I'm a CEO. Funny things keep happening around me after I meet a weird woman.

I was a CEO. I felt like strange things kept happening to me as of late. I noticed that a woman kept showing up everywhere I went.

Of course, I was an extremely handsome, wealthy, and talented billionaire. It was only natural for me to be surrounded by women of all sorts.

But that woman was different.

Why? Well, I'd never met such an oddball in my entire life.

She tripped over nothing and fell right in front of me on her first day of work. The coffee she was holding ended up splashing all over my suit.

Did she have any idea how expensive this suit was?

After that, the woman quickly rushed toward me and attempted to wipe the coffee off my suit. My bodyguards were stunned, to say the least. Everyone could only watch as that woman tugged and pulled at my suit, making me look even more wretched.

Thank goodness, one of my many admirers was quick to pull her away from me angrily, thus saving me from her clumsy endeavors.

After calming down, I coolly told the woman how much my suit was. I was about to ask for compensation when she glared at me defiantly.

"So what if you're rich?" she exclaimed. Then, she ran out the door while covering her face and sobbing.

She was spot-on. My suit really was very expensive.

But I was a perfect gentleman. I could always let bygones be bygones.

Hence, I told my secretary, Ms. Vale, to pay the clumsy and tactless woman—who happened to be my employee—the required compensation as stated in her employment contract. At the same time, that employee was to be dismissed from the company.

One would've thought this fiasco would be over, right?

No. The truth couldn't be any further from that.

That woman visited my home the day after she got fired. She was clad in a white dress, making her look very frail and innocent.

She stood in my own home while questioning me why I chose to fire her in a righteous manner. After that, she told me I had no right to make such decisions.

My temple throbbed slightly the moment I noticed the woman. After that, I asked her coldly, "Do you know that what you're doing right now is considered trespassing?"

I was already planning on firing the security guard who let her into my home.

The woman glared at me stubbornly with tears in her eyes. Then, she demanded to know why I fired her, this time sounding more choked up.

I felt like I could no longer keep my composure. Still, I maintained the basic etiquette of being a proper gentleman.

Hence, I asked the woman kindly, "Did the HR department not pay you the compensation for firing you according to your employment contract?"

The woman could only stammer in response. Tears began flowing down her cheeks at that moment. Soon, she was crying so hard that she could barely breathe.

Amidst her sobs, she made sure to shout at me in a cutesy voice, "So what if you're rich?"

With that, she ran away once again.

I finally understood what was going on. That woman was another one of my many crazed admirers. She was purely acting out of the ordinary just to attract my attention.

Of course, I no longer cared about her. First things first, I fired the unreliable security guard. I also took the opportunity to warn the other guards to never allow any strange women into my home. After that, I dealt with the urgent tasks pending my attention at the company.

I was a CEO, so I was naturally an extremely busy man. I had no time to deal with my admirers. After all, I didn't plan on getting into a relationship just yet.

But soon, I realized I was wrong.

…

When I saw the woman sitting on the couch across from my parents with a shy smile on her face, I had a strong urge to just up and leave the place right away.

That urge intensified when my mom grabbed her hand while introducing her to me. "Luc, come here! This is Luther's new private tutor, Charlyn Emerson."

Obviously, Charlyn recognized me. Rage, scorn, and embarrassment swirled in her eyes as she extended a hand my way. "Hello, Mr. Skyworth."

I didn't take her hand. Instead, I just nodded at her while smiling faintly. "Hello, Ms. Emerson."

Charlyn's hand froze in midair. Then, she retracted it while looking flustered. Tears welled up in her eyes again as she gazed at me while putting up a strong front. I saw the mix of embarrassment and anger shining in her eyes.

Fine. I had to admit that I was being petty. That suit she ruined was expensive, alright?

But I realized that I was quite amazing, in a way. To think that I could read Charlyn's emotions just by looking at her eyes!

Anyway, I felt like I would combust on the spot when Charlyn offered to serve me a fruit platter, only to "accidentally" dump the fruits on me three times in a row.

As a private tutor, shouldn't she be tutoring my little brother, Luther Skyworth, instead? Huh? Why the hell was she helping to serve drinks and fruit platters? I may not be wearing a suit right now, but the clothes on my back were still freaking expensive!

