The Paranoid Female CEO’s Contracted Beauty (Omegaverse) - Chapter 15
Inside the narrow space of the elevator, Xu Qingyan could smell the light jasmine fragrance on Li Ge’s body. It was pleasant and alluring, but not overpowering. She couldn’t help but lean a little closer, wanting to lose herself in that gentle floral scent.
But just as she was about to take in a few more breaths, another scent hit her nose. Xu Qingyan’s relaxed expression immediately tensed up again.
It was the scent of another alpha’s pheromones.
In that moment, a feeling of jealousy Xu Qingyan had never experienced before surged from deep within her. Her mind even began to imagine dark thoughts. She wanted to press the omega against the elevator wall and sink her sharp canine teeth into the soft gland at the back of her neck. She wanted to erase all traces of other alphas from Li Ge’s body and leave only her own scent behind.
Li Ge seemed to sense the intensity of Xu Qingyan’s gaze and instinctively shifted to the side.
Her instincts were correct. Xu Qingyan really was having those kinds of thoughts.
But when she moved, Xu Qingyan moved too. The distance between them remained only a few inches, close enough that a slight movement could bring them into contact.
Li Ge hated this kind of closeness, but Xu Qingyan hadn’t done anything inappropriate. She couldn’t speak up about something so vague. She simply disliked that look in her eyes and turned her head to the side, pretending not to see it.
Xu Qingyan noticed her discomfort and stopped moving. Looking at the omega with her head down, quiet and obedient, she suddenly thought Li Ge resembled a shy little rabbit.
Her ears seemed to droop, her round face still held a bit of baby fat, and her whole expression was so soft and cute that it made Xu Qingyan want to reach out and touch her.
Her cold heart was momentarily softened by that sight. It made her chest itch, and she wanted to do something to this omega. But as soon as she remembered that Li Ge already belonged to someone else, she bit down on her lip without realizing it.
“Did you come here by yourself?”
Li Ge didn’t respond right away. She froze for over a minute before realizing Xu Qingyan was talking to her.
“No, my alpha dropped me off.”
So it was true.
The scent Xu Qingyan picked up wasn’t a mistake. “Why didn’t he come in with you?”
Li Ge hesitated but chose to answer truthfully. “I’m the one who needed to talk to you, not him. So why would he come in with me?”
That actually made sense.
Xu Qingyan said nothing more, but she remembered the things Li Ge had said the night before. Feeling a mix of confusion and frustration, she asked, “Didn’t you say yesterday that you never wanted to see me again? Why did you suddenly come here today?”
Li Ge couldn’t say it was because she had agreed to a request from her father, or that she came to prevent the Li family from going bankrupt. If Xu Qingyan knew the truth, she would definitely be upset. So she gave a nervous excuse.
“Yesterday… I was angry. I wasn’t thinking clearly and said some things I didn’t mean. Could you please just forget it?”
“Li Dahai asked you to come, didn’t he?” Xu Qingyan saw through her right away.
Li Ge’s heart skipped a beat. She quickly shook her head. “No. My dad didn’t make me come. I came on my own. It has nothing to do with him.”
Xu Qingyan knew it. News of that night must have reached Li Dahai, and just like before, he probably thought Li Ge’s attitude might affect their business and forced her to come.
She looked more closely at Li Ge’s face. There were no new marks, just a faint bruise left from the slap last night, no longer obvious. Then her gaze moved lower to the smooth skin of Li Ge’s neck, stopping at the small raised spot near the back—her gland, the omega’s most vulnerable place. If she just leaned in and bit down lightly…
Xu Qingyan suddenly felt her throat go dry. She swallowed and quickly looked away. Her voice was not quite steady as she said, “You clearly said you wouldn’t plead for her. If Li Dahai didn’t push you into this, why would you suddenly change your mind?”
Li Ge knew there was no way to fool someone like Xu Qingyan, who had spent her life navigating the business world. She hadn’t expected to be exposed so quickly. She had underestimated Xu Qingyan. This kind of alpha was truly dangerous.
If one day Xu Qingyan really decided to target her, she would have no way to escape.
Thinking about that gave Li Ge a strange sense of unease. What if Xu Qingyan never let her go, or came after her for some reason? What would she do?
