The CEO's Seductive Doll-Chapter 134: The Real Best Friend of the Doll

"So you can imagine my shock and disappointment when I found out they hired a new, official secretary for Sir Holz," Jakob said, his voice deep and filled with pain. "They hired you, officially taking me down from being Sir Holz’s proxy secretary."

"I..." Eternity tried to speak, but the words failed her.

Jakob smiled at her, though it didn’t quite reach his eyes.

"You don’t need to say you’re sorry or feel sorry for me, for that matter," he added as an afterthought. "I know I never had a chance with him, but there was a tiny hope inside me that he could at least be attracted to me. So when I found out that there was no possible way for him to even be attracted to me, I just—God, I’m not making sense, am I?"

"I actually can understand where you’re coming from," Eternity assured him softly.

"Thank God!" Jakob exclaimed. "I was worried that I might be over-explaining things again. But anyway, let me continue."

Eternity nodded in agreement, her eyes fixed on him with empathy.

"Esteban and I both had feelings for Sir Holz," Jakob said, smiling gently at the memory. "Which, now that I think of it, was kind of bizarre. I didn’t know what I was thinking, really, why I fell in love with Sir Holz in the first place. I guess his strict and stern personality swept me away."

"Are you a fan of CEO romance books?" Eternity asked jokingly. "Because I sure am."

"Oh, you mean those books where the usually nonchalant CEO falls in love with his cheerful colleague?" Jakob chuckled. "Yeah, maybe reading those kinds of novels fueled my delusions that he’d fall in love with me whenever I finished the tasks he gave out."

Both of them laughed out loud, and the mood around them finally lightened up.

"Anyway," Jakob began again, his tone more relaxed, "enough about my delusions and unreciprocated love toward my boss! Let me go back to our original topic: Esteban."

Eternity waved her hand as a gesture for Jakob to continue.

"During one of the grief meetings I attended, I was sitting casually in my seat, waiting for more members to arrive. Then Esteban sat beside me. Back then, we were merely acquaintances. Although I’d always encountered him in the elevator, I’d never had the opportunity to casually talk to him." 𝘧𝓇ℯ𝑒𝓌𝑒𝑏𝓃𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭.𝒸ℴ𝓂

"Not until that moment," Eternity said.

He nodded.

"So, you know me, I’m the talkative type. I decided to strike up a conversation with him because I was getting bored and impatient that the meeting hadn’t started yet. Then... things just happened, you know?

"We just vibed really well," Jakob said simply. "After that meeting, we started hanging out. A lot. Then one thing led to another: we went drinking one night, then BOOM! We had a one-night stand."

"Interesting..." Eternity hummed, rubbing her chin as she listened intently to his story.

"I haven’t even told you the really interesting part, Miss Doll," he teased.

"Oh?" Eternity leaned in, her curiosity piqued once more. "What happened next?"

"So we were doing the deed, yeah? Out of nowhere, he just shouted, ’I love you!’"

"What?!" she gasped, completely taken aback.

"I know!" Jakob said, shaking his head as if he still couldn’t believe it. "But I didn’t let it get to me at first. I just thought, ’Maybe he’s imagining me as Sir Holz,’ or whatever. So we just continued until later on, he started whispering, ’I love you, Jakob! I love you so much!’"

"No way!" Eternity exclaimed, her cheeks turning red with secondhand embarrassment.

"Yes way!" Jakob chuckled. "You can imagine my horror when I realized that it wasn’t just a one-night stand for him."

"What happened next?" she probed. "Did you still continue?"

Jakob shook his head, a pained expression crossing his face. "I couldn’t. I didn’t even finish. I just bolted out of bed, paid for the love hotel, and left the place."

"Oh, no!" She covered her face, the embarrassment hitting her as if she were in Jakob’s position. "How did you handle the aftermath?"

"I stopped going to the Sir Holz meetings," he said. "And thankfully, I didn’t need to use the stairs just to avoid Esteban. He acted as if nothing happened, and we returned to our previous relationship status: strangers."

Eternity sighed, feeling a deep pang of sympathy for Jakob. "That must have been so difficult for you."

"It was," Jakob admitted, his voice softening. "I felt guilty for leading him on, even if it was unintentional. I didn’t mean to make him think I was interested in him, or that I could be used as a rebound for Sir Holz. I mean, even I was still moving on from Sir Holz! It was too much. Everything was an utter mess."

"I don’t think he used you as a rebound, though. I think he legitimately fell in love with you," she paused before adding, "At least, that’s what J made it sound like in his story."

Jakob made that same smile that didn’t reach his eyes. "And now I made an enemy out of someone I didn’t even know until today..." He began returning the eating utensils to his tray, signaling that his story was finally over. "Life truly is a mess, isn’t it, Miss Doll."

"Eternity," she said, her voice gentle but firm.

Jakob blinked, looking puzzled. "What?"

"You can call me ’Eternity,’" she exclaimed. "I’ve been calling you Jakob for the longest time, yet you’ve never called me by my first name."

Finally, Jakob grinned. It wasn’t the same as his previous smiles. This one was genuine. This was a smile that suited him well.

"Eternity it is!" he beamed. "Shall we get going, Eternity? Oh, I love how it rolls off my tongue!"

Eternity couldn’t help but giggle at his reaction.

"You need to return your tray back to the cafeteria!" she reminded him.

"Of course," he said, standing up and offering his free hand to Eternity. "I’m not a kitchenware thief!"

She beamed at him and took his hand, allowing Jakob to pull her up from the floor.

"I never said you were!"

Jakob burst out laughing. Each cackle echoed across the wide expanse of the rooftop.

"Keep quiet, Jakob!" Eternity said in a hushed voice. "We don’t want people to find out that we went to the rooftop! It’s not open to the public after all."

Instead of calming down, his laughter grew louder. His eyes were watering from happiness, and he was clutching his stomach for dear life.

Eternity should’ve felt insulted that he ignored her warning and continued laughing like a madman. Instead, she just watched him, mesmerized by the pure joy in his expression. As she watched him, there was only one thing on her mind.

What a beautiful laugh Jakob had.