MIDNIGHT Bride The CEO's TEMPTATION

Although Crystal was curled up in Nathan's arms, she slept restlessly. This was due to a recurring, ongoing dream that she was having, where she was being chased. She couldn't see who was behind her when she looked behind her, but she could hear their footsteps. It was dark in her dream, and she was barefoot. There were thorns and shards of broken glass on the floor, but she knew that she couldn't let her pain impede her flight. She was panting and sweating, and her feet were cut and scraped, but she kept running. It was so bad that she was exhausted when she woke up, and her limbs were sore.

As Crystal sat up, she was startled to discover that Nathan was no longer in bed with her. She sat up, and she was about to call his name, but then her phone rang. She picked it up from off her nightstand, checked the caller ID, and saw that it was Leslie. She accepted the call, brought her phone up to her ear, and said, "Hello?"

Leslie: "Crystal, I'll be there in about twenty minutes. Be ready."

Crystal: "Okay. I'll see you soon."

As soon as the call was over, Crystal got out of bed, and she began to get ready. She had a quick shower, brushed her teeth, straightened her hair, put on a smoke-gray dress, and applied makeup. Then, after checking herself out in the mirror, she went downstairs to wait for Leslie.

Much to her surprise, when she got downstairs, she saw that her friend had already arrived. And as soon as Leslie saw Crystal, she struck a model's pose. "What do you think?" she asked. Her wavy chestnut hair framed her face beautifully, and her white-rimmed sunglasses accentuated her cheekbones. She was wearing red high-heeled shoes and a matching leather handbag. Crystal thought she looked like a queen, and she said so.

"If you dressed like this all the time, you wouldn't need to go on Blind Dates," Crystal continued. "Men would be falling at your feet in the hopes of getting your attention."

Leslie sighed and said, "The only male attention that I want is Arnold's, and no matter how I dress, he won't give me the time of day..."

Crystal frowned. "I'm sorry," she said. "I didn't mean to upset you. Let's forget about him for today and focus on having a good time. Can you do that?"

"I'll try," Leslie replied. "Why don't we get going? I've got the Maserati convertible waiting outside."

Crystal nodded, and when they got to the car, Leslie took a sexy Selfie beside it. Then she sent Arnold a text message. It said: "I'm sending you a Friend Request on WhatsApp. Accept it." 

Arnold: "Hell, no!"

Leslie: "If you want to know how my Blind Date is going, you will accept my request. I'll send you pictures from my date once it is over."

Arnold: "Fine."

Leslie chuckled as she launched her WhatsApp. Once it was open, she posted a photo of her beside the red Maserati.

Once they were in the car, Leslie started the engine and set the radio to her favorite station. Then, as they pulled out of the driveway, she began to sing along to the song that was playing. It was "Betty," from Taylor Swift's new album, and she knew it by heart.

In no time at all, the wind was blowing through their hair. The music was loud, and both of the girls were in a good mood. That quickly changed, though, as two cars matched their speed, and men inside them began to utter rude comments at them through their open windows.

Leslie gave the men the middle finger, and Crystal tried to ignore them, but they were persistent. Eventually, Leslie turned to Crystal and said, "What do we do? I'm starting to feel afraid. What if they follow us to the hotel, where my Blind Date is waiting?"

Crystal scowled and said, "Let's change seats. I'll drive."

Leslie nodded, and she quickly found a place to pull over. But, unfortunately, the pursuers stopped a short distance ahead of them. As soon as Crystal was behind the wheel, though, she took off like a bat out of Hell, and they were able to get away. Leslie was shocked by her driving skills, and as she clutched the door handle, she said so.

Crystal caught a glance of Leslie through the rearview mirror, and she couldn't help but smile. When She'd first met Leslie, she'd been wearing a chest wrap that deliberately hid her breasts. Now, though, her breasts were on proud display, and the outlines of her nipples were visible through her dress.

Leslie noticed Crystal's eyes on her, and she smiled.

Crystal's face turned red, and she quickly looked away.

Leslie chuckled and said, "I finally know why Nathan and Eric like you."

Crystal: "Why?"

Leslie: "You are a fascinating woman." 

Crystal: "You are much more fascinating than I am, and you're reckless as Hell." 

Leslie: "I'll take that compliment. Thank you."

The two girls smiled at each other. They had lost the catcallers, and their destination was in sight.

When they got to the hotel's door, Leslie Pinged their current address and sent it to Arnold. Crystal gave her a curious look, and she said, "Better safe than sorry."

Crystal nodded and sent Nathan an identical Ping. Then she double-checked Leslie's date's profile and said, "Not bad. "William Wright, right."

Leslie nodded but said nothing.

"It says he's twenty-eight," Crystal continued. 

"And that he's the CEO of a listed company. He also studied abroad...".

Leslie: "So what? All men are the same.

They all want the same thing, and it's not our brains!"

"You're wrong," Crystal argued. "Not all men are dogs. Some are lions, and others are wolves. Surely, you know that!"

"I suppose you're right," Leslie admitted.

They had just reached the window, and they used William's Profile Picture to identify him. He was wearing a suit and tie.

"Is he an eagle?" Crystal asked. "It's hard to tell the difference between male and female."

Leslie grinning and said, "That's actually pretty funny." Then, with a smile on her face, she approached her Blind Date.

Unbeknownst to them, the hotel belonged to the Brilliant Group. Thus, Nathan had remote access to all of its security cameras. And at that very moment, he and Arnold were drinking wine and watching their every movement. 

"This should be interesting," said Nathan.