Lina was unaware of the storm that was taking place in her company as she was once again being kept in the dark about it.

Wade had not yet given her a call to inform her about the situation over at Obsidia and so she was in her merry little world with her Ruby.

She placed the phone back on the table after her phone call with Stephen Jin and blushed when she saw the heap of boxes on the table.

'Did Ruby just try to imply that he wants to take our relationship to the next level?' She recalled what had happened before the call had diverted her attention.

Reuben on the other hand had long forgotten the teasing which he had thoroughly enjoyed and was now beaming about a whole different matter.

'Kitten did not hide that I am her boyfriend!' He exclaimed as his eyes were focused on the woman who refused to turn towards him.

His wide smile was proof of how happy he was at this moment.

"Kitten…" He called out and tilted his head when he saw her flinch.

'Does he want to do it now?' Lina's absurd thoughts were taking control of her mind once again.

Therefore, when she heard him calling out the endearment he used for her with such tenderness she could not stop her body from flinching subconsciously.

She turned in his direction in slow motion as she handed the glass of warm water over to him.

Reuben accepted the glass and took a tiny sip before placing it away.

After all, the only reason he had asked for the warm water was to make his presence known to that brat over the phone.

Now that he had succeeded in his strategy, he had no need for the water and so the pitiable glass of water was discarded after it had fulfilled its purpose.

"Ruby, about what had happened earlier…" Lina muttered after gathering her courage.

The man next to her watched in silence as after she twiddled her thumbs she lifted her head and finally looked him in the eyes.

"What about it?" He retorted with an oblivious look on his face.

He was so pleased with the events during the phone call that he had momentarily forgotten about what had happened earlier.

'Arghhh! Do I have to say it out loud?' Lina raged in her heart as she gulped her saliva in nervousness.

"Can we wait until I am ready before we do it?" She muttered in the softest voice she had ever used.

The sheer courage that she had conjured to express her thoughts before this man was monumental and she felt even more distressed after she had spoken those words.

'What if Ruby doesn't want to wait? Will I agree to do it just because he wants me to?' She wondered and was already aware of her answer.

She had high hopes for her first time with her boyfriend and she was not going to do it until she was a hundred percent sure that she was ready.

So if Reuben was in a hurry to do it then she would have to disappoint him with her staunch rejection.

Reuben, at this point, was confused as to what she was referring to.

"What do you mean, Kitten? Ready to do what?" He inquired with a puzzled look on his face.

Lina's face burned red when she heard his question and all she could do was point her finger in a certain direction.

Following the direction that she had pointed at, his eyes fell on the boxes that were on the table, courtesy of his grandfather.

He soon realized that she was talking about what he had done earlier and a deep and low chuckle erupted from his throat.

His next move made Lina freeze as he had drawn her close to his body and given her a warm hug.

"What a silly thing to say, Kitten." He uttered in an amused tone.

"Of course I can wait until you are ready. In fact, I can wait until you are willing to pounce on me." He teased her once again.

'Just like you had done when you stole my first kiss.' He remarked in his mind while flashing her a devious smirk.

Once a dark memory had now turned into something he was learning to cherish with all his heart.

'Why exactly would I pounce on him? Lina rolled her eyes as she did not get why he had said such a thing to her.

"Thank you, Ruby." She expressed her gratitude nonetheless and hugged him back.

After a few seconds, he let go of the hug and held her shoulders as he created a distance between their bodies.

'Why do I keep forgetting that I still have a cold and I may infect her!?' He chided his reckless behavior.

"I had forgotten about that ever since I heard what you had to say over the phone call." He revealed his thoughts and smiled at her with the same beautiful smile.

Lina felt dazed for a second when she saw his radiant smile and the lover of aesthetics inside her was screaming with joy.

'How many universes did I save to get this ethereal looking human to become my boyfriend?' She wondered as her hands reached out to touch his face.

She cupped his cheek and subconsciously rubbed the mole that was right below the corner of his lips.

'Does she want me to overheat once again?' Reuben cried out when she made that sudden KO move on his weak heart.

Coming back to his senses, he held his hand over hers and leaned into her palm.

"You introduced me as your boyfriend to your friend." He mentioned the reason for his joy.

'He must be talking about Steph.' Lina reckoned after hearing his cheerful voice.

"Why wouldn't I? You are my boyfriend, aren't you?" She teased him as payback for what he had done earlier.

This time it was Reuben's turn to feel flustered as he nodded his head profusely to agree with her statement.

"I thought that you would want to keep our relationship a secret." He mumbled his disheartened thoughts and looked away.

His words brought a frown to her face as she nodded her head.

"Yes, I do want to keep our relationship a secret." She announced something that she had on her mind for quite some time now.

Reuben's eyes widened when he heard what she had said and his hold over her palm tightened.

Lina had felt his hand tremble and his jaw clench as they were in close contact with each other.

"Ruby, can we keep our relationship a secret in front of the media?" She requested while wording her former sentence in a better way.

Reuben's heart which had dropped after her earlier declaration seemed to have found its way back to its place after she explained herself.

"People in the office already have a bad opinion about me after my relationship with Wade came to light." She sighed as she retold the story of how they had distanced themselves from her.

"My normal life has already been compromised and this would make things more difficult for me." She shook her head at the very thought of this happening.

When she saw the sad look on his face, she realized that she had just hurt his feelings and she clamored to clear this misunderstanding before it escalated.

"If people realize that I am dating the hottest man in the city I might get mobbed by your fans." She jested in hopes of getting a chuckle out of him.

However, she did not get that chuckle she was hoping for, and instead, she received a darkened face.

'Kitten is right! Those women hunted and smeared each others' reputations when any small gossip appeared in the media.' He grimaced at the nasty tactics they used to get close to him.

When he thought of how they might use the same evil strategies to hurt Lina, his eyes darkened and his menacing aura began surrounding him.

Ignorant of the troubling thoughts he had for her safety, Lina assumed that he was mad at her for denying to publicize their relationship.

'I need to come up with a solution fast!' She urged her mind to make up something she could use right now.

Her eyes glittered when she thought of a brilliant idea to keep him from continuing to be mad at her.

"Ruby, let us meet our parents and get their approval. Then we can announce our relationship to the public." She disclosed her plan of action to the seething man.

The man who had been plotting how to keep his Kitten safe was thrown off guard when he heard her suggestion.

"How do you like my proposal?" She inquired while raising her brows in question.

The dark cloud around him faded in an instant as he nodded his head in approval of her proposed idea.

'I can eliminate all the threats to her safety and make sure that no one even dares to think about harming her by then!' He was pleased with the outcome of his thoughts.

Lina sighed in relief when she saw that he was finally back to his normal state.

'Ruby can be like those scary CEOs sometimes.' She surmised and let out a small chuckle at her silly thoughts.

"We will get our parents' blessings and then let the world know that we belong to each other!" His loud declaration made her blush until she turned red.

'Why is he assaulting my heart with these sweet words?' She buried her face into his chest to hide her cheeks which looked like a ripe tomato at this moment.