That thought felt a little self-centered, since so far Xu Qingyan hadn’t done anything truly over the line. She had only looked at her a certain way. But Li Ge’s instincts were screaming at her to stay away, as far away as possible.
Without realizing it, she clenched the fabric of her shirt and edged toward the corner of the elevator. She tried to make it look casual, but Xu Qingyan noticed every little movement.
Xu Qingyan wanted to help her relax. She also wanted to explain that she wasn’t as scary as she might seem. But before she could say anything, the elevator doors opened.
In that instant, Li Ge darted out like a startled rabbit.
Xu Qingyan felt a bit disappointed. As she stepped out in her high heels, she glanced back at the elevator and thought the lift had moved way too quickly. It had completely cut short the rare alone time she had with the omega.
Maybe she should ask someone to adjust it.
She made a mental note to call someone later to slow it down.
Secretary Su had been waiting nearby for quite a while. When she saw Li Ge step out of the elevator, she gently pointed to a nearby spot.
“Miss Li, this way please.”
Li Ge nodded slightly, feeling a bit awkward. Just yesterday, she had said with complete certainty that she would never meet Xu Qingyan again. And now, not even a full day had passed—barely even half a day—before she came running back. It was honestly a little embarrassing.
Thankfully, Xu Qingyan and Secretary Su didn’t seem to hold her words against her, which helped ease the awkwardness.
“Please have a seat, Miss Li,” Secretary Su said after they entered the office. She handed Li Ge a bottle of raspberry juice, something she had quickly gone out to buy at Xu Qingyan’s request. “Chairwoman Xu said you’re still young and shouldn’t be drinking alcohol, so she asked me to prepare this for you instead.”
Li Ge paused for a moment when she saw the juice, then slowly reached out and took it.
“Thank you.”
Xu Qingyan followed her into the room. When she saw that Li Ge didn’t have much reaction to the raspberry juice, a flicker of disappointment crossed her face. It passed quickly, and she returned to her usual calm expression.
She sat down on the sofa across from Li Ge, her gaze once again drifting toward the omega.
Li Ge looked adorable. She wasn’t the type of beauty that turned heads with glamour, but she had a delicate, doll-like face that made people want to reach out and touch her. Her skin was fair and almost translucent. If she had a pair of bunny ears, she would look like a real-life rabbit.
Xu Qingyan kept her eyes on her, barely blinking. She seemed so focused that it looked like she was trying to memorize every detail. Secretary Su, watching from the side, couldn’t stand it any longer and gave a soft cough to break the tension.
Xu Qingyan acted as if she hadn’t heard. She continued to stare, though her gaze was less intense now and she blinked from time to time.
The atmosphere in the office suddenly felt uncomfortable.
Worried that Li Ge might run off again, Xu Qingyan decided to move straight to the point.
“You came to talk about the manager, didn’t you?”
Since it was already obvious, Li Ge didn’t try to hide it. She nodded.
“Chen Jie really did make a mistake. She even hit you with a book. But she knows what she did wrong now. I don’t think she deserves such a harsh punishment. Chairwoman Xu, would you consider letting her off this time?”
Worried that Xu Qingyan might be angry, Li Ge quickly added, “I know this kind of thing should be handled by Chen Jie herself. After all, I wasn’t the one directly involved, and I don’t really have the right to speak for her. But she truly regrets what happened. Could you please let it go, just this once?”
Xu Qingyan was genuinely happy that the omega came to her, even if there was another reason behind it. Just seeing her here made Xu Qingyan feel good. But knowing that Li Ge had most likely been pushed to come by Li Dahai made her feel angry again.
“Is that really what you want?”
“W-what?”
“You really want me to forgive the manager who bullied you and set you up?”
Li Ge was stunned. She didn’t know how to respond.
To be honest, she was not someone with a big heart. She believed in fairness—kindness for kindness, payback for harm. That had been her principle since she was a child. If she acted too forgiving now, it would only invite the same treatment in the future.
But if things really were as serious as her father had said, then she had to admit that coming here was, in a way, for her own sake too.
“If I said I do want that, would you…”
“I would do exactly what you ask.”