CHAPTER 14 – EVERYTHING I COULD EVER ASK FOR
“ONE
TWO
THREE
AND… ACTION!”
The camera started rolling and the Interviewer started the show with a friendly introduction.
Then he gently introduced Chase and Selene to the show.
Indigo magazines could not believe their luck when the wealthiest and hottest CEO in the country, Chase Axford agreed to an interview after sending him countless invitations and even going numerous times to see him. An interview with them was the dreams of many famous celebrities but only Chase Axford could ever turned them down.© 2024 Nôv/el/Dram/a.Org.
“So, Mr. Chase Axford, you’ve achieved quite a lot of success at a very young age of 26. You started, at the age of 18, working in your father’s business in the management department before eventually working your way up as CEO.”
“That is correct. I started as an intern in one of our subsidiaries at the age of 18 with no experience. Sure, I’d read a lot of books about managing resources and people but they were nothing compared to the real world, however the process thought me a lot and helped me to this day.
“How has it helped, Mr. Chase?”
“By understanding the consumer’s wants and creating a safe atmosphere to listen to their preferences. By doing that, I was able to establish a connection with my consumers.”
“That sounds interesting, Mr. Axford. From what you just told us, it seems you did not achieve your success solely because your father is the owner of Axford Inc. Hotels,”
“That’s right. Ever since I got into the position of CEO three years ago, revenue share has increased by 27 percent and that’s a huge deal considering the amount of money our hotels make annually. However, our consumers’ comfort matters most to us so we put that into consideration first.”
“Is there a secret to getting an increase of 27 percent managing a hotel in just three years? Even the last CEO couldn’t do that.”
“Well, we decided to put more aquatic scenery to capture our tourists’ attention. Moreover, we added a few diets on the menu to cater to more varieties of our consumer’s tastes.
“That sounds innovative, really. So we would like to hear more about your personal life, Mr. Chase. Many of us are curious about how life is with your wife, Mrs. Selene O’Malley, the most beautiful model of our time.”
“What can I say, she’s everything I could ever ask for.” His response was perfect, and Chase knew it. But the unfeeling look in his sea blue eyes did not match the warmth in his words.
**************
Chase headed to his office staring down disinterestedly as he typed away on his phone.
When he reached the side of his office, he saw a certain someone heading out with booze In his hand.
“West,” he stated disapprovingly, barely looking up from his phone.
Shocked that Chase was at the office by this time, he shuddered and shook his head before scratching the side of his neck to hide his annoyed expression.
“Tsk, what are you doing here? I know you’re a workaholic but this is taking it too far.”
“I should be asking you that,” Chase replied before tossing his phone into his pocket and focusing his attention on West with his perfect dark eyebrows arched.
West was dressed in a leather brown jacket and skinny jeans with a pair of black boots. His hair was sticky all over his face, making him look like he had had quite a bit of booze.
“Are you drunk, West?” Chase asked in predictable disappointment, clicking his fingers in front of West’s face.
“Of course not!”
“Then what’s that in your hand and why do you look a mess?”
West sighed.
“I’ve been putting off my work for some days now but I have to finish it by tomorrow. If I’m going to be as famous as you, I can’t lose to you in terms of working hard. I mean you even rocked a deal with your face on the front page of a huge magazine that only top personalities get into, that is amazing!”
“You’re praising me? That’s odd.”
“Huh- What do you mean, we’re friends,”
Chase sighed and walked into his office, with West following behind him.
“Want a drink?” He asked, unlocking his mini fridge.
“I already have one.” West reminded, showing him the booze in his hand.
Chase went ahead to grab a canned booze for himself. Then he sat on the sofa in front of West and sighed deeply.
West flicked open the can and took a large sip, afterward he murmured, “That hits the spot,”
Chase opened his drink and took a sip as well.
After a moment of silence passed between them, West said, “Your marriage is quite something, isn’t it? I saw the article of the interview you were in, you said Selene is everything you could ever want. Gosh, I almost believed that for a second.”
“You know it’s just an act,” Chase briefly replied.
The only person that knew about his fake relationship with Selene was West. West also knew that he had no feelings for Selene unlike what the world believed.
“Then I must say you’re good at it,”
“Then my wife’s better at it, she somehow has my father wrapped around her fingers.”
West erupted into a wave of laughter but he did his best to muffle it with the back of his palms.
“That’s right! To get the two of you married three years ago, your father even faked a heart attack!”
Chase clenched his fists at that reminder. He didn’t want to remember how he was forced into a marriage he never wanted. It was just one of the things he wasn’t proud of his father for.
“Gosh, that man sure is sly!” West said after his laughter subsided, “By the way, Chase, I have something to ask you.”
Chase took another sip of his booze.
“How is sex with Selene?”
Chase choked on his drink while West leaned closer with curiosity. “Even if you don’t like her, she looks hot as fuck in the recent photos. Don’t tell me you don’t tap that-”
“-I don’t,” Chase snapped after regaining his composure, cutting his eyes towards West in a glare.
“Then what do you do when you’re horny? Do you masturbate?” Right after asking that, West leaned toward and ran his fingers through Chase’s lap.
Startled, Chase slapped away his fingers. “What are you doing?!”
“You don’t seem to be the type to masturbate though,” West said thoughtfully, causing Chase to shake his head in annoyance and grit his teeth. West was still the same idiotic cousin that didn’t understand personal space.
“Do you have one-night stands then?”
The moment West asked that Chase’s thoughts went to the nights that he had with Mackenzie and it nearly made him blush.
“Oh! It seems like you do!” West clasped his fingers on seeing Chase’s expression, and grinned.
“S-stop messing around!” Chase said angrily but his tactics to intimidate rarely worked on West, so he cleared his throat and tried to change the subject, “Why don’t we talk about other things like dinner? Right now the time is past 9 pm and we’re still at the office-”
“-That’s right,” West interrupted, “What’s the latest news on Mackenzie?”
Chase swallowed nervously. Why was the topic shifting to Mackenzie all of a sudden? Not that he minded talking about her but it felt inappropriate considering what he’d done ‘with’ her.
“I heard that she traveled back to North Dakota with her father after her surgery,”
“How do you know that much about her?”
West smiled, “Did you forget? I’m close to Uncle Richard even though it doesn’t seem like it. He tells me things too if I just ask.”
“Unbelievable,” Chase mumbled.
Those two almost bickered with each other every time they met.
“What else did you learn about her?” Chase asked causing West to chuckle, “Finally you’re acting like a reasonable brother-in-law, you never used to be interested in anything about her or your brother. I guess you have a change of heart now after she had surgery for her illness.”
“It’s not that,” Chase said coldly while looking to the side, holding an up high expression, “I just feel pity for her,”
“Yeah yeah, she’s worthy of your pity. Your mother- I mean stepmom was quite pushy about her having a baby. Now that she’s had surgery and can’t give birth, she’s pretty much useless and might even get divorced by Jeffrey. That serves her right for becoming ambitious and getting into your family-”
“-That’s enough,” Chase interrupted, bringing his focus back to West, “Don’t say anymore,”
“Why? It’s true. She changed herself to fit into Jeffrey’s standards, she said so herself at the dinner table.”
“Still, you have no right to talk about her that way.” His tone turned even more serious and threatening.
West was taken aback by Chase’s response.
“Why do you defend her?” He asked.
“I’m not defending her. I just rather you do not badmouth her, it is not your place.”
A moment passed before West sighed and said, “So… should we keep talking and drinking?”
“No way,” Chase replied, “You will go back to your office and do your work, I don’t care if you pull an all-nighter.”
West cracked a smile, “You are no fun, Chase.”