Perfect CEO

Patrick had clearly seen Gwendolyn remove his shirt last night with his own eyes. She's trying to push the blame on Ms. Ziegler.

He smirked knowingly and shot her a glance. Suspicion flitted through his piercing gaze.

“I remember seeing you take it off last night,” he insisted.

His accusation caused Gwendolyn to blush.

D*mn it!

The gears in her mind turned, and she explained, “You must have imagined it. You had a lot to drink last night, after all. Ms. Ziegler was the one who took off your clothes for you. She even wiped your body. It would have been too awkward for me to do these things otherwise.”

Gwendolyn admirably kept her composure as she lied through her teeth. Patrick deepened his scrutiny.

Suddenly, he pulled off the covers and stood up.

Gwendolyn's eyes widened in shock at the sight of his cut figure. Her eyes strayed to the region of his manhood, and she barely stopped herself from gaping.

Isn't this too much?

She hurriedly spun around and stammered, “I washed and dried your clothes for you. Just wait here while I get them for you.”

Gwendolyn practically sprinted from the bedroom to the balcony. She grabbed his clothes from the laundry rack and draped them over her arm.

Her brows scrunched in confusion as she stared at the clothes. Why are they so crumpled?

She belatedly realized that all his clothes were custom-made, and water was their biggest enemy. His clothes needed gentle dry-cleaning, and they could not withstand the rough tumbling of the washing machine.

Gwendolyn checked the labels on his clothes and stumbled backward in horror.

Dear God! This set is worth hundreds of thousands! I can't believe I ruined them! Is he going to make me pay him back for this?

She closed her eyes in exasperation. My relationship with money has become a rollercoaster ride since I met Patrick! Urgh! I don't want to cook and clean for him for the rest of my life!

Gwendolyn eventually hid his clothes and returned to the bedroom.

She hemmed and hawed as Patrick asked, “Where are my clothes?”

“Erm, Mr. Lowen, a thief stole your clothes from the balcony last night.”

It's a pretty convincing lie, right? Clothing theft is pretty common around these parts. I'm not exactly making things up.

She added for good measure, “Perhaps your expensive clothes were too eye-catching.”

Gwendolyn followed this up with a sheepish smile while Patrick's expression darkened.

“Did you ruin them in the washing machine?”

“Yes! I mean, no, of course not! I dry-cleaned them and aired them for a while outside. I didn't think they would be stolen.”

I already caught her in her lie. She's smart to claim they were stolen, though. Did she think I wouldn't make her “pay” for her mistake?

Suddenly, Gwendolyn piped up, “I'll get you something else to wear. There are some men's clothes here as they were for—”

She stopped herself abruptly when she realized Patrick would never wear someone else's clothes.