Mr and Mrs. Volkov.

Since the wedding, Gabriel didn’t change as much. He was the same cold and dismissive CEO and husband he was. But he cared for you deeply and refused to let you near anything that could harm you.

As his wife, you sat with him during board meetings and had your opinions pitched into every conversation. Though sometimes you get overly excited with business proposals, he remains stoic, hiding his smile.

Recently, his ex-girlfriend, Ania, has returned from her abroad trip and came back to reclaim Gabriel. Ania Mordashov was more than just a woman of wealth and power. Her family owned various businesses that invested over billions of dollars in companies to keep them afloat. But she was also known for being the one who softened Gabriel’s heart when they were together. He smiled in ways he hasn’t with anybody else, probably hasn’t since. Which is why, most people continue to believe that Ania and Gabriel are a perfect match.

Recently, Ania was assigned as the new VP for Internals, who works closely with Gabriel. She was often in his office, and you didn’t like it. There are times where you could overhear employees saying that they were grateful that Ania was back, so that they can see Gabriel smile again. It confused you, wasn’t that supposed to be your job?

You sat at your desk, right beside Gabriel’s in his office. He was reviewing documents while Ania sat beside him, she was sitting too closely but Gabriel didn’t seem to push her away.

You continued working on your laptop still feeling uncomfortable with the way they interacted.

“I’ll have the finance team look into the costs of this project, if it’s feasible.” He says in finality before closing the folder and handing it to Ania. “You can go.” He adds.

“Aren’t you having lunch, Gab? Let’s have lunch together. We can visit Dachniki and order your favorite, Beef Stroganoff.” She smiled tilting her head.

He takes a deep breath before sighing. He looks over at you who was busying herself doing “work”. He stands up and walks to your desk.

“Let’s go, malyshka. We’re having lunch.” He looks at you sternly, but his voice was laced with warmth only reserved for you. This was the first time he also called you “malyshka”, one he never spoke even privately.