1 Sweet-Smelling Bella

Four Seasons Hotel

In a presidential suite of a prestigious Hotel owned by the Cho Corporation, Daniel Cho had been trying to coax Samantha Kim to calm down for the past five minutes.

"I'm gonna kill you!" Samantha yelled, glaring at the handsome man in front of her.

Daniel used a pillow to hide his face while he ran around their suite, "Will you chill, honey?"

"Chill? Are you for real Mr. Cho? Get back in here, you-!" Samantha Kim gritted her teeth as she continued to slap the CEO of Cho Corporation on the back furiously, like a mad person.

"I'm sorry, okay? It was an accide- AAAH!" Daniel Cho screamed as he tried to get away from the crazy unicorn but she caught his hair.

Daniel was so scared at that moment when he thought that he'd lose his luscious hair.

"Accident my ass! If you weren't such a horny bastard, this wouldn't have happened!" She roared, trying to pin Daniel Cho down on the bed.

For most of the people in Country K, Daniel Cho is a respected businessman.

But in this room...

Tonight...

Who would have known that this gorgeous man, a woman's dream lover, was a pitiful husband?

How in the world did it come to this? It all started several months ago...

...

La Maison

La Maison is a French restaurant situated at the heart of the city. From the outside, it looks homey and as you enter, you are welcomed by the staff with a French greeting.

"Bonjour!"

Wearing a white V-neck shirt, tattered Jeans and white air force, Samantha sat by the window of the restaurant while she listened to Hannah's nagging. She had been persuading her to throw a party for her birthday. She believed that Samantha should let loose and just enjoy her day for once, without a care in the world.

"C'mon S! Why don't you enjoy your 25th birthday and meet some new people. It will do you good!" Hannah prompted as she beamed at her best friend.

"Why does it matter if I have a party or not? We can just... eat out, you know? Why go through all the hassle." Samantha said while watching the traffic outside the window.

"Don't be boring! You're young. You should have fun! And besides, I met some new friends and one of them is pretty hot. I can hook you up! What do you say?"

Samantha turned her head and saw Hannah smelling the aroma of her tea before taking a sip.

"Does he have abs?" Samantha raised an eyebrow and chuckled, taking her mug of warm cocoa from the table.

"Duh! He even has big feet!"

Samantha almost spat the drink when she heard Hannah's comment. No matter how much she knew her bestfriend, Hannah never ceases to surprise her.

Hannah continued nonchalantly, "You know what they say, 'A man who has big feet has big meat-"

"Oh my gosh. HAHAHA" Samantha guffawed and threw a crumpled tissue at Hannah, "You're shameless, Han!"

"What? I'm just sayin'!"

The two of them laughed a bit more.

"Anyhoo... You do know I'm dating Andrew, why would I need to meet new guys?"

Hannah rolled her eyes, "Psssh. Please... That playboy! For all I know he's in some skank's bed right now. Why don't you just dump him already?"

"C'mon don't say that... You really don't like him huh?" Samantha chuckled.

"Ugh, what's there to like? Okay, he's hot... sure. But he's an ass, okay? He also has a nice ass by the way... but still!" Hannah crossed her arms while she complained, Samantha laughed at her remarks.

Hannah continued, "What's more... He's been trying to get in your pants but you're not giving in. He acts innocent in front of you but the moment you turn your back, he plays around with some witch. I MEAN... What's the point of being together?"

Samantha propped her elbow on the table and lazily supported her chin with her hand. "Well, he's been nice to me. He hasn't really treated me badly."

Truthfully, Andrew courted her for a year. Samantha just reluctantly agreed to be his girlfriend but the closest intimacy Andrew got from her was second base and she never planned for them to go beyond that.

Hannah made a face, not believing her excuse, "Really? That's it?"

"As long as I don't catch him or he doesn't do it in front of me. I can still handle it." Samantha smiled.

Sighing, Hannah commented further, "I really don't get you. It's not like you love him. And again, he's an ass... I really don't see the point."

Samantha checked her phone, "Enough of that already. Don't you have a date?"

Hannah looked at her watch and her eyes grew wide, she had forgotten about the time again. "Oh, crap crap crap! I'm late!" Hannah frantically stood up, fixed her clothes and posed, "How do I look?"

She was wearing a blue bodycon dress, silver strappy heels, and had a silver clutch in her hand. She had always been fashionable ever since they were young.

"Like a superstar!" Samantha said and smiled. "Is this a new guy?"

"Uh huh. He's the one I met two days ago at the concert. He's only here for a month."

"What is it this time?" , said Samantha.

Hannah's a free spirit; dating guys and having fun. She always finds different qualities that pique her interests in every guy she meets. Sometimes it's the scent, his build, the way he dresses or his hobbies.

