The Perfect Bribe

Chapter Five: That Shocking Moment.

At the Bridal Shower Party...

"Hey,why are you all alone in the corner? And what are you looking at your phone?"

Gianna suddenly switched off her phone when she heard Alisha's voice

Eventhough she's in the middle of Alisha's bridal shower party, she can't really enjoy herself because of what happened between her and Grant earlier...

"--- All the girls are having fun, but you're here alone! Are you okay? Do you want to talk about it?" Alisha asked, while looking concerned.

"Oh, nothing. I'm just a bit tired, I guess." Gianna answered. She feels guilty because it's supposed to be Alisha's special night,but she's spoiling the fun because of her own problem...

A waiter suddenly walked at their direction while holding a tray of drinks. Alisha stopped the server and she grabbed two glasses of whiskey.

"Thank you." Alisha softly thanked the waiter. After that, she gave the other glass to Gianna.

"Are you sure you really don't want to talk about it?" she gently asked again.

"I'm so sorry for spoiling your party, Ali, but I'm alright. You know what,let's enjoy your last night as a single woman! Cheers!" Gianna tried to lighten up the nood.

Alisha smiled in return and raised her glass for a toast.

They both did a bottoms-up and they danced as if there's no tomorrow...

********************

One week have passed.

Grant and his employees are currently having a meeting.

"As you all know, The Make Up Institute is starting to accept applications for their Annual Make-Up and Styling Competition. Does anyone want to try joining the competition this year?" he asked, while looking at all of his staff.

A minute have passed, but no one is answering him.

"So, we don't have a representative from our company? If you're not that confident, don't worry because I'll be your instructor as you prepare for the competition." Grant tries to encourage them.

One of his trusted staff, Chiara, suddenly raised her hand in the air.

"Do you want to join this year, Marsha?" Grant asked her.

"Uhm, I would like to nominate Gianna to be the representative of our company. She's been working here for a long time. With your proper guidance, I think she'll be able to learn all the things she needed to know, just in time for the competition to start." Marsha suggested.

Grant shook his head after listening to Marsha's suggestion.

"But she's our All Around Assistant.And she doesn't even know how to do her own make-up.And just look at her fashion sense. She looked horrible!" he said, direct to the point.

"Sir, if you give Gianna a chance, she will definitely improve!" Brittany joined in their conversation.

"Boss, she already know the in and outs of our work as make-up artists. She'll have a bigger chance of winning!" Marsha tried to convince their Boss more.

Grant looked at Gianna again. She's looking at him with a puppy-look expression on her face. He thinks Gianna's not yet ready to face this big challenge. He doesn't want to give her false hope because it will hurt her more...

"I'm sorry, but this is not your time yet, Gianna." he said.

After that he immediately ended the meeting and walked back to his private office...

Britanny and Marsha immediately walked towards Gianna to comfort her.

"Looks like our Boss is not in the mood." Marsha whispered at her.

"I'm so sorry, Gia, but I don't think Boss Grant will change his mind. So, what are you going to do now?" Brittany said, while looking worried.

"Thanks for your support, girls... But don't worry, our Boss will finally give me permission to join the competition." Gianna confidently answered. She came up with a plan to make her devilish Boss agree with her on joining the contest...

Few minutes have passed.

Gianna's holding a small tray with a cup of hot coffee... She stopped at Grant's private office and knocked on the door.

"Come in." he heard Grant's familiar voice.

She immediately opened the door and entered the office

"This is your coffee, Boss." she announced as she puts the cup of coffee on his desk.

"Thank you. You can go back to your work." he responded in a cold manner.

But Gianna didn't move an inch from where she's standing.

"What are you standing there for? Didn't I tell you to go back to work?" Grant asked her, while frowning.

Gianna just smiled. She fished "something" from her pocket and pulled out a small USB.

"Do you know what is this, Boss?"

"What a stupid question. It's obvious that you're holding a USB." Grant responded.

"It's not just a simple USB. Your secret is saved here." Gianna said.

Grant stared at the woman, while looking confused.

"What do you mean?"

"Why don't you see it for yourself?" Gianna mysteriously responded. She handed the USB stick to her Boss.

Grant checked the USB's contents on his laptop. There was a video of him and Anthony, who was half-naked and if someone else will see this, they will think that they are gay...

"You seem to believe all the rumors about my gender preference. Sorry to burst your bubble, but you're just wasting my time. The rumors are not true. And no one will believe you even if you show the video it's all over the world. " he said in a cool manner.

"Oh really? Why don't we try it now? I've got so many friends who works at broadcasting stations. They're gonna get the latest scoop from me." Gianna smirked at her Boss.

"I can sue you for this!" Grant defensively stated.

"Go ahead. If you want to see your face every day on society pages and blind items, then sue me. You don't want your private life to be compromised, am I right?" Gianna did a counterattack.

"s**t. She screwed me over." Grant said to himself, while feeling irritated.

"What do you want me to do to keep your mouth shut? Do you need money? How much do you need?" he spoke again.

"No, I don't care about money. I want something different." Gianna went straight to the point.

"Okay,I'm listening."

"I need you to be my instructor for my preparation for the Make Up and Styling Competition. I’ll keep my mouth shut and I’ll destroy all the copies of this video, so it's a win-win situation for the both of us." Gianna finally laid down her cards.

Grant decided to weigh all of his options. He doesn't really want to file a case and go to the court because his private life will be out in the open. Anyway, all he needs to do is to help this woman prepare for the competition, and he wouldn't really care for the results...

"Okay, I agree with your plan. But I will be strict with you as your instructor. And I don't want to hear any complaints from you. Is that clear?" he finally made his decision.