Bought For A Baby, Kept For A Lifetime-Chapter 296: Mr Sterling Is Quite Clingy

It had been at a new SE mall opening event in the city. Anne worked with marketing to create an eye catching advertisement for the mall.

Several models had been lined up to be the spokesperson for this event, however models only offered a pretty exterior, but they lacked enough substance to fully communicate SE’s main role.

Both marketing and the PR teams were frustrated.

Models these days offered the physical beauty that would be displayed, however why did many of them fail to embody the internal characteristics that would align with SE.

"Mrs Sterling, I know this might be too much to ask but... we’re running out of time." Rico Johnson, the marketing department manager seemed to be getting impatient.

He looked up to the stage which was yet to be designed and fully decorated for the event, atop which a gorgeous looking model stood, reading through the speech she was given robotically.

Anyone who heard the speech would know she was merely reading it out, unaware of the value her words carried to the company. It was akin to watching a child participating in a school debate, merely reciting what their teacher taught them and nothing else.

The marketing department manager sighed in frustration then turned to Anne again,

"Callisa is the fifteenth model this week, the FIFTEENTH!" He emphasized with frustration dripping in his voice.

"These models are very good at keeping a pretty face, they’ll smile at the camera and be sexy when they need to be but that’s about it, I don’t know how many more models we’ll have to go through before finding the one we’ve been looking for but we don’t have time, if Callisa becomes spokesperson this event will fall flat."

Anne could also see where the problem laid. If it had just been a commercial ad where all they needed was the model’s outer beauty, it would have been much easier, however being a company’s spokesperson required strict attachment between the model and the company, if the model made no effort to know the core of what they were speaking up for, it would without a doubt fall flat, that was exactly why many of the models they had tried kept failing over and over again.

"I know what you mean Mr Johnson, Callisa is very beautiful and smart, it would have been wonderful if she could cover the speech better than the others." Anne said, looking worriedly to the stage where once again, the model forgot the speech and had to look down at the paper again.

"Absolutely, Mrs Sterling, but at this point I’m sure we can both agree that this won’t work out. The event is in six hours and we don’t have a spokesperson yet."

Anne sighed feeling a silent headache coming on.

She recalled Andrew’s strict reminder that if the project proved to cause her any stress, she should drop it to another team, however, Clara who was the leader of the second team had apparently gone on vacation and was yet to return, HR seemed to have granted her all the time she wanted and she was using it fully to stay off work.

But regardless of the stress she was under, Anne didn’t want to irresponsibly dump the project, all the weight would go to the marketing team alone or to her team members who struggled to work coherently without a leader.

As the CEO’s wife, no one would question her, if she slept throughout the hours at the company without lifting a finger, no one would even look at her not to mention saying a word, however it was her job, and Anne was never one to abandon her own job especially when she was this vitally needed.

"Then what do you suggest, Mr Johnson?"

The man hesitated a bit before speaking up,

"Actually, in my humble opinion the only person who can embody the role of spokesperson is you."

Anne looked up at the man with genuine confusion and he quickly spoke up to elaborate.

"I know it might be a bit much considering your condition, but Mrs Sterling, think about the great marketing opportunity this would bring. As the wife of Andrew Sterling, being our spokesperson will only be natural right? It’s publicity the media and the general public would eagerly consume."

Anne’s pregnancy was no longer a hidden fact in the company, the few women Clara had gossiped to about Anne, upon finding out she was Andrew’s wife immediately realized how they had misjudged Anne.

And it was the kind of misjudgement that could cost them their jobs, hence they had bought in apology gifts, fawning over Anne for a whole week straight, which Anne clearly knew it was for her to let them off for the way they had spoken to her the other day and about the fact that they had spread word of her being pregnant after hearing it from Clara.

In the end, just to get them to back off and stop repeatedly trying to get on her good side, Anne had played the role of the merciless woman they thought she might be by strictly warning them to never offend her again.

Since it was something they expected of her, they had been quivering and shaking, gladly telling Anne they would happily serve her if she wanted them to.

It was in these moments that Anne came to see what Andrew would always talk about, the miraculous way a single name that held power could change the way others treated you. 𝘧𝓇ℯ𝑒𝓌𝑒𝑏𝓃𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭.𝒸ℴ𝓂

A single name, made everyone almost bow to the ground Anne walked on, but alas, this type of power wasn’t something she was interested in. What mattered most to her was the happiness and safety of the people she loved the most, for that she could do absolutely anything.