Hannah stroked her chin, "His accent." she swooned and with a serious face, she continued, "Oh bloody hell, he's from England. Do you know how sexy he sounds?" mimicking an English accent.

Samantha chortled upon hearing her friend, "Okay, you win! Go, have fun!"

"Thanks. Bye, S!", Hannah reached in to kiss Samantha's cheek.

Samantha watched her best friend as Hannah exited the restaurant and got in her Red Audi S5 Cabriolet. Hannah Chu's always been so carefree and wild. They've known each other since they were in their diapers. Their moms were high school classmates and are really good friends that's why Samantha and Hannah grew up together.

Samantha Kim, on the other hand, likes to be low-profile. The Kim family owns a multibillion-dollar company; Kimsun Electronics. But despite being hella rich, their family doesn't like showing off unnecessarily.

In middle school, she discovered that a lot of her so-called friends were very superficial. They were only 'nice' to her because her family was rich and because she was an exceptional student. She learned later that most of them were just jealous of her and wanted to leech off of her. So she transferred schools. Hannah, of course, transferred with her.

She avoided being the center of attention, had her grades just slightly above average on purpose and wore not so flashy clothes and she kept to herself most of the time.

Although she tries not to attract attention, her beauty always stands out so she had suitors while growing up.

Samantha's phone beeped. Checking her phone, she sighed.

Alexander [Sam, need your signature. Are you dropping by the office?]

Another text came in as Samantha was contemplating her reply. 'It's 4:50 pm, employees are gonna leave work soon. It should be okay.' She thought.

Alexander [Or... I can come to you, where are you?]

Samantha [That's okay. I'm on my way.]

Samantha got up and walked towards the door of the restaurant as she dialed her assistant's number.

Assistant Chen picked up her call right away, "Yes, madam?"

"I'm on my way there."

"Understood, I'll wait for you in the underground parking."

"Oh, no... I didn't bring my car. So I'm coming in through the front entrance. Clear out the lobby for me, please.", Samantha instructed.

"Certainly, madam."

As Samantha reached the door, she bumped into someone who was coming in and she dropped her phone.

...

Just earlier, a black Maybach stopped in front of the restaurant.

"President, we're here." Assistant Ahn said.

Daniel Cho, CEO of Cho Corporation; a gorgeous bachelor whose identity is popular with the ladies in City M, was sitting in the backseat of his car with his eyes closed.

"Mmm." He said, slowly opening his eyes. He had been busy all week closing a project and therefore he hadn't rested properly.

Daniel got out of the car in a navy blue suit. He walked towards the restaurant as he buttoned up his coat. Assistant Ahn walked in front of Daniel Cho and opened the door for him. Ahn had been working for Daniel Cho for four years as his executive assistant. And quickly, Ahn became his most trusted aide.

His phone rang and he answered the call while stepping inside the restaurant, "Yes, I've just arrived-"

As he was busy answering his phone, he didn't notice the woman in front of him and accidentally bumped her shoulder causing her phone to fall on the floor. When he turned towards her, he caught a whiff of a peachy perfume that tickled his nose.

Normally, he would just ignore what happened and just continued to walk like he couldn't be bothered. But for some reason, he didn't want to do that.

Swiftly, he bent down and picked up the phone and checked if the screen was broken, luckily it was unscratched.

"Sorry." He uttered softly as he handed it back to the Samantha.

"It's okay. Thanks." said the sweet-smelling Bella, showing her gentle smile briefly.

Daniel watched the woman as she exited the restaurant, hailed a taxi and left. It was as if he had seen her before but couldn't figure out where or when.

"Boss?"

Daniel snapped out of his trance when his assistant called his attention. Breathing in deeply, he then headed towards the restaurant's VIP room.

"Let's go."

Thirty minutes later.

"President Cho, it is such a pleasure to be able to collaborate with you in this project." Mr. Su remarked as he extended his hand to shake Daniel Cho's. They had been working on a project for months and they have finally just finished.

Daniel shook his hand and gave a polite smile, "The pleasure is all mine, Mr. Su."

"The project has gone smoothly! I must treat you to dinner."

With an apologetic look, Daniel didn't want to refuse because it was considered rude. But because he had a prior engagement he expressed his polite refusal, "Thanks for the gesture, but I must decline. I have a family dinner that I can't miss."

Although Mr. Su felt a little dismayed for having his invitation turned down, he understood since it was for family. "Oh, very well then. I'll treat you next time."

"Looking forward to it." Daniel nodded politely.

Assistant Ahn whispered to Daniel as soon as they walked out of the room, "Boss, Madam Cho's calling.", he said, handing Daniel's phone.

