Don't Love Me, I'm Straight

Chapter 3

A/N: The image above does not belong to me. It belongs to the person who uploaded it on the internet.

Up's POV

"So you still haven't met the right person up until now?" Kao challenged me as soon as he had escorted the visitors out of the conference room and saw them off at the elevator.

I was tempted to say 'nunya' but I bit back the word.

Instead I pretended that I didn't hear his question and asked him to call Mr. Earth Pirapat Watthanasetsiri and connect him to me on my office landline.

"Yes, sir," said Kao, immediately reading the room.

That was what I liked about Kao. He was quick to  catch the unspoken word. I needed someone like him around me.

That thought brought my 24/7 personal assistant, Poom, immediately to mind. He was the one other person who could read my mind, sometimes even before I'm aware of what I was thinking.

My landline buzzed.

"Mr. Watthanasetsiri on the line, sir," Kao said.

"Thank you, Kao," I replied, immediately regretting the snub I dished out to him earlier.

I confirmed with Mr. Watthanasetsiri that I needed his services to manage my Chiangmai factory. The current manager had asked to retire because he was getting on in years. I informed Mr. Watthanasetsiri that he could start on Monday and to not hesitate to call me for any questions or concerns.

I went about my office routine, signing off documents and checks that needed to be sent out to suppliers and people that I did business with.

"Is this the last document for the day?" I asked Kao when he came in with a beige folder and set it on my desk.

"Yes, sir," he said, bowing before walking away.

"Hey," I said to him before he could reach the door. "When did I say that you can start calling me 'sir' and act all formal to me?"

He turned to face me, his face all serious.

"I decided it would be best that way to avoid any further misunderstanding," he said in a tight voice.

"Listen, I'm sorry," I said, "I didn't mean to snub your earlier question. I was just not prepared to answer it."

"It's alright, sir," he said starting to walk away.

"Stop it," I said. "I wanna treat you to dinner after you take care of this document."

"You really don't have to," he said.

"But I want to," I said.

"If you insist then, thank you," he said before leaving the room.

I pulled my phone out of my pocket and called Poom on his phone.

"You don't have to pick me up this afternoon," I informed him. "I will be having dinner with my administrative assistant. He will take me home after."

There was silence on the other end.

"Poom?" I prompted him to respond before I cut the call.

"Of course, sir," I heard him say.

He seemed to want to say something else but changed his mind. He cut the call a second or two later.

I told Kao to book a table for two at the Emerald Food Terrace (A/N: this is a made up name for a restaurant, author doesn't know if such a name exists and if it does, it's purely coincidental)

"Listen," I said to Kao after I settled into the front passenger seat of his car. "Please don't be mad at me anymore. I'm sorry again for treating you poorly earlier."

"I'm not mad," he said as he started to drive away from the parking lot. "I was wrong for asking a personal question."

"So shall we forget about it?" I asked.

"Of course," he said as he expertly weaved in and out of the crowded lanes, swerving his car just in time to avoid sideswiping an SUV.

"Easy there," I cautioned him. "I don't wanna end up on a hospital bed, or worse being escorted by the angels to a heavenly paradise."

"Are you sure it will be angels who will escort you?" he asked, briefly turning his head to glance at me.

I laughed out loud. He was back to being my pleasant easygoing Kao.

Kao and I had a pleasant chat over chow mein noodles with grilled strips of beef and pieces of scattered scrambled eggs in it as well. We also had a platter of assorted stir fried vegetables consisting of snow peas and wavy elliptical carrots and mini mushrooms. I liked the taste of the oyster sauce that had been  mixed with the vegetables.

"Thank you for the dinner, Up," Kao said as we walked back to his car.

I was relieved that he was back to calling me like I had asked him to the very first day that he worked for me.

"Thank you for your company," I countered.

"I don't know how to get to your place," he said as we both settled into our seats.

He handed me his phone and I entered my address into his phone map.

When we reached my gate, I called Poom's phone to open the gate for me.

"You don't have to bring me inside my driveway," I said to Kao. "I will walk inside as soon as Poom opens the gate for me."

"Poom?" I realized that Kao did not know whom I was referring to.

"He's my all around assistant," I supplied the information that he wanted.

I did not fail to notice that Kao and Poom studied each other closely when they came face to face with each other.

"Do you want me to run your bath?" Poom asked when we got inside the house.

"Sure, thanks," I said, going straight up to my room to undress.

"Did you have a pleasant dinner, sir?" he asked just before entering the bathroom to start my bath.

"You know what, Poom, I think it's time for you to stop calling me 'sir', " I said.