Sleeping With The CEO
Chapter 127: The Return

Chapter 127: The Return

Sometimes it was as though the world itself could feel it when you were having a rough time, and it would do little things to try and help you out. Emily had heard of such things happening to other people before.

Stories of people in abusive relationships who after years of enduring abuse had all of a sudden seen something that had reminded them of a loved one, someone who would not have liked to see them being hurt in any way, and just that small thing had been enough for them to gather up the courage to leave their abusive relationship.

Tales of newcomers in business who had been this close to just calling it quits and joining the day-to-day working class, slaving away for somebody else’s dream, but then they suddenly got an idea out of nowhere, and it was all it took to save their business.

For Emily, it was not anything so grand, nor was it for a massive situation like in the examples that she had just thought of. For her the reason for her worry was one Derek Haven. The whole situation with him was just dragging her down and for some reason that night dealing with it all, was just too much for her and she was not feeling very upbeat. The whole thing where she was constantly wondering whether or not he would come or if he would not come was really dragging her down. It was starting to affect even her energy levels and just her general well-being.

She needed something to cheer her up and she needed it fast. But she had no idea what to do to get her mood back up. But it seemed that the universe had noticed her plight, and had just the thing that she needed to bring a little joy into her life.

For the most part, Emily’s regulars did not come in on a daily basis, and even when she did see them more often than not, they were dashing in and out. And in all of her time at the diner they had never all shown up at the same time. But that night, things were different.

The first to show up was Ethan, pushing baby Ella on the stroller in front of him, and picking a table to sit at. He had just gotten Ella settled, on the high chair, and Emily was bringing their usual order when the doorbell jingled. She looked up and it was Marcus.

Unable to stop the smile that spread across her face, Emily waved at him with her free hand, the other one holding the tray that had Ethan’s order.

With Ethan sorted, Emily made her way to Marcus. And just like with Ethan, a few minutes earlier, the very moment that she set his food down the doorbell jingled again. And when she turned, there was Miss Beth. Her laughter, reaching Emily before the older woman did. She was in a bright pink dress, the hem of it shimmering, her huge hoop earrings glinting in the light. "Well, hello there, love," She called, making her way deep into the diner. When she reached Emily, she was not as formal as the others. She did not nod in greeting. Instead, she grabbed Emily and pulled her into a tight hug. Like an auntie that Emily had not seen in a while, who had missed her dearly. It was all Emily could do to stop from returning the hug. Once Miss Beth was settled, her strawberry yogurt and fruit in front of her. Emily made her way to the counter where she usually stood in between orders, but this time her shoulders were not slumped. Instead her back was straight and she was smiling slightly as she wiped the counter. There was just something about having all of her favourite people under the same roof at once that made her feel all warm inside.

She had really needed this.

Watching all of them, Emily wanted to throw aside all professionalism, head over to them and say, ’all of you are some of the best people I’ve ever met. You brighten my night each time. Stop sitting so far apart. Come closer, get to know each other, I think that the three of you will get along like a house on fire. Please give friendship a go, for me. Trust me, you will not regret this.’

That was what she wanted to do, but instead she settled for watching them as they went about their night.

Ethan with his studying, Marcus focused on his latest book and Miss Beth on the phone already catching up on the latest gossip.

In the end, Emily did not even have to do anything to get them to notice one another. Once again, fate took that out of her hands, and put it right into little Ella’s tiny ones. The baby, tired of being ignored as her father studied, did something uncharacteristic of her.

She grabbed the apple slice on her plate and threw it with all her might. The piece of fruit hitting Marcus right at the back of the head. Miss Beth, who had happened to be looking up at that moment, gasped dramatically.

The apple slice had landed, but it was ignored. A few seconds later, Ella’s pacifier hit the same spot. There was silence and then Marcus slowly closed his book. Then he turned around. He looked from Ella to the floor.

The pacifier and the apple slice had landed next to each other. He looked from the pacifier and the apple piece back to her. Then he leaned down and took the two in his hands. The apple piece he threw in the nearest bin. As for the pacifier, he took it over to Ethan who was busy blushing bright red, while trying to admonish the little girl.

"Ella, we do not throw things, we don’t throw food, bad girl," He was saying.

But Marcus was unbothered. "It’s all right, I am sure she did not mean it. Did you now, little Ella?" She hid her face behind her hands, nodding lightly.

She might not have understood all that was being said, but she clearly knew that she had done something wrong. "Sowwy," She said. And Marcus gave her a smile. "It’s all right little one, just don’t do it again," He handed the pacifier to Ethan who took it and put it away, clearly going to clean it later when they were back home.

While Ethan was admonishing Ella, Marcus looked over and he happened to catch sight of something he recognised in Ethan’s notes.

"Oh, I would change that last paragraph if I were you. It seems more like you are taking the authors’ words exactly as they are instead of interpreting them,"

The two men instantly got lost in an academic debate. Marcus not even bothering to sit down.

And Ella, sensing an opportunity somehow managed to get her hands on the pacifier again. This time when she threw it, it landed right in front of Miss Beth. And she picked it up without even wasting a moment. She had been listening in ever since the two men had started talking.

As she made her way to the table there was confidence in her steps. "Well there little lady, you have quite the aim. Twice now I have seen you through that thing," She said, handing it to Ethan once more. This time he put it in her carrier bag. Ella, seeing her weapon of choice taken away looked heartbroken. But she soon forgot all about it. Her focus on mashing her food, with her hands.

"You know, I might have a trick that will help with that,"

"I happen to be quite the knitter. I’ll knit a string to hold the pacifier and you can use a clip to attach it to whatever she is wearing. That way she can still suck on it, but she won’t be able to use it as a weapon,"

"Really?" Ethan was looking at Miss Beth like she had just offered him a million in cold hard cash.

Miss Beth, who was the more forward of all three of them, grabbed a chair, not just for herself, but for Marcus as well and the two of them sat with Ethan and Ella, conversation flowing smoothly at the table and Emily felt her heart swell. She was witnessing the start of something amazing.

That much she was sure of. So busy smiling at them, Emily nearly did not want to look up when the doorbell jingled again. But seeing as it was her job to serve the customers, she forced her eyes away from the quartet and looked up, and her heart promptly halted for a few seconds. He was back.

Derek Haven was back.