Receiving the phone from his assistant, he talked while walking out of the restaurant. "Yes, mother?"

"Honey, where are you? You didn't forget tonight's dinner, right?", asked Mrs. Cho.

"Of course not. I'm on my way."

"Alone?"

"Of course, I'm alone.", replied Daniel.

"Dan, why don't you bring a date? You're already twenty-eight. I haven't met any of your lady friends yet."

"No, thanks, mom."

"You're not gay, are you? There are rumors- Ah, It's fine if you are, actually I don't care. But your grandfather's been asking me questions about you.", his mom started to chatter.

"Mom."

"I know, I know.. Now get over here quickly, everyone's waiting for you."

"I'll see you soon. Bye, mom."

As soon as Daniel hung up the call from his mother. A director from a branch in City H called and he pressed the answer button right away.

"President, there's been an issue here that needs your attention. Instead of flying here next week, is it possible for you to come here sooner?", said the director.

Daniel pinched the bridge of his nose, feeling a headache coming up. "Ok, I'll be there tomorrow.", he answered as he hung up the phone.

"Ahn, book a flight to City H tomorrow and push all my appointments until we get back."

"Yes, boss.", Assistant Ahn acknowledged.

....

Samantha's taxi stopped in front of a tall building. She put on her wayfarer sunglasses and mask quickly as she got out of the vehicle.

She strode towards the entrance of Trident Company. Entering the empty lobby, she walked briskly towards the private elevator.

Samantha is the company owner, but her identity as the CEO is a secret. Only her family, business partner, and her best friend know about it. Samantha doesn't want to be in the limelight so she never revealed her face to her employees. Thus, whenever she visits the office, she always uses the private elevator connected to her office. And because she entered from the main entrance, the lobby looked like a ghost town with only her assistant waiting for her by the elevator.

Assistant Chen had been working for Samantha since they founded the company. She had always thought that this boss of hers was a little strange for not wanting to be recognized, she couldn't understand why an attractive and brilliant woman like Samantha doesn't want fame.

"Good afternoon, Madam." Assistant Chen greeted before she pressed the button to open the elevator door.

"Mmm.", Samantha nodded then got into the elevator. "Where's Alexander?"

Chen lowered her head and answered politely, "He's waiting for you in your office."

They arrived soon at the top floor.

*Ding*

When she walked in, she saw Alexander sitting on the sofa sipping coffee. He tilted his head towards Samantha and smiled, "You're here."

Samantha smiled back and turned to face her assistant, "Chen, you may go now. I don't have any tasks for you tonight."

"Thank you, Madam. Have a good evening.", Assistant Chen replied brightly.

Samantha nodded.

She then walked towards the sofa and sat in front of Alexander.

"Are you hungry?", Alexander asked as he watched Samantha take off her sunglasses and face mask.

"Not really, I met up with Hannah in a restaurant before I came here.", she said as she slumped back on the sofa.

Alexander observed Samantha, he admired her looks. she has long wavy hair that she occasionally plays with her fingers when she has nothing to do.

"You look... bored?"

Samantha smiled, "Do I?"

Alexander chuckled, tapping the cup of his coffee. "Still dating that jerk?", he asked.

"Yeah. Why is everybody hating on Andrew?" Samantha laughed shaking her head.

"He might be nice to you now, Sam..." Alexander paused, "…just be careful."

Samantha had always known that Alexander likes her although he didn't really confess, he has been pretty obvious about it. He's a nice guy but Samantha doesn't have any romantic feelings for him.

"Don't worry, I can take care of myself.", she said as she stood up and walked towards the floor-to-ceiling glass window.

Samantha lowered her gaze and watched the cars on the road, people on the sidewalk were hastily walking and going about their daily routine. She stared at the scene below her and thought about her life. 'How different is my life to theirs?', she thought.

Samantha had started the company three years ago with her brother's good friend, Alexander. Samantha's a computer genius and when Alexander discovered her gift, he urged her to build a software and then they sold it to a business owner and from then, they started their business from the ground up; Samantha being the CEO and Alexander, the COO.

Samantha had everything an ordinary person could ever want. Money, a house, cars, a flourishing company.

But why does she seem unhappy? It's as if, she doesn't really have the drive or passion to do anything. It's like she's living her life on autopilot.

Disrupting her train of thoughts, Samantha's phone rang. Looking at the caller ID, she chuckled, "Hello, gramps.", Samantha spoke to the person on the other line.

"You child, if I didn't call you, I wouldn't hear from you."

"I miss you too, grandpa." Samantha smiled while she imagined her old adorable grandpa who can be grumpy sometimes.

Grandfather Kim snorted, "Come with me tomorrow, let's go fishing."