Well, maybe Charlyn didn't know the price tag. Still, I didn't want to change my clothes three times a day.

Obviously, Luther was on my side. He jogged over to Charlyn and dragged her away soon enough.

"Ms. Emerson, I don't know how to solve this question! Stop paying attention to my brother, will you?"

Luther shot me a smug look. In return, I discreetly gave him a thumbs-up. As expected of my wonderful little brother! Perhaps I had been too harsh with him all this time.

I turned my parents down when they asked me to stay for dinner. I was determined to leave this place right now.

When I left, that Charlyn woman just stood at the doorway of Luther's room while gazing at me, clearly aggrieved.

Hold up, why was she making such an expression? Did she have any idea that I had to change my clothes three times in a row today? If anything, I should be the one feeling aggrieved!

This was why I had referred to Charlyn as an oddball! She was the first woman who actively pursued me, to the point that she even made herself known to my parents! Not only that, but she was also able to please my parents! Seriously, that woman was quite skilled when it came to wooing men!

…

Just what sort of fate was written in my stars that I managed to bump into this goddamn woman four times in a row on the same day?

For the first time ever, I had a feeling that Charlyn would be an extremely difficult admirer to deal with.

When I was driving to work, a man suddenly rushed out in front of me before slipping and falling on the spot. He began wailing in pain after that.

Well damn, it seemed that a scammer had targeted me. There were surveillance cameras around me that proved that my car hadn't bumped into him at all. So, I decided to swerve around the man and leave.

Who would've thought that Charlyn would show up all of a sudden and stop my car? She then proceeded to question me loudly. "What makes you think you can just avoid taking responsibility for ramming into that man?"

I had no choice but to lower my window and tell Charlyn that the guy was trying to scam money out of me.

Her cheeks turned red out of anger instead. She claimed that I looked down on her because I was sitting in my car while talking to her right after apparently crashing into that guy.

I told Charlyn that there were surveillance cameras installed in this area. The footage could prove that the man had already collapsed while my car had still been some distance away from him.

But she continued, "How dare you avoid taking responsibility even after hurting that poor guy?"

Exasperated, I just raised my car window and proceeded to ignore Charlyn.

But she kept banging on my window while berating me loudly. "You think you can get away with everything just because you're rich? You scions never care about everyone else!"

I couldn't be bothered to spare her any attention. All I did was close my eyes and wait for the police to arrive.

My demeanor seemed to have enraged Charlyn even more. The banging grew even louder.

"Hey! I'm talking to you here! Do you even know how to respect others?"

The man's pained moans grew louder once he realized that someone was defending him. But when he heard the sirens coming from a distance, his expression changed immediately. He quickly got up to his feet and fled from the scene.

Meanwhile, Charlyn was still banging on my car window.

Soon, the police arrived at the scene. We were both escorted to the police station to have our statements taken. The police also collected the security footage from the scene.

Naturally, I was innocent. I even told a policeman, "She kept speaking up for that scammer earlier. I suspect they're working together to scam people."

Once I was done with my statement, I drove away from the police station. Charlyn, on the other hand, was kept back.

Before I left, I heard an officer muttering, "Young ladies nowadays are too eager to show off their so-called virtue in front of rich people. Heh!"

I had no idea what happened to Charlyn after that.

Thankfully, the next few weeks were delightful for me, as I never saw her during that period. According to my mom, Charlyn had taken leave for the past two days, which meant she had temporarily paused Luther's tutoring sessions.

My mom was still thinking whether or not she should change to another private tutor. I wanted to urge her to do so, but I was worried that she'd berate me.

"Why are you being petty? She's just a helpless woman!" she'd exclaim.

Just the thought scared me.

It was a long time since I last saw Charlyn, which explained why my guard was down. I just remembered her momentarily when my mom occasionally brought her up. After all, she was just an ordinary admirer of mine.

But then again, she was no ordinary woman—that was for sure.

After my business rival, Arthur Calvert, snatched a few business deals from my company, I finally had a feeling that he was specifically targeting me.

But I didn't think that he had a reason for doing so. After all, he and I tended to avoid trampling on each other's toes most of the time. Not to mention, our business fields were completely different.

When I first found out about Arthur stealing the deals from me, my first thought was that his company might be making a strategic pivot.

