Chapter 11

Gideon was deep in thought when a knock on the door interrupted his reverie. He had been thinking about Calliope, but as soon as the sound reached his ears, he pretended to be busy with some papers on his desk.

“Come in,” he called out, keeping his eyes firmly on the stack in front of him. He wasn’t about to let her know she’d been occupying his thoughts.

He knew Calliope’s temperament all too well. If she was coming to him for a favor, he needed to play it cool. If he showed her any warmth, she’d think he couldn’t live without her. Regardless of what he did or how he did it, she always seemed to forgive him without question.

“The wedding went smoothly yesterday, I assume?” he said, still not looking up. “I told you, you could handle it on your own. What were you fussing about? You did great. I heard about a nice new bistro in town. I’ll take you out for dinner later.”

Gideon continued speaking without lifting his gaze, oblivious to the fact that the person who entered wasn’t Calliope at all.

Liora, his assistant, stood in the doorway, slightly taken aback. Her expression was a mix of confusion and something else she couldn’t quite place.

After a moment, she cleared her throat, “Mr. Baker, I have a document here that needs your signature.”

Gideon finally looked up, surprised to see Liora instead of Calliope.

“She didn’t come?” he asked, his frowning deepening.

“Who?” Liora was caught off guard.

“Calliope,” Gideon replied, still frowning.

Could she really be upset over something so trivial? Surely she had managed the wedding without a hitch. If not, his grandfather would have been on his case by now.

“Ms. Jewell hasn’t been in today,” Liora responded, hesitating.

It seemed Mr. Baker was completely unaware of the office gossip.

Word had spread like wildfire that Ms. Jewell had married Mr. Myers yesterday. Not only that, but Mr. Myers had posted a photo of their marriage certificate on Twitter!

Screenshots of the post were circulating everywhere, and Mr. Myers had even handed out chocolates to everyone in the office, from the CEO to the janitor.

Seeing Gideon’s apparent ignorance, Liora decided to keep her mouth shut. He’d find out soon enough. She had always thought Ms. Jewell deserved better than the likes of Mr. Baker, with his careless attitude.

Gideon signed the document and handed it back to Liora, who he noticed was eyeing him with an indecipherable look.

“I see everyone has chocolates on their desks. Did Calliope give those out?”

Liora hesitated. “I’m not sure, sir. Maybe you should ask Ms. Jewell yourself.”

With that, she quickly exited the room, leaving Gideon puzzled.

What was Calliope up to?

Could it be that she was waiting for him at home?

His eyes fell on the box of chocolates on his desk.

Had Calliope been here and left these for him? Was this her way of reminding him they were married now?

It seemed possible.

His earlier irritation vanished, replaced by a sudden eagerness to go home.

It had been days since he’d tasted Calliope’s cooking. Despite his usual disdain for her homemaking efforts, he couldn’t deny her meals were delicious.