Five minutes later, a message from Gerard popped up—today’s schedule. She skimmed through it quickly. Gerard sent another message. She figured it would be instructions for her to prepare for the meeting at 10:30 am, but instead, it was a document on Dominic’s personal preferences.

Her brows lifted slightly, and she opened the document. It listed Dominic’s exact preferences for coffee and tea—down to the brewing methods and step-by-step instructions. For example, which beans to use for his first morning coffee and the temperature it had to be served at; what type of green tea worked past midnight (she was to prepare iced water). The list went on. She didn’t bother going through all of it; there seemed to be even more personal quirks detailed further down. So, this was Gerard’s way of telling her that she had to do all these tasks from now on.

Vespera suddenly remembered something mentioned near the top: the first cup of coffee had to be served before 9:30 am. What time was it now? She glanced at the clock; it was 9:48 am. Quickly, she scrolled back to see what coffee he wanted in the morning. Hand-brewed. Of course.

In her high heels, she hurried to the pantry. After finding the beans and kettle, she started grinding the beans. By the time her hand began to ache, she couldn’t help but laugh. She hadn’t come to Tavian Group expecting to be pampered, but the way Gerard had so subtly shifted all this onto her made her feel like she had been roped into doing manual labor.

Vespera moved as fast as she could, then carried the coffee to Dominic’s office. Taking a deep breath to steady herself, she knocked on the door. “Come in,” came the cool, steady voice from inside.

She opened the door and stepped in. Dominic was already at work, fully focused on the documents in front of him. Vespera walked over and gently placed the cup of coffee on his right. He looked up at her briefly, then lowered his gaze again. Without interrupting, he continued to work.

“ML Gilden.”

Chapter 118

Chapter 138

Dominic suddenly called out to her. Vespera turned back. “Yes, Mr. Reid? Is there something else you need?” He looked at her and tapped his own cheek. Vespera maintained her professional smile, but she was confused. What was he trying to say? Was there something on his face?

Seeing her puzzled expression, Dominic motioned for her to come closer. She stepped forward, even though she was unsure of what he wanted. Then, without warning, he rose from his chair. His tall frame loomed over her, blocking out the light and subtly shifting the air around her with his presence. The next second, his finger gently brushed her cheek.

The touch sent a jolt through her. Goosebumps rippled from her face down her neck. “You…” she gasped, eyes widening in alarm as she instinctively took a step back.

“There was something on your face,” Dominic’s voice was low and calm. He held up his finger for her to see. A faint smudge of brown coffee powder clung to his fingertip.

Vespera was at a loss for words. She pursed her lips. “Thank you, but next time you can just tell me…”

Dominic sat back down. “I did. You were just too slow to get it.”

Vespera was rendered speechless. Did pointing at his face count as a reminder? He should try saying the same thing to his dad and call him a clueless old man while he was at it!