But then Arthur began really eyeing my business deals. Generally, both of our companies were on par with each other in terms of scale and wealth. Moreover, my company had the upper hand here. Then how did he manage to snatch those deals?

After all, the clients and I had already ironed out most—if not all—the details. We had been about to sign the contracts, too. But he still managed to steal them from me.

To think that a few of our business deals had gotten snatched away when we had been on the cusp of wrapping them up!

As I listened to Ms. Vale's report, I drummed my fingers on my desk repeatedly, revealing the frustration gnawing at me right then.

Honestly, it was really exasperating. I couldn't figure out why Arthur would target my company all of a sudden.

Then, I instructed Ms. Vale to make a dinner appointment with Arthur.

I needed to get rid of that pesky rival one way or another. Besides, I was pretty curious as to how he had managed to pull off such a feat. How on earth had he stolen those deals when I'd been so close to finalizing the contracts?

We agreed to meet up at the restaurant at 8:00 pm. However, Arthur only arrived at 8:20 pm. When I saw him forcefully dragging the furious Charlyn, who kept stumbling behind him, I finally connected the dots.

Of course, I knew that there was no need for me to proceed with dinner now. Still, I decided to stay. I wasn't the type who'd lose his manners over women, unlike Arthur.

"I've been waiting for you, Mr. Calvert."

I spun the ring on my finger while reclining against my chair. It was rare for me to look quite relaxed. After all, a man who allowed himself to be constantly manipulated by a woman hardly deserved to be treated seriously as an opponent.

Honestly speaking, I was quite dumbfounded to see Arthur dragging Charlyn into the restaurant. He didn't even sit down before addressing me.

Instead, he just dragged Charlyn to the table before eyeing me up and down disdainfully. A scoff escaped from his lips the next moment.

"At the end of the day, you're just an ordinary guy, Mr. Skyworth."

Then, Arthur began dragging Charlyn out of the restaurant. Charlyn turned her head to look at me while biting her bottom lip. She made sure to cast me a suggestive glance that made it seem like she was playing hard to get.

Wait a minute. Why on earth was she looking at me like that?

Fine. I could understand why she still wanted me despite having seduced Arthur. After all, I was a lot more handsome and refined than him.

What happened just now was a good example. People with basic manners would know they shouldn't show up at an appointment later than the agreed time. But Arthur was 20 minutes late.

I glanced at Charlyn's wrist, which Arthur was gripping at the moment. Her wrist was red, indicating he wasn't a gentleman at all.

As for his height, Arthur was only five feet and nine inches tall. Not to mention, he claimed he was this tall in front of others. But his actual height… Well, all men knew when to exaggerate their heights. But the thing was, I was six feet and two inches all.

On top of that, Arthur and I wore suits of the same brand and cut. I looked like a chivalrous and elegant gentleman in it. On the other hand, Arthur's suit made him look like a human-sized potato.

Alright, alright. I had to admit it wasn't gentlemanly of me to criticize others based on their appearances, but I was just that petty, okay?

Seriously, Arthur was a jerk! From the way I saw it, he'd probably end up losing the company his father had passed down to him one day!

And to think that he was trying to pretend to be a typical domineering CEO! The way he kept dragging Charlyn around so forcefully made him look like a total loser!

I was so mad that I ate three plates of food in one go. As such, I was so stuffed that I could barely walk.

After I secretly loosened up my belt, I tucked in my stomach and grabbed my briefcase before walking out of the restaurant as gracefully as I could.

Surprisingly enough, I spotted Charlyn hanging around my car. She was wearing a slight frown at the moment, though it dissipated as soon as she saw me walking out. A sparkle returned to her eyes for a moment, but she shot me a torn look before lowering her gaze.

At that moment, I wasn't sure whether I should continue moving forward or not. In the end, I could only force myself to head in Charlyn's direction. My car was there, after all.

I pretended not to see her. After opening my car door, I moved to get into my car.

"Mr Skyworth!"

Charlyn grabbed my hand, which was still holding on to the car door. The next thing I knew, she retracted her hand instantly, as though she were zapped. Then, she glanced at me bashfully.

I didn't do anything to her at all! She was the one who grabbed my hand before blushing furiously!

Hold on. Just why the hell was she blushing?

