Married to a Playboy CEO

Staying with her.

Archie stared at the mess. His fingers already dialled the police. "We need to report this. Your house has been ransacked."

Celeste took his phone and ended the call. She knew the person who did this might be her dad as he already did it a few times. Whenever he ran out of money, it happened. Archie's lips twitched.

"It’s not necessary. I don't have any valuable thing in my house." She said. Archie guessed that it might be those debt collectors.

She bent down to pick up a shattered picture frame. Archie sighed and knelt beside her, sorting through the clothes scattered across the floor.

They worked in silence for a while. The room gradually returned to order. Archie picked up a book and placed it back on the shelf. "What will you do now?"

"Keep going," Celeste replied and straightened a stack of papers. "There’s nothing else I can do."

Archie admired her resilience but couldn’t shake the worry gnawing at him. "If he comes back—"

"I’ll handle it," Even though she said it firmly, she was worried if it turned out to be those goons and not her dad, what would she do?

Archie leaned back on the sofa and loosened his tie. Sweat trickled down his forehead in the stifling heat; Celeste's house had no air conditioning.

In the next room, Celeste dialled Shasha's number.

"Shasha, can you stay with me tonight? Jack is away at camp."

"Oh, sorry Celeste, I have to work overtime today. I can’t make it." Shasha replied.

Celeste sighed heavily as the call ended. Her shoulders slumped. She sank onto the nearest chair.

Archie noticed her dejected face. "Did your friend bail on you?" he asked with teasing in his voice. Celeste looked at him with surprised eyes.

"How did you know?"

Archie shrugged casually.

"Because she went out with Chen," he said and watched her reaction closely. Celeste's jaw dropped, and she blinked rapidly.

"She is my friend." She curled her lips. A smirk played at the corners of Archie's lips.

"I have my ways," he said mysteriously. "But if you need someone to stay with you, I can stick around. You’ve seen me handle those goons before."

Archie reminded her how he fought with those goons that night. Celeste's face softened.

"I don't think you'd do that for me again." She chuckled.

Archie reclined comfortably on the sofa, giving her a reassuring nod. "Of course. I wouldn’t leave you alone to deal with this mess." He said and Celeste was relieved. the tension in her shoulders eased.

It was finally decided that Archie would stay the night. He felt his stomach rumble. a reminder of his missed lunch. He wandered into Celeste's kitchen, opening the fridge to find only some bread. He opened a wooden door thinking of food and a pile of clothes fell on him. He closed the door and headed towards Celeste's room to ask her.

As soon as he pushed the door open, he froze. Celeste stood in the middle of the room. She was fresh out of the shower. Water droplets clung to her skin. It glistens in the dim light. Her golden-brown hair hung in damp waves down to her buttocks. Archie’s breath caught in his throat.

As Celeste turned, her eyes widened as she saw Archie standing in the doorway. She quickly wrapped the towel around herself. "Archie!" she exclaimed. Her cheeks flushed with embarrassment.

"Oh, sorry!" Archie stammered, turning his head away and shutting his eyes tightly. "I didn't mean to—"

"What are you doing here?" Celeste demanded. Her face turned even redder.

Archie hesitated and then opened one eye slightly to look at her. He could not miss the chance of seeing her naked.

"I was, um, looking for something to eat. I'm really hungry."

He peeked through the gaps between his fingers. His heart skipped a beat. Only he knew how he restrained himself from touching her beautiful, glistening skin.

"There are instant noodles on the rack," Celeste said angrily, clutching her towe in her fist.

“Alright," Archie replied and stepped out of the room. His heart was pounding. Celeste stepped out of the room in a few minutes. She was now dressed in a loose pyjama and a red t-shirt that hugged her skin tightly. Her hair was still damp, Archie had already made ramen for them.

She avoided his gaze. An awkward silence hung between them. The only sounds were the fans whirring and their breaths mingling in the still air. Trying to break the tension, Celeste turned on the television. As soon as it turned on, her face brightened like a flower.

"Oh, that's my favourite movie!" Celeste exclaimed. Just as she turned it on, the power went out.

"Oh, s**t," she muttered with frustration.

"You don't have a power backup?" Archie asked, frowning.

"No, unfortunately. Welcome to my world," she said, giving him a half-smile.

"Oh s**t. I wanted to watch that movie," Celeste groaned.

"Hey, having power at all is a big deal around here," she said and lighted a candle she found in a drawer. She continued eating her noodles by the flickering candlelight. Archie laughed.

"What are you laughing about?" Celeste asked, thinking he might laughing at her background.

"I can’t believe I’m having a candlelight dinner with you," Archie stopped laughing but smiled. "But I have to admit, I’m enjoying this. It’s kind of interesting, being in this dark house with you." He was enjoying himself; time seemed to fly by when he was with Celeste. He noticed her staring at a blank TV.

"You like that movie?" Archie asked and crinkled his nose in mock distaste.

"No, that actor. I love Hardin Scott," Celeste said excitedly. "He’s so smart and charming. I love watching him."

Archie glared at her. His expression was icy with jealousy. The mere mention of another guy, even a fictional character, seemed to irk him.

"Celebrity worship. That’s so childish," Archie said, leaning back on the sofa. "Having a crush on celebrities is just crazy."

“Having a crush on celebrities is better than getting into scandals with them,” Celeste taunted Archie. He started rubbing his forehead.

“Look... Zina is my ex. Nothing is going on between us now,” Archie explained. "Not everything on the internet you see is real. Nowadays AI-generated images are getting viral."

“Oh really. Then why she’s staying at your house,” Celeste said, a bit angrily. Her face turned red when she confronted him about Zina, as if she had been waiting for day since long time.

“Are you jealous?” Archie asked with a smirk. She was caught.

“Oh! Not at all. I mentioned it because you started. Otherwise, I have no interest in you. Celeste said and started to leave. Just then, Archie grabbed her hand and pulled her into his lap. She bumped on his lap and he caged her in his arms. She was surprised and

“But I’m interested in you.”