Take My Breath Away

"Nope. Just book the ticket for me. Oh, and don't tell Carlos," Debbie said into her phone. She was now in a thoroughly bad mood, and her mind flashed back to the scenes of the painful memories of her and Carlos bickering over Megan. All these scenes were on repeat in her brain—all the times they clashed over one woman. And that wasn't all. Hayden had been bugging her—practically stalking her, and the Huo family members hated her on top of all that. She needed a break from the hate, the fighting, the bad feelings...all of it. All she wanted to do was fly to England alone.

Words failed Emmett. He knew Carlos would beat him to a pulp if he honored Debbie's request.

Carlos was often busy at work, but he was going to take the morning off and drive Debbie to the airport. She was supposed to leave the day after tomorrow.

But Emmett had a hard time turning Debbie down. She was always nice to him, and he found himself liking her. So he decided to do as she said.

When Carlos got home in the evening, Debbie wasn't there. He called her, but he got Kasie instead. When he asked her to put his wife on the phone, she replied, "No can do, Mr. Huo. Debbie's in the ladies' room."

"Okay. Where are you?"

"We...we're at the restaurant. You know, Debbie's taking off soon. We're giving her a farewell dinner," Kasie answered with the utmost care.

"Which restaurant?"

"A hotpot restaurant on Tenth Street," she said honestly.

After hanging up, Carlos descended the stairs, got into his car and drove towards the restaurant. Something didn't feel right; something bugged him. There was a tickling in the back of his brain.

When Debbie came back to their private booth, Kasie had just hung up on Carlos. "Hey Tomboy, your husband just called. Why not call him back?" She held out Debbie's phone. Debbie took it and unlocked the screen.

'Carlos called?' She checked the time on her phone. 'It's only 7 p.m. Why's he off so early?'

She sat back in her seat, chatting with her friends, but her thoughts were far away. She kept wondering what Carlos had called her for. She thought about it for a half hour, and finally it bothered her enough. She call

-possessive Mr. Huo would let Debbie study abroad with another man? She's going to England, while Dixon is going to America."

Dixon nodded and told them everything. Carlos saw a lot of potential in him, so he decided to send him to some college in America. As his sponsor, he had a lot of influence.

Carlos was a smart businessman, and he wouldn't gamble on a losing proposition.

So he offered Dixon a long-term contract. After Dixon graduated, he would go to work for ZL Group. They'd haggle over exactly where later on. His contract was for fifteen years, but at least he wouldn't be job-hunting after college.

Kasie looked at Debbie, her mouth agape. "Fifteen years? That's a long time, Tomboy. Your husband had him sign a slave contract."

After a moment's consideration, Debbie asked Dixon, "What about the salary?"

'If they didn't agree on the salary, Dixon might be in for it. After all, Carlos is a shrewd businessman, ' she thought.

Like he could read Debbie's mind, Dixon gave her a smile and nodded, "We've already talked about it. If I do well, Mr. Huo will start me off as his personal assistant. That's thanks to our friendship." He took a drink and continued, "If I don't do well, I'll start at the bottom and try to work my way up. Then my salary will be the same as everyone else's."

It was not easy to get on with ZL Group. Their starting wages were double anyone else's. To Dixon, Carlos did him a huge favor.