I pushed that thought aside. Since she had called out to me, I could only stop in my tracks out of courteousness.

"Ms. Emerson," I said.

Then, I looked at Charlyn quizzically. I swore that I didn't do anything, but her face still grew redder for no reason after that. I had a feeling that she was going to burn up at this point.

Charlyn shot me another glance, this time in a seductive manner. Okay, fine. I made that up. Maybe she thought she'd have that kind of effect on me by making bedroom eyes at me.

But to me, she looked exactly like Ms. Vale whenever she did something wrong. Right now, she was cowering in fear.

The thought of Ms. Vale made my heart soften. When I looked at Charlyn again, I wasn't that angry anymore.

At the end of the day, she was just a regular woman.

"Ms. Emerson?" I asked again, this time in a softer tone.

Charlyn looked like she'd finally made up her mind. "Mr. Skyworth, I'm so sorry that Mr. Calwert keeps targeting you. I had no idea he'd go this far for my sake."

As she spoke, tears began pooling up in her eyes. Still, she managed to finish her sentences while sounding like she was about to cry.

"Recently, he got his hands on some news regarding your company. You have to be careful."

After that, Charlyn stood where she was with her head hung low. Tears began dripping from her eyes silently.

Whenever I scolded Ms. Vale, she'd look like this as well. She'd keep crying as though I was being extremely mean to her.

I could only sigh mentally as I watched Charlyn toying with her fingers uneasily. A large patch of her exposed wrist was still red.

Although Charlyn was being tactful with her words, I could tell there must be a mole in my company. So, I thanked her for her warning.

"Thank you for warning me, Ms. Emerson. I'll keep that in mind."

I couldn't possibly chew out a woman like her at this time, right? Hence, I fell silent after that.

Charlyn most likely knew that I didn't like her that much, so she said goodbye to me after wiping her tears away.

I watched as she walked toward a red Ferrari, which was parked a short distance away. A teenager with dyed green hair and a pair of shades perched on his nose bridge opened the car door for her. Then, he stuck out a middle finger at me blatantly.

Obviously, that boy wasn't Arthur.

Tsk tsk!

It was just a taunting gesture from an immature teenager who was still wet behind his ears. I just shook my head gently, opting to ignore him instead. After that, I got into my car and returned to the company.

I needed to deal with the mole problem. My company had an upcoming important bidding war to take part in. If Arthur were to get his hands on the final bid, my company would certainly suffer from major losses this time.

Honestly, I'd have to thank Charlyn this time. I supposed I'd suggest that my mom give her a raise. That way, I'd be able to earn a compliment or two from my mom too.

When the thought of Charlyn popped up in my head, I couldn't resist turning to look at Ms. Vale, who sat a short distance away.

Ms. Vale was quite a piece of eye candy. That thought merely flashed through my mind momentarily before I shook all thoughts out of my head. Then, I focused on work.

It wasn't easy to catch the mole. I referred to the people who were in charge of the first few business deals Arthur had stolen from me. In the end, I managed to pinpoint three people.

It was already 11:00 pm by the time I was done with most of my work. I rubbed my sore neck before raising my head to look around me.

To my surprise, Ms. Vale was still at work. The blue light cast by her computer monitor illuminated her face, making her look a little pale.

I couldn't help but study Ms. Vale's face again. She really was a looker.

She had a pretty tall nose with long eyelashes and big, beautiful eyes. Her face looked quite delicate too.

Why didn't I realize how pretty she was in the past? Did I seriously order such a beautiful woman around and make her slave her days away?

Then, I recalled Charlyn, who was quite pretty too. Did the HR department hire people based on their looks?

That question came bounding into my mind for a split second, but I soon said no to the question.

Ms. Vale was extremely capable, after all. Charlyn had most likely gotten through out of sheer dumb luck. Then again, I felt I had no idea what the extent of her work capabilities were.

"Mr. Skyworth?" A cold and melodic voice rang out at that moment. Ms. Vale happened to be gazing at me in confusion while rubbing her shoulders.

I snapped out of my trance immediately, realizing that I'd completely spaced out while staring at her earlier.

But soon, I regained my senses. I looked at the time once again. It was more than ten minutes past 11 o'clock.

"Aren't you getting off work soon?"

"I'll leave after I'm done organizing this folder." Ms. Vale probably didn't know why I was asking her that question.

