THE DIVORCE GAMBIT From Dumped Wife to CEO's Forever novel Chapter 178

This was Master Ninth, after all.

Someone as unattainable as Master Ninth—if he set his sights on a woman, all he'd have to do was snap his fingers and she'd come running. There was no way he'd be sitting around like some lovesick teenager, waiting anxiously for a reply to his message.

And sulking when she didn't answer? Impossible.

Honestly, to have Master Ninth interested in you was like winning the lottery. Any woman would be thrilled—she wouldn't dare leave him on read.

So, no, absolutely not. There was just no way Master Ninth was waiting for some girl to text him back.

That was simply out of the question!

The mind of a king is unfathomable, Gordon thought. He decided it was safer not to guess.

Still, his thoughts were a chaotic mess. He could barely register what his subordinates were saying, and everything seemed to irritate him. After a moment's hesitation, he unlocked his phone again. This time, there were over ninety-nine new notifications on his social feed.

Gordon never posted on social media, so the fact that his new post had only been up a short while and already attracted a flood of comments was unusual.

Hundreds of them, all flattering or fawning, people tripping over themselves to curry favor.

But not a single one was the message Gordon wanted to see.

He was just about to swipe away when his eyes suddenly locked onto a familiar profile picture, and his heart skipped a beat.

It was Caitlin.

Not only had she liked his post, she'd even left a comment.

Gordon's hands trembled as he hurried to reply: "Yes, the scenery here is beautiful. You should come visit if you have the time."

If anyone saw his screen, they'd notice that out of the hundreds of comments, Caitlin's was the only one Gordon bothered to respond to.

And just like that, the storm cloud on Gordon's face vanished. He looked up at his secretary. "Nick."

"Yes, sir!" Nick stepped forward instantly.

Gordon's lips curled ever so slightly as he surveyed the construction site. "Everyone's worked hard this month. Arrange for finance to give every employee an extra thousand-dollar bonus."

What?!

Nick nearly did a double take.

A bonus?

Was Master Ninth serious?

Just a moment ago, he'd been in a foul mood, nitpicking every little thing and reprimanding people left and right.

Now, out of nowhere, he was handing out bonuses?

Was Nick dreaming?

He swallowed nervously, unsure if he'd heard right. "Sir, you mean… every worker gets a thousand dollars extra this month?"

Gordon nodded, calm as ever. "Yes."

Nick was floored.

Good grief!

Had he heard that correctly?

But that wasn't all—Master Ninth actually smiled at him.

In all his years working for Gordon, this was the first time he'd ever seen him smile.

Thank goodness Nick wasn't a woman, or he might start wondering if Master Ninth had taken a liking to him!

After returning from the site, Gordon dove straight back into work.

After replying to Skyler, Gordon turned his phone around to show the sales associate the picture. "Could you please wrap this one up for me?"

"Of course, sir."

She hurried off to get the bag ready.

Gordon glanced at her and asked, "Do women really like bags this much?"

His tone was cool and detached, but with his sharp features and striking eyes, even a simple question made the salesgirl blush furiously. She could barely meet his gaze, heart pounding.

Was this customer… interested in her?

Why else would he suddenly ask if she liked bags?

Maybe he was planning to buy one for her?

Yes, that had to be it.

Her imagination ran wild. Working in this line of luxury retail, she'd seen plenty of colleagues marry into high society—or at the very least, become the pampered darlings of wealthy men.

Looking at Gordon, he was clearly top-tier.

Who else brought three assistants just to shop for a bag?

She glanced at his entourage, barely daring to believe her luck. Maybe she was about to become a trophy wife, living the dream.

Trying to compose herself, she beamed at Gordon. "Absolutely, sir! Bags are the answer to everything. I love collecting them."

Bags are the answer to everything.

Gordon remembered reading that exact phrase in the book.

"In that case—" he gestured to the row of handbags in front of him, his voice low and steady, "wrap these up for me as well."