Chapter 2

My entire body went weak.

I nearly collapsed to the floor.

Fortunately, his large hands held me firmly in place.

"My skin has always been like this since childhood..."

Before I could finish speaking, the jacket Julian had given me slipped and fell to the ground.

Now there was nothing left to cover me.

"Ah."

I gasped in fright and hurriedly bent down to pick it up.

Unexpectedly, I bumped right into Julian as I straightened up.

"Hmm..."

He grunted softly.

I quickly stepped back.

"Sorry, sorry! I didn't mean to!"

There was only the desk behind me.

Even stepping back, I remained dangerously close to him.

And he was standing right in front of me.

The slightest misstep, and I would touch him again.

So I could only clutch his jacket tightly around me, not daring to move an inch.

"Olivia, did you and your husband ever... like this?"

As he spoke, he gradually moved closer to me.

In that moment, all the blood in my body seemed to freeze.

I gripped the clothes tightly.

"Manager Roscente, please don't..."

But he pressed closer, showing no intention of letting me go.

My face burned fiercely.

My mind was a complete mess.

"Why not? Don't you like it? Just give it a try, okay?"

His voice was utterly hypnotic.

Sweat broke out all over my body.

I turned my head away in shame.

Suddenly, someone knocked on the office door.

"Manager Roscente, I've brought your coffee."

A woman's voice came from outside the door.

Startled, I pushed Julian away.

I stood up, straightened my clothes, and went to open the door.

Unexpectedly, the person outside was my female colleague, Zoey.

She wore a slip dress.

Her skin was smooth and flawless.

Her figure was absolutely explosive.

As she passed by me, she shot me a disdainful glance.

She swayed her hips and walked directly into the office.

I figured she was also here to compete for the promotion.

This promotion not only came with a raise but also an extended vacation.

Who wouldn't be tempted?

I clenched my fists.

I swore to myself I would get this position.

After work, I went straight home.

I needed to take an ice bath to maintain my skin's firmness for my plan.

After all, I was already middle-aged.

This was the only method I could rely on.

I soaked in the ice bath.

It was so cold, so very cold.

That familiar sensation of tight skin and goosebumps returned.

I took an item from the drawer.

I lay back in the tub and took a selfie.

At exactly midnight, I posted that photo to my Moments.

I set the visibility to Julian only.

The caption read: ["Just muddling through a lonely night."]

Julian was always a night owl.

I bet he would see this post.

Sure enough, he sent me a WeChat message the very next second.

["Still awake this late?"]

I deliberately waited a moment before replying.

["Thank you for your concern, Manager Roscente. I've just been under a lot of pressure lately."]

["What pressure could you possibly have?"] He sent the message along with a drooling emoji.

I thought about how he had acted towards me during the day.

It made me feel shy all over again.

My scalp tingled.

["The promotion, of course. Everyone is giving it their all. I naturally can't slack off either."]

["Oh, I see. Well, you'll really have to step up your game then. After all, you're already middle-aged. It's hard to compete with younger girls."]

Yes, I was already middle-aged.

My looks naturally couldn't compare to younger girls.

But I was accustomed to ice baths.

My skin was firmer than most.

Many men desired me.

I smiled with satisfaction.

It seemed Julian had some interest in me too.

I had to work hard.

I needed to secure that position quickly.

I replied to him.

["I will definitely work hard."]

Early the next morning, I went to the company after my ice bath.

Julian kept summoning me to his office to report on work.

But I kept saying I was busy.

Playing hard to get works on any man.

This time, I would secure that promotion opportunity without fail.

Unexpectedly, Julian couldn't hold back by noon.