Anne thought about it logically, she couldn’t disagree with Mr Johnson that her taking the role of spokesperson would be the greatest marketing point for the launch, but for that she would have to act as a model again. Since it didn’t require her body, but merely showing her face in the ads and the launch event, Anne decided to do it.

"Alright, but on one condition." Anne agreed making Rico Johnson’s eyes sparkle like he had stars in them.

"Anything, Mrs Sterling." He immediately agreed without a question.

"I will be the spokesperson, but I’ll work alongside Callisa. She has worked hard to try to meet our requirements for this event, I don’t want her to be sent away like all the other models have been."

It was a very simple request, so Mr Johnson didn’t oppose to it.

The whole team began to prepare, and that evening the launch event took place.

When Anne appeared on the stage, the reporters, paparazzi and every media person in attendance went wild.

Capturing the face of the legendary Andrew Sterling’s wife became their main goal for the evening.

The speech Anne presented was broadcast on live television. Many in awe of her gentle wit as she said every word, resonating with the core values of the great Sterling Enterprises everyone knows.

When the speech ended, the launch party officially began. Elder Sterling took Anne with him, proudly introducing her to some of his high acquaintances. He openly showed off his granddaughter-in-law to anyone and everyone who would listen, but a while later when Andrew arrived at the event, he cleverly swept her away from his grandfather’s bragging arms.

The party was still in full swing, so Andrew guided Anne to a quiet corner where she could recharge from the event’s hectic surroundings.

The terrace was quiet and made the sound of the launch party seem distant.

"My wife has been a lot busier than I am lately, she no longer has time for me." Andrew complained the second he got her alone, hugging her close to his chest while murmuring against her neck.

"Your wife is working this hard so she can be able to carry her own weight, she wants to earn through her own hardwork and make a name for herself." Anne replied as she hugged him back, relaxing when his scent drifted into her nose.

It was amazing how he could calm her just by being near. With him, it felt like all the noise in the world had suddenly gone quiet.

Andrew’s lips quirked to the side as he heard her voice.

"With a husband as rich as me, Annelise, right now you’re the wealthiest woman alive. If my wealth doesn’t satisfy you, as the Sterling family’s future matriarch you can easily control any wealth or asset under the Sterling name. Even if you don’t lift a finger from now on, you can still live a life full of luxury."

Anne knew if it were left to Andrew, he would much rather she didn’t work at all, not because he wanted to keep her tied down under control but because he constantly worried for her. He would text her almost every second of the day, asking if she had eaten, if she felt sick or tired. Anne felt like he was her personal bodyguard himself with how constantly he checked on her.

"You’re just saying that so you can be able to see me everytime. Mr Sterling is quite clingy." Anne joked lifting her head to look up at him.

"I’m not...clingy, I just want to take good care of my wife." He replied, lowering his head to steal a light kiss.

"And you’re doing a good job so far."

"Really? Then how about a reward for your husband?"

"What kind of reward does my husband want?"

He leaned down to whisper something in Anne’s ear which caused her to giggle lightly but the sound stopped when she glimpsed something over his shoulder...

Someone.

Anne’s expression immediately changed.

"What’s wrong?" Andrew asked immediately he noticed the change in her demeanor.

"Nothing, I’ll just... I’ll be right back, okay?" Anne gave him a light smile before going past him.

This woman...

This was the third time Anne was seeing her around them now, and for some reason she had an idea who it could be.

The person who was said to have gone on vacation, might not have gone anywhere after all.

Though Anne still couldn’t see this person’s face, something in her told her this person was none other than Clara Hastings.

But she soon realized that her assumption was wrong, when Anne followed the woman who wore a black evening gown with an elegant looking cape on it, which everyone would believe was worn out of style due to the high class event but Anne knew from the woman’s aura that it was her who she had been seeing for several times now, the woman quietly entered the restroom unaware that Anne was on her tail.

When Anne followed her into the restroom cornering her where she wouldn’t be able to flee like the last times, Anne stared at her back with curiosity and confusion in her eyes as the woman calmly turned around and took off her cape to reveal a strange yet familiar face.

Andrea Walters!