.
Rufus stared into the lights of the city. Occasionally, he turned his head to throw a gentle look at the woman who was enjoying
her slumber.
'It must have been a tough business trip for her since I sprung it on her so last minute. She was probably already beat after work,
' Rufus thought. She had dazzled him and his business partners on the previous case, so he didn't give a second thought to
have her come along again on this important case.
To a certain degree, this was a pretty rare trust between a man and a woman.

Cassandra seemed to enjoy herself in an infinite dream. But occasionally, she murmured things out loud. Rufus couldn't figure
out what she was saying, but he felt some semblance of peace with her that he had never felt before.
He felt comforted, like staying with his mother when he was a young boy.
Peaceful and eased. That seemingly peaceful memory soon turned sour, though. A burst of indignant hatred always rushed into
his body whenever he thought of his mother. He had loved his mother more than anything or anyone in the world. He nearly died
emotionally and spiritually when her life was stolen from this earth far too soon. As long as he was alive, he would never let
anyone involved off the hook.
"...Ouch."
Rufus left his evil thoughts at the sound of a soft voice. Cassandra had just awoken. Oops! Rufus realized that he had pressed
against Cassandra's hair accidentally when he was ruminating about his mother.
As Cassandra awoke and found her head against Rufus' shoulder, she immediately sat upright on her side of the seat, coughing
mildly for a quick distraction. She was too embarrassed to look in Rufus's direction.
"Cassandra,"
She probably expected a response to the awkward situation they'd found themselves in, so he finally called her name.
With coy surprise on her face, she slowly turned to look at Rufus with her bright blinking eyelashes.
She could suddenly feel the evil emanating from the man next to her. Rufus now looked different. His eyes grew fierce, evil but
passionate.
When she realized he wasn't going to talk anymore, Cassandra broke the silence. She asked him with long eyelashes blinking,
concern apparent in her tone, "What's happening?"
Rufus's eyes grew wide, as if holding in a great secret. In a blink, he lifted her chin gently, bringing her lips to the edge of his,
biting slightly. Then his tongue dove in as he gave her the most fierce kiss of her life. The moment disoriented her a bit. How
could she regain her composure after such an unexpected kiss?