I didn't really know why I did that either, so I nodded in response. Then, I grabbed my briefcase and moved to leave the floor.

Halfway to the elevator, I couldn't help but think about how dangerous it was for a young woman like Ms. Vale to flag down a cab on her own just to go home. So, I returned to her desk.

"Kyrie."

That was her name, right? Kyrie Vale?

I called out Kyrie's name hesitantly. She was quick to respond, already looking at me from behind her computer monitor. Thank goodness I hadn't misremembered her name.

"You can complete the rest of the work tomorrow. It's getting very late now. I'll drive you home."

Kyrie stared at me in surprise, though her eyes were sparkling in delight. My heart skipped a beat when I saw her. An unknown feeling soon surged into my heart.

She didn't turn my offer down. After packing up her stuff, she grabbed her bag and followed me out of the company.

On the way back to Kyrie's place, neither of us said a word to each other. Kyrie was a woman of a few words.

As for me, even though I had a ton of admirers, I only had brief contact with a handful of women, with the exception of my mom and Charlyn, the oddball who kept pestering me. Since I didn't have much experience with talking to women, all I could do was remain silent.

Silence would be the theme of tonight's drive.

It only took me 20 minutes to reach Kyrie's place. After thinking for a moment, I decided to speak up just as Kyrie was about to get out of the car.

"Thank you for your hard work today. You should rest as soon as you get home."

Kyrie was noticeably startled, as though she didn't expect to hear her boss outright caring for her. But soon, she replied, "You too, sir. Thank you for driving me home."

Then, she opened the door and got out of the car. She added a soft "good night" before turning on her heel and walking through the apartment's gateway.

"Good night!" I replied.

My car remained parked on the spot. I watched as Kyrie greeted the security guard, who was cheerfully manning the entrance, before slowly disappearing into the darkness.

The security guard was a man nearing his elderly years. He turned to look at me curiously. I lowered my window and smiled at him before looking at the gated apartment. By then, Kyrie was nowhere to be seen.

After that, I started the car and made a U-turn so that I could make my way home.

It was almost midnight by the time I reached home. Guess who I saw hanging around at home?

Yes, that was right. Charlyn freaking Emerson was there!

My mom and the others had already gone to bed at that time. Meanwhile, Luther was still playing games in his room. I could vaguely make out his voice scolding his teammates.

After that, I tiptoed to the light switch and turned on the light, only to get startled by the figure slumped over the dining table.

Charlyn rubbed her eyes before gazing at me blearily. "You're back, Mr. Skyworth."

First, I looked at my house keys. Yup, these were my keys, alright. Why the hell was that woman slumping over my dining table in the middle of the night?

Charlyn didn't seem to discern my confusion. She slowly stood up before saying, "There's still fish stew being heated up in the kitchen. You should rest after having some. Let me put your briefcase in your room."

As she spoke, she approached me so that she could retrieve my briefcase from me.

I remained rooted to the spot, watching as Charlyn grabbed my briefcase and began heading toward my bedroom. Only then did I realize what was going on.

I quickly rushed forward to stop her. Then, I snatched my briefcase out of her hands.

"No need for that! Why are you in my home?"

Why the hell was Charlyn freaking Emerson in my home?

Charlyn seemed startled by my question. Before she could figure out the best answer to my question, I turned to glance at my mom's and my brother's rooms.

My mom and the rest of the household were already in deep sleep. I could even hear my dad's snores all the way from my spot in the living room.

Luther was the only one who was still playing games in his room. So, I walked over to open his room door with my briefcase in hand, choosing to completely ignore Charlyn.

I twisted the doorknob twice, but I still couldn't open the door. That brat must have locked the door from the inside.

I twisted the doorknob once again, a frown now occupying my face. Luther's impatient voice drifted from inside his room.

"Seriously, Ms. Emerson! I don't want any stew, milk, or fruit! It's so late now. Can you please go to bed already?"

Upon hearing Luther's complaints, I shot a glance at Charlyn, my brows still knitted into a frown. She just stood on her spot while staring at me in confusion.

When she saw me looking at her, her eyes sparkled instantly. Just as she was about to speak up, I banged on Luther's door impatiently.

"Luther Skyworth, open the door right now!"