The CEO's Rented Wife

Aunt Ning and uncle Jack came up with a plan. They decided to bring Lina close to Wang somehow, so that they end up getting married. This way, they would be able to get Wang to marry Lina within six months from now on.

For this plan to succeed, they needed as much support as possible. And getting Wang's dearest and most trustworthy friend, Smith, to their side was the first and the most important step in this plan.

They were going to try the old tried and tested technique of 'divide and rule'. Aunt Ning knew that Smith was pretty fond of Miss. Chunhua. And she knew that Chunhua wanted to marry Wang. Aunt Ning hated the thought of Chunhua becoming a part of their family.

So, Ning had a dual purpose for inviting Smith - Firstly, getting him joined in the plan of 'Wang's marriage'. Secondly, to prevent Chunhua from getting too close to Wang by making Smith feel insecure, and provoking him to fasten up his steps towards Chunhua.

It was night time. Ning and Jack had invited Smith to their house for a cup of coffee. Smith was surprised at this gesture. He knew, the invitation had some purpose, but had no idea what it was about.

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At Aunt Ning's mansion..

Ning, Jack and Smith sat in the drawing room. Smith, as usual, smiled at the couple as two of them shared some funny stories from their early married life. The purpose was to make Smith feel comfortable. But this wasn't helping.

Smith tried to make himself feel relaxed in front of the couple, but his expressions clearly depicted that he was being impatient. He wanted to know the reason for this sudden invitation. At the same time, he didn't want to offend his business partner's uncle and aunt in any way.

Soon, the maid entered the lobby holding a tray with cups of coffee.

"Ah! Our coffee is here," smiled Jack, as he gestured the maid to serve it to the guest first.

"Thank you," said Smith as he took a cup of coffee from the tray.

The maid proceeded to serve the other two cups to Ning and Jack, and went back to the kitchen.

Smith held the cup in his hand, looked at the couple and smiled again, not sure of what to say to them. Plus, he was too anxious to listen to what the couple had to say to him.

Jack smiled at Smith, in return. He, then, looked at Ning expecting her to say something. All Ning did was to smile at Smith. Three of them kept smiling at each other for a few minutes, as they sipped coffee from their respective cups.

Smith was getting more and more impatient. He decided to start the main discussion. "Ahmm! Mrs. Ning.. Mr. Jack, aren't you going to tell me what's the matter?" Smith asked them. "You told me on the call that you wanted to tell me something about Wang!"

"Hahah!" laughed Ning as she looked at Smith and then turned her gaze towards Jack. "Haven't I been saying this to you, Jack.. Smith is the coolest guy I know. He's just so marvelous. Look at his cute smile! He's always smiling.. and he talks so sweet," praised Ning.

Smith giggled, and thanked Ning for her words. More than happiness, his giggle had nervousness hidden in it. He wondered what was aunt Ning upto. Why was she praising him so much? He decided to be a little more patient and see for himself what is going to happen next.

Aunt Ning continued with her plan's implementation. "How can Chunhua not fall for that sweet smile of his? If I was Chunhua, I would have already proposed Smith to marry me," winked Ning as she looked at Smith, who no longer had his famous smile on his face.

Jack nodded in excitement. "Me too! Me too! If I was Chunhua, I would have fallen for Smith as well," chuckled Jack.

Smith avoided any further eye contact with the couple. A lot many thoughts went through his brain. 'What did they have in their minds? Do they mean to say that they both have crush on me?' thought Smith as he forced himself to smile at them again, waiting for what's going to come next.

Jack continued. "Don't be confused Smith. I'll tell you what I'm thinking. I've been to Wang fashion house many a times now. And, I have been noticing Chunhua a lot. I think, she's a very sweet girl. I think, you two fit together perfectly! But.. But.. what a shame! exclaimed Jack.

The last sentence took Smith by great surprise as he sat still with his eyes wide open. 'Did they invite me to talk about Chunhua? But why? This is all so strange.' thought Smith.

"A shame? Why would it be a shame?" questioned Ning as he looked at Jack, and then saw Smith from the side of her eye, observing every reaction of his to the couple's words. "Chunhua would have to be the luckiest girl on this planet, if she were to find Smith as her life partner. Afterall, Smith is no less than Wang. Is there anything that Wang has, and Smith doesn't?" Ning asked Jack.

Smith sat in silence, as he listened to Ning and Jack discussing about him and Wang.

"Oh my innocent wife! If you analyse well, you'll find the difference between Wang and Smith," hinted Jack.

"I think you are right. On a second thought, I feel Smith has always been a step behind. I hate to say this.. but why is such an amazing man living in Wang's shadow?" wondered Ning as she looked at her husband.

"Yes, I always think about it during my free time," confessed Jack as he stared at Smith with his sad-like-puppy eyes.

Smith have had enough. He decided to interrupt this discussion, keeping in mind that he cannot offend Wang's uncle and aunt.