Chapter 2

The moment we walked out of the conference room, my colleague Mia grabbed my arm, her face full of worry.

"Chloe, are you insane? Texting during his meeting is one thing, but casting it to the big screen?! Thank god the Ice King didn't see the text, or you'd be a goner!"

I let out a weak, embarrassed laugh.

"Yeah... slip of the finger."

When I first realized Ethan was my online boyfriend, I was ecstatic.

But thinking about it now... it was incredibly creepy.

I looked around to make sure no one was watching, then lowered my voice. "Hey, Mia... do you think someone like Mr. Reed would ever do online dating?"

Mia blinked, then burst out laughing.

"Mr. Reed? The legendary office tyrant? The man is basically celibate."

She leaned in closer to my ear.

"Rumor has it he has some... issues down there. How could he do online dating?"

Her expression suddenly changed, and she looked at me suspiciously.

"Wait, you're not thinking of seducing him to save your job, are you?"

"Girl, it’s just a proposal. Don't sacrifice your soul for it."

"The Ice King already dislikes you. If you push his buttons, he will fire you on the spot."

My heart did a violent flip.

I had thought I hit the jackpot with Ethan.

But from Ethan’s perspective, if he found out, it would look like I was blackmailing him.

After all, I made him call me "Mistress" and forced him to send me abs pics.

Just imagine if I had cast his abs to the screen during the meeting!

Oh my god, the sheer embarrassment. It would be my social death.

I could never let Ethan know that I was his online Mistress!

I forced myself to sound calm. "I was just curious. I'd never do that."

Only then did Mia let out a sigh of relief.

Shortly after I got back to my apartment, my phone buzzed. It was a Snapchat message from Ethan.

[Babe, I'm free now. Want me to make those sweet sounds for you?]

Ah!

The thought of Ethan—who was always so stiff, formal, and buttoned-up to his neck at the office—lying on his bed and begging for my attention made my brain short-circuit.

The contrast was too wild.

And he was my boss!

I didn't dare to play along anymore.

Me: [No need.]

[Ethan got anxious immediately: [Why?]

[Am I not attractive to you anymore?]

[Or are you mad because I didn't reply to your thigh pic right away?]

[No wonder you didn't accept my PayPal transfer.]

[Babe, I'm sorry. I was wrong. Please, just give me a chance to show you how much I want you.]

Then, a FaceTime call popped up.

My heart raced to the rhythm of the ringtone.

Maybe it was because Ethan had been so brutal to me today, but seeing him beg so desperately online gave me a sudden rush of satisfaction.

In fact, I wanted to mess with him a little.

I wanted to humble him, and then dump him.

But then I looked at the pending $5,000 transfer...

...Fine. Let's keep this going.

But I was definitely going to tease him.

I accepted the FaceTime call.

As usual, we both kept our cameras angled down, keeping our faces out of the frame.

"Babe, are you still mad at me?"

His deep, husky voice echoed through my speakers.

I had never made the connection before, but listening closely now, it was undeniably Ethan’s voice.

Terrified he would recognize mine, I quickly typed: [I'm not mad, baby. Go ahead, I'm watching.

Ethan let out a relieved sigh.

His tone turned playful and eager.

"Okay. Here I go."

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